This is by far, my longest chapter. This chapter is another third person chapter.
Conversations
July, X775
It was late afternoon.
Two child sized figures, wearing identical fencing outfits, were currently dueling in a field with child sized fencing swords.
Standing twenty yards away, was Maribelle. She had an analytical face as she observed her two students duel.
"Having fun there, Maribelle?" came a voice from behind her.
Maribelle didn't bother to look back at the source of the voice, and continued analyzing her students. "Hello, Master." Was her only reply.
Celia walked up beside her with her usual smirk on her face. "So… How are they doing? You haven't broken them with your perfectionist ways have you?" She asked jokingly.
Maribelle ignored the joke. "No, Master, I have not broken anyone…" A small smile then made its way upon her face. "… I do not drive children to the point of physical collapse like you, Master."
Celia's eye twitched, and she looked towards Maribelle. "Don't get snarky with me about that, I honestly thought they could handle it." She said indignantly, and she looked down at the ground. "I already got enough flak from Lana about that." She mumbled lowly.
Maribelle's smile got even bigger, clearly in amusement.
Celia then looked up, and started staring at the girls dueling. "How are they progressing?" She asked curiously.
"Very good, actually. They are very determined and they are progressing very quickly." Maribelle said. Her voice had a small hint of pride in it.
Celia then smirked, "I see that you are teaching them fencing. I feel as though as I shouldn't be surprised by this."
Maribelle glanced at Celia, before returning her attention to her students. "Of course, Master. I was taught it first as a child, and it is my favorite style. So naturally, they will be taught it first as well. They got the basic forms down, and they just need to work on their precision, speed, and endurance. Then, I will teach them the more advanced forms. I predict that they will be proficient enough to move on to the next style of sword combat in about six months" She said calmly.
Celia looked at Maribelle, "Have you taught any form of magic yet?" She inquired.
Maribelle shook her head. "No, I am waiting until they have complete control of their own magic first, before I teach anything of that nature... How are they progressing on that front by the way?"
"Well, they both progressing in their own way. Kagura is showing good control over her magic, but she still needs to work on the power and strength of her magic." Celia said, before sighing. "Rubi on the other hand, is the complete opposite. She's got the power aspect down, but her control over the power needs improving... It's not entirely her fault either, her magic is proving to be very… difficult."
Maribelle looked at Celia, "Difficult how?" She inquired.
Celia then sighed again, "Besides the red tint, I thought it was just normal lightning magic at first. But it has proven to be extra stubborn, and more potent; it has also proven to be extra explosive as well. Although she has gotten past exploding at every spell she tries to do, it still occasionally happens when tries something new with her magic. She had electrical burns all over arms the first few weeks of using her magic. But she is getting better every day though."
"I will see what I can do about that." Maribelle responded, and looked back at the two, still dueling, but showing signs fatigue. "Kagura! Rubina!" She shouted.
They both stopped, and lowered their weapons. They took off their fencing masks revealing their exhausted and very sweaty faces. They shook hands, and walked over to Maribelle. "Yes, Shishou?" They asked, their voices conveying their exhaustion.
"You two are done for the day, and I'm giving you tomorrow off to recuperate. You are dismissed." She said calmly. The girls nodded, and started walking back to the dorms.
Celia had an amused expression on her face. "Shishou huh… How fancy" She said as she watched their retreating forms.
"They are my students, so it is appropriate that they call me Shishou" Maribelle responded curtly.
Celia then looked at her, "You know… I don't think you told why you accepted them as your students." Celia wondered out loud.
Maribelle's face softened and she turned her head towards Celia. "They interest me. Since the day they arrived here, they have been determined to get stronger. Despite their hardships, they kept moving forward, I cannot help but see a little bit of myself in them. I saw their advancement, and I knew it would be a matter of time before they came looking for way to push even further. So I accepted their request for apprenticeships, because who am I to stop them from achieving their goal." A genuine smile made its way across her face.
Celia studied her, and then she too, smiled. "Well, that was pretty deep, Kid." She said, before her face turned mischievous. "You know, Mari-chan… I distantly remember you saying that you always wanted younger siblings years ago… Is this really just a move to fulfill your deep desires?" Celia teased.
Maribelle quickly looked away from the older women, her cheeks turning a slightly pink. "I do not recall saying such a thing, Master. You must be imaging things." She said quickly, with a hint of embarrassment.
Celia grinned, "I don't know… I remember a few years ago, at the guild Christmas party, a young, intoxicated, depressed teenager lamenting about how she wished she had younger a younger brother or sister." Celia teased again.
Maribelle's entire face flushed red. "That did not happen!" She exclaimed, and Celia laughed at her embarrassment. Celia was the only one that could push Maribelle's buttons.
"Oh calm down, I'm just messing with you." Celia said in amusement. Her face then turned serious. "By the way… Have you heard anything yet?" She asked, changing the mood of the conversation.
Maribelle's face went back to its normal color and she too turned serious. "About the group that attacked Rosemary? No, I have not found much details about their whereabouts. I am truly sorry… What did the magic council say about the matter?"
Celia scowled, "All they will tell me is that the group is apparently linked to multiple village raids around the southern part of Fiore. They have told me that they are a Zeref cult… But I know there are things that they are not telling me… I really hate them sometimes." Her voice was filled with annoyance. "I made a promise to those two that I would find the ones responsible, but I can't make any headway… An entire village, reduced to ashes, its citizens slaughtered mercilessly, other children kidnapped…" Celia said darkly, her expression absolutely furious.
Maribelle's face hardened. "Do not worry, Master. We will find them."
XXX
Rubina and Kagura where sitting on the dock behind the guild, soaking in the summer sun. Kagura was wearing a white sun dress, and Rubina was wearing a light blue one. Both were bare foot, and had their feet in the lake.
"Hey, Kagura?" Rubina asked while looking out on the water.
Kagura glanced at her friend, "Yes, Rubi?"
"I've been wondering… How has your magic training been going? We have different teachers, so I never get to see your magic in action." Rubina said, her voice was curious.
"Um… It's been going pretty well. Lana-san said that I have great control over it, but I still need to work on my stamina, and my uh… I think she called it a 'radius'." Kagura replied, and then looked at her friend. "How about yours?"
Rubina sighed, "It's going pretty good, but it is incredibly hard to control, and sometimes explodes in my face..." She pouted.
Kagura let out a small giggle.
Rubina looked at her friend, "It's not funny! Exploding really hurts!" She exclaimed, which made Kagura giggle some more.
"I'm sorry, Rubi, it's just really funny when ya pout like that." Giggled out Kagura
Rubina's face grew a little red, before she shook her head. "So how big can you make your radius?" She quickly changed topic, not wanting to continue the current line of conversation.
Kagura stopped giggling, but still had a small smile on her face. She then looked out to the sparkling blue waters of the lake. "Hmm, about thirty-five feet so far, and I can hold that for about ten minutes before I get really exhausted."
Rubina raised an eyebrow, "Is that so? How strong can you make the gravity?" She asked, sounding very impressed.
Kagura started kicking her feet in the water, "Well, according to Lana-san's weird device thingy, I can make gravity about two times stronger, and I can completely reverse it as well, but I'm not as good at that as I am at increasing it."
"Can you show me…? I mean can you show me the reversing gravity part?" Rubina asked, clearly intrigued by her friends abilities. "I would show you some stuff with my lightning, but I haven't been cleared to practice without supervision yet by Master."
Kagura looked at her friend and smiled, "Sure." She said simply.
They both stood up on the dock, and Kagura took a step back. Looking at the back of Rubina, a mischievous thought entered Kagura's head.
She suddenly pushed Rubina off the dock, earning a high pitched "KYAA!" from the red head. But before she could fall fully into the water, Kagura glowed, and the area around Rubina started rippling with an invisible force. Rubina stopped in her tracks, and then she suddenly started floating upwards.
"That wasn't funny Kagura!" She yelled, and then started flailing her arms in an attempt to turn herself around. She succeeds, and she glares at her friend, while still floating slowly upward. Her glare would have been more effective if it weren't for her cheeks being beat red, almost matching the color of her eyes and hair.
'I can't believe I went kyaa… I'm never going live that down' She thought in embarrassment.
This made Kagura giggle uncontrollably and the sudden invisible force cuts off, and Rubina falls into the water with another "KYAA!" When Rubina emerged from the water, her dress and her braided hair were completely soaked. She was not amused, and somehow her face somehow got even redder.
'Not again!' She lamented internally.
"W-Why did you do that for!?" She stammered out in embarrassment.
By this point, Kagura was on the dock, on her back, laughing uncontrollably. Rubina glared at her, until she finally calmed down enough to speak.
"You called me a balloon, now you're a water balloon!" She giggled out.
"That was months ago!" Rubina exclaimed.
Kagura continued to giggle. "You were so cute when you went 'Kyaa'. You should do it more often, Rubi!"
"Shut up! That wasn't funny!" Rubina exclaimed, which made Kagura have another giggle fit. A devious smirk then made its way across Rubina's face. She lunged out of water, grabbed Kagura, and pulled her into the water. Kagura made a yelping noise as she went into the water.
She emerged from the water and glared at the red head, who started laughing. "Serves you right!" Rubina laughed out.
Kagura responded by splashing her, and Rubina returned in kind. A full splash fight then broke out.
Far away from the docks, Celia and Lana were watching the scene unfold.
"I don't know how they are so cheerful. They act like nothing bad has happened to them at all. I don't know how they could get over something like that so fast." Celia said out loud.
Lana looked at her friend, and then back the girls, who were still splashing each other. "I don't think that they are completely over it. I think that they mourn in private, when they are only with each other. We can have sympathy for what they been through, but only they understand each other." Lana said with a smile on her face.
Celia made a contemplative noise, and then smiled. "Well, even if they lost everything, I guess they still have each other."
The two girls stopped splashing each other, and were laughing.
XXX
September, X775
Rubina was sitting in her bed at the dorms. The walls of room were a light, pale blue, and did not have anything on them. The room had two beds, with one having dark blue sheets and the other having white sheets. Each side had a closet and a dresser for the respective occupant, and there was a door on the left side of the room for the bathroom. The bed with the dark blue sheets was Rubina's, and the other was Kagura's.
Rubina was wearing a white T-shirt and dark colored shorts. Her hair was still braided in the back. On the bed was a book titled Introduction to Arcane Engineering. She was currently reading it as if it were a normal book. She also had a notebook and pencil in her hands and was drawing something as she read the book.
She was humming to herself.
The doorknob started turning and Rubina closed her notebook. The door opened and Kagura walked in. She was wearing her usual white dress with black leggings and white shoes.
She immediately noticed Rubina looking at her, "What are you doing, Rubi? I've been wondering where you were at." She then looked at the book that was her bed, "Whatcha reading?" She asked curiously, and she walked over to the red head's bed.
Rubina looked back at the book, "Something that interests me." She said casually and she set down her notebook beside her.
Kagura looked at the book that her friend was reading, and furrowed her brows. "How can you read this? I don't even understand what's even going on in it." She said, her voice filled with confusion.
Rubina looked at her friend for a second, before looking back the book. "It's a book about…" She then paused, and thought about what she was going to say next. "…about building and designing stuff using magic and magical materials." She summarized simply.
"Oh… What are you building?" Kagura asked. She then looked at the open notebook, and then pointed at it. "Is that what you're building? What is it?" She inquired.
Rubina immediately closed her notebook and held the notebook protectively to her chest. "It's a secret!" She exclaimed, her face was a little red.
Kagura looked at her friend, and the let out a small giggle. "You don't have to be so secretive with me, Rubi, but if it that important to you, then I won't ask any more…But only if I get to see it first when it's done, Okay?"
Rubina nodded, "Sure, when it's eventually complete, I'll definitely show you first." She then put her notebook down. "If it works, it's gonna be awesome!" She exclaimed.
XXX
Rubina was currently standing about ten feet away from an upright log that was half way buried into the ground. She was currently wearing protective glasses and had padded gloves on her hands. Behind her was Celia, observing her.
"So, you said had an idea you wanted to test out?" Celia asked curiously.
Rubina looked at Celia, "Yes, Master. I have an idea for new move, but I want you to be here if I go flying from some accidental explosion." She said sheepishly.
Celia sighed, and then smirked. "Don't worry, Kid, you haven't exploded in a couple of months. So I think you'll be good. But I'll catch ya if need be."
Rubina nodded and faced herself towards the upright log. She then held out her hand in front of her, and started concentrating. Crimson red lightning started sparking in her hand. The lightning started picking up in intensity. It then started concentrating in the palm of her hand, getting denser and denser, before a sparking ball of lighting formed in her hand. The dense ball of red lightning was very loud, very bright, and emitting a sound resembling a thousand chirping birds.
Celia raised an eyebrow at the spectacle. 'Wow, that's a lot of concentrated magic. That would definitely do some damage… It is pretty loud though…' She thought.
Rubina got into a combat stance, her right hand trembling from the raw power it was holding. She then lunged forward at the log, her right arm extended in front of her.
The log stood no chance against the concentrated ball of electricity and Rubina's hand went clean through it like a hot knife through butter. The ball of concentrated energy then exploded, sending the red head flying backwards.
Luckily she was caught by Celia's tendril of water, and was gently set down on the ground.
"Ow… Definitely used too much power…" Rubina groaned out, before bringing her hand to her face. The glove that was on it was gone, completely destroyed from the ball of lighting, revealing her hand. There was a huge first degree burn on the palm of her hand. "I really hate electricity." Rubina grumbled out.
"That's one hell of spell, Kid, but I don't think you should try again until you get a little more control over your magic. That could definitely do some damage for sure, but it's a bit loud." Celia said with a huge smirk on her face.
"Thanks, Master, I'll definitely take that into conversation…" Rubina groaned out, before getting up, and wincing from the stinging of her fresh burn.
"By the way, what's it called?" Celia asked.
Rubina looked at her, "I decided to call it Chidori, which means One Thousand Birds." She said simply.
"One thousand birds, huh? How fitting… What's with the eastern script name?" Celia wondered out loud.
Rubina flushed a little bit, "Well, it's must faster to say Chidori, than One Thousand Birds… Plus it sounds cooler…" She said simply.
"Well… I think it's pretty neat move… Let's get that burn treated" Celia said simply, and Rubina made a noise of agreement.
XXX
December 24th, X775
It was that time of year again. Snow everywhere, freezing temperatures, trees and buildings decorated with various lights and decorations, and everyone was in a festive mood.
Once again, it was Christmas in Fiore.
In the Mermaid Heel guild hall, everyone was having a good time. The guild hall was alight with festive lights. The bar was serving eggnog and other festive drinks. On the back of the stage was a large Christmas tree, decorated with various ornaments and had a mermaid holding a star on the top of it. Christmas cheer filled the air.
Kagura and Araña were sitting at a table in the guild hall.
Kagura was wearing a white sweater that had snowflakes sewn on it. She had black pants on and was wearing white boots. Araña was wearing an amber sweater with spider webs on it, and she had matching pants and boots on. Next to her on the table, was her favorite toy, Mr. Fuzzy, who was wearing a Santa hat. She was currently coloring on a piece of paper.
"So, Araña-chan… What do you want for Christmas?" Kagura asked.
Araña looked up with a huge grin on her face, "I want to learn Magic, and Mr. Fuzzy wants a girlfriend!" She exclaimed excitedly. "What do you want!?" She asked cheerfully.
A sad look flashed across Kagura's face, but was quickly replaced with a small smile. "Well… I don't know if I can get what I want for Christmas… But that's alright, I have you, Rubi, Master, Maribelle and the guild." She said, her voice was slightly depressed.
"Why can't ya get what you want?" Araña asked curiously.
Kagura looked away, "Sometimes, you can't always get what want… I don't think anyone can get what I want for Christmas…" She said sadly.
Araña's face grew concerned, "Not even Santa?"
Kagura looked back at her, "No, not even Santa…"
Before Araña could respond Lana appeared. "Ok sweetie, it's time to go now. Go put on your coat." Lana said.
"Yes, Momma." Araña said cheerfully, and went to go find her coat.
Lana then looked down at Kagura, with a concerned expression on her face. "What's wrong Kagura-chan?"
Kagura looked up with a sad smile, "It's nothing Lana-san, I was just thinking about things. Nothing to worry about." She said with a hint a melancholy.
That didn't quell Lana's concern. Lana looked at the table that Kagura was sitting at, and noticed the absence of a certain red head. "Where's Rubi-chan?"
"She decided to go home early. Said that she wasn't in the mood for a Christmas party." Kagura replied.
Lana didn't have time to respond.
"Momma! I'm ready!" Interrupted Araña. She had a bright green coat on.
Lana looked down at her daughter, and extended her hand. Araña then interlocked her hand with Lana's. "We'll, I got to go now, Kagura-chan… I hope you feel better tomorrow… Merry Christmas." She then started walking away with Araña skipping alongside her.
"Merry Christmas!" Kagura shouted. She then got off the chair she was on, and went to go get her coat.
Walking outside in a purple winter coat, Kagura looked up to the clear sky. There was a full moon. She then started walking to the dorms, her feet were leaving a trail in the freshly fallen snow, and her breath was visible.
She opened the main door, and walked into the main lobby of the dorm. Inside, there stood a large Christmas tree, which was decorated similarly to one the guild hall.
Kagura looked up to the star that was on top of the tree. "All I want for Christmas, is to have Simon-nii back, and for Rubi to have her sister back as well…" She said out loud.
She then started walking towards her room. When she arrived at her door, she stopped and sighed. Just as she was about to turn the doorknob, she heard singing coming from her room.
'Is someone singing?' She wondered.
She then turned the doorknob really slowly, and opened the door silently.
What she saw, surprised her.
The lights were on, and in the middle of the room, was Rubina. She was looking outside the window that was in between their beds. She was humming a sad tune, before she started singing.
"I never felt
That it was wise
To wish too much
To dream too big
Would only lead
To being crushed
Then I met you
You weren't afraid
Of anything
You taught me how
To leave the ground
To use my wings
I never thought a hero
Would ever come my way
But more than that
I never thought
You'd be taken away
Now it's cold without you here
It's like winter lasts all year
But your star's still in the sky
So I won't say goodbye
I don't have to say goodbye"
Kagura was silent because of her friend's song. She never knew she could sing. A tear escaped her eye.
'Beautiful.' She thought
"Beautiful…" She unintentionally said out loud.
Rubina suddenly jumped in surprise and turned around to see Kagura staring at her. Rubina froze, and looked like a deer caught in the head lights. Her face then turned super red, matching her hair, and immediately ran into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.
Kagura then snapped out of stupor. "Crap!" She exclaimed out loud. She then went up to the bathroom door, and found it locked. "Rubi… Are you okay? I'm sorry that I walked in on that." She said loud enough for the other girl to hear.
"G-Go away!" Rubina said, her voice was filled with embarrassment.
Kagura grew concerned, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have opened the door so quietly." Rubina didn't respond. Kagura stayed silent for a few moments, before sighing, "I thought it was very pretty… Your song I mean. I also thought your singing was pretty as well…" She said out loud.
There was a moment of silence. "R-Really?" Came Rubina's voice from the other side of the door.
Kagura smiled, "Really. You were actually pretty good…" She said confidently.
Another moment passed, and then Kagura heard the sound of the door unlocking. The door opened, revealing Rubi with a blush on her face. "D-Did it really sound good?"
Kagura then gave her a quick hug. "Yes! I wasn't kidding when I said it was good." She then let go, and backed up. "Where did you hear that song? I never heard it before…" She inquired.
"Oh…Uh, um… I found it in a book somewhere… I forget which one." Rubina said quickly, averting her eyes away from Kagura.
Kagura then smiled, "Well, I thought it was very pretty. Maybe you should learn how to play an instrument…"
"I'll think about it…" Rubina said.
Kagura then blinked, and realized that it was getting very late. "I think we should get to bed, Santa won't come if we are awake." Kagura said, which got a nod from Rubina.
The two laid in their beds, the lights were off, and the moonlight was shining in from the window.
"Rubi…" Came Kagura's voice.
"Yes?" Was Rubina's response.
"Merry Christmas."
XXX
December 25th, X775
Rubina and Kagura were in Maribelle's room, sitting in her living room chairs. They were both in pajamas. Rubina was wearing a red pair, and Kagura was wearing a purple pair.
Maribelle sat down on her own chair with two wrapped boxes. They were long and rectangular, and both were wrapped in white wrapping paper. One had a purple bow, and the other had a red one. She then put them on the coffee table that the chairs surrounded.
The two girls eyed the boxes.
"Merry Christmas." Maribelle said calmly.
The two girls looked at each other, before they opened the presents.
What they found under the wrapping paper made their eyes go wide.
On the coffee table were two mahogany boxes that had a window that revealed what was inside them. Both boxes had a full sized rapier in them. They were identical, both their blades were shiny, narrow and sharp. Their handguards had intricate engravings on them. The handles were wrapped in black leather, and had their first names printed in gold leaf.
The two girls were stunned.
A small smile made its way on Maribelle's face, "After many months of hard work, I deem the two of you proficient enough to move on and learn the next style of sword combat. We will start that in the spring though, and we will be working on close quarters combat and knife combat until then."
The two girls snapped out of their daze, "Thank you, Shishou!" they exclaimed at the same time.
"Unfortunately, you will not be able to use them until you are older, though. And you are most welcome." She said with a small smile.
This chapter was mostly filler, and had some fluff. I felt it necessary for character development and I wanted to take a break from writing first person. Because I wrote this in third person, her little pet project isn't spoiled yet. As you can see, Rubina has watched Naruto (and who hasn't?), and is trying to replicate some moves from the anime. Let's be honest, if you got lighting powers, who wouldn't try to recreate some of the lightning techniques from the anime. Chidori will not be the only move she will try to recreate, but that is way down the line. The song she was singing is called "Cold" by Jeff Williams and Casey Lee Williams. It is part of the RWBY Vol. 3 soundtrack and is a tribute to the late Monty Oum, who was the creator of the show. If you haven't watched it, go check it out. Since Rubina is based off me, she likes to sing when she is by herself. She reacted how I would react to being caught like that. I'm actually a very shy person. Of course, she acquired better singing ability with her new life. Lastly, Christmas does exist in Fairy Tail. There are two special manga chapters that are Christmas themed. The second one is especially funny.