Mirajane knew something was wrong with her the moment she woke up in this unfamiliar room last night.
"Hey Mira! How are you feeling today?" Lisanna asked as she poked her head into the bedroom. Her bedroom, Mirajane reminded herself. It was as unfamiliar as the nickname that her sibling's called her.
Mira. It seemed like such a simple shortening of her name, but she knew it wasn't right. That she was called something else. But no one seemed to know either, so she just went along with her siblings. She turned away from looking out at the night sky to respond to her sister. "I'm feeling great. I think I'll take that trip to the Fairy Tail tomorrow with you and Elfman."
Fairy Tail. A Mage's Guild that she was a member of. She remembered that much, but it didn't quite sound right. She brought a hand silently down to the mark on the outside of her left thigh. Whenever she thought about the guild, a phantom pain seemed to shoot through her leg. Everyone talked about how amazing a place it is, so why did she flinch every time the name was mentioned.
"That's good to hear! I'm sure seeing everyone again will help jog your memory." Her sister let out a smile, and Mirajane had to stop herself from staring too hard at the scars adorning her siblings face. She still couldn't believe that she was responsible for it. "But speaking of seeing others, some of our friends stopped by and they really want to check in on you. Is that fine?"
"Of course! You know I wouldn't say no to friends." Mirajane was honestly relieved to have the chance to finally meet another person besides her siblings. She mind was still scrambled, and she felt so lonely waiting for the strength to see everyone return to her. She prepared herself as Lisanna quickly left the room to retrieve her mysterious visitors. A moment later, the door nearly slammed open as a pink-haired man barged in.
"Hey Mira, how are you doing?" The man asked boisterously, quickly walking towards her bed.
"Dial it back a notch! We were told to go easy on her!" A blond-haired woman shouted behind him, dragging him away by the scarf.
As the two of them bickered, Mirajane felt their names bubble forth from within her clouded mind. "Lucy! Natsu!"
"So you do remember!" Natsu said cheerfully, turning to Lucy. "See, told you there was nothing to worry about!"
"Well, I'm glad one of us isn't losing sleep over this then." Lucy let out a sigh, before turning to Mirajane. "I'm glad you're better now. I wanted to wait until you were up and about, but somebody insisted on visiting now. I'm really sorry!"
"It's fine Lucy. Really, I'm just glad to see anybody at all. It's been so boring just sitting around in this room all day." Mirajane admitted. After Lisanna entered the room and they made small talk, she looked the two guests over and couldn't help but notice how different they were acting compared to usual. She let out a little laugh to herself.
"Huh? What's so funny?" Natsu asked nervously.
"Oh, nothing. You two must have been worried sick about me though, with how different you guys are acting currently." Mirajane explained.
"R-Really?" Lucy looked confused.
"I feel pretty fine to me." Natsu admitted, looking over at Lucy as if for confirmation.
"Oh come on Natsu, you don't need to act so tough. We all know you can't handle talking to people normally unless it's from inside a vehicle." Mirajane said playfully. She turned to Lucy next. "And Lucy, normally you're so much more… aggressive? It's nice to see you be more honest about caring for your guildmates."
She expected some sort of response, but all she got was deafening silence as everyone looked at her in confusion. It didn't take a genius to realize that it was something she had said. Lisanna was the first to respond, getting up from her seat and sitting on the bed next to her.
"Mira… Are you sure you're feeling fine?" Mirajane could feel the nervousness in her sister's voice. She knew she had said something wrong, but couldn't
"Is something wrong? Was it something I said?"
"I just think your memories might be a bit… mixed up still." Lisanna said, putting a hand on her lap reassuringly. "Natsu has motion sickness, and Lucy is always up front about how she cares for everyone in the guild."
"Oh? R-Really?" Mirajane glanced back at the other two in the room. She tried to fit what Lisanna had told her with the people in front of her, but it just didn't feel right. "I'm sorry, I'm just having a hard time imaging it."
"We can go put me on the nearest cart to prove it, if that'll help?" Natsu suggested, and everyone else gave him an unimpressed look.
"It's not that I don't believe you, Natsu. Lisanna's probably right, I'm just a bit mixed up still." She gave her friends a reassured look, which seemed to assuage their worry. "I'm sure when I visit the guild tomorrow everything will come rushing back to me."
Unfortunately, Mirajane's trip to the guild did nothing to grow her worries. She had been walking around for most of the morning with her siblings, greeting all her friends as if for the first time. She could name nearly every member she talked to, but nothing about them lined up, just like with Natsu and Lucy.
Cana was a borderline alcoholic instead of a proper lady. Gray couldn't keep his clothes on instead of being bundled in far too many. Levy was Lucy's helpful friend, instead of a mean-spirited rival. Bisca and Alzack weren't making out in the middle of the room, even if they were still head over heels over each other. She could understand getting a couple facts about her friends mixed up, but imagining everyone as nearly complete opposites of each other? It bordered on insanity, and each new old friend she met only increased her growing paranoia.
The worst part was that she was surprised they were her friends at all. For some reason, whenever she talked to someone, she expected an angry glare or snappy retort, not smiles and worried questions. It made Mirajane feel worse with each re-introduction, that she seemed to think so little of her own friends now. And speaking of little…
"You're Wendy?" She stared down at the blue-haired preteen in front of her with unrestrained bafflement. She simply couldn't contain her reaction this time. Her mental and 'real' image of Wendy went far beyond a different personality. "But you're so… small."
"W-What?" Wendy also looked shocked at her. "How did you remember me then Mira?"
"I thought you were closer to my age, and had bigger… you know." Mirajane looked away in embarrassment. To get something so large (or in this case, not) mixed up felt completely humiliating.
"What!?" Wendy's cheeks also went red at her implication. She stuttered for a moment before properly responding. "Maybe you got me mixed up with my sister? I know you and Erza hang out a lot so maybe-"
"Wait, hold on." She interrupted the girl mid explanation. She knew it was rude, but what Wendy had just said blew everything else she had re-discovered about her friends out of the guildmates out of the water. "You and Erza are sisters?"
"Yeah?" Wendy gave her a confused look, before seeming to remember the woman she was talking to was having memory issues. "I mean, that's right. Her mom adopted me about seven years ago. I guess you forgot about that, huh?"
Mirajane could only to continue staring in confusion. She tried to pull some sort of memory related to Erza and Wendy together, but couldn't. Forget jumbled memories, this one was just non-existent. "I'm sorry Wendy. I'm having a hard time remembering a lot lately."
"Well then I hope you still remember me."
Mirajane turned around at the familiar voice, and immediately threw herself at the armored redhead approaching her. "Erza!"
"Mira, What-?!" Erza braced herself as Mirajane lunged into her arms. If she wasn't wearing the armor, she likely would have been tackled to the floor. "Well, I suppose this is a good sign."
"I'm sorry Erza, I just couldn't help myself." She continued to hold Erza in a crushing hug. She could feel the plates of armor digging into her, but she didn't care. "I feel like I haven't seen you in years…"
"I know, I've missed you too, but it's only been a couple weeks. Now can I breathe?" Erza asked understandingly. She reluctantly agreed, and the two untwined. "Lisanna told me about how you've been a bit mixed up about everybody. How about you just tell me what you remember of me, and I'll correct anything."
"Are you sure? Some of my mental images of you guys can be a bit… off."
"It's fine Mira." Erza reassured her. "We're friends, that's what's most important. The rest isn't that big a deal."
"If you're sure…" Mirajane closed her eyes and tried to dig deep into her mind. For some reason, memories of Erza came easily to her. As they coalesced into a single image, she finally opened her eyes, staring at the woman in front of her. "You're, well, Erza. You're my best friend. You're my knight in shining armor. You helped me when I needed it most. I know I can rely on you when I don't have the strength to keep going, or do something reckless. If I had to use only a couple words to describe you, I guess I would pick… reliable, caring, and stubborn."
"I…I see." Over the course of Mira's description, Erza's face had continued to redden, to the point it was nearly the same shade as her own hair. "That's certainly a colorful description. But it's not inaccurate at all, I suppose."
"Really?!" Mirajane let out a sigh of relief. She couldn't believe that her image was so accurate. Though considering how much she could recall of Erza compared to the rest of her guildmates, she shouldn't be too surprised. As she pondered her memories, one little detail about Erza floating up. "Oh, how do you feel about your mother? Just checking?"
"My mom?" Erza looked surprised at the question, glancing away perturbed. "I love her, obviously. Though I am a bit annoyed that she's been who knows where for the past few years. I think everyone misses her greatly though. A lot of us looked up to her…"
"O-Oh? I see…" Mirajane let out a sigh. There's the big difference. She knew it was too good to be true.
"Is something wrong?" Erza put a hand on her shoulder, but she shrugged it off.
"Nothing! Just trying to keep track of everything, is all." She couldn't bring herself to say what she thought of Erza's mother, or what she believed Erza herself thought. She didn't want to bring down the mood after getting so much right about her friend. Besides, what was she supposed to say? "Oh really, I thought your mother was the most horrible person in existence, and you told me you couldn't wait to put her head on a pike! I guess I got that a bit mixed up, so sorry?" Yeah, that wouldn't go over well. Best just to keep her mouth shut this time. It's not like any of that was true anyways. If Erza said her mother was a great person, then it must be so.
She tried to ignore the feeling of her guild mark burning like a thousand suns. She put a hand on it reflexively.
"Well, if it's too much then just tell us. No one will fault you for taking a few more days to rest, Mira." Erza said reassuringly.
"It's fine, really!" Mirajane insisted, flinching slightly at the nickname. It didn't sound right to her, and once Erza said it, she knew that there was something else her friends called her. "Um, this might be an odd question, but do you have a different nickname for me?"
Erza quirked her eyebrow at the question, but before she could respond, they were interrupted by an older voice. "Ah, Mira! It's good to see you up again!"
Mirajane turned to see Makarov standing in front of her. She couldn't help but feel her eyes tear up at the sight of him. "Master Makarov…" So, he really was here. For some reason, she thought he was dead, like her siblings. She had found that she thought that was the case for many of her guildmates, especially the older ones.
"It's good to see you too, child." Master Makarov said cheerfully. He hopped up onto a nearby seat and gave her an appraising look. "How are you feeling. Not pushing yourself, I hope? Otherwise Porlyusica will never let me here the end of it!"
"I feel completely fine. Well, physically at least. I'm afraid I'm still a bit jumbled when it comes to my memories." Mira admitted sadly.
"You still remember us, so the rest will come in time." Makarov said, turning to observe the rest of the guild. "Everyone will wait as long as you need. Come to anyone in Fairy Tail if you ever need anything. Oh, and I know it must be a shock to you, but you deserve to know that I'll be retiring shortly. After the festival at the end of the week, Jellal will be taking over."
"J-Jellal?" The name made Mirajane freeze. She knew that name was important, but not as one of her guildmates. But then from where? As if to answer her question, a blue-haired man walked over, a cheerful look on his face.
"Mira, I'm glad that you're finally up. You've sure missed a lot." Jellal said to her, but she wasn't really listening. She was too busy staring at him, trying to piece together where she knew him from. Some sort of instinct kicked in upon recognition, and she quickly fell on one knee. Erza quickly came to her side.
"M-Mira?! Are you okay? Does your leg hurt?" It did, in fact. It continued to burn as long as she stood in the Guild Hall. But that was not why she had knelt. For some reason, she felt the need to bow to the man in front of her, but couldn't quite explain why.
"S-Sorry! My leg must have cramped up." Mirajane weakly tried to play it off, ignoring the odd looks she was receiving. She could see Jellal giving her a quizzical look, and the pain in her left leg had grown to her head, producing a splitting headache. She needed to get out of this place, now. "I think I should go home and lie down. Good day!" She turned away from everyone towards the exit of the hall, but found herself taking a step back instead of forwards.
Floating towards her were three Exceed, each staying airborne with a set of wings. They casually chatted amongst themselves as they approached her, weaving around the many guild members walking about the floor. Mirajane didn't understand, why wasn't everyone making way for them, as they should? Why were the three fine with being inconvenienced by humans?
The blue one noticed her, and began flying towards her. "Mira! You're up!"
"AH!" Mirajane scrambled back, running into Erza and hiding behind her. Erza grabbed the approaching being by its scarf and gave it a disapproving look.
"Happy. I know you were told to go easy on Mira. Can't you tell you're overwhelming her?" Erza scolded the blue Exceed in her hand harshly. Mirajane's mouth dropped in abject terror. What was she thinking, openly berating one of them in public?
"Aye, sorry…" Happy said moaned apologetically as Erza let him go and he floated back towards the other two Exceeds.
"W-What just-?"
"Mira? What's wrong?" Erza looked back at her as if nothing was wrong, and she stared back as if her friend was stupid.
"Y-You berated him. In front of everyone…" She responded weakly, fear spreading across her as she cowered further behind Erza.
"Obviously. I can't leave it to Natsu or your sister to teach him manners. Er, no offense." Erza looked back at the Exceeds. "Someone needs to teach him proper respect, especially now that those others of his kind have showed up. He needs to set a good example for Fairy Tail, like Charla and Lily here."
"T-They're members of Fairy Tail?!" Mira said in a gasp, glancing at the guildmates around her for some form of sanity. "But they're Exceeds!"
"They're what?" Erza continued looking at her in confusion.
"Oh, that's what Lily says we're called. Right, Charla?" Happy said to the white-furred Exceed beside him.
"It is indeed." Charla said, glancing to the final Exceed with suspicion. "Though he still won't tell me how he learned that."
The black-furred Exceed, Lily, gave Mirajane a piercing glare. "I think the better question is how she learned it."
The sound of Lily's voice triggered something in her, and she looked at him with fear. "You… That voice…"
"You recognize me?" Lily landed on a nearby table and put a paw to his chin. "That can't be possible. I only joined a couple days ago, while you were recovering."
Mirajane was no longer listening to him though. All that filled her head was the image of a man in black armor with a massive red sword, standing over the fallen form of Master Makarov. She clearly recalled the voice of the Exceed in front of him coming from behind the armor as he brought the sword down.
"You fairies will fly free no longer!"
"Fairy Hunter…" Mira whispered, stumbling away from everyone. She needed to leave, this place wasn't safe. He was here! She felt her vision blur as her panic grew, and eventually her consciousness began fading. The last thing she saw as she fell to the floor was Erza running over to catch her.
Mirajane slowly felt herself awakening. She tried to think about what she last remembered doing, and when she did, she shot up in an instant. Glancing around though, she found she wasn't in the guild or her bedroom. The room she was in appeared to be made entirely of wood, as if she were within the stump of a great tree. She knew it was completely different from all the other houses in town, but there was something… homely about it.
"Hmm… What is this place?" Mira stared around the room, roaming her eyes up to the ceiling, observing the branches reaching across it.
"It's my house." An annoyed voice said, and Mirajane let out a surprised squeak as she looked back down to see an older woman glowering at her on a nearby stump-seat. "I see you're awake, finally."
"Um, who are you?" She looked at the woman curiously as she wandered around the room, cleaning and organizing the supplies strewn about.
"The name's Porlyusica. I'm the one who took care of you after you went and got in over your head, so be sure to remember it."
"Y-Yes ma'am!" She cried out, sitting straight at the elder's strict tone. "How did I get here?"
"You passed out at the guild. They say you had a panic attack upon seeing those damn cats." Porlyusica answered curtly, before her voice softened slightly. "What happened? Did you push yourself too hard?"
"Maybe? I don't know? You'd probably think I'm insane." Mirajane threw the sheets off the bed she was in, sitting on the edge of the bed.
Porlyusica just let out a huff. "I've been dealing with these crazy mages for over forty years. Try me."
Mirajane put a hand on her guild mark again as she thought back to meeting everyone. "I feel like… I've woken up in an entirely different world."
Porlyusica froze from her cleaning, slowly turning towards her. "What do you mean by that, exactly?"
"Nothing makes sense to me anymore. The first thing I thought when I first woke up and looked outside was how wrong it looked. And then the sibling's who I thought had died years ago just walked in and acted like I was the one who had died!" She felt herself getting worked up, and Porlyusica slowly walked over and sat by her side. "I keep meeting people who I think I know, only to learn that they're a completely different person now! There are Exceeds flying around and everyone just acts like they're cute mascots and not… Something else?! Everyone in Fairy Tail acts so nice, but all I can think about is how much they should hate me, and I don't know why!"
"Mira…" Porlyusica put a hand on her shoulder, but she threw it off, giving the older woman a glare.
"And stop calling me that! Mira this, Mira that! It's the wrong nickname, I know it is, I just… I just can't remember." She deflated, looking down at the floor. "God, I just wish I had forgotten everything, instead of doubting my own friends and family like this."
"… Jane."
"W-What did you say?" She looked up at Porlyusica in surprise. That name seemed so familiar to her.
"How does Jane sound to you?"
"Jane? Jane." She repeated it a couple times to herself, and found a smile finally form on her face. She threw her arms around the woman next to her in happiness. "Yes, that's it! It just sounds right to me! Thank you so much!" She expected some resistance from the grumpy woman, but when she released Porlyusica, she was just giving her a sad look. "Is there something wrong?"
"No, it's nothing important right now." Porlyusica snapped as she looked away, the sadness still etched across her face. "Is there anything else that is bugging you? I'd rather not have you wasting my time every single day."
"Well, I suppose there is one thing." Jane ran a hand down the outside of her left thigh. "I keep getting this pain in my leg sometimes. You know, where that mark is?"
"Your guild mark? You have one?" Porlyusica looked at her in surprise.
"Y-Yeah? Everyone in Fairy Tail has one, right? Shouldn't I have one then?"
"O-Of course." Porlyusica agreed hesitantly. "Now let me see it already, hurry up!"
"R-Right!" Jane quickly hiked her dress up, pulling the left side up until the symbol adorning her left leg could be seen.
"Heavens!" Porlyusica stared at the Fairy Tail symbol adorning her as she gasped in horror. "What happened to it? Is it not supposed to be silver?"
"Silver? But it was like this when I woke up though." She looked down at the black mark on her leg curiously. Her skin was red along the edges of it. "It's usually fine, but it hurt a bit when Natsu and Lucy came over. And at the guild the pain kept getting worse and worse. It feels fine now though."
"That's… concerning." Porlyusica bent down to inspect the mark. "Well, your siblings shouldn't be here for another hour or so. I suppose I can try and figure this out. Just a word of caution, I suggest you cover it in the future. The skin looks rather agitated."
"Yes Ma'am!"
"Thank you for taking care of me, Porlyusica!" Jane said with a bow.
"Yes, yes, you're welcome. Now try not to get into too much trouble." Porlyusica replied indifferently. She glanced at the young woman and softened slightly. "That said, if you feel overwhelmed again, please come back here immediately. Got it?"
"What? But I thought you said not to waste your time?" Jane tilted her head in confusion.
"I know what I said!" Porlyusica shouted back. "But your condition is also my concern. So it better be an emergency next time I see you!"
"Understood, Ma'am!" Jane said with a laugh, turning to leave with her siblings.
"Wow! I don't think I've ever heard Porlyusica ask for someone to come back to her place before." Lisanna said in amazement. "You must have been a model patient, right Mira?"
"Yeah, I suppose. Look you guys, can I talk to you about my nickname…"
As the voices of the three Strauss siblings disappeared into the forest, Porlyusica felt her stoic mask begin to slip. She sat on one of the nearby stumps and put her head inn her hands, letting out a defeated sigh. "Why did it have to happen again…"
"Why did what happen again?" Porlyusica looked up to see Mystogan standing nearby, having mysteriously appeared as he usually did.
"What are you doing here?" She asked him harshly. Her handle for human contact had reached its limit today.
"I came by to check on the guild for Fantasia. I sent Knightwalker to investigate a lead, so I'll probably be in town for the week until she returns." Mystogan explained casually. "Lily told me to come see you. I saw the Strauss's just now. Is something wrong with Mira's recovery?"
"She's not Mira…" Porlyusica muttered. "She's Jane."
"Jane? Isn't that what Knightwalker called-" Mystogan whipped his head back around to where the Strauss's had just left. "You can't mean… How can you be sure?"
"She's got memories of everyone, but they're all different from how she remembers them. She hasn't shown any signs of magical aptitude since waking up. She had a panic attack at seeing Happy." Porlyusica shook her head in disbelief. "Besides, didn't you hear what happened at the end of her rescue mission? I figured you would have filled yourself in?"
"The entire island was captured by Anima." Mystogan cursed under his breath. "I wasn't sure if it was the case, as it was too far to me to detect. Not to mention Erza seemed unaffected. But if that was the genuine spell, then where's Mira?"
"If what you've told me about it is true, then the two likely switched places." Porlyusica looked up at Mystogan with a glare. "You need to tell Makarov about this, now."
"But-"
"I know you'd rather continue your personal crusade, but this is beyond you now. You need to get everyone else involved in this as soon as possible, for Fairy Tail's safety." Porlyusica explained. She let out another tired sigh. "And not just this Fairy Tail."
Mystogan stilled. "What are you implying?"
"Did you know that Jane had a Fairy Tail mark on her?" She asked.
"What? But Edolas mages don't do guild marks. Not when being in one is illegal." Mystogan replied.
Porlyusica nodded grimly. "You're right, it would be inappropriate to call it a guild mark. I believe the proper term in this case would be a brand."
"No…" Mystogan let out a gasp. He gripped the staff in his hand like a vice, and Porlyusica could hear it creek from the strain. "Damn it, I can't act yet! They're too powerful here. If Knightwalker can find who we're looking for, then it might be possible soon, but if we act hastily, we could cause disaster for both worlds!"
"I know that brat!" Porlyusica shouted, jumping to her feet. She strode over to Mystogan and stared straight into his eyes. "So, stop trying to do everything yourself! You may have a responsibility to those elsewhere, but you're a part of Fairy Tail too, so let them help, Jellal!"
"I know. I know…" Mystogan looked at her sadly. "But I've already lost my first family. I just don't want to lose them too."
Mystogan slowly turned and leaved in his usual puff of smoke. Porlyusica just shook her head and let out one final sigh before turning to leave. Why did humans have to be so troublesome, no matter the world they're from…
~Elsewhere, In Another Place~
Mirajane rose with the morning sun, stretching as she left the confines of her bed and got dressed. As she continued getting ready for the day, she began to talk to herself mindlessly.
"Oh boy! I can't wait to see what the Queenie needs help with today! I never thought I'd be able to find such a kindred spirit in as weird a place as this, but I suppose it was just fate!"
She walked by the mirror, and couldn't help but stop and admire her reflection. Her body really was perfect. It's snow-white hair, it's sea-blue eyes, not to mention the curves. She hated seeing someone else have it, but now that this body was hers, she was positively in love! Though it was missing just one thing…
With a look of concentration, she called upon the negative energies that fueled her Curse and her ears transformed, now forming two white bunny ears from the top of her head.
"There, much better! Now, let's see who I'll get to experiment on today!"
The only issue was the ugly device wrapped around her collarbone, keeping the glowing purple crystal that housed her consciousness connected to this body. But that was unfortunately the price she had to pay for freedom… for now. Once that suit was all done, this wonderful body would be all hers forever.
'No, please! Stop hurting people with my body! Give me it back, you damn demon!'
She couldn't help but giggle at the voice, and she held up a hand to the mirror as if attempting to caress her reflection. She couldn't help but grin sadistically as she heard the voice continue to plead and beg.
"Sorry, but this body is mine now. We may have been interrupted in Galuna, but now I have all the time I need to finish my experiments. To start of with, I'll see if I can drag those demon souls out of you and use them for my own purposes."
The cries continued, but she simply laughed them off. She didn't care about some other woman's pain. She would make this perfect body hers, as she deserved. She was Lamy, the demon of jealousy, after all. And if she couldn't have this body, then no one could…
Next Chapter: Training Rings
