*edited*

Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail

CHAPTER TWO

Once again, I was walking towards the man of nightmares.

With my new limitators in, my presence would refrain from hurting people. Or doing anything, for that matter. I was just an 'ordinary' kid to others.

I slammed the doors to the dining room open, stalking in. He was sitting there, wide-eyed, hair messed up and clothes askew. As soon as he saw me, a fury rose in his eyes.

"Get out!" he screamed, "Get out! You're not welcome here! You never were! I should have killed you years ago!"

I nodded curtly, wondering what it would have been like if I had a father who actually loved me. No, I am gone now. No turning back.

"Goodbye, Jude," I sneered.

He started shaking, screaming and yelling at me.

"OUT! I said, GET OUT! GET OUT, DEMON!"

Something inside me snapped. He called me a demon? Me? I'm not the one who made a small girl's life living hell!

I turned, cloak swirling, and strode to the door. Again, I kicked the doors open – only this time, they fell off their hinges. I could see fa – no, Jude's eyes boggling.

"You'll regret this, old man," I snarled.

I'm free. I'm free! I'm finally, amazingly free! But what do I want to do?

I've… never faced this dilemma before. It's always been 'do what's expected of you' or 'do what they want you to', but never 'do what you want'. Even when I was 'the masked one', I had expectations on me. They hovered like a black cloud, hanging over my head.

But now? I'm free! So deliciously, delightfully free!

I strode out of the gate to the manor, following the familiar path to town. Where to go, where to go…

The magic shop. I'll see if they have anything new.

I turned on my voice distortion, changing it to that of a neutral gender and pitch. Indistinguishable.

The end of the path came closer. I was almost at the town. Breathing in deeply, I readied myself for the frightened stares people would direct at me. As I reached the end, the trees grew sparse, revealing a small town.

Chatting slowly died away as I was noticed. People started to back into walls, always watching me, always frightened. Mothers shooed their children behind closed doors.

"Masked one, what do you want?" an elder approached me.

"Peace," I intoned, "I want peace."

"Y-you want… peace?" the old man asked unsurely.

"Yes, I wish for peace, Elder."

With that, I bowed deeply, showing my respect. Many seemed startled, some giving gasps of surprise.

"Well then, Masked One, enter in Peace," he smiled.

He… smiled? That was something new. A different feeling swelled up in my chest, one I could not name. The only thing akin to it was the feeling I felt when I was younger… when I was with Mama.

I tilted my head, acknowledging his statement. Due to the amounts of stares I received, I decided to turn invisible. So there, in front of their very eyes, I started to fade away.

"Is it gone?" one asked.

"I think it is," another murmured.

"How do we know?"

"Are you sure?"

"Will it return?"

Several voices filled the air, some even yelling their opinion.

"Enough!" the Elder barked, sweeping his staff through the air, "This is disrespectful! The Masked One means no harm, and so we shall give none either!"

Shaking their heads, many vanished into their homes. Silently, I stalked up to the Elder.

"Thank you, Old one," I murmured.

His smile and twinkling eyes told me that he knew I'd been there all along. A new respect filled me – this man was one in a million.

I swept into the 'Magikz Shop', which made me shudder because of its bad grammar. Terrible, indeed.

A bell rung quietly, probably to alert the owners that there was a customer. A beaming man bounced in. His smile faded as he saw me, his bounce drooping.

"Masked One," he whispered.

I nodded briefly before asking him a question, "Do you have anything new?"

"I-I do," he stuttered, gulping nervously, "I have a n-new key and something you m-might be interested in, as well."

"Very well, show me."

He jogged into the back room, bringing out a small box with him. Inscribed on the leather was a swirling gold name.

One of the spirits I didn't have. Its name was Nikora.

Wasn't he the little dog?

"And the other… the interesting things?" I questioned in a monotone voice.

"A-ah, y-yes," he stammered.

He once again disappeared into the room, leaving me waiting with a sigh. Upon his return, he was holding a long package in his hands. He placed it down reverently on an empty table, carefully unwrapping the old paper.

When it opened up, a stunning staff was revealed along with an amazing bow and quiver.

The staff was made of polished white wood which seemed to glow in the dim room. A black dragon, gleaming dangerously, had its tail wrapped around at the top, the body crouched down. Its wings were spread out, protectively roaring at anyone. With the mouth open, it looked like it was ready to spew flames.

At the top, the tail was wrapped around a breath-taking blue orb. Inside swirled a white mist, in which dragons seemed to appear. As the orb swirled, a foreign power entered my mind.

It was magnificent.

The bow was a piece of artwork. It was seemingly made out of white shimmering dragon scales, which darkened into black at this tips. It wasn't normal – no, just like the staff, I could feel power radiating from it. The bow was curved in several ways, producing twists and turns that looked simply beautiful.

The arrows were the same. White tips on a black wood, with white fletching at the tail, they stood in a white, scaly quiver with a black shoulder strap.

My breath drew in as I saw them. These looked amazing. But I knew they weren't just for show. They had to mean something, they just had to be special.

I stretched my hands out after a while of gazing, making contact with both the staff and the bow. Power rushed through me, as the ends of my hair lifted. I grasped them, and grabbed the quiver too.

Quickly, I called Virgo out.

"Punishment, Princess?" she bowed solemnly.

"No, Virgo, no punishment. I have a request. Could you store these in the spirit world?"

I held out the bow and quiver, keeping the staff with me. Nodding happily, she set off to do her task.

"How much?" I asked the man.

"Free of charge," he breathed, "I've been waiting for someone to come in here one day and to do… that. I've been waiting so long… then I saw you. When I first saw you, I had my suspicions. I thought, just maybe. Just maybe she will be the one."

At this, I was thoroughly confused. 'The One'? What on earth does that mean?

"As you kept coming, I knew. I had to pretend around you. Pretend to be afraid. Every week, I bought something you might like. A test, you could call it," he continued.

"A… test? For what?" I asked softly.

"A test of your purity," he replied.

"My purity," I murmured, "I still have that?"

"Oh yes, yes, yes!" he nodded his head vigorously, "You are very, very pure, my child. And so, I brought these out. I wondered, and I was right."

"About what?"

"About whether they would accept you," he smiled, "I must ask you something. There is a sword to go with it – a katana. They are part of a group. I hope you find it, my child. For the world's sake, we cannot have it in others' hands…"

As he said the last sentence, his body started to fade. Eyes wide, I tried to grab him, to ask more questions. He mouthed one last thing to me before he disappeared.

Thank you.

Hello again guys! Please, please, please tell me what you think of this! Good or bad?

Bye-a,

MG