Author's Note
WHOOP! Oh, and to the guest reviewer: The sentences repeated because of problems with formatting when I uploaded the document to the site... and when I noticed I was too pooped to do anything about it, haha. Thanks for pointing it out- maybe I'll fix it one day...
They speed through the forest, hopping from tree to tree as fast as they can, all three of them hoping that their legs will be strong enough to propel them until they reach their destination.
At least, Jellal is. His mind is torn between two things- his orb of light and the trees before him. It's his job to make sure no one slams into a tree because they don't notice it until they collide, but the lack of magic makes his body weaker than it already is. The concentration it takes is too much and he can barely pay attention to his movements without the light flickering as if threatening to disappear.
Sweat covers his skin even though they've only been moving this quickly for no more than twenty minutes. Ultear, as usual, is graceful in everything that she does. It looks like she's making no effort, even though she is greatly overpowering her companions as she bounds forward. Meredy struggles almost as much as Jellal does and Jellal has taken to staying to her side, since she often slips as if she is going to plummet at any moment.
The movement is subconscious and Jellal doesn't question himself on why, exactly, he is actively trying to protect Meredy until it's too late to play off their proximity on coincidence. She must've trying to not be obvious with her constant slip-ups, because she blushes embarrassingly when she notices Jellal by her side and tries to shake him off to prove she's fine, but she can't.
No matter how taxing, Jellal isn't going to let himself be bested by a girl that's at least four years younger than he is. She has such a baby face, and she's small, but she's so mature and capable that she does leave Jellal wondering.
The two try their best to keep up with Ultear, who does not slow the entire journey even though she carries the heaviest load, and fare well enough. She doesn't stop until they reach the end of the forest, suddenly dropping from the tree she crouched on and landing on the ground with ease. Jellal had not even noticed the edge of the forest, until he heard Ultear call out to him, and he jumps out the forest, hurtling towards the hill with a strangled shout. He flails in the air, trying his best to flip to his side and he covers his head with his hands, grimacing as he braces for impact.
Meredy starts to scream his name but her voice is cut off- Ultear probably reminded her that they are only a hundred or so yards from the city. Jellal feels the rush of magic enter his body as the orb dissipates because of his franticness, but his mind can't formulate a spell that would lessen the impact and pain as the distance between him and the ground lessens.
He only hopes that Ultear would be willing to heal any major injuries he might get from his reckless mistake.
Suddenly, his face is buried in dirt and an utter of pain leaves his lips before the impact knocks the wind out of his lungs. The rest of the tumble is significantly less painful, since the hills have nothing but soft grass. He lets himself roll to the bottom of the hill, his shock quickly turning into embarrassment as he slows. He stops soon, his body sore and he looks up into the sky, listening to the sound of footsteps drawing near to him.
"Jellal," Meredy loudly says, nearly tripping over herself as she moves quickly down the hill. Ultear follows behind her in a casual jog, a large smile on her face. She doesn't even pretend to be concerned. "Are you okay?"
Jellal sits up with a small wince, and he places his bruising arm on the back of his head, flicking out the blades of grass with a sheepish smile. "Yeah, thanks."
"Is anything broken? Fractured?" Meredy worries, cautiously touching his back and arms, looking at him intently as she waits for a startled yelp.
Jellal shakes his extremities and cocks his head side to side, shaking his head. "No, I'm good."
"How did you even-" Meredy starts, her hands flying into the air before quickly falling back to her sides with a thud. "How?"
"My attention was displaced," Jellal shrugs, letting Meredy pull him up. He winces again and Meredy notices.
"Maybe we should let you rest for a while," Meredy suggests, looking at Ultear for approval.
"We don't have time," Ultear snorts. "He'll have to bear with it."
"Ultear, come on!"
"I'm fine," Jellal says, throwing Ultear a glare before looking more softly at Meredy. "Really, I am. Thanks, though."
Meredy obviously doesn't approve, but she silences herself and sulks as she walks. The city is really more of a town. Groups of cottages form squares, each house sharing a wall with another and no spot of green can be seen within the place. It's all a mixture of drab colors- gray and brown- and Jellal can't imagine wanting to live here.
As they enter the town through a small, dark alleyway between a cottage and a church. Ultear, with a sigh, swings the large knapsack off her shoulder and it falls onto the ground, a cloud of dust and grim rising into the air because of it. She takes out a small makeup kit and a few other things, excusing herself to a small corner of the dead-end where garbage blocks Jellal and Meredy's view of her.
Jellal and Meredy lean against the wall, silent in case someone is close enough to overhear. After a few minutes, Ultear reemerges but as a completely different person.
Thanks to a wig, her hair is now auburn and makeup makes her look two shades lighter. Her lips are ruby red and her cheekbones defined and sharp. She scowls as she tries to loosen the neckline of her shirt- a turtleneck with a cutout that serves anyone willing to look a nice amount of cleavage.
Meredy notices her discomfort, and her eyes dart from side to side before she whispers to Ultear. "I could go this time if you want."
"It's fine," Ultear grumbles.
"Yeah, she loves the chance to play dress-up," Jellal mumbles, pulling himself on top of a window ledge of the church. The stained glass is impossible to see through and it's big enough to fit both him and Meredy, who climbs up after him.
Ultear rolls her eyes, and waves, disappearing out of the alleyway, ready to properly enter the town. From the window ledge, Meredy and Jellal hoist themselves to the top of the building. The church is as squat as every other building here, and it takes no time until they're on the roof, looking over the quiet town from behind one of the church's thick spires.
"Where are we, anyway?" Meredy wonders, her eyes darting over the town until her eyes zone in on a bakery advertisement in the small courtyard in front of the church. "Oh, Dahlia Town! That's a pretty name, don't you think?"
Jellal shrugs, he doesn't care. Dahlia Town is quiet- he can see nobody within his range of sight, even at the cluster of shops at the far side of town. For a moment, he thinks that maybe this is some sort of worship day, but when he listens as closely as he can, he realizes that even the church below him is quiet.
"Hey, do you want to check this church out?" He asks Meredy.
"What if someone's in there?"
"I doubt there is."
"Ultear might get mad."
"I don't care."
Meredy remains hesitant, her eyes warily peering over the edge of the church roof. Jellal shrugs- it's not as if he expected her to join him, but he didn't want to leave unannounced- and skids down the roof until he reaches the edge. "Well, I'm going."
Shakily, he leans over the edge, tucking his feet in the drain running along the roof before hanging the rest of him off it to peak into the large window in the center of the church, just above the door. The room is dim, the window its only source of light, and full of books and tables that make Jellal wonder if this is actually a library. The room's emptiness further convinces him that this is a ghost town, and she flips off the room, managing to land on his feet but his body shudders with a mild pain as if to remind Jellal of the accident he just had.
Jellal looks around him one more time before pushing open the doors of the church.
The three arrive at their motel just as the stars begin to twinkle as the sun slowly dips under the ocean water, casting beautiful swirls of pinks and oranges across the sky and water as it beguiles the world one last time before it disappears, leaving half of Earthland in the moon's company until it rises again.
Lucy's eyes linger on the sky as they wait outside the motel for Gray and Erza, who goes inside to check in before they go out to eat. Even Natsu's silent- and he watches Lucy contentedly, a soft smile on his face. Uncomfortable with the two and their over-sentimental gazes, he decides that Erza is taking too long and he does not want to be in the company of these hopeless romantics.
"I'm taking a walk," he quietly announces, doubting they could hear him or even react if they do. He walks towards the beach as most people leave it, cringing at the constant sound of children whining to their parents about how they desperately want to play in the sand for "a few more minutes". Somewhere along the way, Jellal finds himself amid many groups of friends and couples exuberantly hurrying to the water, their excited voices loudening what would be a quiet evening.
They're so involved with themselves that they don't notice Jellal, to his luck, and so he walks along the beach in peace, letting the cool water wash against his ankles. Even without the sun to amplify its brilliance, the water still sparkles as the stars' light pinprick the stirring ocean. The scene is as picturesque as Jellal's situation is cliché- walking along the beautiful beach alone when everyone else is bonding.
Too bad he doesn't care.
He doesn't walk too far, so his company won't have to wait for him or look for him, his heart warming a bit knowing that they would without hesitation. It makes him walk back to the hotel with some motivation, though no one would be able to tell. He's glad to find Team Natsu waiting in the same spot he had left them in, only Gray and Erza had joined Natsu and Lucy outside.
Gray is the first to notice him, and he nudges Erza, whose scanning eyes snap onto Jellal's.
"Found him," Gray says, patting Jellal on the shoulder as he passes. The contact is strange and Jellal subtlety withdraws from Gray's touch, not used to such casual touch, especially since he barely knows the Ice Mage.
"Have I kept you waiting long?" Jellal worries, his eyes furrowing. Erza's hard eyes soften at his kind features and Jellal knows that he had managed to avoid what could've been a harsh scolding.
"No," she sighs, shaking her head. "I just got the room keys. We just didn't know where you had gone, that's all."
Jellal's eyes wander to Lucy and Natsu. "I told them I was going on a walk."
"You didn't hear him," Erza asks Lucy and Natsu and the blonde shakes her head.
Natsu, however, makes a non-committal shrug. Erza's eyes narrow, but again, she shakes her head and begins walking towards the inner city.
"Come on, let's go find someplace to dine."
Author's Note
This chapter sucks. Oh well, training in the next chapter!