Hey guys! OMG thanks so much for all the Great Reviews! It makes me so happy! I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while, I've been busy. This chapter is probably going to be a bit dramatic, and slightly sad, not very much romance in it, other than a few mentions. Hope you enjoy, please review! Don't own fairytail!
Cana POV
Cana whistled lightly to herself, as she walked around the town. It had been about three hours since she had met with Laxus, but she still couldn't get it out of her head. That vision had seemed all too real, but seriously? Her, kissing him? No way, that would never happen, no matter how drunk she got! Sure he had, really nice hair, was extremely strong, had a good sense of humor, worried about his friends, and it wouldn't have really been that bad if she had just leaned forward across the table and...
Cana stopped walking and started banging her head against a wall. "Pull it together Alberona! You're dating Damien, remember?" But even as she said the words, they felt hollow in her mouth.
"You like him, but you don't love him...you're only with him because you know that if you break up it will hurt him." Laxus' words came running back to her.
Cana placed both hands on both sides of her head. "No no no! Shut up shut up shut up!" Cana gritted her teeth together in frustration. "He was only guessing what does he know anyway? He's never seen the two of you together before! Yeah, you don't need to listen to him!" Cana stopped for a moment, giving herself some time to catch her breath. Finally, opening her eyes, she realized that she had gathered a crowd. A group of onlookers were all staring at her mid walk. Cana froze for a moment, a sweat drop rolling down her face. She gulped nervously. "Um...sorry." she spoke meekly, before hurrying away from the group, ignoring the stares she felt on her back.
She berated herself for making such a scene, telling herself to pull it together. "Just concentrate on what you're doing Cana." Cana took another breath to steel her nerves before walking on. Esther's absence from the guild had startled her a bit. Esther was always the good girl, even if she was on her death bed; she would never leave Mrs. Goodworth to fend for herself in the bakery. Something serious must be going on if she had decided to ditch.
Cana decided that going to Esther's house was the best option. She probably should have gone earlier when she left Laxus, but thought it would be better to finally get the laundry that she had been putting off for days done.
Cana wandered through the streets, finally coming to Esther's house. It was a nice house, bigger than Cana's, and probably the biggest in the town, but Cana wouldn't call it a mansion. Most people were often intimidated by the house, not to mention the fact that it was owned by the mayor of the town, but Cana had grown to think of it as her second home. The Mayor had taken Cana in after her mother died, and had taken care of her till she was old enough to stay alone. Well, she actually left when she was 16 to live in her mother's old house, but the family often came to check on her at least every two days.
Cana sighed upon finding the house, a series of memories flooding her. She saw the place where she and Ether had painted little snowflakes on the wall because they were upset they didn't get snow for Christmas. There was the place that Damien had hit his head when he was trying to out-run one of the older boys. That was still before her mothers death. And after that...
Cana frowned, a puzzled expression on her face. She couldn't remember anything after that. No special memories, not memory of games, nothing. "That's odd." Cana whispered under her breath. The thought itched at her brain for a moment, before she shrugged it off. She'd probably just had a bit too much to drink today.
Cana walked up to the front door, and was about to knock, when she heard a soft crying coming from inside the house. Her hand froze above the knocker. She couldn't identify the voice exactly, but she could guess it was either Esther or her mother. After a moment of silent debate, she hesitantly knocked on the door. Cana heard the sniffling stop, and heard someone rustling around, before the door was opened. Esther stood before her, wearing her regular work dress, but her hair was in a disarray around her face, mascara was dripping down her cheeks. Cana had to take a second to recover, mostly because she didn't think that Esther wore makeup. "Esther?" she asked, "wh-what happened? What's wrong?"
Esther seemed to be seeing her for the first time. And she did not like what she saw. Her hands gripped the sides of the door frame, her face contorting into that of uncontrolled rage. "What happened? WHAT HAPPENED?! How dare you come in here, asking me what happened? This is ALL YOUR STUPID FAULT!"
Cana was taken aback. She was too shocked to be mad at Esther's reaction. "W-I-what?"
"You couldn't have just been happy with Damien could you? No you have to go and wreck everyone's lives, just because of your selfishness!"
Now Cana could get mad. "For crying out loud Esther WHAT THE HECK HAPPENED?" Cana had to scream for Esther to hear her over her own voice.
"MY DAD YOU IDIOT! He's in the hospital and it's ALL YOUR FAULT!"
Cana couldn't speak. "What? How, what happened? Is he going to be ok, what...?"
Esther put both hands over her mouth, trying to keep herself from crying again. "Go, leave, now." She raised an arm and pointed off into the distance. "I don't want to see you again. Don't you dare come within ten meters of this house, if you do I swear, I'll..." Cana didn't hear Esther finish her sentence, as she slammed the door on Cana's face. Cana could hear her through the doorway, sobbing uncontrollably.
Cana didn't know how long she stood there. It could have been hours, it could have been days, it didn't matter to Cana. Her mouth opened, and closed like a fish out of water. Eventually, without her mind even working, she turned and walked to the hospital.
Laxus POV
Laxus walked alongside Bixlow and Freed, as the two of them went on about how unreasonable Ever was being. All of them had been in their room, when Ever had come and abruptly kicked them out. That had been over an hour ago, and Laxus' friends were still fuming.
Laxus couldn't really blame Ever though. If two guys in the room next to him had been yelling at each other for over an hour about Freed's obsession with his girlfriend, Laxus would have done a lot more then kick them out. He sometimes wondered why he even hangs out with these guys. Freed turned to Laxus. "Any who, ignoring the crazy psycho that we all know and love, how did your, um, "not date" go Laxus?"
Laxus groaned inwardly. He preferred it when they were talking about Mira Jane. "Nothing. We talked then left. Done and done. "
Bixlow smirked evilly, leaning forward. "You sure that it was just, nothing?"
Laxus turned and glared at him. If this were anyone else, they would have turned to a heap of ashes by now just by trying to meet his gaze. But unfortunately, Bixlow knew Laxus better than that. "Nothing happened Bixlow."
"Well what did you talk about then?" Freed said, mock innocence painted over his face.
Laxus scowled at them. "None of your business."
"Now Laxus come on now!" Bixlow said, placing an arm around him. "Who are you going to talk to if not us?"
Freed nodded in agreement. "Just tell us what you talked about."
"Nothing. Just some magic stuff that's all."
"Like the magic of love?" Bixlow stretched the word love, a grin appearing on his face, before Laxus elbowed him.
"Shut up dimwit, it was nothing like that." Laxus snarled back.
"Oh but Laxus! You can't fool us!" Freed said, raising an eyebrow mockingly. "To the rest of the world you are hidden in shadow, but to your loyal bodyguards, your emotions are plastered on your face like the paint on a clown." Laxus rolled his eyes. "Just tell us what happened, and we'll stop bugging you!"
"Actually, I would like to know that myself if you don't mind." Freed and Bixlow looked up startled at the new voice. A boy was standing in front of them, a smile plastered on his face. He had brown hair going down to his jaw line, and he wore a black cape covering his clothes. He wasn't short by any means, but he still could not measure to Laxus' height.
Instead of flinching back in surprise, Laxus just glanced up, and scrunched up his nose upon seeing his clothes. "Oh please tell me that's not what I look like in my capes." That was the first thing that came to Laxus' mind. He glanced up at the boy's face, the smile slightly creeping him out. "Do I know you?" Laxus asked.
His smile unwavering, he spoke calmly. "No we haven't met." For a while, he gave no further explanation. Finally, he crossed his arms over his chest, and inspected Laxus. "So you're the lightening mage I've been hearing so much about."
"Only good things I hope." Laxus added.
"No, not really." The boy said bluntly. The two of them glared at each other for a moment, before the boy spoke again. "My names Damien, I live here."
Laxus' eyes widened in recognition, and his dislike for the boy immediately grew. "Aw. I have heard about you."
Damien raised his eyebrows in mock surprise. "Oh? Good! It's like we already know each other!" there was silence among the group. Damien turned, and nodded his head to the side. "There's a restaurant over that way. I'd like to talk to you if you're not busy." From the way he said, it, Laxus knew that it wasn't a request.
Laxus shrugged easily. "Sure, not doing anything anyway."
He started walking forward, when he felt Bixlow grab his arm. "Laxus, wait." He said, in a hushed whisper.
Laxus remembered Bixlow's earlier unexplained nervousness around the name Damien. "Nothing's going to happen ok? We're just going to talk. I'm not going to electrocute Cana's boyfriend."
"You sure about that?" Freed asked. Laxus hit him on the head.
"You coming?" Laxus turned to see Damien standing a little ways away from them, waiting expectantly. "They make some really great pizza there!"
Laxus rolled his eyes in annoyance. "I'm coming I'm coming, keep your pants on." he started walking after the boy; Freed and Bixlow stood and watched him go.
Cana POV
Cana sat forward in her seat, her hands held tightly together in her lap. In front of her was the mayor, lying in a hospital bed. In a daze, Cana had walked to the hospital and had asked for his room. The doctors had told her that he had gone into a coma earlier that day. They still weren't certain of the reason, but they were looking into it. So far he was in no immediate danger, but they had no idea if or when he would wake up.
Cana had barely processed the information, as she sat numbly, watching the mayor sleep. Her mind was swimming with questions, how did this happen, why did Esther blame her, why now, why why why why?
Cana had no words to say. She just listened to the steady beeping on the monitor of the mayor's heart, and watched his chest rise and fall. To say the mayor meant a lot to her would be an understatement. When Cana's mother died, he had took her in. He had acted like a father to her, even when she had never had one herself. When she was younger, and she would throw her ridiculous tantrums, he would always just sit there. He wouldn't say anything; he would just sit there, and wait until she calmed down. Then when she apologized, he would always smile easily, and ask her in a calming voice.
"Sorry for what child? All I saw was a little hurricane running around rampant in my house. I wonder where it went." Cana chocked slightly, his words sounding so clear as if he were speaking them right now.
She chuckled darkly to herself. Even now, she referred to him as the Mayor. Always, that was his name. The mayor, the mayor. Even though she knew his real name, it sounded alien, as if it didn't quite fit him. He was the man in charge, the man who knew what to do, and always thought of others before himself. the name, Mayor, didn't suit anyone better then him. She glanced over and looked at him again. Why was his face so peaceful? Why was he at peace, when Cana was out here, her heart feeling like it had been impaled with a flaming dagger? Why couldn't he, just sit up now, and tell her everything was alright, just like he always did?
Cana stood in front of her mother's grave. She wore a simple black dress that was starting to stick to her skin because of the rain. She sobbed lightly, trying to hold back her tears, but they were like the rain. Strong and unrelenting.
Cana heard a voice from behind her. "The funeral is over Cana. Let's go inside now." Cana turned to see the mayor standing behind her, hidden from the storm under his umbrella.
Cana turned away from him, facing the large stone again. "I don't want to."
The mayor was silent for a moment. "She won't come back, just because you're waiting here for her."
Cana chocked, tears dripping down as she desperately whipped them away. "Mama, she-she said she'd always come for me. If I'm ever sad, she said she'd be there for me."
The mayor was silent. Then he came and walked over to Cana. He kneeled down in front of her, so the two were at eye level. He paused for a moment, trying to figure out the words to say. "Sometimes, people we love promise us things. But sometimes, they can't do it, because they have to leave." He then put a hand on Cana's shoulder. "But that love Cana that love behind the promise is still there. The love your mother feels for you, will always be there, and through that love, you will find more love. It's like a blanket that surrounds us, if one string starts to break, another will come and take its place." He paused for a moment. "I know you are sad right now Cana, and that's a good thing. Be sad, that your mother is not here anymore, but then keep moving. Don't forget your mother's love Cana, but at the same time, don't let that keep you from loving others."
Cana sniffled a bit. "It hurts."
The mayor smiled patiently. "I know it does now, but you can get through it. You will overcome this, and find more love." Cana turned toward him and he placed both hands on her shoulders. "Even now Cana I can see it. You are going to make so many friends, meet so many people, who love you, and who you love as well. Even though it doesn't seem like it now, you will be happy again." Cana breathed deeply. "But that can't happen Cana, if you stay here."
Cana was silent for a moment, looking back at the tomb stone. Walking out of the older man's reach, she reached a hand forward, and lightly touched the gravestone, her hand looking so small and pale against it. "I love you mama." She whispered so gently, that it was nearly washed away by the rain. She then turned, and took the mayor's hand, before he led her away.
In the hospital, Cana's eyes flooded over with tears. She bowed her head, and held her head in her hands. "Mayor, I love you." she whispered softly to herself. But this time, there was no rain to wash the words away.
Yes that was very dramatic, and sad, I'M SORRY! Again, sorry this came so late and I hope you enjoyed it! This story is nearly coming to a close; I'm guessing maybe, 5 or 6 more chapters to go? Please review!