Three months of training and three months for Laxus and the Raijinshuu to get closer to the Exceed that had appeared in their lives so suddenly. Over time, she came to show them that she was strong even with her fragile mind and body. She knew how to tie helpful knots and her magic was peculiar from what they had seen, very powerful from what they could sense. Despite knowing so much about all kinds of different weapons and ways to fight, she was a gentle soul, able to heal wounds much like Wendy could, and finding comfort in small conversations no matter whom with.

She was still afraid to be touched, but they could respect her wishes. The only person she really let touch her had been Laxus, but normally it would either be brief or while she was asleep to help keep the nightmares away. They wondered what the nightmares were about, but they didn't dare ask. The only things they asked were preferences or tips, and she honestly really helped them with their training. They enjoyed her presence and she enjoyed theirs, smiling a lot more towards the end of the three months than she had at the beginning.

There were times when she would need to take moments to herself or when she would start crying out of nowhere, but they never minded it. There were worse times, after all, when she would wake up in the middle of the night screaming and crying without being able to be helped. Laxus could often help her, but there were times where he had to sit by because comforting her would only make it worse. The worst times weren't when she would yell out jumbled messes, the worst times were when she would make sense and yell out names that everyone had to pretend they didn't remember the next morning. The worst times were when she begged not to be hurt, not to be killed, and the next morning she would end up just as exhausted as she was the night before.

They focused on the good things, though, like right now. They were returning to the Guild with Seph close by, not wanting to be left alone and having taken a liking to the team. She was obviously very anxious, but they weren't really sure what else to do besides talk about their Guildmates and the upcoming event they would be participating in. It helped her feel better, they could tell, especially when they were able to give her information on the other Exceeds in the Guild. No matter the experience she had before, she wouldn't have to go through it again on their watch.

Even so, it was a little bit of trouble to have her clinging to Laxus' leg upon entering the Guild hall. Even with a lack of people, she still looked far too anxious to socialize with anyone. However, because she was already clinging to him, Laxus knelt down and cautiously lifted Seph into his arms to help keep her calm. They took notice of how Mira was already washing dishes again and how the Master seemed to be straight on them at the time of their arrival.

"Oh, welcome back." Makarov greeted them, in which Seph ended up clinging to Laxus' shirt. She was really afraid of strangers, wasn't she? "… I'd like to say that you've made it just on time, but I believe that there's something else we must address first."

"This is Seph. She's my partner." Laxus stated dryly, trying to keep the small Exceed from bursting into tears at the attention that had been brought to them. Mirajane looked troubled for a moment and then went back to smiling kindly turning off the tap water and coming around the bar counter.

"There's no need to be apprehensive." Makarov sighed, getting up from his seat. "She'll be joining the Guild, then?" Laxus gave a nod and Mirajane was about to go into the back to grab the mark stamp, but he quickly stopped her.

"Mira, she's really shy. Could you take her back with you for it?" Laxus asked as nicely as he could manage, just wanting Seph to be comfortable. It was obvious that his Grandfather wanted to talk to him about her anyways. Mira took a look between the pair of relatives and then at Seph before giving a nod. "She doesn't like to be touched, so… Be careful."

He made sure to say it before Mira reached out her arms to take the small Exceed from him and then knelt down to put Seph on the ground. She let out a small sound and he mumbled something to her that no one else could hear, relaxing her enough to follow Mira into the back. Once Laxus stood back up, the conversation started.

"Her name is Seph." Makarov stated, in which Laxus nodded and gave an affirmative sound. "Where does she come from?"

"We're not too sure." Freed responded to give Laxus a moment to lean against the wall and compose himself. "We are fairly sure that she's one of the hundred Exceed eggs that were sent here from Extalia years ago, though, because she's thirteen from what she knows. Her magic is beyond extraordinary from what we can sense and she may look fragile, but—"

"Could she knock Laxus on his ass?" Gajeel asked, leaning against a staircase post with a chuckle. Freed merely continued on seriously, answering his question.

"Yes… and without much effort, I'm sure." Freed sighed at the sheer stupidity that spread across Gajeel's face from hearing that. "She's also very intelligent. She can fight, cook, and tie different knots… She can tell by a person's stature how a weapon would work with them, and she can name different types of knots and weapons off of the top of her head. It's like she's lived many years just being supplied information, whether from books or people…"

"She's afraid of people." Laxus reminded Freed before he could continue theorizing. "It's not very hard to earn her trust, but she won't let anyone touch her. It's rare that anyone except me can even get close to her without her breaking down and begging for her life. She was scared when she heard we were from a Guild and yet so relieved to hear what we were like, that we weren't a Dark Guild. She's scared of other Exceeds." He took a breath, running a hand through his hair and checking to see if Mira and Seph were coming back. No sign of them yet. "When we say that she knows how to fight, it's not just her own abilities. It's that she knows how to teach people, she helped us train during the three months. She can heal like Wendy."

"She showed up all injured and exhausted, like she had been running from something. She was terrified and she collapsed on sight, spending about a week just resting and recovering." Freed continued before Laxus could get angry at a source they didn't even know of properly. "She has nightmares and we have some names, but… it's not so helpful. We're unsure of what to do except give her a proper home with friends and resources."

"We may be rambunctious, but I'm sure that everyone will keep their distance." Lily said from a step near the Master, Gajeel looking like he had finally clued into how serious this was as he exchanged a look with Juvia. The water Mage looked worried.

"They better. She tends to need time to herself sometimes, she'll zone out without warning. She might break down into tears for no reason, so I don't want to have to witness her breaking down into tears with a reason." Laxus explained, sounding a little threatening but also worried for Seph's well-being.

Everyone did tend to fight a lot and go off their rocker more than appreciated, so they understood his worrying. Laxus wasn't one who seemed to be kind, but it was obvious that he cared for Seph and the Raijinshuu. Somewhere down the line, he cared for the Guild as well; they all knew it even if they wouldn't show that they did. Laxus then raised his hand, signalling that Seph and Mira were coming back, and Makarov merely took a moment before giving a nod just as everyone went back to what they were doing. Laxus knelt down to greet Seph, who was talking softly and excitedly about something, most likely her mark, before he stood back up and allowed her to hold onto the fabric of his pants just to feel comforted.

They all felt awful because she had such a sweet smile, even if it only lasted for a little bit just before the Master called the only members that were really there over to talk to him. The Raijinshuu were just going to put away some Guild-borrowed stuff in the storage. Elfman and Lisanna were out in the town, according to Mira. Lily and Seph were allowed to stay because they were Gajeel and Laxus' partners, which Seph seemed to greatly appreciate.

"I want the four of you to be a team in the Grand Magic Games. I'm going to set up another team, Team A, but you're going to be Team B. If we take people by surprise, then they can't doubt our win for long." Makarov suddenly said, taking the four of them by surprise. Gajeel was the first to speak up.

"Gimme a break!" He yelled, in which Seph flinched under his volume. Laxus didn't even need to send a glare over Gajeel's way, Lily was already on it. Gajeel's voice lowered considerably, but only to a point where he would still be heard and able to make his point. "Who's gonna be part of that spectacle!?"

"I don't mind being in it." Laxus admitted with a shrug before adding more. "I just don't like being on "Team B"." Makarov seemed to be ready for this outcome, as he had a straight answer to it right away.

"Then let's do this." He offered, or more like decided, bringing up a deal with them. "The team that wins gets to do what they want with the other team for a whole day." Seph let out a sound equivalent to a snort that was trying to be hidden by the person making it, which made Laxus smile a bit. She was getting the full package of what Fairy Tail was like without all of the members even being present.

"Put another way, it's a "punishment game" for the losing team." Lily seemed to be confirming, in which Makarov gave a firm nod. Everyone certainly seemed interested now, already thinking of who from the other team they would call dibs on.

Seph liked how much of a family they already seemed to be, although she was still unsure. Anxiety did that to people. Bad experiences did that to people. It did it to her, even when this Guild looked and sounded so kind…

Seph knew that they called Crocus the blooming capital of the kingdom of Fiore. She read a lot of books, even when she thought she wouldn't end up interested in them, and had read a huge book focusing on the kingdom of Fiore. It was ancient, but it was still a good read… and this was a good thing to do. After so many years of… well… things… it was good to have friends and to travel for the first time in a long time. It was the first time she had travelled and had a good time, constantly pointing out things to the group from sitting upon Laxus' shoulders. She wasn't a social butterfly, she really wasn't, but when she got excited about things, she couldn't help but share her knowledge of it with others.

It had often got her in trouble, but now she had a whole group of people who would listen to her whether they were interested or not.

The Grand Magic Games was an event held every year in Crocus, but she didn't know too much about it. She only knew what she had heard and she didn't listen too closely because then she would zone out and end back up in trouble. Getting in trouble was a bad thing in multiple different ways. Crocus was always full of wizards and spectators from all over Fiore at this time of year and although it made Seph's anxiety flare, it also made her very excited to see what kinds of Mage's would show up. She could see the king of Fiore's castle when they were getting closer to the city and once they got into the city of Crocus, she could see it up close with her child-like wonder.

She loved history, mostly because all the books she read tended to have that same thing in common. Old, ancient books that hadn't been touched for years, covered in dust with some pages stuck together… until she got to read them. That was the best thing from where she came from.

Crocus was a gigantic city with things to do and people to see no matter where you went. That was how it was all the way to their inn, nearly halfway across the city, and by the time they had arrived, Gajeel was already eating something he had picked up along the way while Laxus constantly fiddled with the flower crown Seph had managed to get him to wear. This felt great, just doing normal things with friendly people, and she found herself trusting them and becoming more open with them even if she did become a little uncomfortable upon finding out that they would be sharing one big room together.

It didn't matter. She trusted Laxus enough to know that he would protect her if anything went wrong, even though she was quite sure that nothing would. She just… didn't want to wake up screaming and crying and end up bothering anyone, but it seemed like they would have to deal with it if it happened. With the beds lined up all in one room near the balcony… Yah, there was no way they would be able to sleep through her screaming. Not with how alert they seemed to be, with Gajeel and Laxus being Dragon Slayers and Lily being an Exceed.

Speaking of Lily, Seph was sure that he was a soldier at some point. She hadn't worked up the courage to talk to him about anything at all or to even introduce herself properly, but… She would get there. She just needed time to ground herself and come to terms with the fact that he wasn't like the other one. No Exceed in Fairy Tail sounded like the other one. She just needed time to drill that into her head, and then she could talk to him and ask him if he was a soldier at some point. He was alert, always ready, yet so calm and able to enjoy himself. She… liked how he worked that way and wished that she could be like that, too.

She must've zoned out after all of the activities and exploring the hotel room a bit because the next thing she knew, she was being snapped out of her thoughts by the city's bells ringing to indicate that midnight had arrived. The rule book had said that they all needed to be here by midnight, after all, so… Something was going to happen, right?

"Everyone in the guilds who have gathered together for the Grand Magic Games…"

Seph jumped at the loud voice, turning towards the balcony alongside the others. Doing all this at midnight? Wasn't it disruptive to the actual residents that lived in the city?

"Good morning!"

She wasn't expecting such a calm, polite greeting, but hey, she wasn't going to complain. There was worse that could've happened, she was sure of that. She followed behind very cautiously as everyone retreated to the balcony to see what was going on. It was just a projection of someone pumpkin-like, but Seph really wasn't expecting it.

"Beginning now, we're going to take the 113 participating teams and have an elimination round to pare them down to eight!" The pumpkin man explained, but Seph was a little confused. There weren't that many guilds in Fiore were there? Well… She had been reading ancient books for years. "Every year, the number of participating guilds increases and it was pointed out that the events were getting stale. This year, there will be only eight teams competing in the official games." Well, that made sense, she supposed… "The elimination rules are simple!"

God, Seph felt sick when the hotel started rumbling and shooting up into the sky. Even with the wall as support, she slipped down onto her knees right before it stopped. At least she wasn't the only one who fell over from being taken off-guard.

"All of you are going to race each other. The goal is the Games arena, Domus Flau. The first eight teams to arrive there will go on." The pumpkin man explained just as paths started forming in front of the inns. "You're free to use your magic. There are no restrictions. But remember; only the first eight teams to get to the goal will survive this round. However, all five members must arrive together or it doesn't count!"

Seph didn't know what to think of the team's fifth member, but since the others seemed to trust him, she was fine with him being around. He was mysterious, suspicious even, but she could feel his magic power easily, so she didn't really… mind his presence.

"And one more thing! We take no responsibility for any lives lost in the labyrinth."

Oh, God, that didn't sound pleasant. The labyrinth in the sky… also didn't look pleasant. Seph felt nauseous just looking at it and she really hoped that the teams would come out okay in the end, whether they made it into one of the eight spots or not. Without missing a beat, the team took no longer than a second to grab what they would need before setting off. Laxus took a little longer, however, just to reassure Seph that things would be okay and to order Lily to keep an eye on his partner. He didn't stay for much longer than that… which left Seph and Lily in an awkward silence.

She didn't know if she was ready to socialize with Lily, but it looked like she would have to.

"… Well, good morning." Lily greeted with a sigh, looking conflicted about being left behind by his partner. Seph paused for a moment, tensing a bit, before nodding a bit.

He seemed to accept her nod as a greeting back because he went silent again, looking away from her, and she gave herself a moment to think. She must've zoned out again because the next thing she knew, she was picking up Lily's magic levels past all of the magic levels that were clashing in the Sky Labyrinth up above. It was a magic that she was born with, or even just some kind of power because it didn't take up her magic power… Whenever she focused on something, she would always end up focusing on the people around her, their magic levels and… just… them…

"So, um…" Lily spoke up again, snapping her out of her thoughts for the second time since midnight. "… Want to sit around and wait?" She wanted to smile, but she couldn't find a way to do so, so she merely nodded again. She followed Lily back into the hotel room, taking a seat on Laxus' bed and after a moment, Lily took a seat on the bed as well. Not too close and not too far, which she appreciated greatly. "So, your name is Seph, right?"

"… Yah…" She replied softly after a moment, knowing that this was inevitable now that they were stuck together in this room. She tried not to think about it too much, as it wouldn't turn out good if she did…

"I know you don't like people touching you, so I'm not going to, if that's what you're afraid of." Lily told her, making her face heat up because that was exactly what she was worried about. The last time an Exceed had touched her… She didn't want to even think about it.

"I… I-I'm just afraid… Th-That they'll hurt me…" Seph admitted, trying not to make eye contact. She tended to cry when making eye contact with people. Lily gave her a shrug.

"No one in Fairy Tail is going to hurt you. It's okay to be afraid, but… just know that you can trust us, okay?" Lily asked, his voice softer than usual. Seph paused and then nodded before things went silent. It stayed liked that for a couple of minutes before Seph took a deep breath and decided to move closer, starting up the conversation again. She felt like… Lily could be a good friend, at the least.

"Um… I-I've taken notice o-of s-some things and I wanted t-to ask…" She started out, gathering his attention back to her. "W-Were you a soldier at some p-point? Y-You kind of… a-act like it, i-if that makes sense…"

"It makes sense." Lily reassured her with a smile, seeming happy to be able to have a conversation with her. He seemed happy that she was getting more comfortable. "Before joining Fairy Tail, I worked for the kingdom of Edolas as the Magic Militia's First Division Commander of the Royal Army." Seph paused, trying to process that. It took a moment before she nodded again.

"… Gosh… Wh-Why are you apart of Fairy Tail wh-when you could p-possibly be working for th-this world's kingdom?" Seph asked, just curious. She didn't really expect an honest answer, but she got one.

"I wanted to join the Guild that housed someone important to me for many years. It was a good choice, honestly, it's a really fun Guild… almost like a family." Lily explained in reply, in which Seph nodded once again. She had heard that a lot, about Fairy Tail being like a family. "Since we're in conversation, your name… Is Seph short for something?"

Seph tensed a bit, but… surprisingly, she had just lost herself in the conversation. She felt comfortable with talking about this stuff and with sharing some things.

"Y-Yah, it is. I h-have a first name, middle name, and a last name, but I just… I-It's been used too much, you know? Seph is just…so simple. It's nice and I want to use it…" She explained, not stuttering as much as before. She was surprising herself with this. When did she start trusting people so easily, especially an Exceed? Lily nodded, though, seeming to understand.

"I get it. It's kinda the same for me." He told her, which made her more relaxed. Was she really just afraid that he would think she was weird? "You're thirteen, right?"

"Yah, I am, b-but my birthday is December 7th, so…" Seph trailed off, gaining another nod from Lily. She was comfortable with smiling now, even if it was just a little bit. Lily paused for a moment, thinking about something, before continuing on with his questions.

"… Can I ask where you came from or is that not something you want to tell yet?" He asked, not minding as Seph paused to think. She looked a little tense and he felt bad, honestly not expecting her to tell him anything… but she was going to tell him a little bit.

"I-I, um… I lived i-in a village at s-some p-point…" Seph started off softly, curling in on herself a bit. "Th-Then I… e-ended u-up in a r-really b-bad place… a-a bad G-Guild with b-bad Mages, H-Humans and E-Exceeds alike…" She wasn't going into detail, but the fact that she was telling him anything at all was certainly something. "I… w-went through… s-some bad e-experiences th-there th-that I really d-don't want t-to talk a-about yet…"

"It's fine, you don't…" Lily trailed off, having quickly butted in upon realizing that Seph was close to crying. He really didn't want her to push it… "You don't have to say anymore, I… get it. I shouldn't have asked. I'm sorry." Seph looked genuinely confused, maybe shocked, when he apologized and he got more worried when she actually started crying. Dammit, Laxus was going to murder him! "I-I'm sorry, I—"

Lily wasn't expecting a hug, especially from Seph of all people. He could feel that she was tense from it, but… she needed comfort and she trusted him with being able to do that. He didn't know whether to feel bad or honoured or worried, but he couldn't just betray her trust by pushing her away. He… didn't really want to push away. He wrapped his arms carefully around her small, fragile body and squeezed gently, holding her head to his chest as she sobbed. He really didn't know what to think of her, but he also knew that she didn't know what to think of him, so it was okay. They would figure it out eventually.

But… that would be afterwards. After Seph stopped crying and fell asleep, and after Lily lied down with her so that she would stay comfortable and feel protected, falling asleep himself. It had been a long day, after all, and things were just getting started.