Chapter One

Location, Location, Location

They'd been engaged for over a week before the subject struck them. Though in truth that had mostly been due to a seemingly endless amount of parties and celebrations they'd had since the ball at end of the Grand Magic Games. The celebration continued at each of their guilds, and then at their favorite bars in both Magnolia and Clover and a few other small places in between.

Now able to focus more on the subject, Cana was realizing just how big the problem was. Both of them had been under the impression that the other was going to move to their own respective town. Worse, neither of them seemed to want to budge on their position and thus sparking a sensitive nerve they'd never cared to talk about before. It wasn't that she had wanted him to give up his career as a mage, but the more they discussed it, the more it made sense for them to go with her proposition of him moving to Magnolia.

"You're on the road more than you're home anyway. I don't see why it would be such a big deal." She said, rolling onto her side.

"It takes almost half the day to get there by train and another half to get back. It doesn't make sense for me to have to travel that far to not have any work available." Bacchus complained half-heartedly. He had one eye closed and looked bored, which only served to further Cana's irritation.

"Then have Goldmine send the requests to you here or have Rocker or one of your goons contact you through the lacrima when an S-Class request comes in."

"That's not their responsibility." He frowned at her and began untying the gourd at his side with one hand.

"Then what are we going to do? Not live together?" Cana frowned right back at him; her eyes trained on his every movement.

"Tch." The palm mage looked away rudely as he plucked the cork stopper from the mouth of his gourd. Cana watched him through her lacrima, seeing the annoyance spread across his face as he took a long drink from his container.

"Take it easy there tiger." She warned when she saw how deep of a drink he had taken.

"Yeah, yeah." Bacchus waved indifferently and pressed the cork back into the opening.

"How much longer until you get to your destination?" She asked him after he secured his drink.

"Less than a day if the weather is fair, but the job itself should be a walk in the park."

Cana rolled her eyes at the comment, knowing he was making a poor attempt at showing off for her. Yet even as he continued on with his unnecessary boasting, she couldn't help but smile some. It was getting closer to the three-year mark since their fated encounter and journey across the south sea, yet there was no denying how much he still tried to impress her. When it wasn't annoying, she found it rather flattering.

Eventually, their conversation had drawn back to their living arrangements. The strain it caused between them was like a fresh a black bruise, leaving either of them with a dull ache whenever it was pressed on. They would talking in circles, going absolutely no where until one of them just stopped talking. Whether it was out of irritation or just exhaustion from the redundant debate neither of them could say.

"It's late." Cana said after they were both silent a moment. "We'll talk more when you get back from your trip. Get some rest." She sighed with a small grimace, giving the sign that she was too tired to continue on with the same mundane discussion again.

"You too." His tone mimicked hers, indicating that he was grateful for the dropped subject.

"Be careful." She added in before he could tap his lacrima to end their communication line. Their eyes locked and said the unspoken words they meant:

You'd better come home. I love you.

"I will." He said softly, answering both her voiced and unspoken concern before cutting off his end of the communication spell.

The glow from her orb faded, diming her room. It wasn't unlike how she felt more often than not since Bacchus' proposal. Something good and bright was happening in her life and yet, the world she carried in her hands seemed to have dimmed. Perhaps it was the thought that such a life-changing event was appearing upon the horizon and she was feeling that she had less and less control over how quickly it was happening. Perhaps it was a fear that her marriage was already doomed before it began and that she would share the same fate as her mother. The thought made her shiver and push away the insecurity for the time being.

She'd confided in Lucy and Levy about her and Bacchus' inability to come to a decision during lunch the day after her last conversation with him. However, it became obvious how it was difficult for them to give her any useful advice since they had both married men from within the guild and didn't have to face such issues themselves.

"Why don't you travel with him then? Work as a team?" Lucy asked between bites of her rather over-packed sandwich. But Cana waved her off explaining that it would be more trouble than it was worth to file for an inter-guild partnership.

"Besides, that doesn't solve our living situation." She picked absently at her own plate, no longer interested in eating the poorly made attempt at a traditional Yikani stir-fry.

"Why not somewhere in between here and Clover?" Levy joined in after she once again had gotten her lively son Leif to settle down beside her. The boy with the coarse mop of black hair and eerie ruby colored eyes had a habit of reaching into her purse and rummaging around for anything he could get his hands on. He had gotten big too, bigger than a two-year-old should be, but it came as no surprise considering whom his father was. Cana pitied the petite woman, as it was likely that her next child would be the same considering how much her stomach had already grown again at such an early stage in comparison to Lucy's own pregnant belly. Cana had noticed a small trend between the two dragon slayer wives and the correlation of their pregnancies. It was a curious thought, but she brushed aside any assumptions.

"We considered it, but my since my work is usually done at the guild or in town it would make it inconvenient for my clients to have to travel to see me rather than me traveling to them. He also still complained that he'd have to travel too far to check for work in Clover."

"You're also the one with the house, too." Lucy added while subtly pointing with her spoon at Leif, who had somehow gotten ahold of his mother's lightpen this time and was drawing scribbles in the air with it.

"Leif, give that back." Levy gently scolded with her hand held out waiting for him to relinquish the magic item. "That doesn't mean she can't buy one in Clover. Stop playing with your food. Perhaps you could build a new clientele over there?"

"What, and join Quatro Puppy while I'm at it, too?" Cana snorted. Her friends chuckled lightly in response.

"I'm sure you'll figure something out. What do your cards say?" Lucy gave her a curious look.

Cana could only sigh as she told them of the strange readings she had been interpreting for herself. The cards would waiver and more often than not, and were clouded with uncertainties. Whenever she'd ask what she ought to do, they would indicate that she feared change too greatly to make any rational decisions. Yet the next reading would tell her of the prosperity of change, should she take the chance to do so. It perplexed all of them, and continued to confuse her as she went home after their meal.

Two more days had passed before Bacchus returned from his mission. He was scrounging through her kitchen half naked and fresh from a shower when she had come back from her visit to the guild that evening. He had already stopped at his own guild to report that he had completed the job and had no other requests to take, leaving him available to be with her for the next few days.

"I thought inter-guild partnerships were only good for a single mission." He furrowed his brow at her and sat up some to reach for the water he had on the nightstand. He didn't seem pleased that she brought up that subject so soon after he'd returned let alone after sex.

"Levy informed me that there is a long-term contract that married couples are allowed to apply for." Cana watched as he turned his legs to hang over the edge of the bed.

"That still doesn't solve our living situation much." He said, echoing her earlier statement to Levy. He stood and took a few steps toward the attached bathroom. "Unless you are wanting to travel together as nomads until we're old and gray like your father." Something amused him about that, a sly look spreading across his face as his eyes glanced over her.

"Tch." She pulled the sheet up to her chest to cover herself.

After he relieved himself and they settled back in bed, they lay in silence, both contemplating some sort of solution.

"We could move to a new guild." She curled up next to him, her head resting on his chest as she toyed with a silken lock of his hair.

"Or join the army." He replied with playful sarcasm. "Though I hear they discourage any type of fraternizations between members."

Her thoughts immediately went to Gajeel and Levy and their short time spent as government officers. Gajeel's underlings were likely too afraid to report him for anything. Cana snorted lightly as images of likely scenarios played in her mind.

"They also have strict alcohol consumption regulations." She added. The two of them huffed a quick laugh at that and finally settled into a peaceful quiet. They were too busy enjoying each other's touch and the soft, cool breeze blowing in from the balcony window to argue further. She'd been thankful for that and simply sighed, letting her body relax against Bacchus'.

"We'll figure this out." He said after a moment and kissed her forehead while squeezing her into his chest. She'd begun to drift off already and agreed softly before succumbing to sleep's call.

I hope so.