Laxus finally had enough. He stood up and marched over to a table and narrowed his eyes at the girl sitting there. She just looked at him with disinterest when he stood near her.
"Why do you keep staring at me?"
"I am not staring at you."
"Bullshit, you think I don't see you? You're not as discreet as you think."
Pandora clenched her fists under the table and glared at him.
"Hey, relax!" Wakaba laughed at Laxus. "Maybe Pandora's just got a crush on you or something! No need to be so harsh."
SLAM!
Laxus watched the girl stomp away without another word after she slammed her hands on the table when she shot up from her seat.
"I think you made her mad." Macao whispered to Wakaba after watching the girl leave the guild.
…
…
…
He threw his hands up. "Why are you yelling at me?!"
"Be… Because! You keep hanging around my sister, who do you think you are?!"
Laxus' eye twitched. "She's the one who hangs around me. I'm not going to be a dick and tell her to fuck off!"
"You should!" Pandora seethed. "I would prefer it if you did!"
Laxus stared at her with irritation. He didn't get why this girl was all angry with him for just socializing with her little sister. She liked to hang around him and people in the guild teased him about being Karissa's brother since they were growing close to each other. Wait. His eyebrows shot up. Was that it?
A smirk appeared on his lips when he realized why Pandora was all angry with him. "I get it. You just have a little sister complex, huh?" he teased her and she just looked surprised by what he said. "No wonder you keep—"
With click of her tongue, Pandora turned on her heel and walked away from him angrily. "Shut up!"
Laxus was seriously fed up with the oldest Sinclost. "This girl is weird as hell."
…
…
…
On Master Makarov's orders, Laxus and Pandora were forced to go on a job together. He knew what he was doing when he decided that. However, he figured that this would be a good way to get them on good terms once they got to know each other.
It was quiet. The two were sitting across from each other in the train and no one was willing to talk to the other. Pandora had made it clear that she hated him while Laxus just didn't want to deal with her at all.
The black haired girl peeked up at Laxus timidly and just saw him with his eyes closed as he listened to his music. This made her lower her eyes and look outside the window. She knew she was in the wrong but she just couldn't help but lash out like she did. It was her self-defense mechanism.
"… Hey, Laxus."
The boy opened his eyes slowly and shifted his eyes towards her, he didn't bother verbally answering her.
"About last time…"
Laxus only sighed tiredly and closed his eyes. The last thing he wanted was to talk about some argument she started. "Look, I really don't care—"
"I got mad at you because my sister relies on you. I don't like it. I'd rather she rely on me since…" Pandora trailed off, unsure how to finish the sentence. She narrowed her eyes and clenched her fists. Laxus reopened his eyes at stared at her with little confusion. "Never mind. Just… I'm sorry for lashing out at you."
The blonde mage just continued staring at her. He wasn't used to this version of Pandora. He was used to seeing the distant and angry looking Pandora that hated him, not the vulnerable looking girl that had an empty look in her eyes.
She was weird that's for sure.
"Good job, Karissa!" Pandora squealed and hugged her sister tightly in front of everyone.
After being informed of the situation and the reason why the girls could finally move, Pandora wasted no time in praising her sister. The younger sister kept a smirk on her face, it was always nice to get some every now and then. She enjoyed it very much.
"Well, this is Karissa we're talking about." Cana smirked. "She wouldn't let Evergreen take her down."
Karissa only rolled her eyes and huffed. "It took a little while because that damn woman kept flying around to avoid getting hit. Pretty damn annoying."
"Speaking of Evergreen…" Levy looked around. "Where did she go?"
"Erza brought her to the infirmary when she interrogated her to find out where Laxus is hiding." Bisca informed with an uneasy smile since she knew Erza's methods were going to be scary. "She already left after Evergreen told her."
"Juvia saw her leave." The blue haired mage added.
"I'd hate to be in Evergreen's shoes…" Lucy muttered.
Makarov grinned happily at the girls who were alright. "But now that you girls are back to normal, I have no intention of playing Laxus' twisted game!"
Bisca was unsatisfied with that. "But we have to teach Laxus a lesson after everything that happened or else he'll never learn!"
"And don't I know it!" Makarov huffed and crossed his arms. "I'll give him a punishment he'll never forget! Damn it, Laxus! You may have gotten away with a lot in the past, but not this time!"
Natsu held up his hand to stop everyone from talking. "Wait one minute. I agree with you guys that he took the wrong path, setting up friends and forcing them to fight against each other. But I can't help but go along with Laxus' goal of figuring out who's the strongest in Fairy Tail."
"Natsu." Karissa deadpanned and walked over to him. "You really going to turn a blind eye to Laxus threatening lives?"
"Well, not really." Natsu tipped his head with a shrug. "But like I said, this was to find out who was the strongest."
Karissa flicked him on the eyebrow. "Dummy."
"Hey!"
"You're really simple minded."
Natsu grabbed her wrist with a goofy grin when she tried flicking him again. "C'mon, you guys shouldn't get too angry at Laxus. Okay, gramps? And so…!" Natsu threw his hands in the air. "The Second Battle of Fairy Tail starts now! Bring it on, everyone!"
"Don't even think about it!" Makarov yelled.
However, while Natsu was ready to start the second battle royal of Fairy Tail, the entrance started glitching in red until a skull with a lightning bolt across its fast appeared. More red glitches appeared around the guildhall until they were surrounded by them. It was no secret that this was Laxus' doing.
"Can you hear me, old man? Same goes for the rest of you."
"What do you want?!" Pandora snapped angrily. Laxus didn't entertain her with a response.
"It seems that one of the rules is gone. So, I'll make a new rule now. In order for the Battle of Fairy Tail to continue, I have activated the Thunder Palace. You have one hour and ten minutes left. Do you think you can beat me? Or do you want to retire now, Master?"
Laxus didn't even wait for a reply since the screens started glitching out and disappearing, leaving nothing but his sadistic laughter to echo in the building.
"What are you thinking, Laxus?!" Makarov yelled, absolute furious and fed up with his grandson's game. "You intend to involve everyone, whether they have a connect to the guild or not—?! Ugh…" The guild master froze and then gripped the front of his coat as he winced, alarming everyone. He dropped on his knees while still clutching his coat.
Mirajane quickly ran off to find his medicine while the girls and Natsu were left shaken up by the sight. It was terrible to see their parent figure in pain on the floor almost curled up.
"Master!"
"Hang in there!"
Mirajane was grabbing Makarov's medicine from a nearby cabinet when she noticed something floating in the sky. When she looked out the window, she noticed that they were forming a ring around the whole town. Concerned by the sight, she quickly ran back to where everyone was and informed them about the strange things in the sky.
…
…
…
Levy gasped. "Are those… lightning lacrima?"
"And they're surrounding the entire town…" Cana grimaced at the sight. "Each of those lacrima stores a great deal of magical thunder energy. So, this Thunder Palace is probably… He's aiming it at Magnolia."
Lucy pointed at the sky worriedly. "So what happens if those things discharge?!"
Pandora rubbed her temples in annoyance. "The whole town will get struck by lightning."
Stressed by the situation, Karissa scratched her neck in irritation. "Laxus… that's too far." She whirled around to look at Natsu who was looking concerned with Happy.
Good. At least you get how serious this is now.
Bisca decided to take action by summoning her rifle and aiming it at one of the lacrima. She shot it and it was easily destroyed, leaving only but mere fragments that sparkled in the sun when they fell. However, Bisca was given a reprimand by the lacrima and was utterly electrified by it.
She collapsed unconscious on the floor.
"Hey! Bisca!"
Karissa gritted her teeth and narrowed her eyes at the lacrima. "It's has an Organic Link!"
A nasty consequence for destroying the lacrima in the air. Those who dare try and successfully destroy them will be struck back with the equal magic power to what they delivered.
The objective was clear. They needed to find Laxus and stop him.
With only the girls searching for Laxus, the probability of finding him quickly was going to be extremely low when they lived in such a big town. Even so, they needed to find him with haste or else so many were going to be hurt from his dumb game.
The female ice mage then stopped in her tracks when she remembered something.
Warren. He just returned from a job. Telepathy.
Karissa caught a glimpse of a member lying on the ground.
If I can find Warren, I can ask him to use his magic to tell those who have woken up from their fights to locate Laxus. With more people searching for Laxus, the faster this dumb game can end!
With a grin for her smart idea, she quickly ran towards the other side of town where she remembered running past Warren's body. She was just hoping he didn't get up and move. He needed to stay put until she found him.
"Um, excuse me?"
Karissa skidded to a stop when an elderly woman spoke to her. "Um, y-yes?"
The elderly woman smiled at her. "You're a Fairy Tail member, aren't you?"
"Uh, yeah." She nodded.
"My goodness, every single one of you are running around today. I wonder what's happening. Is everything alright?"
Karissa offered the lady a small polite smile. "Oh, don't worry. We're just gathering stuff for the Fantasia event. Some members didn't do their part so we have to work together to get it done." She lied easily with a nod.
"Oh, I see." The lady put a hand on her mouth and laughed in amusement. She waved her hand. "Alright, I won't trouble you now. I'm looking forward to the parade."
As soon as Karissa turned around and continued running, her smile just dropped and she grimaced for lying. She was a good liar but she didn't like lying to hide the fact that they were in a danger zone.
Ah damn, I forgot about Bickslow and Freed! They might get in the way of the search since they're the only ones left from the Raijin Tribe…
"Shit…"
Her mind was so focused on going back to the area where Warren was that she no longer paid attention to her surroundings. It was only when someone ran in front of her at the last second when she left an alleyway that she snapped out of her focus and slammed on her breaks. She let out a shout of fright and ran into the person after tripping over her own dumb feet.
It was Gray.
He all but let out a shout too when she barreled into him. He stumbled backwards from the loss of balance and eventually just fell back into the next alleyway up ahead with her on top of him.
They both groaned from the fall.
"My bad…" her voice was muffled in his shirt. Her nose was hurting a little.
"Gah… It's fine, are you alright?" Gray pushed himself up with his elbows.
"Yeah, thanks to you." Karissa pushed herself up with her arms. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I—" When she lifted her head, her nose just brushed against his and they froze. Both their eyes widened, dark blue looking straight into dark brown. Their proximity… they were way too close. She was still on him, and their faces were barely a few centimeters away. Awkward. Instantly, she recoiled her head away and immediately said the first thing on her mind after getting a good look at his face.
"What happened to you?! Who got you?!" Karissa grabbed his face that faintly reddened while she straddled him and stared at his roughed-up face to try and calm herself from feeling too much embarrassment. Nah. She was starting to feel her skin prickling from nervousness.
"Uh, B-Bickslow." Gray took her hands off his face and cleared his throat when he looked away. He took her hand and got back on his feet when she stood up and held it out to him. "I blacked out earlier. So, what's the situation? And what are those things in the air?"
"I took out Evergreen so Lucy and the others are fine. But now, Laxus set a new rule to his dumb game." She grabbed his wrist and tugged him along with her out the alleyway so she could point at the lacrima in the sky when they got a better view. "This is the Thunder Palace. Lightning will go off in an hour or so if we don't find Laxus and stop him."
"What?! But then the whole town is in danger now!" Gray growled, his face clouded in anger. But then he put his hands together to cast a spell. "We have to destroy them to stop his Thunder Palace."
Karissa quickly put down his hands and shook her head fast. "Don't! Bisca tried that and she got electrocuted from it! You destroy them, they hit back."
"Great, a stupid Organic Link spell." Gray rolled his eyes. "Big deal. So, what if we got zapped a little?"
"Gray…" Karissa frowned. "It's going to seriously hurt."
She had a front row seat to witnessing the effects of the drawbacks of destroying the lacrima. She didn't want that happening to the two of them. Finding another solution seemed much safer.
"It's better than letting the town suffer." He shot back easily which made Karissa a little at loss for words. But the longer she stared at his determined face, the more she agreed with him. He was right. What's a little pain in exchange for saving their town? It's not like they'll die from it.
Fairy Tail is known for being reckless anyway.
She chuckled with a smile. "I'm looking for Warren. Right now, only the girls are searching for Laxus, but I don't think we'll find him in time. I'm hoping some members will be awake to help with the search once I ask Warren to deliver the message. But I'm thinking we should just tell everyone to destroy the lacrima instead."
This made Gray smirk when she agreed with him. "Alright. I'll help you search for him!"
Karissa grinned and set off with Gray following behind her.
It wasn't easy finding him. To her immeasurable vexation, Warren had woken up and walked off somewhere, making their task harder while time was running out.
They were surprised Bickslow and Freed hadn't found them while they searched.
But when they did find him, Warren was scared shitless when Karissa and Gray's voice boomed behind followed by Karissa's icicles flying past his face.
When Karissa and Gray explained everything to Warren, the telepathy user was quick to use his magic and connect everyone together. Warren advised them to keep a hand on his shoulders so that they would easily be connected to everyone else.
"Everybody who's down, get up now! Anybody still battling, break it up at least for now! Every one of you, listen to me! Those things in the sky are magic about to rain down destruction on everything! All of them without exception, are going to attack the town! They're Laxus' magic! We're out of time! We all have to do this!"
"Warren, how did you know about the Thunder Palace?" Erza's voice questioned.
"You can thank me for that." Karissa replied for Warren.
"It took a while to track him down though." Gray added.
"That's Erza?!"
"You're not stone anymore?! Alright!"
Guys who were concerned about certain girls who had been previously turned to stone were reassured that those girls were fine. Van expressed a sigh of relief when he heard Pandora's voice.
"I'm sorry but my telepathy isn't getting through to the guild! But in any case, everybody who can hear me… Those things floating in the sky—"
"Warren, you jerk… Have you forgotten what you did to me?!" Max's voice snapped at Warren which made the telepathic user flinch. He quickly had a spazzy look on his face as he tried to defend himself.
"Max… Now's really not the time…" Karissa told him but he only scoffed in annoyance.
"If only you knew how he took me down!"
"Oh, that's right! Can you hear this, Alzack?!"
"You too, Nigy! Damn it!"
Gray's eye twitched as different arguments started echoing in his mind. They seriously didn't have time for this. He grabbed Warren and shouted in his ear angrily. "Save your fighting for later!"
"You got no right to say anything!" Everyone roared back.
Are you serious?
"Hey! Shut the hell up! You guys deaf or what?!" Karissa snapped, losing patience. "Didn't you hear what Warren said?! We're out of time!"
"Exactly! We need to destroy those things in the sky!" Gray yelled even louder.
"Guys… please! My ears…!" Warren cried. The two ice mages were going to render him deaf at this point.
"You'll get yours after we tear those things down!" Max yelled.
"Macao, you can't handle this! Sleep this one out!"
"What's that Wakaba?! Don't go putting airs, old man!"
Karissa rolled her eyes in relief and removed her hand off Warren's shoulder, everyone was ready to set aside their petty arguments. Erza ordered them to focus on everything in the south while she took on two hundred in the north. She got into position next to Gray and created at least fifteen clock hands of ice that were pointed directly at the lacrima, ready to fire off.
On Gray's signal, all guild members released their magic towards the lacrima, creating a plethora of magic shooting into the sky. Once every single one of them was shattered, the town was decorated in golden confetti from the fragments of the lacrima. It was a nice sight considering how it was the Harvest Festival, it was adding to the mood. It almost made Karissa forget about the pain that was about to come.
Almost.
Karissa blinked. "Ah."
All of a sudden, lightning that was worth fifteen destroyed lacrima was fired back at her and she was screaming from being electrocuted. Dear god it was more painful than what she imagined. Warren and Gray were also screaming in pain from the electrocution. Similar screaming was being heard all over Magnolia after bolts of lightning flashed.
The three of them dropped on the ground, utterly weak from the lightning.
Warren groaned. "Hey… Is it just me or do I smell meat?"
"No…" Karissa moaned and rolled to lie on her back. "That's the smell of our burning flesh…"
"Fuck..." Gray gasped and croaked.
"Is everyone okay?" Erza asked them all.
"Fucking dead over here." Karissa replied in a daze.
"Same…" Van gasped.
"That about sums up everyone's condition…" Macao groaned. "You okay old man?"
Wakaba clicked his tongue. "Shut your trap, Macao…"
Erza laughed a little. "Honestly, you are all reckless."
"Yeah…" Gray huffed. "That goes for you too."
After a few seconds, the connection was eventually cut since Warren couldn't keep it up anymore.
Gray turned his head to look at Karissa who was lying a few feet away from him and staring at the sky with a dazed look, mouth half-open and eyes half-lidded.
"Karissa… you doing okay?" Gray croaked.
"… Yeah…"
"You sure…?" Warren turned his head to look at her too. "You took out like fifteen of those. I only took out one… I can't imagine how painful it was to get fifteen times more than what I got…"
"It's not fun… but hey, it was worth it, right?"
Warren and Gray could only chuckle despite the pain.
"Yeah."
Home was safe.
Not long after, she just let herself fall into the embrace of unconsciousness.
…
…
…
Once the battle between the dragon slayers at Kardia Cathedral was over, everyone was more or less feeling better to get up and move. Warren went on ahead to find Max and apologize again while Gray was left behind with Karissa who still didn't want to move from her spot. She was still feeling out of it.
He was squatting next to her.
"Man, that lightning really hit you hard."
"No shit. My legs feel numb… I'll be fine maybe after an hour." She looked at him with an exaggerated look of pain. "Go on without me." She told him dramatically while trying to lift her hand.
"You sure about that?" He raised a singular brow at her. "You want me to leave you here?"
She dropped her hand. "No, I was kidding. Please don't."
Gray sighed and ran his fingers through his dark locks. "You're hopeless." He gave her an amused smile.
"You try getting hit by lightning that's worth fifteen lacrimas! We're not built like Erza!"
"I guess we gotta go like this." He shrugged and started helping her sit up while she just looked at him in confusion before gasping when he started putting her on his back. She didn't have enough strength to just slip out of his grasp and walk off.
Karissa frowned and didn't make an effort to cross her arms around his neck just in case he changed his mind. "Hey, you sure? We both got hit by lightning."
He suddenly jolted her up on his back which made her squeak in surprise. He laughed at the sound and started walking. "I can make it back to the guild like this no problem. Besides, you need help getting back... unless you were lying just now which I doubt."
Karissa softly rested her chin on his shoulder, slowly submitting to him. A little embarrassment is what she felt right now.
"Thanks."
"Don't mention it."
She fell silent for a moment, and he thought she fell asleep, until she lifted her head. "Don't I weigh like a whale?" she asked casually to try and mask a small insecurity. It was rare for anyone to carry her while she was conscious so she suddenly felt self-conscious about it. She knew she wasn't as light as a feather, no one was.
Gray glanced at her. "What are you talking about? You weigh just fine."
"Uh, well… I was just asking. I know I have a healthy weight last time I checked. But I was just curious if I was uh… heavy to carry." She admitted shyly, resting her chin back on his shoulder where the fur of his jacket tickled her cheek.
They started going down a short set of stairs.
He laughed lightly. "If I can run in a forest with you in my arms with no problem then you're not heavy."
That caused Karissa to chuckle in amusement on his shoulder. "Big boy Gray putting his muscles to work."
"You saying I haven't?"
"I might be saying you just have those for show."
"I'll drop you right now." There was a teasing tone in his voice.
"I'll bite your ear off if you try."
"No, you wouldn't."
"Wouldn't I?"
"You know what? I'm not going to try my luck."
"Good boy." Karissa grinned with smug for winning their little back-and-forth and ruffled his hair playfully. He rolled his eyes as her laughter vibrated on his back.
They were both grinning from their little banter. It was nice to enjoy a little moment of laughter after all that just happened.
As they walked in the street, she crossed her arms around his neck and sighed into his shoulder.
"You okay?"
Karissa hummed. "Just a little tired. I'm getting sleepy… I might doze off. G'night."
"Hey! Don't sleep! We'll reach the guild in less then three minutes." Gray jolted her on his back to wake her which she whined in protest for. She tightened her arms around his neck. "But you're warm and the fur on your jacket is freaking soft." Karissa nuzzled her face in the fur to emphasize her point.
"Seriously…?"
"Yes, now don't be mean. Lemme sleep a little."
He shook his head lightly. "Alright, fine. But don't get grumpy on me when I wake you up."
Gray just felt her hum softly on his shoulder, and she was already falling asleep in record time. His lips curved at her easy going attitude as he carried her off.
…
…
…
Unbeknownst to the two ice mages, Lucy was watching them from the side while she walked with Happy flying by her side.
"Hey, Lucy, what's with the creepy face?"
The blonde inhaled in annoyance at the blue cat's unnecessary remark. "There's nothing creepy about my face!"
Happy gave her an unconvinced look. "I dunno… you a had creepy smile…"
"Quit saying creepy!" Lucy snapped. Her finger flew up and she pointed at the two mages up ahead. "I was looking at Gray and Karissa. Those two are so close, it's pretty cute." She remarked with a small grin. "Don't they ever fight?"
"The last time they had a fight was when they were ten." Happy sighed and shook his head. "I heard Gray got all embarrassed when people started teasing him about liking her. He pushed her away from him and she fell off her chair."
"Seriously?!"
"Stop sticking so close to me!"
Gray flinched when he realized what he just did.
Karissa stared up at him in shock and disbelief.
"Gray!" Cana reprimanded him. "What was that for, you jerk?!"
"I… uh, I didn't mean to! Hey… Karissa…"
Karissa felt hurt and angry for being treated that way, and she just growled. She raised her leg and slammed it against her chair, pushing her seat towards him which sent him falling to the ground.
Without another word, Karissa stormed out of the guildhall without so much as looking back at him. Macao and Wakaba saw the hint of sadness on her face and looked at Gray with a pointed look.
Natsu, who had his hands behind his head, just gave Gray an unimpressed look. "Man, I knew you were a jerk but you just levelled up to mega-jerk now."
Gray looked down with a guilty look.
"Well, he didn't mean to push her off." Happy shrugged. "Karissa got all angry at him and kicked her chair towards him before giving him the silent treatment for two whole days. That's how long it took for him to apologize."
"Wait, why did it take two days?"
"Natsu told me she kept avoiding him like the plague. Laxus thought it was funny to see Gray all flustered and desperate so he also helped her run away from him."
Lucy giggled at the thought. "He must have felt really guilty."
"But they made up after Gray cornered her in the bathroom."
The blonde sweat dropped after a brief pause. "… The bathroom?" she repeated.
"Don't ask me, I wasn't even born back then. I'm just telling you what I heard!"
Lucy was guessing that Karissa probably gave in after seeing how persistent Gray was being. But still, it was interesting to learn how Gray was so determined to make up with her. It just showed how much their friendship meant to him. She could tell it was the same for Karissa too.
Erza stepped out of the infirmary and went to present herself in front of the members who were eagerly waiting for her. She gave them all a reassuring smile. "Due to Porlyusica's efforts, the Master's life has been saved. So relax. The Master will be just fine."
Karissa sighed in relief. That's good.
"That's wonderful!" Lucy happily smiled. "I was really worried for a while there!"
Gray grinned with the others. "Gramps won't go out so easily!"
"But the Master is no young man." Erza reminded. "If we pile on too many strains, he could take a turn for the worse. I ask that you all keep that in mind."
"But we'll still go through with the Fantasia in his condition?" Elfman looked unsure.
Mirajane smiled with a nod, her pretty face had a bandage patch. "It's what the Master wants. And you could say that his condition calls for something like this. However, he has agreed to delay the Fantasia to tomorrow night just so more members can participate."
The water mage clasped her hands together with an excited smile. "Juvia is also looking forward to seeing the Fantasia!"
Cana looked at the water mage in confusion when she heard her while she passed by her table. "What? Don't you know that you're participating?"
"But Juvia just joined!" the water mage protested.
"Well, we do have a lot of injured people! The rule is: anyone who can still move has to participate." Happy stuffed some fish in his mouth.
Lucy whirled around with a gasp. "Then I'm in it too?!"
"Again," Karissa gave her an apathetic look. "Weren't you listening to the meetings? And we kind of need you to now."
"Yeah." Gray agreed and looked over his shoulder. "Because they can't."
Sitting on a far away bench were the two Dragon Slayers: Gajeel and Natsu. They both looked fifty percent bandage after their fight with Laxus.
"But ahh, now that the Fantasia is getting closer… I feel like backing out." Karissa groaned and hid her face in her arms when she leaned on the table.
"Oh no, you're not." Gray leaned on his arm and lightly bonked her on the head with his hand. "You said you weren't going to back out, remember? You swore."
Karissa scratched the back of her neck. "But…"
Lucy blinked curiously. "Why? What's wrong?"
"Do you not like the Fantasia?" Juvia questioned.
"No... it's not that." Karissa lifted her face and jutted out her bottom lip to huff and push her bangs out of her face. "I have to wear this dress for the Fantasia… I don't wear dresses. I can feel the pre-embarrassment already."
"Right… you're more of a casual with pants type of girl, aren't you?" Lucy remarked.
Gray grinned at her suffering and patted her back. "It'll be nice to see you in one." He told her teasingly which only made her swat his hand away.
"Juvia won't lose!" The water mage suddenly proclaimed with a burst of jealousy that was directed towards Karissa who only gave her a confused expression. Gray and Lucy also looked at the water mage strangely.
"Huh?"
The hell, why is she staring at me like that?
All of a sudden, the guild fell dead silent. Lucy, Gray, Karissa and Juvia ceased their conversation and looked around only to find Laxus Dreyaer standing at the doorway of the entrance building. The tension in the air was thick when he marched in with his own bandages and his long coat fluttering behind him. He had fought Natsu and Gajeel inside Kardia Cathedral, and lost, hence the bandages.
"Laxus!"
"Why you…!"
"Where's the old man?" the lightning mage got straight to the point.
"You…!"
"No matter how much you hang your head, you think we'll let you see the Master?"
"Yeah!"
"That's right!"
So many people were now blocking his path, determined to get in his way and drive him away. That is until Erza stepped forward, silencing them all before giving him the information he wanted.
"Erza…!"
Everyone was beyond baffled that the S-Class mage was willing to just let him waltz in and see their Master after the chaos he caused. Laxus was making his way there while everyone watched with uneasy silence until Natsu just slid in front of him with muffled yells. He continued yelling incomprehensible sounds that could only be translated with the help of Gajeel. After a few more muffled yells, Laxus walked pass Natsu and went straight to the infirmary.
Karissa could only stare silently as the older mage walked off in silence. Her heart couldn't help but feel worried for Laxus and his upcoming punishment. She just hoped it wasn't anything too bad. Her bond with Laxus may have withered away but she still cared about him to some degree.
It was almost time for the Fantasia.
And Karissa was a nervous wreck.
Earlier, she had to timidly ask Mirajane to help out with her outfit since she had no idea if she was putting it on right. She was wearing an entirely blue dress that varied in shades with a white collar and front that was tied up with a light blue ribbon, azure bell-shaped sleeves. The only thing she was grateful for in her outfit was the slip on shoes she wore underneath. No one could see her feet anyway.
She was able to resist make up after fleeing from the designated makeup artists. Pandora had to fend them off since Karissa was practically hissing at them.
Pandora wore a similar dress to the one she wore during the Miss Fairy Tail contest, the only difference is that it was purple. She was also wearing purple jewel earrings.
She somehow met up with her brother, who mercilessly complimented her and teased her much to her embarrassment, and was hiding behind his back while they walked through the guildhall, not that it would help since her back was exposed anyway. Her brother was wearing a black overcoat with long sleeves that ended with white frill-like fabric over a white undershirt with a large collar that was folded over the collar of his overcoat while it was tied by a green ribbon tied in a bow, he wore white dress pants and brown dress shoes.
The Sinclost siblings looked like a family of nobles.
She eventually peeled herself off her brother who had something to attend to, and she leaned back against the wall next to a window, watching everyone talk and laugh. She was trying to calm herself down since her heart was beating fast. This always happened. She just got so nervous when she thought about how she shouldn't mess up in the parade.
I'm seriously not used to this… this dress. It makes me feel weird.
The black haired girl bit the inside of her cheek. She really needed to calm down or else her skin was going to get all itchy.
"Karissa?"
She flinched at the voice.
Timidly, she peeked at the person. Gray was standing there in his Fantasia outfit. He was dressed like a prince.
He looks… good in that.
She saw his eyes widened when he looked at her face, and then her outfit.
When Gray took in the sight of her, he was a little awestruck. No, he was filled with it. She really looked beautiful in it. Perhaps because it was first time he saw her in such an outfit. And for some reason he couldn't explain, the look of nobility suited her.
"Wow you look… beautiful." He breathed, blinking.
Karissa'e eyes widened at the compliment and she desperately willed herself to keep it together. The last thing she needed was to get all flustered when she was already nervous. She was expecting some teasing remark or something like that. She didn't think she was to see him so astonished by the sight of her. Did Mirajane add something on her dress that she wasn't aware of? That compliment was enough to get her even more flustered since she rarely heard that compliment directed towards her. But yet, she felt strangely empowered at the same time. He was in awe and she caused it.
She never caused someone to be like that before.
It made her be a little honest.
"You look great too." She failed to hide a smile.
"Thanks, I—"
"It'd be a shame and an embarrassment if you stripped off your clothes during the parade though. You're gonna look like fool up there in your underwear~"
Somehow the bantering just came naturally.
"Come on," he sighed and crossed his arms. "Give me a little more credit. I have self control."
Karissa giggled and tucked an annoying hair behind her ear. "To some degree, yes."
Gray blinked when he noticed she was wearing the earrings he for bought her in Novera. She didn't let the way he was staring at her ears slip past her.
"Oh, um, they told me to put something on my ears…" she started explaining before he could ask while reaching up to fidget with it. "So, I just decided to make my life easier and wear the ones I already had."
"It suits you." He told her simply much like when she did when he wore his necklace for the first time.
She smirked when she realized it. "You know me well, huh?"
His lips curved to the side. "Wouldn't it be odd if I didn't?"
"It would."
The two were smiling at each other. Gray leaned back on the wall next to her and they talked together to kill time. Karissa admitted that she was nervous about the parade but he reassured her that she would do fine just like she did every year. She knew she did, but she just couldn't help but feel nervous. That somehow brought them back to the memory where she and Gray had to set up a whole ice performance during the parade. They grinned and laughed when they recalled how there was a moment where Natsu nearly broke one of their ice sculptures during the performance and made them panic like crazy when they thought it would fall on the townspeople. The expressions they had on their faces when they looked at each other was absolutely priceless. They had to control their laughter during the rest of the parade.
Their conversation was cut short when Warren used his telepathy to tell everyone to get ready since the parade would start in less than six minutes. That was their cue to part ways and get ready.
When they approached some stairs, Gray held out his hand teasingly and said. "Lady Karissa."
Karissa deadpanned for a moment and then turned her head to giggle in amusement from how weird it felt to be addressed that way. She looked back at him and rolled her eyes. "Why, thank you." She drawled as she put her hand in his. "But seriously, I'm scared of tripping and smashing my face." She told him as she carefully took her first step.
Amused, he smiled and started going down. "I got you." He assured and closed his fingers around her hand and made sure she got down safely.
When Karissa parted ways with Gray, she hurried over to where her siblings were waiting for her. The nervousness she felt earlier had gone down a little thanks to her talk with Gray so she wasn't too self-conscious about the numerous pairs of eyes around her.
When she got there, Cana, Wakaba and Macao were there since her float was right after hers. Cana approached her with a grin and put her arm around her.
"Ready for the Fantasia, Karissa?"
"I guess, and I'm ready to eat when it's all over." Karissa poked her tongue out in from the corner of her mouth, already anticipating the tasty food.
"Ohhh, I'm gonna drink when it's all over. That'll be perfect to end my night!" she proclaimed proudly which Macao scolded her and told her to cut down on the alcohol for once.
"Always, drinking." Karissa sighed in amusement. Was alcohol really that addicting? She couldn't understand how Cana became hooked on it.
"Why don't you drink with me?"
"Sorry. Nope. Not happening. If you want, I'll drink water with you."
Cana groaned. "Again, you're such a pure child."
Karissa gave her a fox grin with a curt nod. "Thank you."
"Anyway..." Cana smirked and leaned her face closer to her. Karissa looked at her with an arched brow. "Lady Karissa being escorted down the stairs by Prince Gray, huh?"
Karissa knitted her brows at the titles. "Really? Lady? Prince?"
"Well, you do look like it." Cana pointed out. "You look so pretty though. I bet Gray also thought the same when he saw you."
Karissa recalled the memory of Gray complimenting her just moments ago. When Cana noticed she didn't respond, she looked at her face and noticed how blank her face looked. It made her eyebrows shoot up.
"What did our local stripper say when he saw you?"
"Nothing much… he just said I looked good."
Cana gave her a skeptical look.
"What?"
"Be a hundred percent honest please."
"I'm serious."
"Yeah, no."
"I'm just giving you a simplified version of what he said."
The card user gave her an exasperated look. "Give me the full version."
"Fine. He said… I, uh, looked beautiful." The word felt so weird on her tongue.
Karissa wondered why Cana suddenly had a smirk on her face.
Cana was good friends with Gray and Karissa since they usually interacted together whenever they were at the guild. So, she obviously got a front row seat of their interactions. But now, there was a gut feeling that something interesting was probably bound to happen because ever since the mind control incident, the two have been seen together quite a lot lately. The pain must have brought them closer.
Love is like a seed. Those kind of seeds were special since no one could really tell when it would fully bloom. It needs to be nurtured well so it can grow and blossom into love one day.
The black haired girl narrowed her eyes. "What's up with that smirk?"
"Oh, nothing."
Nothing, my ass.
Karissa didn't have time to question it since Master Makarov began his announcement for the beginning of the Fantasia parade. Everyone was completely ready for the parade. Fairy Tail had many members so not everyone could be on floats, not that it mattered since they could just float in the air or simply just walk next to floats.
…
…
As Karissa stared at the magic and the people around her, it made her feel exhilarated. The same was for Van and Pandora.
"It's the Sinclost siblings!"
"Wow!"
Karissa stood in the center with Van on the left and Pandora on the right. After a quick inhale, she used her wind magic to slowly circulate around the float while accumulating a bit of wind before flying upwards in a spiral of wind. Van reached behind him and touched the block of stone behind him, overhauling it. Pandora's hands glowed with light.
The gentle wind exploded, and crystals of ice glitter down. A moon made of stone floated in the air with stars of stone. The ice and stones were glowing in the air thanks to Pandora's magic. Then droplets of golden light fell around them.
"Wow! It's so pretty!"
The three of them smiled at each other. The Fantasia event reminded them of how glad they were to have come to Fiore years ago.
In the shadows, a young man with blonde hair watched the Sinclost family's float pass by in front of him. He had a soft look on his face when he watched their little performance.
The Fantasia was a success as usual. When everyone regrouped back inside the guild, the whole place was lively, and it got even more lively after Master Makarov praised them all for a job well done and told them to enjoy the final night of the Harvest Festival to their heart's content.
After changing out of their clothes and into more comfortable ones, everyone was filing out of the guildhall.
Karissa was dressed in some flexible fitted jeans, a black shirt and a blue sweater that she didn't bother zipping up. It felt so much better to wear the clothes she was used to. She stretched her arms and let out a pleasant sound before leaning against Lucy lazily who nearly stumbled.
The blonde raised a singular brow. "You seriously tired?"
"Nah. Just bored of waiting for the others— oh, look." Karissa straightened up when she found Natsu and Happy coming their way.
"Hey, Natsu!" Karissa greeted with a grin. "How are you feeling~?"
"Mppff."
Karissa laughed at the sound he made beneath his bandages which made Happy sigh. "You know he couldn't answer you properly."
"Obviously. Man, how are you gonna communicate without Gajeel the translator to help you?"
Natsu deadpanned. "Mmm, mffmph, mm, mphff."
Karissa nodded with a serious look. "Right, I know Gray is your bestie. You guys can hold hands and you can probably transfer your thoughts to him." She feigned an innocent smile while his face twitched. "I'm sure you'd like that, right Natsu? I'll help you hold his hand!"
"MFFMPH?! MMFFH MMHH!"
The girl only giggled in amusement when Natsu came up to her face and stomped his feet on the ground as he tried to convey his disgust. Happy and Lucy just sighed at Natsu. Karissa nodded with a lopsided grin and then ruffled his pink hair when he finished his sentence. The dragon slayer's shoulders just slumped and gave up when he realized it was pointless to protest when he was all bandages and muffles.
"What's going on here?" a deep voice asked.
"Oh, hey Gray!" Lucy waved him over when she found him walking towards them.
Erza appeared around the corner and joined them. "Is everyone here?"
Karissa nodded.
"Mpphff."
Gray put his hands in his jackets' pockets and grinned. "Then let's get going. I'm ready to eat."
Erza smiled and put a hand on her hip. "Yes, I'm quite hungry. If we get going now, I'm sure we'll make it in time to get seconds."
"Alright!" Lucy grinning excitedly, ready to try out some of the Harvest Festival's food for the first time. "Let's go!"
Karissa fell into step with Gray and then casually asked, "Yo, Gray, you wanna hold Natsu's hand?"
Gray turned his head and gave her a disgusted look. "No." he spat. "Why would you ask that?"
Natsu, who overheard her with his sharp hearing, snapped his head towards her and started saying more things that were muffled away. Karissa only grinned like a fox.
"Karissa…" Lucy sweat dropped with a sigh. "Stop antagonizing him."
From the shadows, the same young man watched Team Natsu from afar. His yellow eyes were fixed on the black haired girl that was talking with the Celestial mage. He wanted to walk over to her but his feet remained glued on the pavement. With a sigh, he ran his fingers in his hair.
"Okay, creep. Why do you keep staring at her?"
They turned their head and found Pandora Sinclost standing behind him a few feet away with her arms crossed. She looked at him suspiciously while she drummed her fingers. They didn't answer as fast she liked.
"Well, Laxus?"
"It's nothing."
Pandora arched a brow as he looked away from her. She examined him from head to toe and noticed that he looked ready to head out of town. But then she gasped softly when she saw something in his hands. The colour that stood out of the object was cerulean. It was a wireless headphone. There were flat lacrima crystal on its outer sides. It was a variation of the Lacrima Model.
Laxus was a fan of the Sound Pod model he was wearing right now. He wouldn't have a need for the Lacrima Model...
The older sister's face softened in realization but then her eyes narrowed as she stepped closer to him. "Really? After everything that happened? You just want to hide and not give it to her?"
Laxus clicked his tongue and shrugged off her hand when she grabbed his shoulder. "I'd just ruin the mood." He argued.
"Don't chicken out of this." Pandora firmly told him.
"You know she feels uncomfortable around me." Laxus shot back.
"Yeah, and whose fault is that?"
"…"
"Exactly. So, go over there and give it to her."
He couldn't. Laxus couldn't just walk up to her and give it to her no matter how much he wanted to. After doing some reflecting, he realized that, deep inside, he still was a soft person for her. He just became an ass as an adult and was too stubborn to be soft because of how rude and arrogant he became. He didn't want her to feel discomfort just like all the times he was around her.
She should just enjoy the Harvest Festival with her friends, that's all she should focus on.
Laxus watched Team Natsu turn around a corner, disappearing from his sight. He took that as his cue for his depart.
"Here, just give it to her for me." He turned to the older sister and held it out to her. "She could use a new pair since hers are old."
"She said it's broken."
"All the more reason why she could use this, now take it."
"No. Do it yourself, you coward!"
Pandora was trying to help him and her sister get on better terms, but her guild master's dumb grandson was being a stubborn ass.
With an exasperated sigh, Laxus just quickly put it around her neck before she could fight him off her. She said annoyed version of his name with a glare and tried to give back to him, but she froze when she felt his hand gently palm the side of her face. Her cheeks were tinted red from the sudden touch. Silence fell between them.
She locked eyes with him and saw fondness in them.
"You looked good in the parade."
"… Wh… What…?"
She stared up at him and saw a faint smile on his face just before he slipped off his hand off her cheek, leaving a warmth that she thought she forgot. Her mind went completely blank.
Laxus found it a little amusing how her toughness just melted from a simple touch. It made him want to see more of it. It's too bad he couldn't.
"Take care of yourself." was all he said before walking off. She didn't know where he was going. Her feet didn't make a move to chase after him. Instead, she just stood there overwhelmed from that simple touch that brought back the memories of the past.
Before he became so arrogant and rude, he was definitely a kind person who was easy to get along with if someone tried to get close to him. Karissa was proof of that. However, the youngest child of the Sinclost family wasn't the only person who had grown close to him. At some point, Pandora became good friends with him sometime after she apologized for being mean to him.
They became close enough to admit certain insecurities. Laxus was the only person who knew about what she hid about herself from her own family. Pandora was the first to know much the hated idea of being shadowed by Master Makarov with no way to prove himself.
Pandora groaned and planted herself on the ground where she proceeded to pull her knees up once she sat back against the wall. Her arms folded above her knees and she sighed after setting her forehead on them.
"Seriously? Now?"
Because the three that were on cleaning duty were asked to take on a last minute mission, Pandora and Laxus were asked to clean up in their place. The two didn't really have any complaints since they were free.
Their cleaning duty was basically just putting back the scattered books back inside the shelves inside the Archive room.
…
…
…
Up on a ladder, Pandora's eye twitched when Laxus didn't give her the book she needed. She whipped her head around and found him resting on a chair.
"Don't just sit there! Help me!"
Laxus yawned into his hand and then stretched in his chair. "We've been here for an hour already… I'm tired."
Pandora rolled her eyes. "We're almost done. Come on."
"If I knew it was going to be this tiring, I would have refused."
"So why did you even bother volunteering with me?" Pandora asked flatly.
Laxus didn't respond right away. "I was bored." He lolled his head away and closed his eyes.
"I smell bullshit." Pandora adjusted her footing on the ladder only for her foot to slip, causing her to shriek. Laxus' eyes shot open and his head automatically snapped towards her. He found her grasping at the tall shelf with a frighten yell which slightly tilted the book shelf, causing the books to rain down and literally scare her off the ladder.
She was falling.
Immediately, he shot up from his seat and shot towards her body that was falling with his magic. Once he caught her, they both fell on the hard floor and just waited for the rest of the books to fall. Two or three books landed harshly on his head.
The books were scattered everywhere on the floor. Laxus' arms loosened around Pandora who sat on her knees and groaned at the mess. They were almost done! Now they were going to stay in the Archives room until sundown!
Laxus sat up with her in between his long legs. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." Pandora exhaled a sigh and then looked at him worriedly. "Are you okay? I think you got hit on the head…"
"It's not… bad." Laxus' sentence slowed down when he saw her scoot closer to him and stand on her knees to gently soothe his head to a soft hand. The blonde mage just froze and stared up at the girl who tried to ease his pain. She looked as if she was the one that directly caused him pain. It was stupid. She didn't have to look guilty.
Even with that silly worried look, she was still beautiful.
Sensing his eyes on her, she pulled her hands away and sat back down her knees. She was confused. Why was he staring at her like that? And why did she have a hard time looking away?
They were completely ignoring everything around them as they stared at the other. Time just stilled.
Laxus was the first to move after who knows how long. His hand gently held her face as he leaned closer to her. Pandora's breath hitched when she became hyperaware of the closing distance.
The door slammed open.
"Pandora!" Van's voice echoed.
The said girl practically leaped away while the boy moved back to create as much distance as possible. When Van looked down, he gasped in surprise at the sight.
"Whoa what happened in here…?"
"Things fell." Pandora quickly replied. "What do you need?" she asked almost harshly. She was a little upset about the interruption.
"Erza is looking for you!"
"Ugh."
Laxus got back up on his feet and dusted his pants. "Go. I'll start cleaning up."
"Um, okay..."
…
That chance for a kiss never happened again.
...
...
...
"I can't believe we ate that."
"It wasn't bad if you ask me."
Karissa cleaned her fingers with a napkin. "I guess. I mean, we've eaten weirder food on Galuna Island."
"Those villagers made good food." Gray remarked. "Or that might just be how I remember it since I didn't eat anything in hours..."
Team Natsu went their separate ways a few minutes ago after eating a bunch of food together. Erza was the first to separate since a group of interviewers from Sorcerer Weekly wanted to ask her questions. Erza was more than happy to oblige. Lucy followed Natsu and Happy after they spotted some good steak around the corner. Gray and Karissa used that opportunity to check out the stands on Crescent Moon street. They weren't exactly planning on eating too much since they were full.
But somehow, they ended up eating duck fetus at a table near a street lamp.
According to the vendor they bought it from, it was a popular street food in Bellum, a country in east. Gray was the one who was a little interested after the vendor said that only those with balls could actually eat it. Karissa ended up getting one too after she saw him buy one, but she immediately regretted it when reality sank in.
After a couple of uneasy laughs and weird expression, they fully ate it. Turns out, it wasn't as bad as they thought it would be.
"Would you eat another?" Karissa wondered curiously after she balled up the eggshells into the napkin.
"To be honest, yeah." Gray shrugged and pitched his balled up napkin into the nearest trash can. "It's really not that bad. Would you?"
Karissa threw her own and then let out a disappointed sound when it missed. "I think I would." She got out of her seat and went to throw it inside the trash can. "I don't know why, but I feel like I ate this once in my life."
Gray looked at her skeptically. "I doubt you'd forget eating a duck fetus."
Karissa laughed and shrugged when she sat back down. "Who knows, maybe my parents fed it to me when I was too young to comprehend anything, and the memory of eating it just stayed with me. Maybe I was traumatized and I still have a slight memory of it. Who knows?"
Gray snickered at the thought of a young Karissa freaking out and screaming at a duck fetus that her father would be holding out to her. She'd probably grab it and fling it away.
As he snickered away at his own imagination, Karissa looked at his left hand that was resting flat on the table. She could see a line below his knuckles, the scar she gave him. Her body leaned forward to take his hand in hers. His hand was bigger than hers. Gray blinked and looked at her when he felt her touching his hand and inspecting his scar. He didn't mind if she was a little curious about it. His eyes looked at her face to read any sign of guilt on her face, he found none to his relief.
"Good thing it wasn't your right hand." Karissa glanced up at him with a small grin as her finger lightly traced the scar in his palm. "I would have really felt bad for damaging your dominant hand."
Her feather light touch was ticklish.
Gray smirked. "Could try to be ambidextrous though."
Karissa put down his hand. "That would be hard."
"That's why there's something called 'practice', stupid."
"Yeah, yeah."
With how she was leaning on the table, she was able to get a good close up of his face.
Mirajane's question echoed in her head.
"Don't you find him attractive?"
She'll answer directly in her head.
Yes. Gray was attractive. She stood by what she told Mirajane, puberty was nice to him. It's not like it wasn't obvious either.
And wait. Now that she thought about it, he had a nice body too. She wasn't exactly crazy about seeing shirtless men (probably from seeing Gray shirtless all the time). However, if she had to pick a preference, she preferred guys who were muscular like Gray and Natsu. Too much muscle just basically turned her off since she was just creeped out by how big they were.
Karissa stretched her arms back. It's not everyday I think about my preferred male body type. Wow.
She didn't have much faith in herself when it came to getting a boyfriend. It didn't help that she was shy which was masked by being cool and distant which made herself unapproachable during most of her teen years. However, there was one person who actually approached her and confessed to her. She knew who he was since she spoke to him a few times but she wasn't exactly close friends with him. He just wanted to get it off their chest and told her they didn't want to pursue a relationship since he wasn't ready for that.
Sure, she was curious about what it would feel like (she would never openly say it) after reading those novels she and Erza read in the library every now and then, but she just never had any luck nor interest. It was probably because she didn't really feel, as Cana would call it, an 'itch' for a boyfriend. The thought just lingered on her mind every now and then, but she would just brush it aside, refusing to think deeper about it.
"Gray! Karissa!"
The two looked towards the street and found Lucy waving at them. She was with Erza, Natsu, Happy, Juvia, Cana, Van, Elfman and Mirajane.
"What?" Gray responded loudly.
"The fireworks are going to go off in a few minutes!" Van hollered. "You guys coming?"
Sitting in an open area on the grass near the water was a great place to sit and enjoy the fireworks since they could all just sit and lie down to look up at the sky that wasn't blocked by any houses, allowing them to fully see the fireworks burst. Every year, they would all gather there to enjoy them for every Fantasia. This year wasn't going to be an exception.
The two didn't need to be told twice as they already on their way to join their friends.
Laxus and Pandora? Yes. Like I said before, I have plans for them. I didn't exactly plan for the two have that kind of relationship until I started writing out more outlines for future chapters. I thought to myself: why not? It would make things more interesting! These last two chapters were to give a little more spotlight to the other Sinclost siblings.
Also, why did I suddenly want to write a college AU one shot for this story mid way through this chapter?
SnowPaws101Reverie: Ahhh, I'm so glad that you like this story! And don't apologize for the long review, I like it! Especially when it's a little disappointing to get no review at all if I am to be honest. It definitely gave me motivation to write!