Disclaimer: I am not the owner of Fairy Tail
Levy didn't know how long she remained in that office, trying to cope with what might lie ahead. She just wanted to rest before the chaos began. She felt heavy, and part of her didn't want to move. However, her stomach was growling, and food would help replenish the last of her missing energy. So, Levy began walking towards the dining room to eat. Yet, she slowed down as she approached. That was the room where she spent most of her time with Zeref, sadly. Meals were always their time to talk and see each other and while she had known earlier that he wouldn't be there today, it felt different now, considering that he might not be there again in the future either.
August saw her hesitate, and patted her back. "Would you prefer to eat elsewhere today? I could have a meal brought to your room or we could take a walk through town, to help you clear your mind. I hear it often helps when one is troubled."
Slowly, Levy looked up at met his gaze, giving him a grateful smile. "I…I think going into town might help." Zeref hadn't done more than give her a tour there. As a result, Vistarion, the city, held few memories of him that would keep her worries on her mind.
Without waiting for her to say much more, August began moving towards the exit. Taking another deep breath, Levy followed after. She had to hold on to hope, or else she really would break down. It had been hours since that conversation, and it was pretty much dark out. There was no telling where Zeref would be now, or what had happened. With no safe way of determining the answer, they had to react to the worst possibility, to be prepared for whatever may come. If that ended up being wrong, then Alvarez would be relieved and have a pleasant surprise, rather than be panicked and fall apart without the guidance it was used to.
Personally, Levy found the realism around her to be the main shock. She had never dealt with a crisis without the optimistic cries of her guild members, insisting everything was fine and that everyone would get out safely, without harm. Maybe that was why it was hitting her so hard, and so easily convincing her that Zeref really was gone. She knew he was resilient, that he knew more magic than anyone else. With that, it should be obvious that he was alive, though possibly harmed or held captive. But the obvious answer wasn't always right, and too many people were saying he was gone for her to hold onto that thought for long. At least in town, there was no one to whisper words of that. August stayed silent on the matter too, likely wanting to avoid spreading rumors if possible.
He guided her to a restaurant, though Levy didn't pay much attention to the path or what the restaurant served. Much like Zeref, it seemed as if August was a well-known face in Vistarion. The host recognized him, and quickly got them seated, saying that their meals would on the house today, for his service to the empire. He seemed uncertain of what to say to Levy, but she smiled and thanked him, and that seemed to be enough for him to leave.
"Most places react similarly. We try not to abuse their kindness, but they seem to have an unreasonable imagination that we need not pay for resources, given the fact that the Spriggan Twelve are practically leaders of the empire ourselves."
She shrugged. "Well, you help, but that doesn't mean you aren't a citizen yourself." August nodded. "It makes sense, why you eat so much in the castle now. If everyone is so quick to try and impress you. It just works better, and someone still gets paid for the supplies."
He nodded. They were quiet for a moment. August shifted in his seat. Their waitress came over took their orders, and the silence settled between them again. After that, August sighed. "Do…is there anything particular, you wished to speak about?" His brow was furrowed.
Meeting his gaze, Levy shrugged. "I don't really know." She glanced over towards the window. "There's not much to say at the moment. If this were Fairy Tail right now, I'd be the one silently listening to all of the angry and impulsive wizards wanting to run out to wherever our comrade last was. Part of me would want to shout at them to be careful and stop, because logically it wouldn't work out, but they always came back anyway, so I sorta learned to be quiet about things early on."
"From the information we gathered, his majesty had seemed convinced that the bonds between your wizards was one of your most unpredictable assets." She smiled at that, before it faded quickly. Food was brought out, and there was another pause. "Are…do you wish to return at least once, before we move forward? I understand that you have yet to say goodbye, or inform them of what is happening here."
She wanted to, but really, what would she say? Fairy Tail would give her their standard send-off, and they'd leave her crying even harder than she was just thinking about what was happening here. Lucy would insist on her taking care of herself, and probably warn her another time about how dangerous Zeref could turn out to be. Natsu would congratulate her, and wish her good luck, probably somehow figuring out a way to call her his sister again. As for her actual team, they'd likely just beg her not to go and to stay at the guild, but they were always too busy fawning over her to actually be themselves or be comfortable around her. She might rely on them for jobs, and she loved working with Jet and Droy, but they did get to be too much when they were emotional like that.
Sighing, Levy frowned at her plate. "I think I'd rather just reach out to them over lacrima, for now." Seeing them in person…it'd be too hard to let go of all of that. "Alvarez needs me more, and I'm not going to back out of something I've already started, not in a situation like this. Seeing them would make it harder than it has to be, I think. I can have my send-off over the lacrima, and we can say our goodbyes there."
He nodded. "I wish there was an easier way, Levy." He paused again, gazing at her. "You do realize you have the right to refuse? While you are likely the first choice, due to his majesty's intentions with your relationship and position here, we could locate others to fulfill positions amongst the Twelve, and advocate one of our own as a possible candidate. Irene, perhaps, could fulfill the role. She has been a leader in the past."
"But Zeref wanted me, right?" August stared at her for a moment, before slowly nodding. "If he really is gone, I'd want to live up to his expectations, somehow. He's one of the few people who actually seemed to believe in my strength, who saw me as an equal. I won't let him be wrong about that; I will lead Alvarez, and I will keep his empire together."
She hardened her gaze, and for a moment, it felt as if she could overcome the stress of what was to come. Levy had been working towards this. She'd studied their government. Zeref taught her the basics of magic principles to start working like he had with magic, and she was familiar with his logic and how he would approach various problems. Maybe she wouldn't be the same as he was, but he'd given her everything she needed to succeed, if she wanted to take this path.
She smiled faintly, thinking back on his own encouragement towards her. He'd even told her that it was her intellect that would make her a fearsome opponent, more fearsome than the other members of her guild even. She would use that, and she would turn it into strategies and plans for the empire. Mavis might have the reputation as Fairy Tail's tactician, but Levy would surpass even her, and manage to keep Alvarez together. Plus, just like Mavis, she wouldn't be alone. August would be there, helping her, and she'd have Invel too. While she might not know the others and have gained their confidence, Levy would do what it took to earn that trust.
"Then I look forward, to seeing how you lead." August bowed his head, a weak smile on his face. "Let me be the first to offer my loyalty to you, Empress Levy." His voice was quiet, so as not to be overheard, but Levy could only stare at him with wide eyes. "Others will soon do the same, once the announcement has been made. But I want you to know, for all that you've done for my father, for trying to give him the peace he'd rightfully earned, you've gained my respect. Your reasoning is sound, and I have confidence that you will do well."
Taking a deep breath, Levy nodded. "Won't you need to discuss with with the others before making the final call?" She paused, seeing his frown. "Not that I'm changing my mind, but I thought you once told me that just because you lead the Twelve, it doesn't mean you have the ability to make decisions like this for them."
"I do not." He paused, meeting her eyes. "However, there are fine details laid out within the structure of the government, which you likely have not yet heard. In the event of the assumed death of his majesty, he had named Invel as the one who would select the next heir to the Empire. I had been with him, when he was making such a policy. It had seemed absurd at the time, that he would even consider such an event a possibility." August sighed, shaking his head. "I had asked, what his reasoning was. He'd told me that out of the twelve of us, Invel would be the one to hold the needs of Alvarez above anything else, regardless of personal attachments or vendettas against whatever, or whoever, had caused his downfall. After hearing that, even I could not help but agree."
Based on how Invel had been treating her thus far, Levy could see the same. The others rarely came to Vistarion, and while August worked hard, his personal attachment to Zeref had likely shown even before Zeref knew August was his son. She'd heard rumors about he others, about how strong Irene was and how hot-headed Ajeel could be, but beyond the first moments after being healed, she hadn't seen Irene at all, and Ajeel was no where to be found. Most of them seemed inclined to just want to remain in power and show off their personal strengths, but that was just from the way Invel spoke of them, as if they caused more problems than they were worth on occasion.
"And Invel…"
"Already seemed insistent on giving that title to you." She nodded, taking a deep breath. They were quiet for the rest of the meal, and left not long after that. She should be more comfortable with August by now, but something about the lack of Zeref seemed to put too much of a damper on her mood. Levy didn't want to talk much more about things, not until tomorrow when she'd gotten some rest. Then, she'd contact Fairy Tail, tell them she wasn't going to return…and then what? Maybe she'd try and investigate what could have caused this to happen. If she could answer that, then they'd be able to confirm what happened to Zeref, one way or another.
A strange noise made Levy pause, glancing towards one of the side streets. It was the path that led to the museum, to the monument Zeref had made to commemorate the war between the dragons in Ishgar. Yet, two creatures seemed to be hovering in the air there. One of them made a noise again, and as Levy stared, she realized she recognized them. "August, those are…" She trailed off, and he paused, frowning over at them. "They're the Legions, the animals from Edolas that gave Nab the magic to travel between worlds."
He glanced at them for a moment longer, before shrugging. "So, it would appear that theory is correct. I did not think such a creature would come into existence, in a world with so little magic. Perhaps they are able to draw their energy from this world, regardless of which one they reside in." Maybe. She moved slowly, cautiously approaching. Slow motions would hopefully keep them still, but she wanted to get a closer look, to see if she could sense what sort of magic they really had. As strange as it was to find them, she wasn't going to pass up the chance to investigate a bit more about what sort of animal had begun all of this mess so long ago.
The creatures seemed to be rather passive, she noted. They stayed still, and didn't even seem to notice when she reached out a hand to pet them. It was slightly rough, not quite soft like she'd imagined the fur being. It was clumped into knots and snarled in places, but as she looked closer, she frowned. One of them was clearly rounded in shape, with the fur spreading out evenly across its back. The one she was touching, however, seemed to have a bald patch, where its fur had been cut off with some sort of tool. Glancing up, she gave the creature a smile and planned to offer some strange form of apology for what someone had done, but that was when she saw the lumpiness on its back.
"August, is someone sleeping up there?" It was the right shape, to be a person buried under the fur like a blanket. Given how passive the creature was, it wouldn't surprise her if it had been tamed as an animal.
"If there is, I sense no magic from them."
Nodding, Levy glanced around. The thing was floating, and already large enough, but she should be able to get up there. "Sold Script: Hook!" The words arched over, wrapping around the creature. It shifted slightly, before shaking its head and closing its eyes again. Taking a deep breath, Levy nodded to herself and added more. "Solid Script: Rope!" The rope wrapped around the base of the hook, giving her a place to grip. With that in her hands, she began to climb, though not very far. How others managed to get on without issue was a mystery to her; maybe they were just used to it, wherever they came from.
Once there, she frowned down at the sight. The fur was clearly piled to disguise what was underneath as nothing but a clump of hair. "Levy, are you certain it is wise to disturb them? I see no harm in them being here."
She looked over towards him. "They might need help. These animals come from Edolas, which means they may have dragged someone here from there." The elderly wizard nodded. Right now, Levy needed this distraction anyway. It was someone to help, and something to keep her mind off of what was going on.
She crouched down on its back, feeling her feet bump into something else behind her. Glancing there, she saw another similar shape, just somewhat smaller than the one in front. However, she ignored that one for now, wanting to deal with them one at a time. Carefully, she pulled back the fur, not wanting to hurt the person there. However, her hands stilled, freezing when she saw what was underneath. Her head felt…strange, and her vision swam. One hand lifted, covering her mouth. It…it didn't make any sense. Carefully, she inhaled and looked towards August. "How…how far away from here…was Zeref supposed to be?"
"Not far. Shishka is less than a two hour trip from here. Given his travel on a magical vehicle, it likely took him half of that." He frowned at her, tilting his head. "Is something wrong?" He couldn't see what Levy could. He was on the wrong side of the animal to do so and it was too dark for him to see her reaction clearly either.
This thing was from Edolas, so it had to be Edolas' Zeref, right? But, that Zeref was trapped in a lacrima, like Mavis was here. Even if he was dead, he would have no way of breaking free, not with how obsessive Edo-Mavis and her organization were about bringing him back. Maybe she'd been arrested, but the others would defend him for her. But was it still a chance?
Either way, the chill would not leave her. Without magic…without magic, it wouldn't be possible. Likely, there were still a few more Legions trapped in various places throughout Earthland; they were rare, but not impossible to find. Whoever had attacked Zeref, they'd wanted to send a message. That made sense, right? Yet, she shook her head. She couldn't think like that, and she didn't know which was which. Was there some way to know for sure?
Her eyes widened, inhaling sharply. In Edolas, Zeref had left the body-body-switching enchantment on Edo-Zeref's body, as a message from them. That mark would tell her, if it was Edo-Zeref, or the Zeref she knew. So, taking a deep breath, she slowly began pulling back more of the fur. Her head was spinning, and she felt weak, but she needed to know. She needed to know for certain, since she now had the chance to at least find some sort of an answer.
"Levy?" August had not received a response yet, but she wouldn't say anything until she knew. It didn't take long, though, to pull away enough hair to see his bare chest. She stared at it, at first feeling numb and desperately trying to find something that wasn't there. Then, her stomach churned and her eyes slammed shut. Zeref…Zeref was gone. She was alone…and somehow, having that confirmation was the tipping point for her. She swayed on the creature's back, before falling into blissful nothingness, wishing it was all a dream and that she hadn't just discovered the dead body of the man she'd started to love.
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