Juvia's Story
Juvia was the luckiest girl in the world. She'd spent the winter holed up with Gray in the middle of nowhere. She wanted to dance around the middle of the town just thinking about it. Sure, they'd been training for the most part, and he refused to accept any of her hand made gifts, and Gray hadn't done anything super intimate… but they were LIVING together. She'd dreamed of this day since they'd first met.
Juvia skipped into the market to buy dinner a bit more energetically than usual. She scooped up ingredients for a meal she thought Gray would enjoy. She bought the soap she knew Gray liked. She bought stuffing and cloth to make another Gray plushie. As she approached the register with her items the cashier gave her a smile and rang up her total. As she counted out money the man tried to carry on some sort of polite, mundane conversation she couldn't be bothered to keep track of. Then, as she pulled the appropriate bills forward he asked rather pleasantly, "So, do you have plans tomorrow for Valentine's day?"
Juvia froze. Valentine's day. How could she have forgotten? It was like forgetting their six hundred and seventy fifth day anniversary! How horrific! She was deplorable! How was she to prove her care and respect for her beloved when she omitted such important milestones in their journey!? What if she forgot to celebrate the day Gray had first asked her how her day was next? Each milestone was important to remember in their grand romantic tale!
Juvia had been negligent. What could she possibly do to make it up to her darling Gray? He'd surely be so disappointed if she just brought him store bought chocolates, but she didn't have time to make chocolate from scratch.
"Are you okay?" the cashier was waving a hand in front of her face distractingly.
"There's no time!" Juvia cried, abandoning her groceries and running for the exit. She would have to figure out something extra special, but where was she to find something so special? Juvia was running, but she didn't know where it was she should be running to. She found herself at the train station before she could even recall picking a direction.
Of course! She would go and visit the people who had known Gray the longest! Surely they would know what Gray might appreciate most. She may have studied every detail and facet of him she could, but she was terrible with gift ideas. She could visit Lyon… oh, but Lamia Scale was nowhere near the train lines. There was no way for her to make it there and back before tomorrow.
She could go to Magnolia. She knew the Strauss siblings had stayed in town. They were the only ones she knew the exact location of. It was better than nothing. She caught the next train to Magnolia and spent the whole ride nervously fidgeting or trying to come up with an appropriate gift. By the time she'd arrived it was already midday. The sun shone high overhead like a beacon to lead Juvia to her destination. It was a large café on the North side of town. She burst through the door in a rush and nearly knocked a platter from a passing waitress' hand. The waitress rebalanced and gave her a startled look when she recognized her. "Juvia?" It was Lisanna. She had her hair pulled back and a uniform. It was a strange look for the girl, Juvia had to admit.
"Yes, it's Juvia." Juvia nodded. "Juvia has come with a most urgent question."
"Urgent?" Lisanna's face transformed to one of seriousness. She nodded, depositing the two plates on the table beside them and pulling Juvia to the back where they bumped into Elfman and Mira who were bustling about. "Mira, Juvia came and she said it's urgent."
Mira immediately shifted the bills she was sorting to Elfman who took over without a single complaint. "Juvia, is everything alright?"
"Everything was alright this morning." Juvia nodded. "But then Juvia was reminded what tomorrow is, and Juvia has nothing prepared. It will be a disaster!"
"Tomorrow?" Lisanna repeated, clearly not understanding why Juvia was in the predicament she was in. How could she not, though?! It was so painstakingly obvious!
"Valentine's day?" Mira asked, a smile forming on her face.
Juvia nodded intently. Mira always had been quick on the uptake. "Juvia knows that you have known Gray a long time. She was hoping you might have some ideas for a gift."
"Well…" Mira put a finger to her mouth as she thought. "He's not the biggest fan of chocolate from what I recall."
Juvia's heart sank. Chocolate was the traditional gift of the holiday. She hadn't wanted to go too old school and be boring, but she'd been hoping to make it at least chocolate themed. She thought maybe she could sculpt a thousand tiny Juvias from chocolate so that her love could have a taste of her in every bite. She felt her face warming as she thought about it.
It mattered not. Gray did not care for chocolate and Juvia would never dare present him with something he loathed. This holiday was doomed before it even began. What was she to do now? She lamented her loss.
"I tell you what…" Mira brought Juvia's attention back up. The woman smiled brightly. "We have a few deliveries that need to be made in town. If you take care of those I'm sure we can come up with something for you to give him while you're away."
Juvia latched onto Mira's arm. "You would do such a thing for Juvia?"
Mira laughed. "Of course. What is family for?"
The words had passed the woman's lips before she even seemed to register them. Everyone present took a moment to sit in the silence that followed. The dissolution of Fairy Tail hadn't been easy for anyone. It had been like losing family. But that was crazy, because those people were still right here. Juvia had lost no one. Just the connection they all shared. Yet somehow the reminder still stung.
"Lisanna could you grab the deliveries for her?"
Lisanna disappeared for a moment and reappeared with several bags. Each had an address marked as well as the customer's name. It would likely take her at least a couple of hours to deliver all of this on foot, but that wouldn't deter her. She was determined! If Mira could help her find an appropriate gift for her beloved then Juvia would walk through hell to obtain it.
"The two on the right need to be delivered first. They're the only ones with hot food. Everything else is cake." Lisanna pointed to the two. Obvious heat rolled from them. "Good luck, Juvia! We'll see you soon!"
Juvia took off.
Juvia's first two deliveries were relatively nearby. It was two shop keepers in separate stores, but each seemingly unable to get away from their stores long enough to eat. With the hot food taken care of Juvia was able to run around without much care as to which of the orders she delivered first. The next one she dropped off was to an old woman who thanked her profusely and tried to invite her in for tea. She only backed down when Juvia had said she was on a mission of love quite loudly and drawn attention their way.
Each bag she delivered lightened her load and let her move more swiftly. She was nearly sprinting by the time she was down to her last delivery. It was to such an odd spot too. Who ordered food to go to a random bridge? Well, to Juvia's surprise the answer to that question came into sight as she was pondering the question in her head. Bright red hair and a rigid posture were stood quite resolutely next to the bridge. Juvia slowed, but Erza had already spotted her. They just stared at each other in confusion for a moment.
"Ah, Juvia!" Erza broke out of the trance first and crossed the distance quickly. "What a surprise. What brings you to Magnolia?"
"Juvia came her to seek help from Mira." Juvia held out the bag, and Erza seemed to recognize it as a delivery because she took it and withdrew one of the containers inside with practiced ease.
"Whatever for? Is everything alright?" Erza asked, popping the top open and revealing cake. "I've yet to find a better bakery while I was travelling. I make the trip out here at least every few weeks."
Juvia nodded distractedly at the explanation. "Juvia wanted help finding out what to get for Gray for Valentine's day."
"Is it Valentine's day already?" Erza asked around her bite of cake. "The time certainly has flown."
"Indeed." Juvia nodded enthusiastically. Time had flown and she hadn't spent nearly enough of it with Gray yet. She needed to prove her love so that he might allow her to stay at his side.
"Well, Gray is certainly a hard one to get gifts for." Erza looked thoughtful. "But anything that you get him that comes from the heart will certainly be good enough. What do you think he'd like?"
What did Juvia think he'd like? Juvia pondered that. Juvia knew Gray had a tendency to strip when he got excited or agitated. So maybe more clothing, like the scarf she'd knitted him last year, wasn't the way to go. Her best received gifts had all been food. So, maybe it was best to follow that train of thought. "He likes ice cream…" she thought with a frown, but no one near where they lived made ice cream and it wasn't something she knew how to make. It wasn't something she could take home from Magnolia either. It would melt long before she made it there.
"Ice cream?" Erza repeated, looking up from her nearly gone cake slice. "I heard Mira mention something about ice cream cakes at the bakery."
Juvia shook her head. "It would melt." She said, saddened. It would melt away like Gray's love for Juvia if she couldn't find a solution to her problem.
"That's true…" Erza acknowledged.
Maybe she really had lost her chance to do anything for Gray. She'd failed him.
"I'm sure you'll figure it out Juvia." Erza put a hand on her shoulder. "No one knows Gray better than you. I'm sure you'll figure something out and he'll love it."
Juvia could see the sincerity of the statement in her eyes and Juvia felt pinpricks of tears in her own. Of course she would. She was giving up too easily! She couldn't let Gray down like that! She hadn't even checked back in with Mira. "Juvia is going to go now."
"Okay, good luck, Juvia." Erza nodded, confident smile slipping into place.
Juvia took off, racing up the path to the shops. Magnolia had a better shopping district than the little town that she and Gray lived outside of. Maybe she would see something that reminded her of him, or maybe a trinket that she thought he'd like.
She spent over an hour window shopping. The sun was going lower in the sky and she'd found nothing. She was about to call it quits when she saw a ball of yarn sitting in the window of a shop. It was the prettiest shade of blue. So dark and mysterious. Like Gray's eyes. Before she knew it she was purchasing a wide collection of yarns and crochet hooks. When she made it back on the streets she was more excited than when she'd left to come back to Magnolia.
"Juvia!" Lisanna was approaching quickly, her uniform a bit disheveled. "There you are! Thank goodness. We thought something might have happened. Mira had an idea and I think you'll like it. Come on!"
Lisanna pulled Juvia back to the little café. Inside the crunch of customers had faded down to just a few and a new waitress was taking orders. They moved through to the back where Mira was working on something.
"Oh, Juvia. Welcome back!" Mira said, spotting them out of the corner of her eye. She gestured for them to come look at her work and Juvia was perplexed. A weird white liquid resided in a bowl over a pot of water. Beautiful ribbons of some sort of white confection littered the counter as well.
"What is this?" Juvia asked, confused.
"Well, I thought if Gray doesn't like chocolate then why not do white chocolate. That way you get to keep with the Valentine's Day theme, but he enjoys it a bit more." She said with a smile and a cheerful gesture at the work she'd done so far. Little hearts she'd colored pink and red seemed to be hardening in molds as well. "I thought maybe you'd want to make a cake for him. We have plenty of cake types to choose from and-"
"Erza said you had ice cream cakes."
Mira stopped, halfway through her sentence and seemed to consider that. Juvia grew embarrassed. She knew anything with ice cream wouldn't make it home. Why had she even bothered to bring it up.
"Juvia doesn't know why she brought it up. Juvia and Gray live too far from here to transport an ice cream cake."
"No, actually." Lisanna chipped in. "We have a little freezer that we use for them when they're travelling pretty far. We just…"
"If you promise to get it back to us the day after tomorrow I'm sure we can let you borrow it for the day." Mira cut her sister off with an apologetic smile. "We don't have any orders right now that need to go very far. I'm sure it will be fine."
"Juvia… Juvia is at a loss for words." Juvia stumbled over the sentence. She hadn't expected that offer. She'd gone from having nothing to present Gray with to more than she could ever have dreamed of. "Juvia will have it back to you first thing that morning."
Mira smiled. "Good, now let's get to decorating. I'm sure we have an ice cream cake we can make up in back already."
They spent almost two hours making the cake to Juvia's exacting standards. It was for her precious Gray. Anything less than absolute perfection would never do! When they were done Mira carefully boxed the masterpiece and slid it into a strange little freezer. It fit inside snugly with just enough room to hook one's fingers under the box to lift it out. The Strauss siblings all wished her luck as she made her way to the train so she could make it back home.
Morning dawned early and bright. Gray had been asleep by the time Juvia had made it home last night so she'd tucked away his gifts and crawled into her own bed. Normally she would've tried to slip in next to him, but she didn't want to wake him and explain where she'd been all day yesterday.
Juvia pulled herself from her bed and went through the motions of making a full breakfast for her beloved. She had just started to place everything on plates when he'd come trudging out of the room with a wide yawn.
"Mornin'." He greeted, squinting. "What's all this?"
Juvia could feel herself wiggle closer to the table in excitement. "Today is a very special day." She said, smile widening. "Do you know what that is?"
He blinked. "Tuesday?" he asked, seriously.
"No, silly!" Juvia waved it off. Of course he didn't know. That was part of the charm with Gray wasn't it? Ah, he played so coy! Juvia could listen to hours of his wit! "It's Valentine's Day!"
"Valentine's Day?" he repeated the words back like they sounded strange to him. He was giving her a charmingly incredulous look. One of Juvia's top five looks for Gray. She'd ranked them. She nearly started going through the list of top looks of Gray's, but he was looking at her so intently. She squirmed under the attention.
"Indeed. I have gifts for you!"
Juvia had considered waiting until tonight, but she couldn't wait any longer. She whipped around and pulled the cake from their freezer and brought it forward, still veiled in its box. She set it on the table and slid it toward him the slightest bit.
He gave her a skeptical look and raised the lid. Juvia had managed to pipe cute pictures of their faces onto the cake along with the words 'Gray and Juvia Forever' arching along the top. Swirls of white chocolate were placed artistically along the top and white chocolate hearts made a border along the outside. He just stared for a long moment. A light blush was making itself known along his cheek bones and Juvia felt herself nearly grin at his modest reaction. How like Gray to be embarrassed by their love.
"Cake?" he asked weakly.
Juvia nodded enthusiastically. "Ice cream cake." She added.
He glanced back down at it more appreciatively after the amendment.
"Juvia also…" Juvia felt nervousness creep up. She knew he'd like the cake even if the decorations made him act coy, but she was less certain about the other part of her gift. "Juvia also made these."
She produced two knitted plushie dolls similar to their likenesses. That yarn that had originally caught her eye now made up the eyes of his doll and their hands were joined together. She could see the blush growing rapidly.
"Juvia also made this." She held up a tiny little 'Juvia charm' made of yarn and dangling from a strap. He snatched it from her hand and stood abruptly.
"I DON'T…"
Juvia reeled back, confused by the outburst.
"YOU DIDN'T-"
The blush was fully covering his face now and he wasn't meeting her eyes. He was staring literally anywhere but at her. He swung around and marched from the room. Her eyes followed him.
Had Juvia messed up? Was this like the day she tried to give him the scarf only to find out that she was trying to celebrate on the day of his master's death? Juvia worried her lip and considered following Gray, but experience taught her that maybe he wanted to be alone.
Juvia took the cake and slid it back in the freezer so it wouldn't go to waste. She started cleaning up the dishes from making breakfast. Suddenly she wasn't very hungry.
Juvia didn't see Gray until late in the afternoon. Whatever his outburst had been about that morning he didn't bring it up again. Instead, he passed Juvia who was sitting at the table reading and opened the freezer. Before Juvia had even fully processed what was happening Gray had set the cake down in between their seats and placed a plate down in front of her. He cut into the cake and served them each a piece.
Juvia set her book to the side and carefully watched his expression as he took a bite. For a moment it was unreadable, but then it broke and she could see that he'd enjoyed it. She felt her heart soar. She'd done something right after all! Or so she hoped at least.
"You should eat it before it melts." He said glancing from her untouched plate to her face. Juvia felt herself flush. "And I-I'm sorry… about before…"
Juvia felt her breath catch in her chest. Gray was apologizing to her? She'd done nothing to deserve such kindness! She lunged across the table and caught his free hand.
"Juvia isn't upset. Juvia thought she made a mistake again." She explained.
Gray looked confused. Then realization seemed to dawn on him because his expression shifted from surprised to… angry? Had Juvia upset him again by bringing it up? Juvia just couldn't stop messing this up.
"No… I… you…" Gray let out a frustrated sigh. "I'm not… good with people Juvia. You didn't make a mistake, and you definitely don't need to apologize to me." He emphasized that statement with a glare that Juvia found endearing.
"If you're sure." She sat back down.
He looked like he wanted to argue more, but instead offered that comment an exhausted sigh. "Just… you eat too…" he motioned at her plate again and Juvia obediently took a bite. It was good. "What's this on the top?"
Gray had picked off one of the swirls of white chocolate and was examining it with confusion.
"White chocolate." She offered. "Mira said you didn't like regular chocolate so she suggested Juvia switch it out. Chocolate is the traditional gift of Valentine's Day after all."
"Mira?" he gave her a bewildered look. "You went all the way to Magnolia?"
She nodded enthusiastically. "Juvia got to design the cake herself and she filled it with all her love."
Gray was blushing again, but he didn't seem angry. So maybe it was just an embarrassed blush. Juvia thought that might be even more adorable. Every day Gray found new ways to make her fall in love. They finished eating and Gray took their plates to clean saying that Juvia had done enough for the day despite her complaints.
Despite his surly demeanor at times Juvia was certain Gray cared about her more than he was letting on. As if to prove her point Juvia saw the 'Juvia charm' she'd made hanging off of the wallet in his back pocket.
Juvia finished training for the day and decided to head home. She was hot and the days were getting warmer as they moved into spring and away from winter. She preferred the cold now. It reminded her of Gray. The object of her affection had wandered back to the house early. Strangely he'd told her to keep practicing, citing not feeling well as a reason to run off. She'd nearly followed him on principle after he said that but he'd waved off her concern.
It in fact seemed like Gray was lying to try and sneak off to do something in secret. Juvia had let him go partially because she was never sure whether something like this was the result of Gray's odd reactions to his past, and partially because she sort of wanted to stumble in and see what he'd been so secretive about in the first place.
She grabbed clean clothes and showered. There'd been no sign of Gray when she passed through the house so whatever he'd needed to do hadn't been there. When she was clean and redressed she'd fully intended to go and find Gray and spy on him. She didn't have to find him though. He was already in the living room waiting for her. He was standing near the kitchen awkwardly shifting on his feet like he'd been waiting for her to finish.
"It's March 14th…" he started, much to her confusion. "So, uh… apparently guys are supposed to like give… presents to the people who gave them Valentine's chocolates… so…"
Oh, White Day. Juvia had heard about it, but it wasn't something she'd ever participated in. She'd never had a person to give chocolate to. So, naturally she'd never had a return gift before. Juvia felt her heart speed up. What had Gray gotten her? Was it jewelry? Or maybe it was something more sentimental, like a hair ribbon that reminded him of her eyes the way the yarn had reminded her of his. Or maybe… her face went warm… maybe it was something physical.
"Here." A small bag was stretched out her way and Juvia took it with sweaty palms.
Inside was a small box. Juvia retrieved it. The box opened easily to reveal a delicate bracelet and necklace set in matching gold. Each held a tiny charm in the same blue as her guild mark shaped like a tear drop of water that refracted the light in a swirling pattern that almost looked like ice. They were beautiful. She stared at them in awe.
"I saw…" Gray start, seemed to swallow and steel himself. "I saw the stone at a shop and thought it'd look nice… you know…"
Juvia lifted the necklace. There were times that Juvia doubted the progression of their relationship. There were times that Juvia wondered if she was deluding herself in her relentless pursuit of the only person she'd ever had feelings for. They all came crashing down each time he did something nice, or let her casually stand next to him, or let him live in the same home as him. Those doubts were certainly far from her thoughts now. She locked eyes with him. That blush was back and Juvia was certain. This was the only man she would ever love.
Lucy's Story
Lonely was the only word Lucy could use to describe her life the last few months. After Fairy Tail had split up she'd gone her own way and everyone else had gone theirs. There were no more jobs with her team every day. No more impromptu wake up calls from Erza insisting they leave at the crack of dawn to fulfill a request from someone or slay a monster. No more surprise visitors in her living room when she made it home each evening. It was quiet, but it was too quiet, and Lucy missed it all with such fierceness that it made her intensely sad.
She used her new free time outside of work to train. At first it had just been with her spirits. She had a lot she could do there. She had so many keys and every one of them deserved time spent mastering their power and building their friendship. Then, she'd started experimenting with the power she'd used in Tartaros. There was no voice whispering in her mind. She was certain it had been Harry's magic trying to keep her alive. Without a life threatening situation she doubted it was going to start giving her further instructions. Lucy wasn't about to go out and find one of the those though. So, she settled for testing out spells from Harry's borrowed memories and focusing on how the power felt to draw it forward.
It took several months before she was able to do anything more than just feel a strange burning in her chest. It started with just a recognition of how the magic felt. It burned because she was accumulating a massive amount of it somewhere inside of her and trying to keep it separate from her own magic. Once she let the two mix it was more exhilarating that it was painful, like a shot of adrenaline straight to her soul.
She couldn't figure out the big spells, but she worked her way through the small ones. An unlocking charm had been her first mastery. After a few weeks of repeated reliance Lucy stopped carrying her house key so that she'd be forced to practice the magic every time she returned home.
"Princess, on your left!"
Lucy ducked as quickly as she could, but she'd read the warning wrong. An ankle sweep had her falling face first into the dirt.
"Good reaction time. Wrong reaction." Loke laughed, offering her a hand.
Lucy had taken to sparring with her spirits. Keeping two gates open was becoming easier by the day. She was certain that with enough practice she could work her way up to three simultaneous summonings in a pinch. It would leave her little magic to do more than just dodge attacks, but at least she wouldn't find herself helpless as she'd nearly been in the Tartaros fight.
Lucy took Loke's hand and pulled herself up.
"You've gotta check your surroundings more." He offered, backing up so they could have another round.
"Princess." Virgo popped up with her usual expressionless look. "You asked me to remind you when it was getting close to six."
"It's been that long already?" She grimaced. Lucy had a work event this evening. "Thanks for the workout guys. I'll see you in a couple of days."
"Of course, Princess."
"Keep up the good work, Lucy."
Their gates closed and Lucy headed back to her apartment to get ready. She was located in Crocus now. It was much closer to the Sorcerer's Weekly headquarters where she'd started working. Leaving Magnolia had been a tough call, but the only ones Lucy knew well that were left in Magnolia at this point were Mira, Lisanna, and Elfman. Everyone else had drifted off their own ways. Lucy still heard from Harry and Wendy occasionally, but even those updates were getting fewer with more time in between.
In a city that she'd never felt more at home in months before, Lucy had started to feel terribly alone. Moving to Crocus had helped her refocus.
Lucy quickly rinsed off the sweat and dirt from her training and pulled on the clothes she'd laid out this morning. She let her hair hang loose and found some of the jewelry she owned, but had tended not to put on when she was actively a part of Fairy Tail. It just would've ended up destroyed. Possibly at the hands of her own guild mates.
She checked her reflection in the mirror and gave herself a mental thumbs up. She definitely looked good. She strapped her keys on reflexively. She felt exposed if she left them behind.
Once she was completely ready Lucy set off for her destination. The castle would once have intimidated her. When she'd first run away from home years ago she never would have dreamed of the sort of things she'd get up to once she joined Fairy Tail. Now, she flashed a badge at the gate and walked in with confidence. Jason met her inside, absolutely raving about all the guilds that had made it to this meet up. He was rambling off facts about different mages he spotted in the mix.
Lamia Scale, Mermaid Heel, Blue Pegasus, and Saber Tooth were all present. Some of the representatives even waved amicably in her direction when they noticed her. King Fiore had called a meeting of all prominent guilds to talk about the future of guilds in Fiore. As of now there'd been a sort of 'business as usual' air with operations, but that couldn't continue forever. The council was demolished following the Tartaros attacks. All of its members were dead and there was a power vacuum in the country. The only thing holding peace, especially with the sudden dissolution of the strongest guild in the country, was the royal family and a general lack of hostility among the major guilds.
Lucy had mostly been allowed to come, she suspected, because of her former association with Fairy Tail. Media coverage of the meeting was being restricted. Lucy supposed that was because the King had little idea of how the meeting would go and restricting the words of two reporters was certainly easier than silencing all the news outlets.
People began to shuffle towards a large, circular table surrounded by many chairs. Placards were set up marking the spot of where each person was to sit. Lucy found herself wedged in between Jason on her left and Jura Neekis on her right. Jura greeted her warmly as the clamor around the room started to subside. They hadn't seen each other in a very long time. It was sort of baffling to Lucy that he remembered her. It would have been even longer for him, not having been frozen in the stasis spell on Tenrou.
"Good evening, everyone!" The King spoke and all remaining chatter died immediately. "I've called you all here to discuss a problem of the greatest importance. As you all know the magic council has been vacant for months now following the tragic attack on Era."
Grim nods and a mumbling of discontent followed the words.
"We've come together today to try and find a solution to this problem." He continued. "As you all well know the activity of guilds in Fiore falls under the supervision of the council. Without their guidance there is serious risk of upheaval. You all represent the strongest guilds in our nation."
A louder grumble swept through the room at that.
"I wish to take into consideration the opinions of those who would be governed by this new council on how it should be reformed."
There was a beat of silence before a thud sounded from Lucy's left. "Do we even need those stuffy old goats anymore?" Sting had leaned back and irreverently put his feet up on the table. "They've been gone for months and nothing has changed."
Minerva, to his right, tilted his chair back and swept his legs off the table in one smooth motion. He was sitting normally with a stunned look on his face as he stared at a completely straight faced Minerva.
"It only takes one bad egg to unbalance the scale." Kagura said opposite of him. She was sitting stiffly, familiar scowl in place on her face.
"She's precisely right." Jura's voice nearly made Lucy jump. She'd been scribbling notes as fast as she could as everyone talked. "The council prevents inter-guild wars and regulates guild activity. It is crucial to the function of our system."
Sting scoffed, but he didn't argue his part any further.
"The wizard saints have been discussing this very problem lately." Jura continued with a slight bow to the king. "I am the only member currently seated within a guild. So, I thought it prudent to attend tonight's meeting."
"Have you found any sort of solution?"
Lucy glanced up briefly, noting that it had been an unknown from one of the guilds she wasn't as familiar with who'd asked. She'd have to ask Jason later if he knew who that was. Her eyes drifted to Jura. He'd mentioned being the only wizard saint currently in a guild and he was technically right. Makarov would normally have been among that count if he hadn't disbanded Fairy Tail. It was a frank reminder that his decision had spread beyond affecting just the people in their guild.
"There has been an idea tossed around, but it is only in the stages of infancy at the moment. We have recently acquired many losses to our ranks and we had hoped to fill some of them before moving forward." Jura said seriously. "But those of us who have talked are considering stepping into the position of the council."
An uproar filled the room as everyone tried to talk at once. Lucy was surprised to note that very few people present looked upset at the announcement. Most just looked surprised.
"The wizard saints want to take over as the council? So cool!" Jason writhed excitedly beside her.
"At least four of us are on board with decision." Jura's voice rose above the rush of questions. "Makarov has been unreachable for a while now."
Eyes drifted her way and Lucy tried her damnedest not to meet a single one of them. It's not like she knew what Makarov had run off to do.
"You got any people in mind for wizard saint?" Sting spoke up, cocky smile on his face as he stood and leaned slightly forward over the table. "I volunteer."
"Sting, sit down." Minerva pulled roughly on the back of Sting's shirt so he fell back in his chair. "I apologize for him. He does not volunteer."
Jura looked far from insulted. If anything, he looked amused. Lucy was distinctly reminded of an unruly Natsu. Which shouldn't be surprising. Sting had admitted once that Natsu was sort of his hero growing up. Of course, he imitated the annoyingly overconfident nature as well.
Lucy felt a pang of loneliness run through her at the thought of Natsu. She'd been avoiding thinking about him over the last few months. If there was one separation that had hurt more than the others it was Natsu's.
"We have a few candidates in mind." Jura nodded. "Of course their acceptance doesn't necessarily mean they'd have to serve on the council. Four council members are enough for most major decisions, and we'll find more members over time. It was never our goal to make the council synonymous with the ten wizard saints."
Lucy nodded, making sure to jot that last statement down. It was very well worded. She'd make sure that made it into the article.
"As a matter of fact, several candidates we've considered are from the now defunct Fairy Tail." He continued.
Ooh, that was a scoop! Lucy wrote that down. Several members being considered were from the defun… Lucy glanced up. Most eyes were on her. "F-from Fairy Tail?" she squeaked, not particularly prepared to be the center of attention in a room full of powerful wizards.
"What's Fairy Tail got to do with anything?" it was the same guy Lucy couldn't recognize earlier. He was scowling. "Couldn't have been too powerful. They're gone now, ain't they?"
Noise erupted in the room once more. Several threatening fingers were being pointed at the man. Lucy was amused to see two of them belonged to Sting and that they were… less than polite.
"A mage's power is not linked to their guild name." Kagura from Mermaid Heel cut in. Several others nodded and grumbled their agreement. The guy who'd made the comment was sitting and leaning away from the aggressive stance Kagura had taken. "But if it were, we'd likely all be outclassed by that guild in one-on-one fights. Their determination was staggering. I suggest you choose your words more carefully in the future."
"Who… um…" Lucy wasn't really comfortable asking anything in the room, but curiosity got the better of her. "Who were you considering?"
Jura looked at her with a mildly amused smile. Maybe he could tell how nervous the simple question made her. "We've heard many stories of the S class mage Gildarts. Erza, of course has been on our radar for quite some time."
"Not Harry?"
Lucy glanced across the table at Minerva who was watching Jura with a considering frown. Lucy had a similar thought, but Minerva had beaten her to the punch line. Lucy wasn't even aware that Minerva had seen how amazing Harry's powers could be. When had they even met… oh, right. Minerva had been part of the whole Tartaros debacle as well. She wondered how much Minerva had seen that night.
"Harry?" Jura repeated the name with zero familiarity in his tone.
"A powerful one indeed." Ichiya spoke up for the first time from Blue Pegasus' spot at the table. "Blue Pegasus was able to witness some of his power at Fairy Tail's final promotion trial just before their guild was disbanded. His parfum is one of a kind."
Most people wrinkled their noses in distaste at the last comment.
"An interesting discovery." Jura said, looking thoughtful.
"The issue of the council seems to be decided for the most part." The King spoke up for the first time since he'd said his piece at the beginning. "Does anyone have any direct objection to the wizard saints stepping into the role for the time being?"
No one objected.
"Then for now that is the action we will take." He nodded resolutely. "Thank you all for your time in coming here. It was a most illuminating meeting, and I'm happy it could come to such a favorable end so quickly."
Talking started up in earnest after the obvious dismissal. Lucy finished her last few notes and started to put away her supplies.
"It was wonderful to see you doing well, Lucy." Jura said, offering her a kind smile.
"Oh, uh… you too?" it came out like a question in her nervousness. He smiled a little more fondly.
"Have you been keeping in touch with your former guildmates?"
Lucy paused, a bit of sadness creeping into her. She shook her head. "Not as much as I'd like." She admitted.
"I'm sorry to hear that." And he did sound sad for her. "Even without the Fairy Tail name to bind you all together officially I had always assumed that you would all stay rather close. Yours has always been a guild of close bonds."
Lucy nodded slowly. She'd thought so as well. Even when Makarov announced their disbandment Lucy had assumed that they'd pick up where Fairy Tail left off somewhere else. She'd thought they would like take those bonds and form another guild or join one together. She'd never have guessed that everyone she cared about would walk away in different directions.
"Sometimes separation isn't as permanent as it appears." Jura said, sounding almost as saintly as his title implied. He placed a steadying hand on her shoulder. "We cannot see what the future holds for us, and bonds like the ones you bear with your former guildmates are solid enough to withstand the test of distance and time. Be patient."
Lucy hoped she could be that patient, and she hoped that this really was just a temporary thing.
"Whoa! Whoa!" Loke dodged another strike and caught Lucy's wrist before forcing her to come to a standstill. "Lucy, if you swing like that you're going to break something."
Lucy panted in breaths.
"Is something wrong?"
It was only Loke with her today. She was working on her hand to hand combat techniques and trying to imbue them with some of Loke's celestial magic. So far she wasn't managing to put much of his power into the swings, and her failure was making her unsteady. Maybe even a little unhinged. It had been over a month since the meeting with the guilds, but Jura's parting statement played over and over in her head when she had time to stop and think.
At first his words had given her hope. Now they felt like a cruel mockery of just how separated she was from everyone else. She'd received no letters from Harry and Wendy in over three months now and the only person she could reliably contact was Mira. Lucy loved Mira like a sister, but it didn't feel like enough and it was wearing on her. She felt like her whole life and support system had been torn from her.
Something collided with her side as she tried to catch her breath and both she and it plummeted into the dirt with grunts. Arms latched around her waist and Lucy was just barely able to keep herself from panicking before she caught sight a familiar figure at the edge of the clearing.
Lucy looked down and was surprised to see Wendy clinging to her.
"Lucy!" the girl cried, meeting her eyes. "I missed you!"
"W-Wendy?" Lucy stammered, confused.
"We were swinging through the area and thought we'd come find you. You said in your last letter that you were moving out to Crocus." Harry had a smile in place. He seemed more at ease than she remembered him being right before he left Magnolia. He'd put back up that strange cheery façade of his that the guild had slowly been able to bring down during his time in Magnolia. It was Lucy's only real clue that Harry hadn't been as okay with Fairy Tail's disbanding as he'd let on.
He seemed almost genuinely happy now, or at least more okay with the turn of events than he'd been a few months ago. He was, however, absolutely covered in dirt and he had rips in the knees of both his pants legs. He seemed to notice her staring because he glanced down and looked a bit sheepish when he noticed how dirty he was. "Had a bit of a mishap on the way here."
"I told you we were going the wrong way." Lucy recognized Carla's voice, but she was absolutely speechless because it was coming out of the mouth of a girl who looked about Wendy's age. "If you'd just listened to me, you wouldn't have fallen down that ravine."
"Of course, Carla." Harry said in a very put-upon manner that made it sound like Harry had to defend his decisions quite often.
Lucy started laughing until very suddenly she was crying. Wendy hugged her a bit tighter. "Lucy, are you okay?"
Lucy nodded. Loke offered both of them a hand up and Lucy took it. "I wasn't expecting to see you guys." She said, trying to stem the tears, but they weren't stopping.
"It was an impromptu trip." Carla offered, though she sounded slightly less stern than usual.
"I promised we'd keep in contact." Harry offered, holding out a handkerchief to her. He must've walked over while she'd been trying very hard not to sob. "We've just been on the move and I didn't want you to send a letter back somewhere we'd left. Sorry it took so long."
Lucy shook her head and offered a smile as she wiped her eyes. "Thanks for coming." She said, relief was the predominant emotion in her mind right that moment. She hadn't been forgotten in place of some grand adventure. At least, not by Harry. "What are you guys doing in Crocus anyway?"
"We were heading South East from where we were before and the path crossed us in the approximate direction of Crocus." Carla explained. If she'd needed any more proof that the girl was indeed Carla it was supplied. At some point in the last few seconds Carla had turned back into her cat form and was standing with her arms crossed as if daring anyone to comment on the difference. Lucy didn't dare.
"We're not in a rush." Harry said, sounding chipper about that fact. "If you have a few days… and uh… a place for us to sleep…"
They were bumming a place to stay off of her, Lucy realized. She wanted to be put out by the idea, but she was so happy to see literally anyone from Fairy Tail that she just couldn't muster the energy to be upset. "My apartment is small, but of course you guys can stay." It was more warning than she'd ever gotten from Natsu… or Gray… or Erza. So, by Fairy Tail standards Lucy supposed Harry, Wendy, and Carla meeting her in a clearing instead of just appearing in her home was considered polite.
"Oh, good!" Wendy beamed.
"Good to see you again too, Loke." Harry greeted with a friendly wave. "Were the two of you training just now?"
Loke nodded. "She's come a long way." He commented, posture deceptively relaxed. "Maybe we should show you?"
Harry waved off the idea. "We just reunited. That would be bad manners." He laughed awkwardly. "Maybe you and Lucy can show us what you've been working on tomorrow if you guys have time. We were just going to sight see while we were here. Last time I was cut short by dragons rampaging through the city."
Lucy let out a laugh.
"Did Kosmos come back to Crocus?" Wendy asked, glancing up at Lucy. Lucy just shook her head.
"I haven't heard anything from her since she left Magnolia, but I know she's not here." Lucy supplied. "I checked when I first got here. The Garou Knights said she'd left notice with her family that she was going to train with someone for awhile. She didn't say who though."
Harry looked thoughtful at that revelation. "Well, I'm sure we'll run into her eventually." He said with a clap.
"Yeah!" Wendy clapped too with a grin. "Will you show us around Lucy?"
"Yeah, show us around Lucy!" Harry said, matching the pleading look coming from Wendy almost comically well.
"Stop doing that!" Carla said, look of horror on her face.
Harry flashed a grin at Wendy before sending a confused look Carla's way. "Doing what?" he asked, feigning innocence.
Lucy snorted out a laugh. When she had herself back under control it was to see Loke giving her a warm smile.
"I think I'll take my leave, Lucy." He offered. "It looks like you're in capable hands."
Lucy opened her mouth to argue that he was more than welcome to tag along. He was her friend too after all, and a lot of her training had been on magic control and increasing her usage times. If she could sustain a gate for hours at a time it was just as useful as short bursts with multiple gates. Before she could get a single word out Loke had dismissed his own gate.
"Never seems to want to stick around long when I'm around. Weird." Harry mused, before turning an expectant glance Lucy's way. "How about dinner? I'll buy, but you're the local. Take us somewhere you like to go."
All in all their visit was nice, but too short. They stayed three days before Carla argued that they needed to hit the road. Wendy had seemed hesitant. Harry had seemed resigned. When Lucy had asked what they were up to she'd received a brief explanation about magical artifact hunting that had certainly gone far over her head. It didn't help that Harry and Wendy would trade turns telling the story almost in a rehearsed way that made it nearly incoherent for her.
She saw them to the edge of Crocus on the morning of their departure. The air was starting to get warm with the approach of summer and Harry had forgone his usual vest this morning in favor of a lighter, more form fitting shirt in emerald green. Lucy curious to note that he wasn't nearly as scrawny as she remembered him being after the kidnapping and de-aging incident, and that maybe he was a bit taller as well. Apparently, the de-aging wasn't sticking permanently. She was almost relieved. It couldn't have been easy for him to look in the mirror at a kid version of himself when he was an adult.
"Oh, I almost forgot." Harry drew something out of his pocket and held it out for Lucy.
Lucy took it, curious. It looked like a blank, folded sheet of paper. She unfolded it. The only thing denoting it as anything other than a standard sheet of paper was the off white color and reddish border color. She gave him a confused look.
"Message paper." He said, showing her another he pulled from his pocket. "If you need me for anything just write your message there. We likely won't be in one place for very long at a time for a while. I wanted you to have a way to contact us. Anything you send me will duplicate. The same for anything I send you. Think of it like an instant letter. Just write it out, fold it up and the paper will go blank again on your end."
Lucy stared at the paper in surprise.
"It was a nifty trick my people created." He said flipping the paper between his fingers in a show of dexterity. "Certainly beat the memos they used to use. I always had a fondness for owls though."
Lucy could remember owls hanging around in some of Harry's memories. If they'd been used for a sort of message delivery system it did explain their persistent presence in his memories.
"I don't have the time or knowledge to train an animal though." He said with a laugh and pocketed the paper he'd been playing with. "I was serious when I said I wanted to keep in touch, Lucy."
Lucy could feel tears sting the back of her eyes. She nodded.
"Yeah, we might not be in the same guild any more, but we're still friends." Wendy added, grabbing Lucy's hands and swinging them just a bit.
"When we've got a bit more time we'll try to swing through Crocus again, okay?" Harry offered, smile encouraging.
Lucy nodded again, tears breaking free. "I'll hold you to that." She said fiercely.
"I'd expect nothing less." He said, eyes warm as he smiled more deeply.
Lucy watched them until they were a tiny speck on the horizon.
She would continue to write back and forth with the small group for several more months. When the eight month anniversary of the Fairy Tail disbandment hit Lucy finally wrote a letter that received no response. And as the months continued to role relentlessly on Lucy didn't see them again despite their promise.
Happy New Year everyone!
Hope everyone's year is off to a great start! Mine is meh... lol. I'm in the swirl of a new semester starting and prepping for two surgeries. Life is a mess, but I'm good. Expect more delays unfortunately as I deal with health issues and my senior year in college skdjabndsfio! I graduate this December. I have no words.
Life is hectic, but its mostly good. I hope you all stick around for some answers to the mysterious questions I've been raising. Okay, I've rambled long enough. See you guys soon!
~Kanathia