I'm back with the next chapter. This one took a bit, due to work getting chaotic again and me having to work overtime. It's been crazy for me and when I get home I've mostly just wanted to relax and do nothing. So I apologize again for the delay, but at least the chapters I'm writing are getting longer!

So I hope you guys enjoy this chapter and I also hope everyone is safe!

"Magic?" Kera asked, confusion lacing her voice as she glanced up at Erza. They were sitting at a table in the guildhall talking about different things when the topic of magic came up. As the days went by, it became normal to see the scared brunette out of the infirmary. She was still timid and wouldn't talk to everyone, normally sitting by Natsu or Erza.

For Kera herself, it had been a big change but she got accustomed to the new settings. She was a bit surprised to see so many children her age, but she too got accustomed to that as well. Natsu had been spending time around her a lot lately. She had been scared of him at first but when he learned to keep calm around her, it got better. Even Gray came over to talk, but his stripping habit frightened her. Why would he do that?

Erza nodded. "I think everyone here knows some sort of magic." She glanced around the hall, motioning to the other members. "This is a wizarding guild so a lot of wizards with different kinds of magic come here."

Gray, who was sitting on a bench behind them, nodded his head. "Yea, a lot of strong people are in a guild. That's what I want to be when I grow up." He clenched his fists as he stared down at the ground. "Then I can finally…" He stopped his trail of thoughts, knowing it would not do him any good.

"So what can magic do?" Kera asked, still curious about it.

The red head smiled. "A lot. Different people have different magic, meaning every person can do different things."

Kera frowned slightly. Every person can do something different? Shaking her head she glanced back at her. "What can you do?"

"I use Requip magic. It means I can summon swords whenever I want to. I can also change my armor." She explained while summoning one of her swords for demonstration. Kera was actually amazed by this. She can just summon these weapons out of thin air?

Natsu scoffed. "Lame! My magic is way better!"

The brunette moved her head slightly. "What is that?"

He grinned as he stood up, his hand bursting into flames. "I'm a Fire Dragon Slayer! My flames are the best there is!"

"Oh really?" Erza shot him a small smirk. "Then why haven't you been able to beat me then?"

Natsu sat back down with his arms crossed over his chest, muttering some not so friendly words. Kera glanced back at Erza and noticed that she didn't respond. Didn't she hear him or did she simply ignore it?

"It's because he's an idiot!" Everyone turned around to see Mira walking up to them with a smirk plastered on her face. Kera flinched slightly and moved closer to Erza to feel a bit safer. The white haired girl still frightened her to no end. She couldn't explain exactly why or how, but it sure didn't help that she was always looking for a fight and kept on talking everyone down.

Erza frowned, crossing her arms. "What do you want Mira?"

The girl simply waved her hand. "Flame brain here couldn't win against a baby. If you want a real fight, I'm the only one who can give it."

The red head raised an eyebrow at her. "Is that a challenge?" As she saw the girl giving her another smirk, Erza snorted as she turned to her, holding her sword in front of her. "I'd like to see you try."

Mira grinned as she got into a low stance. "Gladly." A seal appeared under her, a purple aura surrounding the girl before she used her Take Over magic to transform into her Satan Soul.

Kera's eyes went wide as she watched the girl in front of her change into her nightmare. Images and memories surfaced up of a woman, the claws, the blood, the pain… Her heart started to beat very fast against her chest, almost wanting to burst out. She stumbled back, falling to the ground and crawling as far away as she could.

Natsu looked a bit shocked. "Whoa Kera! Is everything alright?"

Both Erza and Mira looked very surprised. Why did the brunette react so scared and terrified? Mira took a step towards the girl, but Kera immediately curl herself into a ball while holding her arms above her head. "I'm sorry! Please don't hurt me!"

Erza shot the white haired girl a glare. "What did you do!?"

Mira was at a loss for words. She hadn't done anything to her. Okay, she wasn't the nicest but she hadn't hurt her! By now everyone in the guild was giving them curious and confused glances. Erza was still glaring daggers at her, thinking she had actually done something. But in truth… she had no idea what she did. "I didn't do…" She transformed back to normal, no trace of her Satan Soul left.

She tried taking another step towards Kera hoping she could figure out what she had done but the girl shrunk in on herself more. The brunette let out a small whimper, closing her eyes. "No, no, please! I'm sorry!" Everyone was confused on what they should do. While Erza was able to get close to her, when she tried to touch her, Kera flinched away.

"What's going on here?" Makarov walked up to the commotion. He noticed the girl shaking in the corner and Erza trying her best to calm her down.

Natsu pulled at his hair. "We don't know!" He was panicking. "One moment everything was fine and then she just freaked out!"

Makarov noticed the terrified look in the girl's eyes. This couldn't just have happened without some kind of trigger. "There had to be something for her to react like this."

"It happened when Mira used her magic." Erza explained. The brunette had started to cling onto the red head as she held her close to her. That would be the only explanation to why she was reacting like this.

The Master turned to Mira to see her actually feeling guilty. Her hand was shaking, taking a step back from everyone. Several emotions flew through her. "I… I didn't mean to…"

"She's probably scared of your Satan Soul." Mira flinched at Makarov's words. Of course it would be her magic. Everyone she met was afraid of her and her magic. How could she ever think that things would change?

Noticing the emotional turmoil in the girl, Makarov tried to calm her down. "Don't take it personal Mira. She probably had a bad experience with demons."

"I see…" Mira lowered her head. She noticed Erza giving her an apologetic expression. She shook her head while turning away. She didn't need pity looks. "I'll go."

"Mira wait!" Erza shouted after her but the girl was already long gone. Sighing, the red head glanced down at the brunette who was still clinging on to her. She didn't know why Kera reacted the way she did, but she knew that she didn't mean it like Mira thought.

It took them a while to calm down Kera. It had taken them a lot of reassuring and some food to coax the girl out of her frightened state. She didn't talk for the rest of the day, only staying by Erza's side and keeping to herself. The red head was worried as to what the reason was that made Kera react like she did.

She knew Mira's magic was scary but Kera was terrified by her. She was afraid the girl was going to hurt her. Mira was hotheaded but she knew she would never hurt a single soul in the guild.

Right now the two were back at Fairy Hills in Erza's room. Kera was cuddled up in bed, hugging a small pillow. Erza noticed that her hold onto the pillow was very tight. It doesn't look like she will let go anytime soon. "Are you feeling a bit better?"

The brunette nodded slightly, but didn't say anything else. She kept on hugging the pillow while looking out of the window. Erza noticed her eyes were still clouded with fear and anxiety. "Kera, why were you afraid of Mira?" The chances of her actually telling her were very slim, but there was nothing wrong with trying.

Kera tightened her grip on the pillow even more, which was surprising since the pillow looked like it was about to explode. "She… reminded me of someone." She lowered her head, fear running through her. "She hurts me…"

The bed dipped down and a warm hand rested on her arm. Turning her head she saw that Erza was smiling down on her. "Don't you worry, you're safe here. Mira would never hurt you."

"B-But her magic."

So it did have to do something with Mira's magic. The white haired girl wasn't going to like it. She heard that the reason they even came to Fairy Tail was because Mira had been kicked out of her home because the people were afraid of her and her magic.

Erza crawled over to her and pulled her into a hug. At first Kera flinched but soon relaxed into the embrace. She found out that she actually enjoyed these hugs. "Like I said before, Mira would never hurt you. Her magic might seem scary, but it's not dangerous. She won't use it to hurt you. She uses it to protect the people she cares for, her family. And you are part of that family now."

Kera blinked confused as she looked up at Erza. Did she really mean that? "Family?"

"Of course." Erza smiled. "You're part of Fairy Tail now! Everyone in the guild will be there to help you."

"Will you be there for me?" Kera asked softly, not wanting to step out of line.

"Always." Erza told her without hesitation. "I promise you that I will always be there for you. No matter what happens. And I will never break that promise."

A smile formed on Kera's lips and she hugged the girl back. "Thank you."

The red head kept smiling as she glanced down at the girl. She looked so happy and grateful for something so simple. She didn't know what the girl went through before she came here, but she knew the fear that Kera felt. She's seen it on so many faces before.

She made a vow to herself that she'd be there for Kera, no matter what. Closing her eyes shortly, she remembered her own recent failure. She wouldn't let that happen. Not again. I won't fail her, I'll make sure of that.

Kera's eyes went wide as she looked up at the red head. Fear and worry etched in her voice, as she clung at the table in front of her. "Y-You're leaving?"

Making sure that her sword was rested safely on her belt, Erza gave a short nod. "Only for a day or two. Don't worry, it's just a small mission so I can pay for the rent."

The brunette shrunk in on herself. She was leaving her… she was going to be alone again. "C-Can I come?" If she went with her she wouldn't have to worry about being left alone. Maybe she could even help her. She could help, right?

Erza sighed, shaking her head. "I'm sorry. Master Makarov only let's wizards go on jobs. It'd be too dangerous."

The brunette lowered her head as her body started to shake. This wasn't happening, she couldn't be alone again. What if she decided to completely leave her? Then she wouldn't have anyone left. She didn't know if she could go through that.

Feeling a hand on her shoulder, she raised her head to see Erza staring at her. "Kera, there's nothing you have to worry about. I'll be back soon, I'll make sure to finish it up as quickly as possible. I promised you that I'd be there for you and I will. I don't break my promises."

Kera sniffed slightly, but nodded her head. She was going to come back. She had to put her trust in her and believe that she will come back and most importantly alive and unharmed. "B-Be safe." She told her, hoping it would help in some way. It probably wouldn't but it made her feel better.

Erza smiled at her and nodded her head. "I'll be sure to be careful."

Kera had watched Erza leave the guild hall while waving her goodbye. The brunette felt completely useless. She couldn't do anything while everyone else was able to use magic and help others. Erza had gone out on a mission so they could still have a place to sleep. She shared that room with her so she should be helping her. But she couldn't because she was utterly useless and pathetic.

That day had gone by very slowly. Not knowing what to do she simply sat at a table with a book Erza had given her. She would have maybe gone over to Natsu but he was gone as well. So she simply stayed to the side, reading her book.

Over on a different table, Gray was sitting with Cana, giving a short glance over the new brunette. He leaned his head against his hand, a frown settled on his face. "What's wrong with her?" He asked motioning towards the girl.

Cana, who was laying out cards in front of her, rolled her eyes. She set down another card in front of her. "Leave her alone Gray."

"What? It was a simple question. Not my problem she's sitting all by herself."

Cana set another card on the table. "She's probably just too shy. Why don't you go talk to her?" She suggested with a sly smirk on her face.

Gray huffed as he turned around, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'll just scare her. Both Natsu and Erza say my stripping habit isn't helping at all."

"Then stop stripping."

"It's not as easy as you think!" Gray shouted, glaring at the brunette beside him. He noticed her laying another card on the table and frowned. "What are you doing anyway?"

Cana set another card on the table. "I'm trying to read into her future."

"You can do that?" He asked his eyes going wide. "Well, what does it say!?"

The girl sighed as she finally set down the rest of her cards to the side. "I might be wrong at this, but… I see a lot of pain and suffering… fear and loneliness. It's so… negative. How can one person bear so much pain?"

Gray sighed as he leaned his head against the table now. "I don't know, maybe you read it wrong."

Cana sighed. "Maybe…"

Both heard shuffling from the far side of the guild. They turned their heads to see a certain someone walking towards Kera. Gray grimaced slightly. "Either this will go very well or very badly."

Cana nodded her head. "Well one thing is for sure. We definitely didn't expect that to happen."

The girl that walked over to the brunette was Lisanna. She smiled as she stood on her toes as she glanced at Kera. "Hi there! Do you mind if I sit with you?"

Kera stopped reading from her book to glance up at her. She had frozen up for a second, but then relaxed. She shook her head while her eyes roamed the guild hall. She searched the room for one specific person, her fear only lifting slightly as she didn't see them.

Lisanna caught her gaze and got curious. "Are you looking for someone?"

The girl flinched and shrunk in on herself. "Y-You're Mira's sister." While she didn't have anything personal against the girl, her older sister scared her and if she saw her hanging out with Lisanna… who knows what she would do.

It took Lisanna a bit to understand what she meant, but it then hit her. Of course the girl would be scared, how could she forget something like that? Sighing, she laid her arms on the table. "I saw what happened a few days ago." She admitted sheepishly.

Kera flinched as she remembered that horrible incident. She really didn't want to experience that again. Even if Erza told her she wouldn't hurt her, she was still terrified of her. But Lisanna, she was different. She seemed nice and caring enough.

The white haired girl smiled at her. "I know she might seem scary, but Mira cares a lot! She's always making sure that me and Elfman are safe and happy. She cares for the people around her!"

"It's not that…" Kera whispered, lowering her head. "It's her magic… I don't… I don't like it."

The girl's face fell. This was something they wanted to avoid. They had left their home because of people being afraid of Mira's magic. When they had arrived at Fairy Tail, everyone had been so nice and accepting of them, especially Mira and her magic. But it seemed Kera wasn't part of that. "Why?" She wanted to know the reason why the girl was so afraid, maybe she could help her.

The brunette suddenly hugged herself. Images ran through her mind, red and black, the cold, the pain… She whimpered slightly, closing her eyes. "Bad memories…"

"Oh…" Lisanna whispered, finally understanding why Kera was so afraid of her sister. So something had happened that caused Kera to react so frightened. Well then… She smiled. "Don't worry! Mira won't hurt you, I just know! And if she does bother you, I'll tell her to stop okay? Just let me know!"

Kera looked shocked for a moment. She would… do that? The white haired girl chuckled. "And maybe we can make some good memories so you won't be afraid."

Good memories? She wasn't sure she could make good memories. Only knowing darkness and pain it wasn't a concept she could actually perceive. But seeing Lisanna smile like that made her believe that things could become better.

Lisanna turned her attention to the book. "So what are you reading?"

"Oh, um…" Kera glanced down and remembered what she had been doing. "It's a book about magic. It's a simple one, talking about the basics. Erza told me this would help me with my slow reading and learn about magic all in one."

"That's awesome! Do you have magic too?"

"I… don't know…" She had no idea if she even had magic. But she wanted to give it a shot. If she could use magic like Natsu or Erza she might be able to do something. She wouldn't be so pathetic…

"Oh don't worry." Lisanna smiled. "Even if you don't have magic you'll still have a family here at Fairy Tail! That's what the symbol is for! You're part of the family now!"

Her arm did indeed held the Fairy Tail insignia. It was settled on her right arm dyed in the color blue. She had been confused as to why they had given her one, but smiled softly as she heard Lisanna talk about family. She was right, she had a family here. A new home.

Lisanna poked her head at the book. "So do you need help with something?"

"Oh… I don't… want to bother you." Kera admitted.

"Nonsense! I'm happy to help!"

"Okay, um… I'm having trouble with this word here." She pointed to one of the pages as Lisanna leaned in.

The girl smiled. "Oh that's Ethernano!"

Kera blinked. "Easier nano?" Lisanna shook her head. "It's pronounced Ethernano. There is a th there so you have to pronounce it a little harder. Try again."

"Ether… nano."

"Exactly!" Lisanna smiled causing Kera to join in. "So what is Ethernano exactly?"

The white haired girl leaned back. "Well… Ethernano is what magic is composed out of. If I remember correctly, every wizard has Ethernano in their body and it's in the air."

"Is that how you use magic?" Kera asked still confused. "You use Ethernano? How can I get some?"

Lisanna frowned as she leaned back in. "I don't know exactly how it works. I'm sorry. But maybe Erza knows more."

"Thank you… for helping me." It was strange. Usually she would have gotten punished if she had asked for help, but here… they were all happy to help her.

Lisanna had stayed the rest of the day, helping her reading the book. Kera had learned several new things about reading in general and more importantly about magic. Learning about these new things, the brunette really wanted to learn magic.

When Erza had gotten back from her mission, she had been slightly injured. Her arm was bleeding, the blood dripping down to the ground, as she explained what had happened. It seems the wild animal she had been tasked to eliminate had gotten a lucky hit in.

Kera had panicked when she saw the red head and the blood on her arm. Even if Erza told her that it wasn't anything serious, the girl kept on fretting. The red head noticed that she was scared, she even saw her hands shaking.

Laying her good arm on her shoulder, Erza simply smiled. "I'm fine Kera, don't worry. This isn't anything bad." They were back in their room in Fairy Hills and Erza was wrapping up her arm. Kera sat on the bed, looking scared and worried, hugging the pillow in her arms. "But… you're hurt."

Erza chuckled as she wrapped up her arm before tightening it. "It's really nothing Kera. It'll be healed in no time."

Kera still didn't look positive about the situation. Erza sat down beside her, giving her a confused look. "Is everything alright Kera? You really don't have to worry about me. I'm fine."

The brunette buried her head into the pillow. "I don't want you to get hurt."

Sighing, Erza laid a hand on her back. "Getting hurt is sometimes part of the job. But nothing bad will happen. I promised you that I'd be there for you. I intend to keep it."

Kera's eyes wandered over to the bandaged arm of Erza. A distant memory surfacing up.

A young boy smiled at her, his hand clutching at his shoulder, the blood dripping between his fingers. "You don't have to worry about me."

Her shaking hands reached out to him, tears running down her face. "But you're hurt!"

His hands clutched harder against the wound, she noticed him wince and the pain run across his face. "This is nothing! At least they didn't hurt you. I promised to keep you safe and I intend to keep it."

"Kera are you okay?" The brunette snapped out of her dream state and turned around to see Erza giving her a worried glance.

"I want to learn magic." The words just blurted out of her mouth before she could even think about it. Kera turned around to see Erza looking a bit surprised. Maybe she made a mistake in saying this, but after reading that book with Lisanna, she wanted to learn it.

Erza blinked. "You want to learn magic?" Kera nodded her head slowly. A smile formed on Erza's lips. "Okay, sure, that won't be a problem."

"Really?"

Erza nodded. "Of course, did you think about what kind of magic you want to learn?"

Kera buried her head into the pillow again before shaking her head. She hadn't thought that far ahead. "I… don't know. Can you… teach me about magic? Maybe then I'll know what I want to learn."

The red head smirked. "So, that book caught your interest?"

"There were… difficult words, but…" Kera smiled softly as she remembered what transpired back at the guild. "But Lisanna helped me."

"Lisanna?" Erza was actually surprised to hear that, but of course the young Strauss sibling was always there to cheer people up. "Okay then, you want to start now? I can start with the basics."

Kera's eyes shone brighter and she immediately nodded her head. She shuffled into a more comfortable position on the bed as Erza started to explain the basics of magic. "Okay, well for starters, there are different types of magic. There's Caster magic and Holder magic, the difference between the two is very simple…"

Kera listened to Erza the entire night as she explained everything she ever wanted to know about magic. The hours passed by and Kera listened closely. This was her way to learn magic and her way to become useful. And if she got good enough, she could come on jobs with Erza and make sure she wouldn't get hurt.