Well friends, we are actually getting to the end, although it may not seem like it. I have the next chapter or two outlined/typed, so at least updates are going to be a bit better this time around :) I figured it would be nice to have this story done before we all die from old age
….
Wow my humor is getting more and more morbid.
Anyway, to the guest reviewer who asked me many a question on the last chapter (you know who you are), I will answer you now: You'll see, eating his godly breakfast, nine fictional pigs, and yes, I do want to build a snowman :)
Also, if you noticed, I actually used a question someone left in a review and used it as a punchline, so thank you guys for not only being awesome, but for providing me with some comic material!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters used in this story, as they are the creation of Hiro Mashima, so please don't arrest me.
A silence ensued after Erza's rhetorical inquiry. After all, it seemed impossible that Laxus had been able to sneak out of the small infirmary to go meet with the king and then come back again to play comatose, especially with little Wendy and Makarov watching him so closely. So, the question still stands: who (or what) was killing innocent guards and asking for a double shot of espresso in his coffee? And, more importantly, what was he planning?
"Laxus has been here since last night?" Erza asked again, just to make sure. She was getting right back to business; there was no time to gawk at the impossible and ignore the present situation. Makarov straightened (though the man was so short, she could hardly tell), and nodded grimly. She could tell by his reaction that he was just as in the dark as she was, and by the way he stood up straight and firmly held her gaze, he was just as determined as she was to find out the truth before any more people are hurt.
"It was past midnight, and I heard someone knocking on the door. By the time I opened it, no one was there but him, lying there," he sighed, "He hasn't even twitched since." The old man turned his face away and stared at his grandson, as if willing him to move. The small healer, Wendy, was still fluttering about the room, doing something with these gnarled, unappetizing looking roots that, Erza expected, was about to be shoved down Laxus's throat. She allowed herself a small inward smile for this slight bit of indirect justice. But, her joy was interrupted by a beep from her watch, alerting her that she had spent more than enough time at a place that didn't give her nearly as many answers as she had hoped. So, with one last glance at the sleeping Laxus and his grandfather, she said her good byes and started to go, intent on finding the duo that was usually glued to Laxus's side. Before she could take five steps out of the door, however, she remembered Goldmine Wilde's last words.
"Master Makarov," she called, poking her head in the doorway, "Goldmine Wilde told me to tell you that he is on your side."
"That's strange," the old man said, catching Erza's attention. She walked back into the room and stared the old man down.
"Why is that strange?" She asked, watching his face. There was a certain wrinkle in his eyebrow that communicated all the worry he was feeling at the moment.
"Well," the old man sighed, "it sounds like a big fight may be coming, Miss-" Makarov looked up, only to see the trademark scarlet of Erza's hair float through the door. He sighed again and restarted pitifully staring at his idiotic, comatose grandson.
A brown haired beauty, a strange purple knight with a mask, and a man with luscious green locks walk into a bar and the bartender says-
Wait, this isn't that kind of story.
Okay, so it is true that a brown haired beauty, a strange purple knight with a mask, and a man with luscious green locks walk into a bar, but all three were collectively giving off such a threatening, black aura that the bartender practically peed his pants and, instead of saying anything, quietly served them free drinks. After the three grabbed their beers and sat on the rickety old stools, he moved towards his register and crouched behind the counter, trembling so hard that any glass near to where he was hiding started to shake violently.
"Where the hell is Laxus?" The brunette hissed at the other two, who both flinched at her acidic tone.
"I don't know Ever," The knight shrugged, "I was at my usual post and when I went in to wake him up he was gone." Although his words dripped with a nonchalant attitude, there was a hint of a worried stiffness in his posture on the stool. He was worried about his boss's disappearance—they all were. It was not like Laxus to leave them out of the loop. If he did, well...this is what happens. The little trio terrify people and tear the city apart looking for him.
"What's the point of having three guards if he can still disappear?" Ever snapped, visibly holding herself back from choking the knight with her gloved hands and fan. The man scooted a few centimeters away while his little flying dolls positioned themselves in front of him. She was able to restrain herself, though the two men could hear her muttering curses about a certain idiot under her breath.
"Calm down, you two," their friend, Freed, snapped. "Fighting about who is at fault isn't going to help us find him."
"See? Freed gets it," Bickslow the knight slapped his friend on the back and slightly shifted farther away from Evergreen, who looked like she was about to slap the two men senseless.
"Although it is totally Bickslow's fault," Freed added, throwing a heated glare at his "friend". After all, it was his fault that they were all worried sick in the first place. His Laxus could be kidnapped or really hurt or even dead-
"HEY!" Bickslow shouted in protest. His little dolls echoed him in their annoying, high pitched voices.
"Shut up, you're too loud," Ever slapped Bickslow with her fan. He quieted as ordered, though there were many grumbled curses trickling from the side of his mouth. "Anyway," she continued, "I still think Cahz knows something about Laxus. He was too smug today," she huffed. The greasy, silent man was not one of her favorite people in the whole world. If she had the choice between a slug bath and spending two minutes with Cahz, she would take the slug bath and enjoy herself.
"How can you tell if the man never speaks a word?" Bickslow asked in a whisper. Evergreen didn't even answer the question with a response. Instead, she jabbed the pointed end of her fan into the table where Bickslow's fingers were splayed out. Her glare dared him to ask another question about her opinion of their slimy contact. Bickslow, being smarter than your average bear, choose not to further provoke his deadly companion.
"There is only one place we haven't checked yet," Freed redirected their attention from glaring sparks at each other to their hunt for Laxus. "Fairy Tail. So lets go and find him so we can get ready for the plan-"
"ATTENTION!" A loud voice boomed throughout the bar, stopping Freed from saying anything else that would give away what Laxus had been plotting. "Can Evergreen Faeria, Bickslow Puppetrum and Freed Justine step forward?"
The trio looked at each other, wondering if it was possible that the police had caught onto their plan. However, that was impossible: Laxus held a secret power over the king, giving his three guards complete immunity when it came to the law. How else were they able to do their part of the plan? So, confident that they were able to be bouncing out of the bar to continue their Laxus search within minutes, all three adults stepped forward. The source of the booming voice, a portly man with head of thinning hair and an overly bushy mustache with curled ends, locked his watery eyes on them. His large fingers fumbled for something under his uniform, which turned out to be a very official looking scroll.
"Evergreen Faeria, Bickslow Puppetrum and Freed Justine," he began in his booming voice, "you are hereby put under arrest for treasonous actions against His Majesty. If you do not come with me, I have orders to kill you on the spot, as ordered by King Arthur of Fiore. Will you resist?"
All three members of the Thunder Tribe looked at each other in shock. Before they could resist, magic dampening handcuffs were slapped on their wrists, and bandages wrapped around their eyes so not even their secret powers could take effect.
Well then. This was DEFINITELY not part of their plan.
"Ne, Lucy, what's that?" Happy asked, staring at the envelope in her hand with mild curiosity. Lucy realized that she was still clutching the envelope in her hands, like she was terrified that it was going to disappear. She shoved the letter behind her back, remembering that it was supposed to be a secret. Of course, it only made her two friends more curious as to what the letter held. After all, Lucy wasn't one to keep secrets from Natsu and Happy; of course, those two made it pretty hard to keep secrets at all, with their habits of going through other people's drawers with no guilt. Granted, they were usually playing a trick and going through her underwear drawer, but still...
"Its nothing, really," she hopped back from Natsu and Happy, who were closing in on her with prying eyes. The two took in her quivering, obviously false tone, looking at the other in their creepily silent way of communication; with one head nod, they began their attack.
"Can I see?" Happy crowded in closer, lying one of his paws on Lucy's right arm. She instinctively jerked her hand, with the letter firmly crumpled inside of it, to the left, right into Natsu's waiting hands. His quick reflexes allowed him to grab the letter and sprint to the opposite side of the room before Lucy could do so much as blink. By the time she had realized what had just been stolen from her, Natsu was already unfolding the letter open and skimming its contents, looking to see who Lucy's mysterious pen pal was.
"NATSU! GIVE IT BACK!" Lucy shrieked, running over and tackling him. She was, however, much too late; Natsu had found the signature at the bottom of the page, which was signed as "Papa" in Jude Heartfilia's signature flourish. His face was frozen in a mask that revealed no emotion. Lucy climbed onto his back and plucked the letter out of his hands, shoving it down her shirt where no one would (hopefully) dare to grab it. Although a tad uncomfortable, at least it was safe. She got up and reached out her hand for him to grab, but Natsu just ignored it, choosing to sit on her uncomfortable hard wood floor.
"You're all comfy with your dad?" Natsu asked, sounding nonchalant. He didn't seem to have any emotion at all, just a cool, slightly detached tone that made Lucy drop her hand and scoot away.
"I don't know about comfy..." she trailed off, wondering where this conversation was going. She had been friends with Natsu long enough to know the signs of his silent fury: his jaw was locked, his eyebrows were pulled down slightly and, if she looked close enough, his hands were clenched tight enough to see his veins popping out. Natsu, when angry, was nowhere near this calm. So, she wondered, when was the storm supposed to begin?
"How long has that been going on? Before or after he left you rot with a bunch of kidnappers?" He asked, staring at her with penetrating eyes. There was a wild look in his eyes, like there was a fire burning in the blackness.
"That's not fair," Lucy huffed. He of all people should understand second chances. After all, wasn't that at the core of what they were doing? Second chance of getting over trauma and having a life?
"You know what else isn't fair?" He snapped viciously, "Getting your magic taken away." It seemed like he had been fuming over this part of her life ever since she had told him in the kitchen. Strange, because he had never shown any sign that he even remembered; right now it seemed like he was taking the past betrayal personal.
"He's changed!" She yelled, appalled at his over reaction. What was it to him if she decided to reconcile with her father? Why was he being so negative?
"Changed? People don't change Luce!" He scoffed, as if she was a little girl saying something stupid like the moon is made of cream cheese.
"Do you really believe that?" Lucy was getting very angry very quickly. If there was one thing she hated most in the world, it was being treated like a kid. Well, maybe it was anti-bacon protesters, then untidy people, then- okay, lets just say that she did not like being treated like an ignorant five year old so we can continue with the story. Another thing she detested was having a person shout at her.
Natsu paused in his angry tirade. He knew that he was going too far, and he knew that Lucy knew he knew, but the stubborn (and, at times like this, really foolish) dragon slayer was not one to back down from a good yelling match. But, did he seriously not believe in the power of change? Makarov had always taught him to believe in others, but after all these years of hopelessly working in the House, he didn't really want to believe in others anymore...
"He is probably just stringing you along for his own benefit," Natsu, somewhat regretfully, spat at her. Lucy stood there, stunned beyond belief. There was a long, awkward silence that seemed to drive a huge divide between the two. He was looking at her like she was being stubborn and unreasonable, and she was looking at him like he had just performed the ultimate betrayal. Somewhere in the extreme corner of the room, Happy the cat was quivering, looking back and forth between the two like he was expecting one of them to pounce and kill the other.
"Then what's the point then?" She whispered, knowing full well he could hear her.
"What's the point of what?" Natsu snapped irritably. He did not seem to grasp her meaning, something that seemed to make the blonde even more furious.
"Of being with me?" Lucy's voice quivered; whether it was due to anger or tears, no one could tell.
"What do you mean?" He really wished that Lucy was less cryptic. Not everyone was a quiet genius.
"If people don't change, then what's the point of spending time with me?" She stepped back, towards her door. Realizing his mistake, Natsu jumped to correct himself.
"Lucy, that's not what I-"
"No. That's exactly what you meant," she muttered. Lucy, furious beyond belief, didn't say another word. Instead, her and her flaming red cheeks grabbed her heels from where they lay and stalked out the door. The sound of the door slamming sounded very final; neither Natsu nor Happy dared to move until they heard the front door of the apartment complex slam shut below. Happy watched Natsu slowly stand up. He watched his masters face go through a range of emotions, from regret to frustration to anger. He watched as Natsu retreated into his impenetrable angry shell.
"UUUUGGGGHHHHH!" Natsu's yell bounced off the wall, as well as the sound of his fist slamming into the wall. Luckily he didn't break through the wall, because Lucy would be so pissed- But who cares what Lucy thinks anyway? His stubborn attitude asked.
"Natsu? Shouldn't we go after her?" Happy asked carefully. His partner just stood there, quivering with anger, silently staring at the door like he was replaying Lucy's exit over and over in his mind.
"No," his stubbornness shined through, "if she wants to go off and be disappointed by her evil dad and his girly handwriting, then let her."
With that lovely sentiment, Natsu opened Lucy's window and jumped out, knowing that it was one of her pet peeves about him. Happy followed him out, making sure to close the window to the best of his ability. For a minute or two he followed Natsu in complete silence.
"Where are we going?" Happy asked warily.
"Out," came Natsu's vague answer.
Happy sighed, but continued to follow. Once again, it was time for him to step up, be the adult, and get the two to apologize to each other before they could make the situation even worse. The two humans needed each other, even if they were both too dense to realize it themselves.
Okay, a little short, but I have the next three chapters lined up and ready to go. I just have to do one more read through for last minute changes and then they're up :) I hope to finish this story by the end of the month, because I have been dragging this on for wayyyyyy too long!
Frankly, if I had just planed this whole thing out from the start, then it would've turned out way better. But, too late now!
But seriously, I feel like I write these guys so that they act really OC and I hate myself for it. Who agrees with me? Raise your hands! Well, at least next chapter Natsu's possibly (eh, more like probably) OCness is kinda explained.
Please please please please please please please please drop me a review if you can. I really like it when you guys critique me :)
Till next time, friends!
~NeverMakesSense