A/N: it's almost over *waa* and I'm kind of tempted to write tartarus arc just so the story doesn't have to end but ah well all good things must come to an end.
Rissy held the baby tree as she had dubbed it close to her chest as the three dragon slayers and exceed continued to walk through Magnolia.
However it wasn't until they passed a particular spot that Rissy felt the familiar feeling of being watched.
"Natsu, Wendy...do you feel that?" Rissy asked as she turned to face the dragon slayers.
Wendy frowned before turning to Natsu she did feel a strange presence however the younger girl just brushed it off as paranoia.
"I do feel a strange presence" Wendy said quietly she was starting to get nervous.
Natsu tilted his head to the side in confusion whilst Happy frowned. And then it hit Natsu that familiar scent that had appeared back when Rissy first came to Magnolia.
"It's that bastard..." Natsu said with an added growl.
Rissy froze in place for there were only two people who her brother would refer to in that tone. One was known as 'the ice Bastard' whereas the other was just 'the bastard' and it chilled the salmon haired woman to know that he was once again in Magnolia.
Noticing Rissy's grim expression seemed to unnerve the youngest dragon slayer and turning to Natsu, she noticed that the eldest of the three had a look of pure hatred- something she had never before seen on the salmon haired man.
"Don't worry, Riss' I'll pound him and the creep will definitely leave you alone" Natsu said before pounding his fist into his open hand for extra emphasis.
Rissy nodded with a small smile as she hugged the tree closer towards her. If there was one person she wanted to stay clear of it was the Earth make mage Elijah.
"Okay Natsu but what do we do?" She asked with with a frown.
Natsu grinned before turning to his sister which only caused Rissy, Wendy and Happy to frown for neither of them knew what the fire dragon slayer was planning.
"I'm gonna pound that earth bastard and you three will stay out of trouble" he stated
Rissy frowned at her brother.
"Hey, if you're pounding my ex-boyfriend, the least you could do is let me help" Rissy remarked with an added pout.
Natsu grinned once more before ruffling the shorter woman's hair while Wendy smiled softly at the action - Natsu was really protective of his nakama but most of all, his younger sister and to an extent Lucy.
"Riss' maybe I'll let you watch..." He said which only caused Rissy to sweat drop.
The dragon slayer pouted once more before releasing a defeated sigh.
"Fine...but I won't enjoy it" She said though her grin contradicted her words.
Wendy smiled at the two siblings before turning to Happy.
"Then that means we should find Carla and the others" she suggested to the blue exceed.
Happy nodded in agreement before using his magic to sprout wings.
"Then we should -" He started only to stop at the sound of loud rumble echoing through the town.
Rissy frowned before turning to Natsu.
"I hope that isn't your stomach..." She muttered.
Natsu shook his head before turning to Rissy.
"Maybe it's yours" he suggested.
The ground started to shake as a large crack appeared in the middle of the town, landing between the salmon haired siblings.
"W-what is this?!" Natsu shouted as he was knocked backward by the force of the ground.
Rissy shrieked, clutching her tree with her right arm and holding onto the side of the crevice with the other.
"This definitely isn't your stomach, Natsu!" She shouted as she held on for dear life.
Suddenly losing balance Wendy wobbled forwards falling towards the crevice.
"Wendy!" Rissy shouted as the young sky mage fell passed her, however thanks to Happy, Wendy was safe as the blue exceed wrapped his tail around her waist.
"Thanks, Happy..." Wendy said softly as Happy hovered in the air.
Happy smiled widely
"Don't worry about it, Wendy!" Happy answered in his usual jovial tone.
Rissy tried to pull herself up but the rocks and the ground seemed to crumble underneath her touch causing her stay in place.
"Guys I'm think I'm stuck!" She shouted.
Wendy's eyes widened for she noticed the crevice starting to close. It was as if it were being controlled by magic and not a natural disaster.
"We need to help Rissy-San or the crevice will close with her inside" She told the exceed.
Happy nodded before placing Wendy back on the ground as he attempted to reach for Rissy. However his magic depleted and his wings had gone causing him to fall to the ground.
"Rissy hang tight!" Happy shouted once Wendy quickly caught him.
Rissy frowned before the ground started to give way once more causing her to slip deeper in the crevice.
"This isn't good!" She shouted her grip starting to loosen.
Natsu quickly ran over to the edge of the crevice and lowered his hand towards his sister. She tried to reach his fingers but there was still a large gap between the siblings.
"Natsu...I can't reach...!" Rissy gasped after unsuccessfully reaching for her brothers hand.
Wendy gasped
Natsu frowned before lowering himself further, only for the ground to give way beneath him.
"I can try!" He answered with determination before lowering himself further.
Rissy frowned, the ground crumbling beneath her hand. She was going to fall but she wasn't going to drag her brother with her. They had only just been reunited.
"Not this time Natsu-nii" Rissy said softly which caused Natsu to frown.
He attempted to reach her, lowering himself further into the crevice but if he lowered himself further he was sure to fall and suffer a similar fate.
"Rissy, don't you dare give up on me" he growled.
Rissy smiled softly before passing her brother the baby tree. He managed to grab the plant by the pot before turning to his sister confused.
"Look after him for me, okay?" She said with an added smile.
Natsu placed the plant on the ground behind him before attempting to reach Rissy once more.
"Rissy-"
She shook her head softly and the loud crack of the ground crumbling was heard once more.
"Sorry..." She whispered before the grounds beneath her hand gave way and she along with the stone was sent into the dark abyss of the crevice.
And it was then that the earth closed up as if nothing had happened leaving the three mages speechless, for all that was left of their salmon haired companion was her sakura bonsai tree.
The rumbling suddenly stopped which only confused the blonde mage further. With a sigh she turned to face Erza who shared the same look of confusion on her own face.
"That was no ordinary earthquake" Erza stated.
Lucy and the exceeds nodded in agreement though Carla sported a frown whilst Lavender had a slight worried expression.
"It was pretty freaky..." Lavender muttered.
Looking down at the ground, Lucy noticed that all the large cracks had disappeared almost as if the ground had mysteriously mended itself.
"Erza...you don't think this could have been done by magic?" She asked the requip mage.
Erza quirked a brow at Lucy's question.
"Perhaps...but they would have to be a powerful mage" She answered.
Carla nodded in agreement before turning to the road ahead of them. She spotted three familiar figures though something was missing.
"It's Wendy, Natsu and the he-cat" Carla stated as she walked ahead.
Lucy smiled widely at the sight of her partner though it slowly faded once she spotted his grim demeanour.
"Guys, something's wrong" She whispered as she watched the usually , Natsu standing in the middle of the pathway whilst holding what appeared to be a bonsai tree close to him.
Carla walked over towards Wendy and Happy. Both the young dragon slayer and the blue exceed had solemn expressions on their faces.
"Wendy, what happened?" Carla asked.
"And where's Rissy-Chan?" Lavender added, the lilac coloured exceed was worried about the whereabouts of her partner.
Wendy's furrowed her brows whilst Happy started to dramatically wail which started to worry the mages.
"When the quakes started, Rissy-San...She-" Wendy started only to be interrupted by Happy.
Happy continued to uncontrollably wail whilst latching himself to Lucy's chest.
"The ground ate Rissy and I...I couldn't help her!" He cried as he sobbed into Lucy's chest.
Lucy gasped before turning to Wendy, confusion written all over her face.
"What does he mean 'the ground ate her'?" Lucy asked.
Wendy gestured to the space in front of them, where Natsu was currently stood.
"When the quakes started the ground opened up and Rissy-San...fell in" Wendy explained.
Erza frowned, turning to Wendy just as confused as Lucy was.
"So the ground closed up once Rissy fell through?" Erza asked with a quirked brow.
Wendy nodded with a solemn look before turning back to Natsu.
"And it's really upset, Natsu - San" She said sadly.
Erza frowned the redhead mage knew that it couldn't have been a coincidence that the earthquakes stopped after Rissy fell through the ground. Which meant that whoever planned it meant to capture Rissy and that she still could be alive?
"We should regroup back at Fairy Tail" Erza stated more so to catch Natsu's attention than anyone else's.
Natsu walked over towards Lucy, placing the tree in the blonde's arms before walking in the opposite direction.
"Natsu...where are you going?" Lucy asked as she ran over towards Natsu.
Natsu turned to face the blonde, his bangs covering his eyes and thus shadowing them.
"To beat the shit out of the bastard that did this" Natsu stated before he walked off.
Erza attempted to reach out to the salmon haired man but he was too fast and had already run off.
Lucy attempted to walk after the dragon slayer however Erza placing a hand on her shoulder stopped her in her tracks.
"This is something Natsu wants to do alone" She concluded.
Lucy nodded before turning to the pathway where Natsu had gone. She hoped that he wouldn't do anything stupid and maybe just maybe he would find Rissy.
"Lucy, Natsu - San will be fine" Wendy said with a smile.
Lucy smiled down at the younger girl before clutching the tree closer towards her, maybe both salmon haired siblings would return safely. But that still didn't stop Lucy from worrying.
The darkness that surrounded her was somewhat nerving and it caused the salmon haired woman to rely on her other sense to try and get a sense of her surroundings.
As she slowly stood she realised that she was no longer in Magnolia and rather somewhere else entirely.
The sound of footsteps caught her attention; however the familiar scent that accompanied these footsteps caused the salmon haired woman to freeze where she stood.
As the figure stood merely a few feet away from her, the shadows masking his face Rissy involuntarily shivered. Hating how the earth mage made her feel even after all the years.
The earth mage seemed to notice Rissy's discomfort, a small smirk tugging his lips as he watched her stiffen in place.
"It's always a pleasure to see you, Clarissa" he said with a smirk.
Rissy growled, however a second scent followed by footsteps caught her attention, instantly alerting her that they weren't alone.
However the sight of the familiar cyan haired man brought a pang of sadness through her.
"Emmanuel...why?" She asked with a small voice. She remembered how distraught the both of them were at the lost of the woman she had thought of as a sister - his own twin. To see him allied once more with Elijah...She felt betrayed.
Emmanuel lowered his face slightly, his bright hair covering his eyes.
"The fault is yours that Esther is gone...Therefore the task is mine to exact vengeance" he stated, with such a coldness and hatred that Rissy actually shivered at the tone.
Elijah smiled at the sight before walking towards Rissy, she attempted to blast him with her magic but with a flick of his wrist the stone from the ground encased her in a earth like prison and thus rendering her unable to move or escape.
She growled once more as the earth mage placed his pointer finger and thumb underneath her chin and delicately lifted it.
"Clarissa, how would you like to be a god?" He asked with a smirk.
Rissy frowned before baring her teeth at the mage.
"That's crazy...humans can't be gods!" She shouted at the earth mage.
Elijah shook his head with a light chuckle before gesturing for Emanuel to come closer. The cyan haired man walked over towards the pair, a glowing lacrima in his hand. He passed it to Elijah who twirled it around, admiring it before presenting towards Rissy.
Rissy just stared at it indifferently; she didn't get the importance of the lacrima other than it glowing a purple - black colour.
"Beautiful...isn't it?" He asked the salmon haired woman.
Rissy snorted before giving an eye roll.
"It looks like a glowing purple rock to me" she said with a sigh.
Elijah gave a smirk before turning back to Rissy.
"Clarissa, always so dense...This is how we will become gods" he stated.
Rissy frowned at the lacrima before turning back to Elijah, he really loved his glowing rock.
"How it's just a lacrima" She said, seemingly ignoring how Elijah had called her dense.
Elijah smirked once more, Rissy noted how he had been doing a lot of that lately.
"Haven't you been paying attention?" He asked though judging by the blank look on Rissy's face he knew the answer to his question.
"The neko-girls, the power stealing lacrima?" He asked.
Rissy's mouth formed an 'O' shape, remembering the neko-girls with their emotion enhancing lacrima back at the manor and the magic stealing lacrima back at Lavender town museum.
"What does that have to do with the purple rock?" She asked with confusion.
Emanuel exhaled loudly before turning to face Rissy.
"We've merged the two lacrima into one. Giving the host both abilities...enhanced emotions as well as unlimited magic power" the cyan haired mage explained.
Rissy's eyes widened at this, the idea sounded crazy - even for Elijah and unlimited magic power sounded dangerous.
"Elijah...This can hurt someone and making a lacrima like this can get you into serious trouble with the magic council" She pointed out, though it seemed Elijah was passed listening.
Elijah shook his head before turning to ruffle Rissy's hair.
"Clarissa I care not for the council...and soon enough they too will be under my control" he said with an added chuckle.
He then turned to face Emmanuel.
"We should get going, we have to pay a certain prisoner a visit" he said before walking out of the dungeon.
Rissy gave Emmanuel a longing look, the cyan haired man attempted to avoid her gaze on his way out.
"If anyone's to blame for your sister...my sister's death then it's him" She said sadly "but if you want to blame me then it's your choice but remember why she was in the museum in the first place" she added with a frown.
Emmanuel lowered his head once more before following Elijah out of the dungeon and leaving Rissy alone in the darkness.
So what did you think of that?
The story is coming to an end and I'm sad :(
Stay tuned for the next chapter where the guild plans their next move, dragon slayers search for the salmon haired siblings and Lucy has to cheer up an exceed.
JustAnotherFairy:)