Author's Note 1: I thought I uploaded this MONTHS ago, but apparently I forgot during the drama that was my hard drive burning. (And closely followed by food poisoning!) But when I saw it was still listed as incomplete! What the heck?!

It's just a quick epilogue, but it is how I wanted it finished.

On with the sure-to-be-disappointing show... :(

The City by the Sea

Epilogue

"Took you longer than you thought," he said, which was code for I was worried. She hadn't expected him to meet her at the Magnolia border, but she wasn't surprised that he was there. He was a reliable person, and when she needed him, he tended to be there for her.

She was grateful.

She shook her head. Not disagreeing so much as trying to shake loose the bewildered sickness that had grown within her since her first hour in The City by the Sea. "It was far more complex than the request stated."

He turned to lead her back into town. From the road he chose, he was leading her to his home, not the guild or the dorm. Casually, he slipped an arm over her shoulder, careful not to rest too much of his weight on her. She guessed she looked more tired than she thought.

"It bad, then?"

It had been so hard, so dammed hard to keep the tears at bay, but she was safe here. Safe in Magnolia, safe with him. One by one tears fell from her eyes. Her skin flushed as that hard knot of emotion uncoiled and flooded her body with adrenaline and repressed panic.

And guilt. Hers. Hers and the residual suffering of the nin.

"Twenty people died. There was no choice but to end it. And it wasn't even alive. A spirit, a ghost, not alive. ...so why does it feel like murder?" She looked into his eyes and he lowered his arm from her shoulders to wrap around her waist and hold her closer. "It killed, and I had stopped it from killing more."

She lifted her own hands and pressed them to her eyes, "Why do I feel like I was on the wrong side?"

He pulled her to a stop and turned them so they stood face to face. Gently, he pulled her hands from her face and tilted her chin up so that she could see nothing but his face. His expression. His eyes. Her breathing calmed; she focused on him.

"Don't know what happened, but I'd bet my life that whatever you did, it was the right thing. Hard. Maybe not good. But definitely the right thing. Me, I'd take the easy way, and the easy way is fighting, destruction. I'm fine with that; that works for me. But you? You do what's right, every damn time. Not what's easy." He shrugged, "That's just the person you are."

"How can you say that?" she asked. "I killed..."

"To stop killing, you said. Not easy. Maybe not good. But right."

"But I want to do good," she whispered. "I wanted to save them, but all I ended up saving..." She couldn't even say it. That … That person. She had to struggle to stop herself from detouring into the Capitol and making a report to the council service. But she couldn't. She couldn't take that risk. After all the things the council had done … if they knew they could... No, she couldn't take that risk. But even if she had, would they have been able to bring justice down on someone with so little evidence to back her up?

She doubted it.

In the end, The City by the Sea had too much money to spread around. And she couldn't share the true depth of the plot because she feared others attempting to use the same curse. And what she had done... it wasn't powerful enough to stop someone from trying again if they broke the spell of guilt.

He pulled her back into walking, and this time he took a side road that put them on the path to the guild and not his place.

"Why...?"

"Dunno. But going home and brooding ain't going to get you anywhere. Better to get your mind on something other than what's got you upset."

"I want … I just..."

"Don't push yourself," he commanded. "You wanna talk? I'm here. 'Til then, we'll go watch someone get their ass kicked."

She let herself smile. "Watch? You're just going to watch?"

"Well, okay, yeah, but you can watch." He looked down, and she located a light of concern, "Salamander's group's out, so it won't be all that good'a fight, but I'll try to make it entertaining for you."

Translation: Your best friend isn't here, sorry, and I've still not mastered this whole comfort thing, but I'll do what I can.

"You'll have to make it good."

He grinned, "No problem."

She stepped out from under the arm draped over her shoulders and took his hand. His fingers were large, and hers small, so they didn't fit together perfectly. Clasped hands instead of interwoven fingers. She walked with him, deeper into the town they called home, and with every step she shed guilt like dry, dead skin.

She would tell the Master, and they would tell a few others, and together they'd keep an eye on The City by the Sea. And if there was any hint that they had resumed their experiments, Levy would return with the full power of her guild behind her.

It might not be possible to truly vanquish evil, but Levy would do whatever she could to make sure that evil felt the weight of its sins.

Author's Note 2:

Gajeel. I'm tempted to add his name to the story description and tag him and change the sub genre to romance JUST to get a few more readers...but that would be false advertising, and I can't do it! Especially since that was so barely romantic it hurts!

Thank you all so very much for reading, and thank you even more to those who reviewed. It made the process a thousand times smoother and more enjoyable (as well as giving me a few ideas...).

'Til next time.