Dance of the Fairies, Flight of the Phoenix
Chapter 18:- Exceeds Expectations
When Gajeel's head appeared in the fireplace, Levy jumped about three feet into the air and almost tipped her chair over.
Up until that point she had been sitting at the table in Grimmauld Place, with her hand supporting her head and kicking her legs absent-mindedly, staring into the flames and trying to muddle things out in her brain. It had been two weeks since the incident at the Ministry of Magic and yet she still couldn't seem to get the terrible images that she'd seen that day out of her head.
She was acting irrationally and she knew it. Every logical thought in her head told her that Gajeel was not the same monster he once was. And yet whenever she thought about him, the images of him attacking her flashed up in her brain once more. She tried not to think about them, but she knew just as well as anyone that trying not to think of something only makes the thought itself more important in your mind. The harder she tried to put this stupid fear behind her, the more prominent it got within her.
She sighed. It just wasn't fair. Sure Gajeel wasn't exactly a gentleman… alright, he was possibly the furthest thing that you could get from being a gentleman… and yet before the incident with Acnologia… before coming to this crazy world… she'd been fairly certain there were some… stirrings of some sort inside her.
She wasn't sure how she would classify it. It was like… she was starting to see Gajeel as more than a friend, but hadn't quite got to the stage where she could say she was in love with him. But she'd been getting there. The feelings had been there, and there had been times where she'd imagined herself trying to spend the rest of her life with him and had found it quite the pleasant thought.
But now this had happened. This thing… this ridiculous fear… had sprung up out of nowhere. She flinched whenever he looked at her, felt very uncomfortable when he was in the same room while at the same time yearning to be closer to him.
"It's not fair…" she murmured to herself, biting her lip. "I remember everything I thought about him before… so why can't I just put this behind me?"
"Oi, Levy…!"
"KYAAA!" Levy yelled at the sight of the flaming head. Gajeel's face was sticking out of the fireplace and he had something of an amused grin on his face.
"Geehee! Did I scare yeh?"
"You jerk! Why did you have to make me jump like that!? Haven't you ever heard of saying 'psst?'" Levy pouted and glared at him.
"Yeah, I have, but this way's more fun."
"Jeez, why are you so mean to me?"
"Cos its easy?"
Levy placed her hands on her hips… and then remembered who she was talking to. She coughed and suddenly looked away, shifting on the spot. "Erm… well… what… what do you want?"
Gajeel noticed the change in attitude and grimaced slightly, but just said, "Just telling you to get the others. The Potter kid's found out about us and the First Master wants us all to meet him properly. Floo over here when you're ready." And he withdrew instantly which allowed Levy to sigh in relief and run a hand over her face. Just for about half a minute there it had been like old times. Where he'd pick on her and she'd react reproachfully, both in the knowledge that it was all in good faith, but then it had been ruined again quickly by that fear.
Why couldn't it just go back to being normal permanently?
"Ugh… guess I better round up the others then…" she muttered as she traipsed her way out the room.
Harry wasn't sure whether he was supposed to feel on edge or not. He was sitting on a chair in the back of the Hog's Head, trying to stop a goat from nibbling at his robes. Ron and Hermione sat on either side of him, but the rest of the room was occupied by these strangers. Wendy had taken off her blazer to reveal the blue mark on her own shoulder, and all three of the talking cats had displayed their backs to the Hogwarts students, re-affirming that they were all Fairy Tail members.
He didn't feel as though these guys were threats, although the big man was one of the scariest people he'd ever seen. But he was still readying himself for anything, and he was glad to see that Ron was looking even more uncomfortable than him, although considering he had actually been attacked by Gajeel before, this was understandable.
Hermione and Luna though seemed to be in the thick of things. Luna was in the middle of an in-depth discussion with Wendy and Charla about Crumple Horned Snorkacks as if taking to girls and talking cats from other universes was just something that happened every other day. And Wendy seemed to be very interested in the subject. Hermione, by contrast, was firing question after question at Mavis.
"How can you be a ghost? You're not transparent, you can eat, you can drink, you can use the bathroom… surely you cannot really be a ghost. You're practically alive."
"It seems that the laws of magic between our two universes are very different indeed. Ghosts in your world are a mere afterimage of a life, whereas in my world they have a much more physical presence. If a person had a particularly strong will to carry out a certain task that they have not completed before they pass on, their soul can re-manifest as a ghost until the task is complete."
"Does that mean that there is a certain task that you yourself wish to carry out?"
"You could say that," Mavis gave an enigmatic smile. "I am here for a reason - to watch over my guild until the time comes for me to move on. Still, you seem to be the intellectual sort, Hermione. Do you read much?"
"Oh, all the time. It was my birthday recently and I got a whole lot of new books, but I haven't had a chance to read them all yet."
"Really? How interesting," Mavis gave a knowing smirk. "Well… perhaps I can rustle up a late birthday present for you."
"What? Oh no, you don't have to do that."
"Perhaps… but I have something in mind which I'm very sure you'll like."
"So you're saying that in your world, Fairies have never been seen by anybody living?" Luna asked. "That really is just like the Crumple-Horned Snorkack. Its so sad that people refuse to believe something exists just because they've never seen it."
"I know, right? A lot of people say that dragons don't exist too. But I know they're very real. Grandine's about as real as you can get," Wendy smiled.
Ron leaned over to Harry and whispered, "What's the betting that Luna's actually from another universe too?"
"Wow… that's a weird thought…" Harry murmured back. "Although… she does seem to be getting on with this lot very well."
And it was at this point when the other Fairy Tail members started to arrive through the fireplace. Harry watched warily as they filtered in, three more girls and two more boys. The sight of the big man that came in last almost took his breath away, largely because Gildarts lost his balance and tipped forward, slamming his hands down on the table to catch himself and splintering it into pieces across its entire length.
"What the bloody hell!?" Ron yelled.
"Hey! hey! hey!" Aberforth bustled in to see the back room filled with fifteen people. "Look, I already told you guys that this place isn't some bed and breakfast but I'm still letting you use it. But I draw the line at trashing my furniture!"
"My bad," Gildarts rubbed the back of his head sheepishly and Aberforth muttered as he repaired the table before rushing out again, grumbling to himself.
"Looks like we're all here," Mavis said. "Or at least all of us that we know about. We can begin. Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Luna Lovegood - I would like to introduce you to my guild. Fairy Tail."
"Hello," Luna said brightly.
"Hey," Harry said weakly, though Hermione and Ron were still staring at the table as it if was still in pieces, too shocked to respond.
"So…" Gray folded his arms. "You're the kid that we've been hearing so much about, huh?"
"Kid? You can't be much older than we are," Ron protested. "You look about the same age as my twin brothers, Fred and George. You can't call us kids."
"I can," Gildarts chuckled. "With the exception of the First Master, everyone in here is a kid to me. So… you're the kid that we've heart so much about, huh?"
"You just repeated what I said!" Gray muttered.
Harry paused for a couple of seconds before he responded. "Yeah… yeah, I'm Harry Potter, unfortunately. What kind of things have you been hearing about me? Nothing good if you've been reading the newspapers. Wait… do they even have newspapers in your world?"
"Really, Harry? That's your first question about their world?" Hermione raised a brow. Harry blushed.
"We have magazines but we don't really have newspapers," Levy piped up. "Still, I've definitely bee reading them. They certainly don't seem to say very nice things about you, that's for sure. They call you an attention-seeker and a liar and other things that are a lot more horrible."
"A boy at odds with the magical government of his world," Gildarts smirked. "Harry… you have no idea how much we approve."
"…What?" Harry blinked.
"Um… our Magic Council hates us too. But… that's more because we're always destroying things and making things hard for them when we go out to do our jobs," Wendy blushed.
"Still its already something that we have in common," Lisanna smiled. "I also heard that you have a scar that's shaped like a lightning bolt?"
"…Er… yeah… I do…" Harry nodded, feeling a rather strange mix of bemusement and irritation at the mention of his bloody scar.
"Let's have a look," Gray prompted.
Harry sighed and pulled back his fringe, revealing the mark he received as an infant and waiting for the inevitable gasps and sounds of amazement that always happened whenever he showed it to people.
He was not expecting Gajeel to snort derisively and say, "What, you call that titchy little thing a lightning bolt scar? Laxus' one is way better."
"…Pardon?" Harry blinked.
"Laxus Dreyar, one of our former guild members," Happy raised a paw to explain. "He's got a massive scar shaped like a lightning bolt that goes over his right eye and across his cheek. Yours is quite small compared to his to be honest."
"That's no reason to be rude about it," Charla chided him.
"Yeah, Harry's scar is cool!" Ron scowled. "You know how he got it don't you? He's the only person to ever survive the…"
"Ron!" Harry interrupted, before he could go any further. "It's… it's okay. Really, it is. I don't mind. In fact… right now all I can say is that I'm grateful that my scar doesn't run over my eye. I'd never be able to hide one like that properly." Suddenly Harry felt a lot more comfortable in the room than he had before. All throughout his life, even before he had learned how he'd really gotten the scar, it had been a source of little but grief to him. The kids at his primary school often picked on him for it even when Dudley wasn't there to goad them into doing it. And since he'd come to the Wizarding World it had only gotten him attention that he didn't want and pain whenever Voldemort was doing something. Everyone had always been in awe of the scar or used it against him somehow.
So to hear these Fairy Tail members treat it as if it was no big deal… it was nothing but heartening to say the least.
"Still, you should bear a little more pride in it," Gray noted, jerking a thumb at the scar on his own forehead and then showing the X-shaped mark he had on his side, which he of course did by whipping his shirt off entirely, which made Hermione start and cover her eyes. "Scars aren't something to be ashamed of. They're badges of courage."
"But I didn't earn this one through being courageous," Harry protested. "I was just a baby when it was given to me."
"Its a mark of your parents' courage," Lisanna said sombrely. Harry's eyes switched over to her and she gave him a sad smile. "We know the story. Sirius and Remus told us all about what happened when you were younger. And I can certainly understand why you might wish to never have the thing. Sirius said you think of it as a constant reminder that people consider you a hero for something you had no control over and of the things that were taken away from you. And that we can all understand. But if you think about it, you would never have gotten that scar if your parents had been cowards. Its a testament to them. If I were you, that's how I would see it."
Harry stared at the white-haired girl in profound amazement, tracing a finger over the scar lightly. In all the years he'd had it… he'd never quite thought of it that way. Of course he'd known that his parents were courageous and that they had died for him… but somehow he'd never considered the scar proof of that before. And all of a sudden he found himself not hating it quite as much, and the thought of covering it up almost ashamed him.
"Thanks," he croaked.
"No problem," Lisanna smiled.
"If it helps further you can be grateful that you still have all four of your limbs," Gildarts smirked. "Unlike me."
"Whoa, those are fake limbs?" Ron's eyes widened. "How did you lose them?"
"Ron!" Hermione gasped. "Be more sensitive will you?"
"Nah, it's alright. They were bitten off by a dragon."
"…Whoa…" Ron's face was a mask of awe. "So… all those things about you guys that they're saying? All this stuff about other universes… it's really true?"
"Completely," Pantherlily nodded. "And it seems that we were very fortunate indeed to fall into contact with Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix before the Ministry gained word of our arrival."
Harry's resentment rose up again suddenly. "So… Dumbledore knows about you then. And the Order too. So that thing Dumbledore said about you being extra security for the school was actually a lie?"
"Not exactly," Juvia replied. "Juvia would call it more of a half-truth. We have volunteered to help protect the school. We just didn't get specifically hired for it, Harry-san."
"But he still knew about you. And he refused to tell me. And the Order didn't tell me - not even my own godfather told me about you lot." Harry scowled, starting to get angry again very rapidly.
"Of course they didn't," Mavis interrupted. "Because it was not their secret to tell. We're the ones that are lost in a strange universe here, Harry. We're the ones who are deciding what to do with ourselves. Those of us you see before you right now are only half of the overall number of us that came here. We don't even know where the others are. Dumbledore and the Order have been very generous by agreeing to keep our existence secret from everyone and I mean everyone. We are the ones that decide who we get introduced to and who we don't."
"Oh…" Harry paused. "Well… I guess that makes sense…"
"We were planning to tell you eventually," Pantherlily agreed. "But we were waiting for the right time to tell you. We were rather hoping that exactly the sort of sudden introduction that occurred today wouldn't happen. But what's done is done and at least we finally get to talk to you properly. And we can introduce ourselves."
The Fairy Tail members gradually went round the circle, introducing themselves by name and what exactly they could do, each giving a short and small demonstration of their abilities, but unable to show the full extent of their magic in most cases, as they would destroy the place if they did.
When it was Pantherlily's turn to introduce himself, he said, "I'm Pantherlily… but most people just call me Lily." And that was a sentence that definitely caught their attention.
"Um… no offence, but isn't Lily a girl's name?" Ron asked.
"So I've come to understand is the case in this country you call the United Kingdom," Lily replied simply. "But it is a proud name to bear in Edolas where I come from, so I will not think any less of it here."
"It's more than that though," Harry murmured. "That's… that's my mother's name."
The black Exceed's eyes softened slightly and he stepped up to the edge of the table. "If it might make you feel more comfortable, you could always just call me Panther. It's just as good a name if you ask me."
"Well, I'll probably see if I can get used to it," Harry said quickly. "But… erm… thank you all the same."
"But this is all so fascinating," Hermione cried. "Oh my goodness, I don't even know where to begin. I just can't pick where to start. I want to know everything. Absolutely everything that there is to know about your universe. Every bit of it."
"Hermione are you mental?" Ron laughed. "We're already neck deep in studying for our O. and you want to add an entirely new universe on the top of that?"
"Oh come on, Ron. You can't tell me that you aren't curious too."
"…No you're right. I can't. This is just… this is just off the scale when it comes to mental. Be straight with me, Harry. If I pinch myself will it hurt?"
"I think so," Harry smiled - perhaps the first genuine smile that he'd given all day. "This is all very real indeed. There's so many things to talk about."
"Even if there are, you should probably be think about clearing out now," Aberforth suddenly stumbled back in. "It's getting pretty late. If you guys don't get back to Hogwarts soon they're going to start sending out staff members to search the town for you."
"Oh my gosh he's right," Hermione clapped her hands over her mouth. "We're going to miss curfew if we don't get back within half an hour."
"Oh seriously?" Ron griped. "We meet these people from another universe and then just like that we have to head back to the castle and then not tell anyone about them, while my parents and my oldest brothers get to talk to them whenever they like? How is that fair exactly?"
"There will be other chances to talk to us," Levy said kindly. "And I hope that one day when all this stuff with the Ministry of Magic blows over we can come and visit you at the school. I've been dying to visit the Hogwarts library. I've heard its huge!"
"Oh boy," Harry and Ron both murmured at the same time while Hermione's face glowed as if she'd been personally praised.
"It is. I've read so many of the books there and I'm not even close to reading all of them even after spending four years there. There's just so much to choose from. It's got absolutely everything that you could ever want. You like books too?"
"Like them? They're my favourite thing in the whole world! I particularly like the ones written in ancient languages because translating them is half the fun!"
"I actually grew up in a library for seven years," Mavis giggled. "Back then there was almost nothing to do but read and I enjoyed every minute of it."
"Sounds like heaven," Hermione smiled.
"My god, there's three of them," Ron gasped in faux horror.
"You took the words right out of my mouth," Gajeel grunted.
"Hmmph… say what you will but I think we're going to be great friends, Hermione!" Levy gave her a wink and a thumbs up.
"I really wish that we had more time to stay but I really do think we have to go now," Hermione nodded. "But next time we meet - maybe our next Hogsmeade weekend or at the holidays, I want to hear everything, okay?"
"Gotcha!"
"I still say its unfair though," Harry muttered as they got up.
"In what way?" Juvia asked curiously.
"Well in that… no offence… but you guys aren't from here. You're not members of this world. And yet… you guys are more involved with the hunt for Voldemort than me. I'm just… stuck at school, not knowing anything. And now I won't even be able to be get to know all of you better. It just… stinks. There's no better way of putting it."
"Sure must be frustrating," Gray agreed. "But what can we do? It's not like any of us can go waltzing up to the school for a piece of toast."
"Technically I can go there without any human eyes being able to see me if I wish," Mavis replied. "But I don't think that would be wise. Even if I go around the school so that only you can see and hear me, how long would it take before someone noticed you lot doing things like looking over to a spot where there's nothing there. And besides… you humans may not be able to see me but the ghosts they have over there can definitely sense my presence."
"It's a shame you cats don't look like normal ones," Ron said. "Then maybe you could come hang out at the castle, tell us some things when nobody else is around. There's lots of cats at the castle as pets for the students."
"Oi, you trying to steal my cat, punk?" Gajeel started forward. Ron almost fell over. Harry laughed.
"Yes, well, nice as it sounds to spend the day in a very big castle, there's no way something like that would work," Charla shook her head. "We'd stick out like sore thumbs if we tried to go up there."
"Not necessarily," Mavis suddenly raised her voice, drawing all eyes in the room. "If there are indeed many cats up at that castle… then there might just be a way that the three Exceed can go the place without being noticed."
"Really? How would that work?" Happy asked, looking down at himself. "Would we have to be like… ninjas!" He struck a fighting pose and overbalanced, falling flat on his face in the process.
"No, not ninjas," Mavis chuckled. "But, as it happens, a good portion of my magic revolves around creating illusions. Pretty convincing ones too if I do say so myself. My access to magic while like this is very limited but I still possess some. Enough perhaps that I could cast a spell that would make three small Exceed look like regular cats."
"Would that work?" Juvia asked, eyes wide. "You think the Exceed could move around Hogwarts school whenever and wherever they pleased?"
"It's highly likely," Mavis nodded.
"Hold on just one moment!" Charla cried, getting to her feet. "Are you suggesting that we actually do this, First?"
"Why not?" Mavis shrugged. "Harry is right. It is unfair that he is left so out of the loop and that he is confined to his school where all of you cannot go to meet him. But the Exceeds could. I'm not suggesting that you all move in permanently, but you could act as go-betweens to carry messages from Harry to us and the Order and vice versa. It would be safer than doing it by fire or by owl."
"Absolutely not!" Charla shook her head. "There's no way that I am leaving Wendy's side for even an instant more than I have to. I won't do it. If Wendy stays at the Hog's Head then this is where I will stay too. I swore to protect her and that was a promise that was meant for life."
"But… Charla…" Wendy turned to face the white cat. "I don't need protecting from anything here. And even if I did, Gajeel-san's here with me. I'd be alright."
"But… but… I can't just…" Charla spluttered.
"It'd be okay, Charla," Wendy reassured her. "The castle's not that far away and its not like you'll be staying there forever. I'll miss you while you're gone but I think it could be a good idea."
"Aye!" Happy volunteered. "It's important for us to form bonds with everyone that's on our side, right? And this could be another job for the Exceed Squad. Like when we took out the power source for Grimoire Heart's airship."
"I approve of the idea," Lily nodded. "Having eyes and ears inside the school could be rather useful."
"Oh yeah, my cat will be the toughest one on the block in no time - just you wait and see!" Gajeel grinned, pounding his fist into his palm with a broad smirk.
"It actually could be quite useful to the Order too," Hermione suddenly got on board with the idea. "Professor Umbridge is the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic and the Hogwart's High Inquisitor - a really high ranking member of the Ministry that Fudge probably tells everything to. If they find out any more things about your other friends then she might be among the first to know about it."
"You want the cats to spy on Umbridge?" Ron asked, awed at Hermione's suggestion. "On top of this secret Defence Against the Dark Arts group. Hermione… you're becoming a rebel."
"Against someone like Umbridge… that's the best thing to be," Hermione smirked proudly.
"What about it, Charla?" Happy asked. "Are you in?"
"Well…" Charla bit her lip and squirmed on the spot a little.
"Don't worry, Charla," Lisanna reached over to place her hand between the white Exceed's ears. "We'll watch over Wendy for you while you're gone."
Charla sighed. "Alright then," she clenched her paws and nodded her head. "I'll do it."
"And just where do you four think you've been?" Argus Filch griped as Harry, Ron, Hermione and Luna hurried back in through the Hogwarts gates. "Just one more minute and you would have been late for the curfew. We would have had to send out search parties. And something tells me that Madam Umbridge wouldn't like that," he gave a lopsided sneer. "Perhaps I should give you detention with her anyway, Potter, just for cutting it so fine."
"But we were on time, Mister Filch," Harry protested. "We just got held up. Erm… I think I ate something funny while I was there and I was feeling very ill. I had to stop throwing up into a bush… in fact… I think I might be…" he coughed.
"Gahh! Get yourself to a toilet if you're going to throw up again! If you leave me anything to clean up I'll put you in detention for sure!" Filch snapped, prompting the foursome to run past him towards the school. But his cat, Mrs. Norris was otherwise occupied, staring at the three other cats that had just slunk their way in through the gates and were bounding off after the disappearing students.
"This is great," Happy grinned, running on all fours and looking to everyone except the other Exceed and the four students like an ordinary tortoise-shell cat. "Did you see that cat back there? She totally thought we were real. We can go anywhere we want like this and nobody will suspect a thing!"
"As long as you don't talk, of course," Charla pointed out, her white fur rippling slightly as she ran. "No randomly crying 'Aye' when you hear someone say something you agree with."
"Aye sir!"
"And don't forget what Mavis said," the black cat beside them said. "The illusion hold until we wish for it to be removed, but it will not disguise our wings or my battle form if we use them. So keep on foot everywhere we go."
"I really wish we didn't have to run on all fours like this," Charla muttered. "It's humiliating."
"I think its fun," Happy giggled. "But I hope they have fish here! Lots and lots of fish! I've been dying from lack of fish recently."
"Only because you ate Aberforth's entire supply."
"They were horrible anyway - they were all covered with bread. Why would you cover a fish with breadcrumbs. It's just wrong."
Up ahead, the four students pulled to a stop and waited for the cats to catch up. "Well, it looks like you're in," Ron noted. "I can't believe we're actually smuggling people into the school like this."
"We're not people. We're cats," Happy said.
"We're Exceed. And Exceed are people too," Lily countered. "Still, now that we're in here we should probably decide where exactly we're going to be staying."
"I can take one of you," Luna smiled serenely. "It will be nice to have someone to talk to in the Common Room. And don't worry, every there calls me Loony anyway so they won't think too hard about me talking to a cat."
The trio of others looked at each other uncomfortably. How Luna was able to talk about how much she was bullied in such a nonchalant manner was utterly beyond them and it made them feel rather uncomfortable and guilty, as if they had somehow contributed to the bullying even though nothing could be further from the truth.
"Well… that's one of us covered then," Charla said. "And what about the other two."
"You could… always come with me," Ron scratched the back of his head a little awkwardly. "I mean… people in our Common Room will notice if I suddenly bring in a pair of cats but I could probably tell them that my mum sent you to be mine and Ginny's new pets. In fact, if one of you comes with me, the other one can stay with Ginny."
"You think we should tell Ginny about what they really are?" Harry asked.
"I think we better," Ron said seriously. "We can't just give her one of the Exceed without doing it. She'd treat them like real cats if she did that and if when she finds out, which she will eventually, she will Bat-Bogey Hex me into next week for keeping her in the dark. You too probably."
"What about Fred and George?" Hermione said. "Should we tell them too?"
"Those two my be pranksters but they know how to keep a secret," Harry nodded. "And they're just as much a part of the Order as we are at this stage. I think we all deserve to know. But what do you guys think? It's your decision."
"I agree. Keeping secrets from your allies without having a good reason for doing so is a bad idea," Lily stated. "If we're settled, I propose the following. I'll go with Luna and Happy and Charla will go with the rest of you. If for any reason we find ourselves in trouble I can handle myself. But you two can watch each other's backs. Okay?"
"Aye sir!"
"Understood."
"That's great," Luna beamed before she stepped over and picked Lily up in her arms. "Come on then, Lily. It's a long walk up to the Ravenclaw tower." And she skipped away, humming slightly to herself and holding Lily close as he went.
"You reckon he'll be alright?" Ron asked.
"Oh, honestly, Ron. Luna might be a little odd but she's nice. My worry is that she'll start telling people about Exceed now," Hermione frowned. "Luna's never been one to keep what she believes to herself."
"Yeah, but she's in Ravenclaw. I'm sure she's smart enough to know when talking about someone like that would be a bad idea," Harry said. "I'm sure Pantherlily will be okay."
He suddenly paused for a moment and frowned. "Lily and Luna…" he murmured. "For some reason… those names seem to go really well together."
The Ravenclaw Common Room was empty when Luna arrived, because all of the others were down in the Great Hall having dinner. As soon as Luna got through the doorway she placed Lily down on the floor, and the black cat pushed himself onto his hind legs since there was nobody there to question it. He looked up at the giant, imposing statue of the woman in the middle of the room, impressed with the detail that could be seen in the carving despite its obvious age.
"Who is that?" he asked.
"That's Rowena Ravenclaw," Luna said as she took her wand from behind her ear and opened her bag to pull out some homework. "One of the founders of the school. I think I would have liked to have met her. Almost as much as I'd like to see a Snorkack."
"I see," Lily said. "…I must admit I do feel a little exposed without my sword. I just hope that Gajeel doesn't eat it."
"You said that you were from another universe, right?" Luna said. "And I mean another-nother universe, different to both mine and the one that your human friends came from."
"Edolas, that's right," Lily nodded. "I suppose you could say that I didn't exactly have the best of lives there. Or many close friends. I had two or three but… mostly I was something of a loner until I came to Earthland and joined the guild. In fact, since I was the only Exceed surrounded by humans for most of my life, I felt very much like the outsider most of the time. It could get rather lonely. But its not like that any more."
"…You seem to be very lucky," Luna said, slightly wistfully. "To have fallen in with a crowd of people that are obviously so close. To have so many friends around you. You must like it."
Lily easily noticed her tone and looked up at her. "You're lonely too, aren't you?"
"Sometimes," Luna replied sincerely. "I do spend much of my time alone and I'm okay with that. But sometimes I think it would be nice to have a really close friend. I think Ginny Weasley can count as a close friend but we don't hang around very much."
Lily smiled and hopped up onto the table, placing a paw over her hand. "Well, I'll tell you what, Luna. You've just got yourself twenty-two friends for life today. Because I'd like to be your friend. And when one member of Fairy Tail makes a new friend, they're friends with everyone in the guild."
Luna's protuberant eyes stared at Lily in momentary wonderment before a vague, dreamy smile played across her face.
"I think I'd like that," she said. "I think I'd like that very much."
Ginny was sitting at the Gryffindor Table in the Great Hall next to Michael Corner, tucking into a plate of potatoes and pork right up until the point where Ron walked over to her and said, rather stiffly, "Ginny… can I… talk to you for a minute?"
Ginny glanced up at her brother before she sighed. "I was afraid this might happen," she said. "Yes, Ron, it's true. I am dating Michael, and while I appreciate the fact you're looking out for me, honestly its really none of your business. And you can't tell me to stop seeing him."
"Believe me, I would very much like to," Ron glowered at Michael, who flinched slightly. "But actually this isn't about him. There's something else I want to talk to you about. In private."
Ginny frowned slightly. "Since when do you like to talk to people in private instead of blaring your opinion to anyone that will listen?"
"Haha," Ron rolled his eyes. "Please, Ginny. Can we just… talk?"
"…Alright. Back in a minute," she said to Michael, before she got up and followed Ron towards the Entrance Hall, where Harry and Hermione were waiting for them.
"So, if this isn't about Michael then what is it about?" Ginny asked.
"Oh believe me, we will be having a talk about that guy later," Ron muttered. "But not right now. No, this time we'd actually like to introduce you to someone else."
"Who?"
"Down here," said a voice, and Ginny blinked, her head tilting downwards until she beheld the two very ordinary looking cats that were standing next to Harry and Hermione's legs.
"…Did that cat just talk?" Ginny asked, in a totally deadpan voice.
"Aye," Happy grinned. "And boy have we got stories for you!"
Evergreen could not remember having felt so low. It was almost a consolation that she was separated from everyone else at Fairy Tail now - if anyone else saw her like this, trussed up and helpless under the control of all these diminutive woody creatures, she was sure that she would die of embarrassment. But then again, she couldn't help but wonder how long she'd have now before she died from another cause.
Like being eaten.
Which she was pretty sure these Erklings would do to her in heartbeat if they found out that she really was a human. They didn't seem to be too intelligent though, which was both a good and a bad thing. Good that they were stupid enough to think she actually was a literal Fairy Queen and bad… because the fact they were stupid made her capture all the more humiliating.
For the moment she was alright though. They'd actually been treating her like royalty all day, despite the fact they refuse to loosen the vines tying her up in the slightest. They'd been gentle and careful not to hurt her as they bore her through the forest on a wooden litter that they'd constructed, allowing her bound form to rest atop it as they hoisted her over the bushes.
And they'd fed her and given her water too. Though that had been a somewhat awkward affair at first since the first thing they'd attempted to feed her what she was pretty sure was a dead squirrel.
"I can't eat that!" she'd cried as soon as they'd removed her gag to shove the raw meat in front of her face. "Don't you know anything about what fairies eat? And for that matter, release me at once! This is… this is no way to treat someone with a rank as high as my own!"
"There's no way we let you go," the same Erkling that had initially attacked her replied, grinning at her madly. "Fairy Queen prize catch. Fairy Queen bring Erklings much bounty."
"I'm not going to be giving you anything, you fools!" Evergreen wrenched in her bonds, her arms aching slightly from behind pulled behind her back for several hours. "I don't know what you expect me to do for you, but whatever it is you are wasting your time! My… my subjects will get you for this - on my honour they will."
"Fairy Queen big mouth. But Fairy Queen need eats. Squirrel good."
"You moron! I already told you that I can't eat that!"
"Then what Fairy Queen eat? Or Fairy Queen want go hungry."
Evergreen's stomach rumbled in protest right at that very second, causing the Fairy Mage to bite her lip in frustration before she said, "I can eat berries. Bring me all the ripe, non-poisonous berries that you can find and I will eat those. But I will not eat that disgusting… thing… get it away from me."
The Erklings looked rather disgusted at the prospect of eating berries but they rushed to do as bid. But not before suddenly looping the vine gag back over Evergreen's head and pulling it between her teeth again. Evergreen screamed in protest and rocked from side to side but the vines pinning her limbs together with strong and would not break so easily.
Eventually though they'd fed her, which was another humiliating spectacle because they'd worked together to roll her onto her back and had taken turns dropping berries into her open mouth. She felt like a baby bird begging its parents for food, and she honestly could not remember ever having eaten a more humiliating meal. If they would just untie her hands she could use her Fairy Magic to overwhelm them, but with even her fingers all tied together that was simply impossible.
And then they'd carried one, Evergreen gagged once more, and be borne away through the trees. Where the Erklings were taking her she had no idea and they'd obstinately refused to tell her when she'd had the chance to ask. But eventually night was beginning to settle in, and the Erklings pulled to a stop… and started to scamper up the tree-trunks, leaving Evergreen lying on the ground.
"MMMMRGGG! HHHRR! GGRRHG BBRK HHRR!" Evergreen yelled angrily through her gag, tossing and turning madly as a slight sensation of panic crept into her. They weren't just going to leave her alone like this were they!? God knows, she wanted out of their company as quickly as possible but not if they were just going to leave her bound and helpless on the forest floor. What would she do if a wolf or something came along - there could be anything hiding in this forest for all she knew.
But it seemed her fears were misplaced in that regard at least, for a couple of the Erklings descended back down from above with very sturdy looking vines that trailed from up above clenched in their woody fingers. Evergreen sighed in relief as her ankles were unattached from her feet, allowing her to straighten her legs and stretch the cramped muscles in her knees properly for the first time since her capture. But she glanced back behind her, squirming faintly, but her eyes widened in shock when she saw they were tightly tying the ends of their vines to her ankle bonds.
No way… they couldn't be!
"Hoist!" one of the Erklings cried up into the treetops when they were done and the vines snapped taut. Evergreen shrieked as someone up above started pulling on the vines, slowly dragging her feet up into the air. She kicked and struggled for all she was worth, desperately trying to break the vines before it was too late, but it was no good. Her body was slowly dragged up and off the ground until she was dangling upside down from her ankles, being pulled higher and higher up towards the canopy.
At this point Evergreen froze - breaking the vine now would be a very bad idea - she'd do nothing but fall onto her head at this stage. If she'd thought she'd been helpless before then hanging upside down like this was a whole new level entirely. She screwed up her eyes, her gut clenching as she fought very hard to stop a tear leaking out of her eye. What the heck had she done to deserve this? What the heck would anyone have to do to deserve this. And now all the blood was rushing to her brain, making her feel dizzy and a bit ill. Oh she really hoped she wouldn't hurl while there was still a vine in her mouth.
Fortunately the Erklings were quick to haul her up onto a wide branch big enough to support her weight and lie her down on her back. Evergreen was momentarily shocked when she realised that they were cutting the bonds on her wrists and immediately struggled to break loose but the Erklings were worked together to drag her hands underneath the branch and re-tie them almost instantly, attaching her to the wooden limb to make sure that she wouldn't fall off during the night.
"Fairy Queen rest now," the first Erkling snickered as it sat on her stomach, leering down at her. "Fairy Queen big day tomorrow. Erklings become big winners tomorrow, yes!"
"Lookie, lookie!" a voice suddenly cried as another Erkling dropped down to land on another branch nearby and scuttle over, holding a jar of some kind in its arms… a jar that appeared to be glowing slightly. "Found some of Fairy Queen's subjects. Fairy Queen have company tonight."
The Erklings cackled, but suddenly all thoughts of imprisonment were banished from Evergreen's mind as she stared into the jar that the Erkling was holding. Her heart rate picked up, her breathing was raised, her eyes widened beneath her glasses until they were as round as plate. She couldn't believe it… surely… it was too good to be true.
Inside the jar were about five tiny figures, no bigger than six inches tall and all wearing leaf-like dresses with blond hair tied up into long ponytails behind them. And every one of them had gorgeous delicate looking multicoloured wings sprouting from their backs and were beating on the glass with tiny fists, zinging about the cramped space in terrified efforts to break free. But there was no mistaking what they were.
Fairies.
Real… genuine Fairies.
Evergreen felt a surge of happiness flare up inside her for a moment. All her life the one thing she'd hoped to see above anything else was a fairy. She 'd been deeply fascinated by them as a child and had never lost that fascination even now. If anything it had grown even stronger since she had obtained her Fairy Magic. The only real reason she'd picked Fairy Tail as the guild she wanted to be a part of way back when was because of its name. Since then she'd branched out her interests and had come to fully understand what made Fairy Tail such an amazing guild, but back then the name had been all that mattered.
And yet she'd never once seen a living fairy. Until now. And for about ten seconds or so, she was beyond ecstatic, grinning as widely as anyone could with a vine tied around their lower face.
But it didn't take long for that brief euphoria to fade when suddenly the Erkling scuttled forward and placed the jar of Fairies on her chest. "RHRHH!" Evergreen protested but the Erkling carefully balanced the jar in place on top of her before letting go and standing back, snickering nastily.
"Fairy Queen better stay still tonight," it cackled. "If Fairy Queen struggle too much, jar fall off. Jar go to ground. Jar smash. Fairies go splat."
"RRHHHN! YRHHHR BBRSHHST!" Evergreen screamed in abject rage, stiffening in her bonds and jerking her head at him, but that action alone jostled the jar a little. Evergreen stiffened instantly, her body freezing and watching as the jar settled and came still. But because of where it was placed, Evergreen was terrified to make even the slightest of twitches. The poor Fairies within shrank away from the glass walls and crowded together in the middle, hugging one another for comfort, afraid to upset the jar. They might be able to fly, but an impact on the ground from this height would almost certainly kill them.
"Goodnight Fairy Queen," the Erklings snickered as they retreated upwards to their nests higher up in the branches, leaving Evergreen tied to the branch balancing the jar alone.
Evergreen's heart was hammering so hard that she was scared that that alone would knock the jar from its perch. How could they? How could these Erklings do something so cruel to creatures so fantastic. All her joy at finding Fairies at last had totally evaporated now. This wasn't the way she'd wanted it to go. She'd wanted to see them flying free, buzzing everywhere and laughing the way Fairies, perhaps join them in their flight. Not join them in their imprisonment!
But as she stared into the glass, one of the Fairies detached itself from the group and crawled to the edge of the jar, leaning up to place her hands on the side and staring into Evergreen's eyes. Her face was tiny, but Evergreen could read all of the expressions held there just fine.
'Please,' the Fairy was begging without words. 'Please save us. Please don't let us fall.'
And Evergreen's expression hardened as she did her best to mentally send every ounce of courage and assurance she could to the little creature. She would get no sleep tonight. There was no way she'd let these Fairies fall. And for the first time since she'd been captured several hours ago, she had an unselfish reason to escape. Now it was not just for her sake, but for their's as well.
'You wait little ones,' she thought soothingly. 'I may not really be your Queen. But I'm going to get you out of there if its the last thing I do.'