AN: Future!Rogue is not going to make an appearance in this fic. Sorry, those of you who were hoping for that. Pretty sure that letting loose a bunch of dragons would be the nice route if he lost Kagome at this point. So, since I don't feel like writing too much angst and apocalyptic shadows covering the world in a second darkness (wait, that's LotR) Rogue is not going to go crazy.
I hope this is okay, anyway. Hugs!
Rogue's eyes snapped open in the wee hours of the morning. He blinked and tried to pinpoint what had woken him. A broken, happy purr sounded from beside him as a distinctly feminine body snuggled into his chest. Recognizing Kagome, Rogue was momentarily confused on why she was on the floor with him. His mind caught up with his senses, however, and he realized he was back in bed, with Kagome half-draped across him and his shadows cocooning her protectively.
Had he gotten back in bed in his sleep? Absently, he rubbed Kagome's ears, getting a pleased purr in response. Whatever the case, he didn't seem to be disturbing his partner. If anything, she seemed much more content than she had when he'd stubbornly made a pallet in the floor. She also smelled delightful.
Closing his eyes, Rogue put the puzzle aside and focused on getting a few more hours of rest. His dragon stirred enough that he pulled Kagome closer before drifting back to sleep.
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Rogue supposed he should have expected Kagome's bubbly personality to remain the same. When the guild left for the arena the next morning, she surprised him by leaping up onto his shoulders and happily chattering about how much lighter the hotel felt without Jiemma. Stumbling a minute, Rogue righted himself and held onto her thighs before glaring up at her.
"You're not a cat anymore," he pointed out.
Grinning, she bent down to kiss his nose, making his eyes round. "Nope, but you said I was still small."
He had no comeback for that, so he simply huffed at her and let her stay where she was. Sting was staring at him shrewdly, his gaze flicking between Kagome and Rogue.
"I would have thought Kagome would be a bit more worried about your injuries," Lector stated, walking beside his partner.
"Don't have to," Kagome chirped. "I fixed Rogue right up. He's good as new."
The others were taken aback by that before Sting demanded to know why she hadn't healed him. Kagome looked at him in bewilderment.
"You didn't ask?"
Flicking her fingers, she let a healing light wash over him. Sting straightened and gaped at her.
"Woah. You really have gotten stronger."
Lector eyed her. "You aligned the Four Souls, didn't ya?"
She smirked, flashing her fangs at him. "Might have."
"Not fair," he pouted.
"Aw, is Lector upset that his girlfriend's the wrong size?" Sting teased, then yelped when Kagome sent a bolt of static electricity to shock him in the butt.
"I don't care if you are the Guildmaster now," she growled, "I'll purify the dragon right out of you if you don't shut up about that."
Grumbling and rubbing his posterior, Sting chose not to lower himself by responding. Rogue simply held up a hand and smirked when Kagome slapped it in victory.
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"Man, who's the chick with Rogue?" Lucy asked as they saw the girl zap Sting and high-five Rogue.
Natsu and Gajeel sniffed, both of them surprised at what they smelled. Happy and Panther Lily were both wearing identical astonished expressions.
"Th-that's Kagome!" Happy stammered.
Carla and Wendy came up to them and watched the other guild with interest as well. "I suppose the rumors are true, then," Carla stated.
At the group's look, Wendy explained.
"Apparently, something big went down with Sabertooth last night. Jiemma attacked Rogue and Sting for losing and tried to make them remove their guild marks."
Carla inclined her head. "Yes, and I heard from a reliable source that Kagome got between Jiemma and Rogue to protect him. Whatever she did left Jiemma completely without any ability for magic."
Natsu whistled, impressed and gleeful at the information. "Damn. That is one cat I wouldn't want to piss off."
Wendy laughed. "And, since Jiemma is no longer a wizard, they booted him out of the guild forcibly. Apparently, Sting's the new Guildmaster."
Gajeel arched a brow at the hot girl perched on the brat's shoulders. "How did she manage that, though?"
Lily shook off his surprise. "Lady Kagome must have aligned the Four Souls of her Jewel. Which means that she must have been truly terrified for Rogue last night."
Sobering at the realization that brought, they watched the much happier looking guild. Kagome was laughing gleefully at something Rufus said, holding onto a feather that looked like it'd come from the wizard's hat.
When she caught sight of Fairy Tail, she waved with a bright smile, drawing her guild's attention.
"You got a staring problem?" Sting asked.
"You just look…so much happier," Lucy repeated her thought from earlier.
Kagome slid off Rogue's shoulders and beamed. "Carla! I haven't seen you in ages. Rogue, that's my cousin."
The white Exceed was surprised when Rogue nodded cordially to her. Smiling slightly back, Carla floated over to accept the hug she knew Kagome had for her. "I'm pleased to see that you're doing so well, Kagome. Did you truly align your Four Souls?"
Drawing back, Kagome shrugged. "Can't go giving you guys all our secrets."
"Are you okay, though?" Carla pressed.
Kagome's smile widened. "Of course. Rogue wouldn't let anything happen to me."
At the assurance in those words, Carla gave a long look to the Shadow Dragon Slayer before bidding them goodbye. Kagome laughed when Rogue threw her over his shoulder, but she still waved at Fairy Tail.
"I'm still rooting for you to come in second!" She called, breaking off into giggles when Rogue pinched her side.
Erza and Gray had joined their friends by then, the former arching a brow at them in surprise.
"Minerva seemed awfully subdued," she murmured.
Happy snorted at that, but Natsu spoke up before he could reply.
"Hey, could you do what she did?"
Lily narrowed his eyes at the pink haired wizard. "You have no idea of the enormity of what it means, do you?"
"She turned into a babe," Gajeel pointed out.
Rubbing his eyes in frustration, Lily tried to hold his patience. "Though the rumors of a normal Exceed's power were morbidly warped in Edolas, there was some grain of truth to the original story. That's why the story stuck for so long. When an Exceed aligns all Four Souls and becomes one with their Jewel, they do possess unparalleled power and ability. Such a thing has only happened a few times in our history."
"Surely her being afraid for Rogue wouldn't be enough for all that, then," Natsu stated.
Carla scoffed. "Of course not. But, Kagome has always been able to do the impossible for those she loves."
As that settled in, Lucy's eyes softened. "Then, I hope he appreciates it."
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Kagome was surprised when Rufus plucked the feather from her fingers and transformed it into a gorgeous pink rose. When he offered it to her again, she could feel heat rushing to her cheeks.
"Oh, thank you," she said in confusion, accepting it carefully.
His eyes danced as he smirked. "See? Not so dark then."
Her confusion cleared, causing her to grin and smell the flower. Before she could say anything else, Rogue appeared at her side, cupping her elbow. Feeling his shadows winding protectively around her, she looked up with furrowed brows. He was glaring at Rufus, flashing his fangs when the blonde wizard didn't back down.
"I'll see you afterwards, pretty kitty," Rufus told Kagome, tipping his hat to her and striding off.
Rogue growled at that. Kagome didn't know what had set him off, but didn't like it when he was so upset.
"Rufus turned the feather he'd given me into a rose," she told him, holding up the flower. "I've never been given a flower before. I wonder if a memory-make one will last?"
"That peacock was hitting on you, Kagome," he told her through gritted teeth.
Blinking, she processed that and then blushed deeply before staring at the rose as if it'd suddenly turned into a frog.
"Oh. Um…but, I like the rose. If I keep it, does that mean I have to like him?" she asked in bewilderment. "Because, I don't."
Rogue's eyes narrowed and his shadows swelled to consume the flower, making Kagome gasp in surprise. Her gaze jerked to his, hurt flaring at his actions.
"That was mine," she protested.
Frowning at her genuine upset, Rogue breathed out a shadow about the size of a ferret. It twisted until features formed and it solidified into a dark dragon with red eyes. Kagome watched in awe as it shook itself and blew out a small shadow-flame, the smoke turning into bursts of flowers that drifted up. Delighted, she held out her hand and laughed when the tiny dragon eagerly rushed over to her. It felt just like it was alive, smoke flowers drifting around her as it cuddled her.
"Rogue! This is amazing!" she gushed, petting the shadow happily.
Rogue's upset dissipated as he smiled, one hand on the small of her back. "He's yours."
Flower totally forgotten, Kagome brightened and slid her arms around his waist to hug him tightly. "Thank you! He's like a little you. I think I'll call him Nox," she said as the tiny dragon rubbed its head under her chin. Grinning, she petted it and then stretched up to kiss Rogue's jaw affectionately.
Appeased, he led her away, his inner dragon satisfied as she played with the gift. When they joined the others, he watched smugly as Kagome showed off the shadow.
"Man," Sting whistled, "that is one fancy bit of magic, Rogue."
As Nox perched on Kagome's shoulder, it blew a flame that set Rufus's hat on fire. Rufus scowled as he tried to douse the fire, smoke flowers filling the air.
"Well, roses are overdone," he smirked as Kagome pulled Nox away from her and scolded it.
The little shadow looked entirely too pleased with itself, though. Rogue felt certain no one was getting near Kagome without some sort of bodily harm from the creature. He probably should feel bad about that.
He didn't.
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Next Chapter: Last Game!