So, so sorry for the massive delay. I fractured a vertebrae and I haven't wanted to sit up longer than it took to do the absolute minimum school work.
After a long few minutes of considering on the morning of his departure, Harry decided to take the long way back to Magnolia. He could have been there in a heartbeat if he wanted to. Apparation was as easy as breathing for him now compared to the mildly taxing activity it had been once upon a time. He'd learned the country of Fiore from border to border and his vast magical reserves didn't even feel the dip. Returning through apparation felt off somehow though. Harry felt nostalgic for the long train rides and beautiful countryside of Eastern Fiore. Particularly without the damnable cloak he'd been forced to don the last several years. It almost felt like a ritual he needed to complete, taking the correct steps in order to return to Fairy Tail's home as himself instead the unseen specter haunting Fiore from the shadows.
So, Harry found himself enjoying the slow carriage ride through batches of fields and towns and nothingness that lay between Era and Magnolia. The train lines didn't stretch all the way to Era. It was a defensive move to keep invading forces from having easy access to the heart of Fiore. Or so Harry had been told by Jura at least. He thought it was a laughable excuse at best. It also slowed Fiore's response times in emergencies he'd pointed out. They'd had a debate about the functionality of Fiore's transportation on more than one occasion.
Harry didn't mind the carriage ride at the moment though. He supposed a train might've been at least a bit faster and he certainly could've just driven himself, but speed wasn't really his goal. He watched the mountains slowly flatten into plains and fields. He would've missed the subtle transformations of the scenery if he'd driven. He stopped for the night in a small town along the way and then resumed his ride into Magnolia the next day. When he got close to town he paid the driver handsomely and decided to walk the rest of the way. Magnolia was within sight now.
The wind blew crisp morning air across his skin and he took a deep breath. It all felt too good to be true, returning and knowing the guild would actually be there waiting. Knowing he'd actually be able to see them all again and he wouldn't have to settle for sticking to the outskirts of town with a hood drawn low over his face to avoid detection. In fact, he'd abandoned that damned cloak in Era. He felt almost naked without it after so long, but he didn't begrudge its absence at all.
He'd been able to break out his nearly decade old clothing that had gone mostly unused since his and Wendy's time traveling fiasco. The cloaks covered everything and were only tolerable temperature-wise thanks to Harry's magic. He found that wearing his normal clothing paired with the cloak had been ridiculously uncomfortable and restricting. Wendy had compared it to trying to move while wrapped in bed sheets. They'd mostly stuck to lighter clothing after Wendy pitched herself off the side of a mountain when a breeze had gotten her so hopelessly tangled in a dress and cloak combo that she'd been unable to keep her footing.
Harry's musing about the cloaks was interrupted by the smell of salt in the air and the sound of seagulls in the distance. The humidity was just on the right side of tolerable. He'd missed Magnolia. They'd had to make themselves more and more scarce since the return of the guild a few years ago.
As he made his way down the familiar streets he was aware of eyes turning his way curiously. He knew he'd never stuck out the way most of his guild mates did, but at least a few of the townspeople recognized him despite the mild changes in appearance since he'd helped restore the town from Tartaros' attack. It had been nearly a decade for Wendy and him and while he'd half suspected that he'd be stuck in his shrimpy younger body permanently he'd been pleasantly surprised to be proven wrong. He'd grown. Somehow, even without a heartbeat, he'd still grown. Harry wasn't quite back to his old stature of 5'11", but he'd managed to gain an inch or two at least. More importantly though, Harry had put on muscle. He wasn't as scrawny as he'd been before. He'd filled out in a way that he'd never really needed in his first life in wizarding society. This new world had new demands and nearly a decade of training did wonders for physical development.
The people who recognized him despite the differences waved amicably. He'd helped them rebuild so he supposed he'd stuck in their minds. A few called greetings. A couple wished him luck to his complete confusion.
When he rounded the final corner and spotted the guild hall he had to brace himself on a nearby wall. It was so nearly identical to the old guild hall that it almost hurt to look at it. He swallowed back the unease and forced down the need to pull up a non-existent hood. He didn't need to hide any more. He was back as himself and without the need for constant secrecy, but ten years of conditioning were ringing alarm bells in his brain.
"You certainly took your time."
Harry glanced over his shoulder. Wendy was standing there in an orange dress that looked out of place to Harry after years of travelling with the girl in practical clothing and cloaks. When their eyes met she gave him a warm smile.
"Sorry, council business." He apologized. "Jura says hi."
Wendy gave him an incredulous look.
"Okay, no he doesn't." Harry amended, easy banter sliding into place. "Not really his fault though. Not a single reciprocated hello in eight years. Can't blame a guy for giving up eventually."
Wendy laughed moving past him with a mild, friendly shove of his shoulder.
"Pretty sure he thought you were a ghost sometimes."
"I did get pretty good with the fog." Wendy nodded.
Harry grinned. He'd worked with her on air manipulation for fog for nearly a year before she'd gotten really good at it. He liked to joke it was for mood setting, but teaching her versatility with her magic had been incredibly fun and rewarding. She'd been very good at it once she got the hang of it. Fog was definitely her favorite.
"Did everyone make it back?"
"Almost everyone." Wendy said with a nod. "I haven't seen Laxus or his crew… obviously Master Makarov is still gone, and I haven't seen Gildarts either."
Harry nodded along. "Not a bad turn out." He hummed. Then he stopped and turned to her seriously. "Of course, you know what this all means."
She stopped hesitantly, brow pinching. "What?"
"You're going to have to call me 'Master Harry' now." He grinned.
"Eww… no."
Harry laughed as she shoved his arm again.
"Harry-sensei?" he joked. She shook her head in denial. "Mr. Potter…"
They stared at each other for a long moment.
"Yeah, never mind. I don't like any of those."
Wendy cracked a smile. "They're terrible. I guess that means you heard the news then."
He laughed just a bit. "Yeah, Jura looked about ready to give me a disapproving lecture. It would definitely have been a very fit beginning for Fairy Tail. Chastised for misdeeds before people even know we're back." He nodded sagely. "It all came back to the paper work naturally."
"Naturally." Wendy heaved a sigh. "He's too formal for his own good."
"I like to think I've made an impact on him." Harry disagreed. "He's at least 30% less formal now. I even got him to stop calling me James-san last year."
"What an accomplishment." Wendy laughed.
"I think so." He nodded. "So, is the house okay?"
"We weren't even gone that long. Of course, the house is okay."
"I just assumed Natsu would have followed you home and tried to fight you, levelling our living room in the aftermath."
"No, he tried to fight me in the guild hall."
"Ah, naturally." Harry nodded again and they resumed their walk toward the guild. "Couldn't wait. I should've expected as much."
"He actually held off 'til the second day."
"His year of training has taught him great restraint."
Wendy was laughing as Harry pushed open the door. The guild was bustling with activity, but everyone nearby halted their activities as Harry and Wendy entered. There was a pause followed by an absolute uproar. Harry found himself separated from Wendy and pushed in a hundred different directions. Guild members he'd only vaguely recalled the names of were greeting him. It was dizzying. A flaming fist came out of nowhere and Harry caught it and flipped Natsu into the floor with such ease and force that there was an almost immediate circle of space cleared around him as Natsu ended up in a crater of broken wood.
"I was just giving you a compliment too." Harry said, eying the downed dragon slayer with amusement. Natsu wheezed something inarticulate out.
"That's enough!" Erza was shooing people away. "Don't you all have jobs to do? They've just started coming back in."
"I told you it would be a bad idea to try." Wendy said, squatting down to poke Natsu who was just getting enough air back in his lungs to not look winded.
"An impressive display of manliness!" Harry heard Elfman shout from somewhere near the bar.
"Welcome back." Erza greeted with a nod once she'd cleared the worst of the crowd away. Then she got a glint in her eye. "Master."
Harry felt an involuntary shiver jolt down his spine. "Yeah… I definitely don't like that."
"You sure?" Wendy asked innocently.
"Welcome back." Mira was sauntering over with Lisanna in tow. Both girls look absolutely ecstatic to see him. He couldn't quite figure why.
"Ah, sorry for disappearing on you Lisanna." Harry apologized. "We had some stuff come up and then it got a bit complicated trying to find times to get back to Magnolia without accidentally stumbling across ourselves."
Lisanna didn't look particularly upset. She nodded as if she'd thought of that outcome herself. She likely had. It wasn't too terribly hard to work out.
"We're happy to have you both back." Erza was giving him a steady, serious look. "You certainly had us all concerned about your disappearance, but I'm glad to know that you were safe."
"Mostly." Harry agreed elusively. They might have found their fair share of trouble in the past several years. Most of the group was giving him worried glances at the statement though.
"So, you went to Edolas?" Mira asked with wonder. The worried expression smoothed over with curiosity. Oh, right, Mira hadn't been involved in that whole fiasco directly. She must be curious about the other world. Wendy had told him she'd been a lacrima the whole time she'd been there. "What was their Lucy like? Natsu said she was angry all the time?"
"HOW IS THIS ABOUT ME?!" Lucy yelled from somewhere back behind Harry and pushed forward.
Harry considered that for a long moment as Lucy shoved through the crowd of guild members to stand next to Erza. "She tried to kick me in the face when we met." He nodded. That pretty much summed up how he'd felt about Lucy Ashley for most of his experiences in Edolas. She'd been angry, distrustful and a bit violent.
Lucy cringed at the simple sentence and looked ready to defend her otherworldly counterpart.
"But overall she seemed nice enough." Harry said with a smile. "It was a long time ago. I barely remember the details. Maybe Natsu just didn't like seeing himself get picked on."
That started up an argument as Natsu swung out of his hole to defend his honor and, inevitably, challenge Harry to a fight again. Harry didn't even acknowledge Natsu's crushing defeat after he made a second, slightly smaller crater. He just stepped over the downed dragon slayer so that Natsu was no longer in the center of the group that was talking.
"I'm glad to see a version of you guys I can actually talk to." Harry smiled Erza's direction. "You were surprisingly hard to dodge when you picked up on me by the way. You're like a blood hound."
Erza looked a bit surprised by the comment. She, like everyone else in the group, had been staring at the twitching form of Natsu. Harry could read a bit of respect in her expression. He'd have to see if she wanted to spar in the future.
His comment seemed to stir something in Lucy. She was looking between him and Wendy like there was some great tragedy going on. Harry could pretty easily figure out where her thoughts had wandered. "We weren't just standing in a corner for eight years Lucy. We couldn't talk to you guys obviously, because the first time you met me was in the clock and Wendy's situation has a lot of weird red flags too. But we were out there living. We just… might've been doing some of that living with different names and avoiding showing our faces to you guys."
"You hung around Magnolia?" Somehow the idea surprised them. Maybe it should have, but Harry certainly didn't regret the decision. Magnolia was as close to a home town as Harry had now.
"Sometimes." He answered vaguely with a shrug. Lucy laughed, probably at his delivery more than anything else. He grinned. "Good. You guys don't have to treat it like a tragedy. We're both fine now and we were fine while we slowly made our way back to now. But it is nice to be back in the correct time and able to come back to the guild."
"It is, isn't it?" Lucy was smiling broadly. For half a second Harry was confused. Then he finally comprehended what she meant. They'd all only just returned to Magnolia as well. It may have been a longer trip for Wendy and Harry, but they'd all been ripped away from this town in different ways.
"Oh…" He glanced at the guild hall around them. He smiled a bit wistfully at it. It was very similar to the old guild hall in its construction. "You know, it was right there but I only got to go inside it from time to time when everyone was gone."
"You used to sneak into the guild hall?" Mira asked, blinking in surprise and Harry laughed as her eyes narrowed on him. "Of course, you did."
"You found the notes?" he asked with a grin.
Mira gave him what Harry could only call her best attempt at a stern look. It was ruined by a very sudden and very intense blush. "Yes, I found them. You shouldn't break into the guild kitchen."
"What sort of notes were they?" Erza was looking between the two with curiosity.
"Recipes, sometimes." Harry said thoughtfully. Though sometimes it hadn't been recipes. Sometime they'd been joking jabs at things that weren't cleaned all the way or jokes he'd written down because he thought Mira would've enjoyed them if they'd been able to talk face to face. He glanced toward Erza and caught Lucy giving him a contemplative, but entirely too intense look.
"Well, the return of our guild master and the completion of the guild hall can only mean one thing." Erza said, voice getting louder inviting more attention to the conversation.
"PARTY!" the guild hall rocked with the cheering of the Fairy Tail guild members.
"I can't think of anything more suitable for the resurrection of Fairy Tail." Harry said with a nod. "I'm surprised we took this long to reform honestly."
Fairy Tail had always partied for any reason they possibly could. The official announcement that they were reinstated and that their guild master was back was an obvious party waiting to happen. Wendy watched from the sidelines as the most rambunctious party she'd ever personally witnessed in the guild got under way. People were drinking and fighting with abandon. Though, Wendy noted, nothing actually seemed to stay broken. If two people smashed through a table it would reknit itself back into the proper shape within a few minutes, once the danger had passed.
With the guild seemingly repairing itself everyone only seemed to get more riled up. Wendy had never seen such wanton destruction. It was like her guild mates were testing exactly how much furniture they could break before the magic stopped repairing it and without Makarov swatting people down when they got too into the fights the guild was a veritable warzone of dancing, fighting, yelling, and drinking.
In fact, Wendy found the only areas that seemed reasonably free of flying chair legs and hurled insults were Cana's corner where she was currently drinking a red haired new comer under the table with ease or directly beside Harry who was standing on the bar and doing his best impression of a fight he and Wendy had ended up in with a wyvern a few years ago. It had involved a lot of tumbling and Harry was most likely at least a bit tipsy if he was recounting it with such vigor. Wendy was unwilling to be a part of the act so she found herself drawn to Cana's corner where she was pointedly not making eye contact with the man. If asked later she would swear her avoidance had nothing to do with part of the story involving Wendy falling off a mountain.
"Wendy."
The greeting was subdued, almost lost in the cacophony of their guildmates. Kosmos looked unsure of herself as she stared at Wendy. They hadn't run into each other since Kosmos had returned to Magnolia. Most of Wendy's guild mates were still acting a bit strange around her. She knew they were still reconciling the adult she was now with the child they'd known before.
"Kosmos." Wendy greeted with a small smile. Harry had warned her that she'd likely have to be extra open to people being weird around her. He certainly hadn't been wrong. On top of Wendy's being older now she knew she was also a more self confident person than her guild had ever seen her be. She'd had several arguments with Carla in her first few days back. Particularly when her friend insisted on sticking to her side like glue. They were separate beings and she was no longer a child. As much Wendy loved Carla she wanted Carla to grow into her own person. Their relationship had been a bit too codependent when she was younger.
Wendy took the seat opposite of Kosmos. She was about to ask how she'd been but was interrupted by Cana who'd locked onto Wendy's presence.
"WEN-DY!" Cana hiccupped the name out as she stood. "You gotta… you gotta drink wi' me!"
Wendy felt her nose wrinkle automatically. "I'll pass." She'd tried alcohol, she'd even tried some of the beer Mira kept on reserve in the guild. It was disgusting.
"Aw com'on!" Cana had scooted closer, pushing the beer her way. As it got within about six inches of Wendy's arm it vanished, much to Cana's obvious confusion. It was sitting on the other side of Cana near the opposite end of the table. "The hell?"
"Something tells me if you keep pushing you're going to make your supply disappear too." Kosmos sounded amused. Wendy caught her eyes darting off in the direction Harry was. Wendy heaved a sigh. He was supposed to be relaxing. It was his coming home party. Instead he was fixing damage as it was made and keeping an eye on the resident alcoholic. She'd have to chastise him about it later. In their time together she'd learned just how infrequently he let himself truly relax. It exhausted her.
Cana seemed to catch Kosmos' meaning and she turned a glare Harry's direction that would've been a lot more vicious if she wasn't swaying with the effort of staying upright. She must've consumed a fair amount of alcohol already for her to be showing any signs of being drunk.
"Weren't you having a drinking match with… Flare…?" Kosmos trailed off as she laid eyes on the red head who was now face down on the table, snoring.
Cana looked smug when Kosmos turned back. "Can't keep up." She said, grin triumphant. "Lightweight."
"Everyone's a lightweight compared to you." Wendy shook her head. "It's hardly her fault."
Kosmos nodded along, brow pinched in a distinctly worried way as she glanced Flare's way. "That's two nights in a week. That's not beautiful."
Cana made a dismissive sound. "Tha's nothin'."
"I don't think she's saying she wants her to drink more Cana." Wendy said, amused.
Cana swayed just a moment and considered Kosmos. "You should… drinkin's great."
Kosmos gave her an exasperated look.
"Think I could… could get Harry to drink?" Cana was eying Harry who seemed to be studiously ignoring them despite his earlier intervention.
"I wouldn't bother." Wendy huffed a laugh. "He figured out how to turn the drinks nonalcoholic. He said it would be his best defense if you tried to pull him into another drinking match. You won't be able to get him drunk."
Cana looked so immensely offended by the idea that Wendy regretted sharing the information for a moment. Then a considering look seemed to shift into place. "Think he could turn other things into alcohol then?" the sentence was so intensely serious and un-marred by slurring that Wendy half suspected she'd been faking how drunk she was. Then she swayed again, serious look still plastered in place.
"Maybe?"
Cana didn't seem to need any further encouragement. She was out of her seat in a second and stumbling her way in his direction.
"I don't think he's going to thank you for that one." Kosmos looked as entertained as Wendy felt. "She can be determined when she wants to be."
Wendy nodded. "She can be. He'll have to deal with her one way or another anyway. He is guild master now."
Kosmos shook her head. "That's so weird. We joined at the same time and so much has changed. It feels so unreal sometimes."
Wendy nodded. "The last nine years have felt like a fever dream sometimes, but I wouldn't give them up for anything. Fairy Tail was home, and you guys were my family… but Harry…"
Kosmos had titled her head, considering Wendy with an almost expressionless face.
"Grandeeny asked him to watch over me. I don't know if that's what it was…" Wendy shifted so she could see Harry gently shoving an apple away from his face as it was thrust there by a very enthusiastic Cana. "I always wondered what it would be like to have a mom and a dad. I don't think I could've gotten better ones."
Kosmos made a noise like she was choking that drew Wendy's attention back. "Sorry…" Kosmos looked away as their eyes met. "It's just… hard to picture him that way."
"It shouldn't be." Wendy laughed, wholly amused by Kosmos' reaction. "He's old as dirt. He definitely has that weird 'dad-humor' thing going on too, if you pay attention."
Kosmos nodded almost absently. "He seems different."
Wendy watched Cana struggle with an increasingly amused Harry. He was easily keeping her offered apple at bay and the group around them were laughing uproariously. Wendy turned back when Cana finally lowered the fruit and started yelling at him and pointing at the apple. "Nine years is a long time to come to terms with stuff. I think he was having a harder time with everything than he even let me know." She leaned onto her hand. "I was just a kid back then. I think he was worried about dumping too much on me at once."
Kosmos nodded, brow pinched again. Her eyes were fixed off to the side. Wendy suspected she was watching Harry.
"He's a lot better now." She assured her. "He was always faking smiles and stuff when I was younger. He doesn't do it as much anymore. He still secretive as hell, but at least he isn't lying about being okay. I call that a win."
Kosmos shifted her gaze back to Wendy. "You've changed a lot as well."
Wendy huffed a laugh. "I was thirteen when you knew me."
Kosmos nodded. "He seems happier, but so do you."
Wendy hesitated. She hadn't necessarily been unhappy when she was younger. She'd just been unsure of her place in the world, and uncertain of her ability to keep up with others. It had caused her a lot of anxiety. She'd been anxious for a long time about returning to Fairy Tail as well. She'd become so different a person she'd been worried that she wouldn't be able to find her place again. "I guess I am in a way. So, you and Flare are dating?" Wendy decided to shift the conversation away from Harry or herself.
Kosmos nodded, a bit less distracted this time. Eyes focusing back in on the current conversation.
"That's good." Wendy nodded. "Harry said she had a thing for you and that she'd been worried about your feelings for him."
Kosmos froze and her face started to go rapidly red. "H-he knew?"
Wendy couldn't hold back her laugh at the expression of horror. "He told me they had a conversation about it back at the Sun Village. I'm surprised she didn't tell you herself."
Kosmos had buried her face in her hands. "This is so not beautiful."
"I wouldn't worry about it." Wendy waved off her embarrassment, trying to make her feel a bit better. "He acts dense about stuff like that, but he's weirdly perceptive. If he was going to be weird about it he already would've been."
Kosmos sank lower in her seat, obviously not reassured at all.
"Tell me about Flare." Wendy glanced down at the unconscious red-head. "I only really have small memories of her and I know she sort of redeemed herself from the bad stuff, but I don't know much about her other than she was obsessed with Lucy for a while."
"She wasn't obsessed with Lucy." Kosmos bit out immediately.
Wendy lifted her hands in a placating gesture. "Sorry. I didn't mean anything bad by it."
Kosmos watched her for a moment longer like she was considering the sincerity of her words, or maybe she was just thinking about what to say. "She ran into me in town while I was shopping for supplies to bring back to Warrod's. After I ran into her once she'd be there every week, waiting." Kosmos seemed to glow as she recounted the details. "She brought me the most beautiful flowers a few times."
Wendy found herself smiling along with Kosmos.
"I actually grew seeds from the flowers. One of them was highly toxic. I worked them into my seed collection."
Wendy blinked. That was a bit less romantic, but Kosmos seemed excited by the prospect anyway so Wendy nodded along. "I'm glad it's working out for you two."
Kosmos withdrew something from the side of her dress and held it in the palm of her hand. It was a tiny seed. With no preamble the seed burst into a plant and it flowered. Tiny white blossoms shaped like bells dotted the sides of the stem.
"Oh, it's beautiful." Wendy gently took the blooming flower from Kosmos' outstretched hand. "It's safe to handle it?"
Kosmos nodded. "It's only unsafe if I make it unsafe… or if you eat it." Kosmos met her eye. "Don't eat it."
Wendy hadn't planned on eating the strange flower. She gave Kosmos an obligatory agreement anyway. She seemed to be waiting for it.
"It's called Lily of the Valley." Flare had managed to pull herself up just the slightest bit. She was eying the flower now in Wendy's hands.
"The flowers remind me of that cap you used to wear all the time." Wendy offered the flower back to Kosmos who took it gently. It twisted in Kosmos' grasp to wrap around her wrist like a delicate, live corsage. "You've gotten a lot better with the plant manipulation."
Kosmos nodded enthusiastically. "I've been training for the last year."
"With that really annoying tree guy." Flare also offered, eyes still closed and looking a bit green.
"He wasn't…" Kosmos seemed like she wanted to defend her teacher, but she deflated a second later. "Okay, he was infuriating at times."
"He convinced her she was going to turn into a tree like him."
Wendy barked out a laugh and immediately slapped a hand over her mouth. Kosmos was flushed all the way down her neck.
"He said it was because of the magic he used… and he only said it after I'd been using the plant magic for months." Kosmos mumbled in her own defense.
Flare had cracked an eye open and was watching Kosmos with fondness written all over her expression. "When Pinkie had worked herself up into a fit he just stood there and said 'just kidding' with the most serious face." Flare tried to imitate Warrod's voice and Wendy felt the laughter slip more this time. She'd missed this. She loved Harry like a father, but she'd missed just having conversations with her guild mates. She'd missed having friends that were permanent, friends that were allowed to know her real name. Friends she didn't have to hide from.
"Are you okay?"
Kosmos had reached across the table and placed a hand gingerly on her arm. At some point the laughter had sparked tears. Wendy quickly wiped at them. "Yeah, sorry."
Kosmos huffed, hand falling again. "The Wendy I know is still in there, I see."
That startled Wendy enough to get her to pause in wiping at the drying tears.
"You used to apologize for everything. Crying because you're happy… is beautiful." Kosmos said it with the small smile lifting the corners of her lips.
Wendy couldn't stop the next few tears, but she didn't want to either.
"It's nice to be home again, isn't it?"
Wendy smiled. It was an understatement, but Kosmos too had been removed from Fairy Tail. She knew at least some fraction of the feeling Wendy was having right now.
"It is."
"I'm glad to see you back in the guild hall where you belong. It's been a long time."
Harry glanced up. He was one of the very few left in the guild hall this late… or perhaps it was early now. It didn't matter. He wasn't tired anyway. "Mavis." He greeted with a nod. The girl had appeared in front of him in her usual dress. She seemed to be calmly surveying him as he leaned backward against the bar. "It's good to be back, but I suppose that's technically true for both of us."
Mavis gave him a sly smile, ignoring the comment. "I see you cut Cana off before she could get out of hand."
"My first wise decision as guild master." He grinned.
She nodded slightly, but her brow was already pulling in at the middle. "I'm worried about Makarov."
"You and me both." Harry replied, sigh leaking out. It hadn't taken her long to drop into shop talk. "He's an idiot for trying to do everything alone."
She didn't fight the words, but she did give Harry a slightly reprimanding look.
Harry had been meeting with Mavis for years now. She'd dropped a very subtle hint that he should find her before he'd left Magnolia with Wendy and Carla. It had taken him a bit of time to work it out after being shot into the past. Once he had he'd sought her out. She'd been reluctant to talk to him at first, rightfully wary. It had taken him a while to convince her he was there to help. Wendy's appearance was probably the only thing that ultimately won her over. Well, that and his guild mark and his ability to see her at all. It was supposed to be limited to Fairy Tail mages only after all.
Their relationship was rather confusing. They'd both technically met the other first. It wasn't a sentence that could normally be used. Mavis' odd trust for him when he'd met her for the first time and her willingness to share guild secrets made a lot more sense now that he had the full story.
He'd kept in frequent touch with her while the Tenrou team had been gone, but he'd been forced to distance himself once his past self started showing up around Fiore. Over the past couple of years he'd spent dramatically less time in Fiore, moving his attention overseas.
"Things are amping up in Alvarez from what we saw." Harry tipped his head back to stare at the ceiling. "Things will get messy soon. I don't think they intend to abandon their search for you. Makarov could've used more help. I still don't know why he didn't just ask."
"Should we be talking about this here?"
He glanced down to see Mavis' sharp gaze staring back. He shot a look around the guild hall. It was really just Harry, Mira, Wendy and Mavis left in the guild at this point. Mira was setting up the kitchen still with Wendy's help. Everyone else had turned in. Harry couldn't sense any other presences around. He shrugged.
"Fairy Tail will inevitably be dragged into this." He said with a grimace. "I won't be able to keep it under wraps much longer."
Mavis frowned, but she nodded in acceptance of the words.
"They deserve to know. I understand why the Lumen Histoire was kept secret in the past, but if it's something that's going to have to be defended I believe they have a right to understand what it is… or rather who…" Harry gave her a meaningful look.
Her nose scrunched up indignantly. "I preferred you pre-time travel." She said, sticking out her tongue.
He laughed. "No, you didn't."
She crossed her arms. "Okay, no I didn't."
"You were bored and it was frustrating not just talking to me like we knew each other." Harry ticked off the complaints on his fingers. "I didn't bring you presents back then. I couldn't use my magic to its full extent. It was harder to move around…"
Mavis stared at him blankly as he ticked the comments off on his fingers.
"They were your complaints." He said, offering her a completely innocent grin.
She heaved a put-upon sigh. "How did Wendy show up with paperwork already approved for the guild?" Mavis lost a bit of her seriousness, curiosity winning over stubbornness.
"Jura's on the council, as you know. He owed me a few favors." He answered vaguely, grin stretching.
"Enough of a favor for him to sign blank paperwork?" Mavis asked incredulously. "You could do anything you wanted with that."
He laughed, deep and wholly amused. "I couldn't really. Too many ways for the council to just cancel the decision if I wanted to go dark side. All the red tape keeps me from my true passion of villainy."
"You'd make a terrible villain." Mavis shook her head. "Too much heart, not cold and calculating enough."
"I had news articles from when I was a kid that would disagree with that notion. It's moot though. I've grown accustomed to the recognition and fame that travelling as a disguised, time hopping wizard has brought me. After all, I did manage to attain a rank in the wizard saints."
Mavis blinked. "How did you join the wizard saints while you were hiding your identity? You still haven't told me."
"Fake name." Harry shrugged nonchalantly. Mavis scowled. She already knew about his false identity.
"You made it into the wizard saints?" Mira had emerged from the kitchen with two towering stacks of glassware.
"I made it near the top of the wizard saints." Harry corrected with a grin.
"And he hasn't stopped talking about it since." Wendy sighed setting down a stack of plates. "He thinks it's funny that he has one of the most prestigious positions in Fiore and no one knows what he looks like."
"It is funny." Harry defended.
"Don't they usually rank them based on power?" Mira looked between the two, confused. "How did you manage that? Did you meet with the other wizard saints?"
"A few." He nodded. "Some I had to avoid for obvious reasons, like Warrod. He was able to sense my magic a bit too accurately when we first met. I had never met the others so I was safe on that front as long as I could keep my identity obscured."
"So what do they know you as?"
"James." He answered truthfully. "It's my middle name, but it was also my father's name."
"I know you were going by a pseudonym. I meant how did you convince them to let you join?" Mavis had folded her arms petulantly.
"He didn't really." Wendy answered for him as he opened his mouth. "Jura found us and gave him an invite. It's a shame really. I wasn't able to really use my magic much around him. It's too identifiable. Otherwise I might have ended up with the invitation."
Harry paused, considering the self-assured tone Wendy used and the almost playful way she nudged his elbow. "We both would've gotten invitations." He said, giving her a smile. "I'm sure you can convince him pretty easily now that you're not hiding your identity from him. Just swoop in and save him from impaling himself. Worked for me."
Wendy laughed in good humor. She hadn't been around during the actual meeting, but she'd heard the story enough times from both of them to be in on the joke. Mira looked confused, Mavis intrigued.
"You met Jura?" Mira asked.
Harry nodded. "I bumped into him while travelling during the seven years you guys were in stasis on Tenrou. I didn't realize he was someone that Wendy knew until I'd bumped into him a couple more times alone. Then we ran into each other when I had Wendy in tow. He'd gained his wizard saints status by then and he was a wealth of information. Seemed a shame to cut the connection and he didn't seem to recognize her so long as she wasn't screaming 'SKY DRAGON ROAR' or anything. So, when we ran into him Wendy just stayed- OW!" he bit his tongue when Wendy shoved him a bit harder for his terrible impression of her attack name.
"I would just keep quiet and not really do much magic when he was around that required vocalization." Wendy finished for him. "I got pretty decent at air manipulation because of it though. It gave me more reasons to practice. So, it wasn't too bad."
"I'm glad you both made new friends during the time we were all split apart. That's nice to hear." Mira was down stacking all the plates and glasses into their proper places for use.
"I'm sorry we disappeared on you for a bit." Harry said, giving her an apologetic look. "I considered popping back up sooner, but a lot has been happening that I needed to keep an eye on."
Mira stopped putting away the dishes and fixed him with an evaluating look for a long moment. "I don't actually want an apology." She said firmly. Harry blinked. "I was worried, but if you kept your distance I'm assuming you had good reasons."
Harry heaved a tired sigh. "I wish I didn't." Wendy's hand found his shoulder and squeezed it gently. "But that's not a problem for tonight. The guild is reformed, most of us are back, and Fiore is safe for now. Tonight is going to remain a good night."
Mira grinned, resuming her task. "Jobs started coming in already. I guess I'll have to catch you up on what it's like to be on this side of the process."
Harry felt a groan escape before he could stop it. "It's going to be hell isn't it? I've been on jobs with Natsu. These kids are going to be the death of me."
"Physically impossible." Mavis said with an amused shake of her head.
"I wouldn't put it past Erza and Natsu to devise the exact way to do it." Harry shook his head. "They're resourceful."
Mira and Wendy laughed in what seemed to be agreement.
"It sounds like you just need the wise council of a former guild master to light your way."
"Makarov's not here." Harry said with false confusion. "And Macao doesn't seem that wise."
Mavis swelled indignantly.
Harry laughed at the look before she could burst into an angry lecture. "Of course I look forward to your advice Mavis. Thank you."
Mavis seemed to let the anger swirl for another moment before accepting his thanks with a nod.
"Our first order of business should be getting everyone used to working as teams again. Everyone has been working either solo or in small teams for the past year." Harry mused. "If push comes to shove we need to make sure that everyone is capable of working cohesively."
"A good decision…" Mavis agreed, though he noted the still worried set to her brow.
"Once I'm sure everyone is up to snuff, we'll make our move."
He watched Mavis' head whip his direction. Mira looked confused behind the bar. Harry slid a piece of paper closer to himself on the bar and jotted down a few names. "Mira, make sure this group takes a job together tomorrow. S class is preferable, but a challenging A class wouldn't be a bad idea either. I trust you to find a good fit from what's available. I want to make sure they're all working together smoothly again."
Mira took the piece of paper and read the names before giving him an amused look.
"I'll work out a few other teams, but they did have some of the best chemistry."
Mira nodded. "I'll make sure Erza knows first thing in the morning."
"Good, we have a lot of catching up to do and there may not be a lot of time to do it in."
I'm working to figure out a rough schedule for updating. I still have two weeks of school left before my break and then I have surgery again so it may be irregular for a bit longer. Hopefully it'll even out soon.
Well, til next time!
~Kanathia