"The cherry blossoms are pretty this year, aren't they?" A voice resounded from her left, and she gave him a faint smile as her golden eyes reverted to the array of colorful petals falling all around her, glowing translucently as they shifted shades. All around her were sounds of celebration: cries of joy, laughter, and good-intentioned conversations. A tree, grand and overtowering, was planted in the center of the square. Several mugs, filled with amber liquid, were quickly emptied as mouthes loosened by alcohol began to whisper and joke around as the festivities continued.
Several mages of Fairy Tail, including a triumphant Erza, were mulling over their winnings from the annual Hanami Bingo, while others were looking down with their shoulders slumped from defeat. Some had gone off to wander to the bars, joining Cana as they blocked out their disappointment. Even so, their friends quickly came over to cheer them up, and laughter filled the air. It was happy. It was nice.
... it was home, Ava thought, her eyelids closing as she breathed in the fresh smell of flowers with the tiniest tinge of alcohol (no thanks to Cana, the lovable drunkard). And it wouldn't be home without all of the people around her, including the person standing beside her at the moment. She felt a warm feeling in her chest as he moved to stand next to her, shoulder to shoulder, as they gazed silently at the glowing Rainbow Blossom tree. The moment felt like it would never end, and somewhere in the back of her mind she knew she hoped it never had to.
"It's always beautiful, every year." She answered, her eyes fond as she broke the silence, and she motioned for him to sit down beside her on the cold wooden bench. He did as she asked, sitting next to her, and she nearly jumped at the warm presence. Instead, she just sighed and leaned her head against his shoulder, not even caring about the slight pink dusting across her companion's cheeks as his gaze turned to her. "I wish it'll stay like this forever."
"You know, if you keep saying that, you'll jinx it." He chided softly, not bothered in the least by her pouting expression as he relaxed slightly, his body loosening as the tension escaped. There were only a few people that he could really feel relaxed with, and it was both surprising and unsurprising that one of those people was Ava.
"Well, Gray?" She asked, finally saying his name for the first time in their mostly silent conversation. "What can I say? Home is home."
"The world's always changing." His gaze was somewhere far away now, as he looked past the falling cherry blossom petals and to the sky. She tilted her head at an angle too so she could see what he was seeing, and the beauty of it almost caught her breath. The sky was dark, eternal, and breathtaking (as always, she added in her head). The stars in the sky, their glimmer slightly dimmed by the festive lights below them, shone like precious gemstones, illuminating the light just like the moon which was partially hidden by some gray clouds.
"The world is always changing," she confirmed, eyes still upwards. The clouds were starting to move to the left, letting the moon illuminate the courtyard with its celestial light. "And so are we. But our memories?" She hesitated before continuing, locking eyes with him as they stared at each other as her words turned into a whisper. "Our memories will never change."
A smile touched his lips, and they moved to say his next statement to her. "That's true."
Both of their gazes turned upwards once more, and their mouths moved in unison as they whispered words they thought the other couldn't hear as their voices turned dark. "But I'm afraid things are already starting to move forward too fast."
Well that was anticlimactic. Ava mused. She ignored the nagging voice in her head that scolded her for leaving so rudely and not even checking on her old comrades. She couldn't face them. Not yet. And she definitely couldn't return to the guild, or what was left of it. It brought back too many memories: even the trip to Magnolia's central square was enough to make her chest ache and yearn for what she couldn't have anymore. As she traveled down the winding dirt road, she passed several other travelers, of who she would nod a polite greeting before traveling on. The area was reasonably safe: both Magnolia and Lavek had semi-low crime rates because of the presence of the towns' main guilds.
Lavek was the hometown of Lamia Scale, another top-guild-in-the-making. It was about a day's walk from Magnolia however, and Ava hadn't taken the trouble to schedule a train ride or any other method of transportation. If Ava recalled correctly, several talented mages had already been recruited personally by the guild master (or, in this case, mistress). Rumors that she had caught from late nights at a bar, sitting alone and hunched over a cup of tea as her ears caught bits of conversation that was loosened by alcohol, said that the wizards were on par with Fairy Tail's Titania. Ava snorted at the thought of that. Talented or not, no one could match the red-haired girl's fury (and she had gotten enough personal experience to know that).
She took light, delicate steps along the road, her tread a hushed one. Out towards the horizon, she could see the blurry shape of an inn come into view and decided to retire for the night. She quickened her pace: night was falling. Everything was silent around her as she continued to pace herself, her breath coming out in little puffs of white air that were visible in the cold night. The moon was starting to make its way up into the sky as the Sun retired, its last yellow beams of light shining upon Ava as the sky turned a darker shade.
Ava arrived, breathless, in front of the wooden door of the inn. She raised a hand and knocked out of habit before pushing it open and entering. A small wisp of warm air rushed past her, warming her face, and she observed that a fireplace was lit and several people were lounging on chairs around it. Ava turned to the front desk, requesting softly as she smiled kindly at the elderly woman who gave her a toothy grin. "A room for one please."
"That'll be 7000 jewels." The woman prodded at her bag, nodding at Ava's face as she raised an eyebrow, her pale hair whitened from age falling to her shoulders as she asked, "What's a nice young gal' like you doing out here so late alone?"
"Travelling," Ava replied wistfully, sighing, her hands fingering her own dark black locks. Her hand slipped to the bag of coins tied securely to her waist and she set down a few silver coins, murmuring a, 'thank you' as she was handed her keys.
Seeing as one seat by the fireplace was unoccupied, and considering her rather sore muscles from the long walk, Ava plopped herself down on one of the forest green chairs, setting her suitcase to her left. The rest of the people paid her no mind, and her eyes darted from side to side as she looked at the people around her.
To Ava's right was a boy lazily spread on the sofa in a relaxed manner as he gave her a small smirk. He raised his dark hand and flipped his black hair with exuberance only few possessed. Meeting her gaze, he flushed and quickly turned away. Her breath caught in her throat as she realized who exactly she was sitting with right now as her head turned to see the other occupants of the room. An arm from behind her, pale but firm, set a hand on her shoulders and she nearly jumped in surprise.
Her face tilted upwards to see the towering face of Hibiki Lates. "Why, hello there beautiful," he said, smiling charmingly at her. She showed no outside reaction, but her inside was reeling from shock as she turned to look at the rest. He had another teammate: the one who seemed to react to her presence the most.
The blonde, a petite boy who looked in his teens, stared open mouthed at her. He closed it, then opened it again as he gaped at her. Stammering as he tried to grasp a coherent thought, he finally said, "A-Ava Lucioni?"
Play it cool.
"I'm honored the great Eve Tearm has heard of me." She smiled, leaning back on the plush seat cushion as the rest of his teammates' attentions turned to her. Hibiki wisely removed his arm from her shoulder as he opted to stand behind the chair his blonde teammate was sitting on. "Need something from me?"
"I don't suppose you've considered my offer, have you?" He asked, fidgeting with the hem of his sleeve as her gaze rested on him, and she admired the fact that even though he looked uncomfortable, he met her gaze unwaveringly. Her amber eyes were unnerving: calculating, as if looking for something. Then her demeanor changed entirely as she tilted her head cutely and blinked. All three members of the Trimens (excluding Ichiya) stared at her for a moment, mentally sighing in relief that Ichiya was still unrecovered from his wounds and he wasn't here to scare off a potential member.
"What offer?" The words slipped out of her mouth as she looked at him, clueless about what he was talking about.
Eve nearly fell over, Hibiki and Ren almost doing the same. "The one I gave you after I pursued you once you left the bar after dancing. About joining our guild"
Her eyes rounded, and for a second there was a flicker of emotion in her eyes Eve couldn't recognize as her breath fluttered as she uttered a whisper, "Mia."
She's alive?
But then that moment was gone, and she regained her composure and shook her head as she plastered on a fake grin. "I'm no dancer. I guess you must have met the wrong person: I've definitely never worked at a bar for that kind of thing." Her mind was on overload, simply thinking in short fragments. Get away. Need to think. Get away.
Stretching her limbs, weary from the long walk, she smiled at the group and stood up, glad that she managed to retain her cool politeness. "Well, if that's all, I'm retiring to bed. It's been an honor meeting you all."
As soon as she entered the room, a gust of fresh air hit her as the magic-run air conditioning turned on. She flipped the light switch on, and began observing her room.
It wasn't a particularly large one: just one that would accommodate one person just fine. Considering the price, Ava would consider it a bargain. A nice tan reading chair was in the corner near the window, shaded by forest green curtains. A mahogany desk and chair, along with a drawer to put her clothes in was to another side of the room. And, of course, a nightstand was positioned near her bed: the comforter and pillows already looking inviting as they urged her to fall asleep.
Suppressing the urge to yawn, Ava reached into her bag and pulled out two picture frames and set them on the nightstand so she could look at them later-this action was half out of habit, and half out of the fact that she needed some reassurance after what Eve had just revealed to her.
Her eyes roamed to the picture of two girls, nearly identical, standing side to side as they beamed at the camera, both pairs of amber eyes shining.
There had only been one dancer in Ava's family: and it definitely wasn't her.
Ava turned to the door, her footsteps light as she locked it tightly before switching out of her rather worn and dirty clothes that had suffered with her through her journey to the city. She then turned off the lights, knowing she had a packed day for tomorrow, especially since the Trimens were there, and she'd need all the sleep she could get.
She slipped into bed, clearing her mind of thoughts about sisters and idiots, an action well known to her body after so many unsuccessful attempts and shut her eyes, willing herself to fall asleep.
...she thought she heard something. Her eyes opened sleepily, taking in the fact that there were a few blurry figures in front of her before closing again, almost back in the peaceful trance of sleeping.
...
…
"Good morning nee-chan!"
…
…
…
Ava bolted upwards, now awake as her head nearly snapped as it moved back and forth, her eyes taking in that there were three young men in her bedroom as her expression slowly lost all its color as she pursed her lips. "H-hello. Can I...help you with something?"
"Why yes, yes you can," Ren purred, stroking her chin before she jerked backwards-nearly hitting the bedpost in the process-and out of his grasp. He pouted, looking like a kicked puppy before suddenly blushing and rubbing the back of his head, avoiding her confused gaze. "B-but it's not like we need your help or anything."
"What. Do. You. Want?" She hissed, her body tensing as she shoved Ren off of her as she glared at them. Her more hotheaded side was starting to resurface, and she tried to calm herself by taking a deep breath as she waited for any of them to respond to her question. She was highly aware of the fact that she was wearing little-to-nothing: just some pink lingerie and a white nightgown. This situation was sort of like how it was back then, before the infamous S-Class exam of x784 happened. Back when she was still part of a team, working with other people to complete a job instead of on her own like now. The only difference was she snuck into someone else's apartment, not the other way around.
"Just a chat." Hibiki hummed innocently as he avoided her furious gaze.
"Well, we can chat later," Ava spat, waving at them with the back of her hand in a shooeing manner as she pointed to the exit of the room, the door suspiciously closed which led her to wondering how they got in when she knew she locked the door last night. "When you all are not in my bedroom and I'm properly dressed."
"Well, we can't help with the properly dressed part…" Hibiki tapped his chin nonchalantly, seemingly deep in thought. He snapped his fingers, grinning as his partners as he continued, "But we can help with the bedroom part."
Before she could utter a sound of protest, Ava was (quite literally) swept off her feet by them as Ren lifted her over his shoulder as they whisked her away.
…
…
...
"W-wait, what just happened?" Ava stammered, half in awe and half in shock as she stared at the three boys, noting sourly that they had brought her behind the inn, she barely had any time to react, and the Sun wasn't even up yet. She was never really an early riser.
"You said we couldn't talk while we were in your bedroom, so we brought you out." Hibiki explained simply, smiling a little as she growled. "You see, we have a preposition with you."
The idea that Hibiki Lates of all people was offering her something was strange enough that she stopped her hostile behavior enough to ask, "What?"
"Blue Pegasus is, as you know, a rising power as one of the best guilds in Fiore. We, however, are admittedly not the best of the best." Hibiki paused, letting Ava digest the information for a minute. "I know that it's very sudden, but we would love it if a young talented wizard like you joined our guild and became one of our nakama." He watched as the girl flinched as she heard his last word.
"And we wouldn't mind if someone as beautiful as you joined," Ren added slyly as Eve nodded vigorously at his teammate's declarations saying something like, "Nee-chan's very pretty."
"So, what do you say?" Hibiki asked.
"Will you…" Ren continued.
"Join us?" Eve finished, smiling happily at the black-haired girl as she blinked at them, taking everything in. Things were moving way too fast for her liking. "You could be my onee-chan!"
"We're probably the same age," Ava pointed out dully with no avail as the boys chattered excitedly amongst themselves as they waited for her decision. It was a bit presumptuous of them to just ask her like that without a background check, but she faintly remembered that she had met them once or twice during Fairy Tail's effort to defeat Oracion Seis. A flash of blue, pink, and red hair hit her eyes before it was gone. A smile, a hand held out just for her.
Everything was over now. Fairy Tail wasn't the guild it used to be anymore. Ava stared at Hibiki's outstretched hand as he smiled charmingly at her, the action eerily similar to what she had just remembered. "So what do you say?"
A part of her wanted to turn around and huff, "Oh, screw you." Another part of her wanted to punch him in the face for interrupting her sleep for this. But another part of her...well… Unconsciously, her hand lifted itself and began to hover above his, but a sudden memory stopped her from taking it.
.
"Oi! Ava, let's go on a quest together!"
.
They were gone now. Her hand inched closer, longing for a chance to have that kind of experience again. A team. A guild. Nakama. It had been so long, too long since she had last been part of a guild, and a greedy part of her wanted to be part of one again.
.
"Tch, flame brain. Stop being so loud. You're probably bothering her. Right Ava?"
.
They were gone now, she reminded herself, her chest aching as she thought of the two idiots she had come to know. Yet she couldn't bring herself to shake that hand...not yet…
.
"You are our nakama, Ava. Always, no matter what." They chorused, smiling at her and waving as the boat set off for Tenroujima Island.
.
"Sure." Her hand slipped into his, and the motion felt so natural that Ava didn't think too much about it as they tightened their grip slightly. All three boys' faces brightened, and they each reached over to pat a warm hand on her back.
.
"Welcome to the team, Ava Lucioni."