AN: Heeey guys! Sorry for this update being a bit late, I was out in Connecticut last weekend for some fencing tournaments (speaking of which, I'm now qualified for the Junior Olympics! How cool is that?) Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. Actually, you probably won't. Hehehehe

Notice: I own nothing, for I am not Hiro Mashima. Amen.

Chapter 5: One Very Big Misunderstanding

It was very early in the morning, and for once, Sting was still in the apartment when Rogue woke up. Sting was always so busy, Rogue had forgotten they were living together.

Rogue found Sting standing shirtless in front of the bathroom mirror, flexing and generally admiring himself. Rogue simply stood and watched in bemusement for a few minutes, and would have continued to do so had Sting not noticed him.

"Gah!" he jumped. "How long have you been just standing there, Rogue?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Rogue replied calmly. "Don't you have any duties to be taken care of?"

Sting turned slowly away from the mirror. Rogue suddenly saw just how bloodshot his corneas were, how deeply the circles sunk under his eyes. "Oh, so that's what this is about, huh?" Rogue barely heard Sting whisper.

"What? What's about?"

"Don't think I haven't noticed, you bastard. You're always sleeping late, so I don't ever see you in the morning. Then, when I'm off doing busywork during the day, you're doing her."

Rogue was completely taken aback. "Wait, what? Who are you talking about, Sting?"

"Yukino, of course… Dick!" Sting slurred. He stumbled forward and tried to slap Rogue, but Rogue easily caught Sting's wrist with one hand.

"I…" Sting panted. "I tried to do everything I could for her… But she's always so shy, staying at a distance from me…" Sting stopped to pant and catch his breath. Something was definitely not right here. "And she's so polite, she doesn't know how to say no… meaning a selfish bastard like you could force yourself on her."

"Sting, you're not making sense. Please, just-"

"I'LL TELL YOU WHAT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE!" Sting suddenly roared. "YOUR GODDAM INFERIORITY COMPLEX! I MEAN, JUST BECAUSE I GET MORE FUCKING GIRLS THAN YOU, YOU STEAL THE ONE GIRL THAT MATTERS TO ME… that seems fair to you, does it?" Pause. "DOES IT?" Sting hiccupped, then burst into a coughing fit. His eyelids snapped shut, and he would've collapsed to his knees if Rogue hadn't been holding him up. Rogue took a whiff of Sting's breath and shuddered.

"Sting… you're sick. And drunk. And probably high. I don't get it. What's been going on with you?"

A furry face poked its way around the corner. It was Lector. He was clearly distraught.

"For the past month, Sting's been partying in secret, for much too late every night. It's not good for his health, and it's affecting the quality of his daily duties, but he said it's the only way 'he can forget.' I've been trying to warn him, and get him to stop, but he won't listen to me. Please, Rogue, you have to help me! You have to help Sting get better!"

Rogue stared at the pitiful man he now held up by one arm. All this time, he'd thought Sting had been the one to leave him behind. But what if it was the other way around? Maybe Rogue was the bad friend. Rogue just left Sting to shoulder the burden of a job he clearly wasn't fit to do all by himself. No wonder Sting blamed him (however mistakenly) in his weird drunken rant. Rogue was a bad friend.

"Come on, Lector. I'm going to tuck him in bed. You go get him some medicine from the market. Think you can handle that?"

Lector bowed. "Of course! Thank you so much, Rogue!"

Frosch yawned and climbed out of his miniature bed. "What's going on? Why is Master Sting dead?"

Rogue frantically carried Sting's limp body over to his bed and tucked him in. "He's just sick, Frosch. We're staying home today, so we can help him get better."

"Fro wants to help!"

Rogue smiled. "Okay. You can go to the market with Lector to get Sting's medicine. Just remember- stay with Lector. You can't get lost, alright?"

Frosch nodded. "Fro thinks so too!"

After the Exceeds left, Rogue tended to Sting as best he could. Sting appeared to be running a fever, so Rogue gave him lots of blankets and a cold towel over his forehead. He heated up some tea just in case Sting woke up and he was thirsty. Then he just sat at Sting's side, an anxious hand on Sting's shoulder, and waited.

Sting came to in about five minutes. Lector and Frosch still hadn't come back yet, so Rogue had nothing to offer him but tea. Sting accepted the tea. "Is that… you, Rogue? What's going on here?"

"You were in terrible shape, Sting. You need to rest. None of your 'duties' for today."

Sting closed his eyes again. "Yes…" he mumbled. "Rest…"

Suddenly his eyes snapped open. "Oh, crap! I'm late for the guild Masters' meeting!" Sting tried to get out of bed, but only succeeded in lifting his back another two inches from the mattress.

Rogue put a hand on his shoulder to steady him. "What do you mean, Sting? Explain what's going on."

Sting lay back down on the bedframe, his voice quivering, struggling to speak clearly. "The guild Masters are having their monthly conference today. They discuss a lot of important affairs. If a guild's master doesn't show up, that's a serious blow to honor and logistical status for both the Master and the entire guild! I have to go now!"

Rogue looked down at his old partner struggling with all his might to get out of bed, so he could go fulfill a job that he'd neither asked for nor been prepared to take on, and yet had responded to the responsibility astoundingly well. In that moment, the Rogue's decision was unanimous among his neurons.

"I'll go."

Rogue's legs wobbled as he staggered off the train into Clover Station. Hopefully Lector would get his note and make sure Sting got his rest. And hopefully Frosch would be all right without him. Who knows, he could've gotten lost or hurt or sick himself, or maybe he was really, really hungry and forgot where the food was stored again…

Rogue slapped himself twice on each of his cheeks. Focus, Rogue. This is the time for business. He took a deep breath and entered the hall where the guild Masters would meet.

They'd done a good job rebuilding this place after Fairy Tail had famously destroyed it seven years ago. Rogue remembered how crazy Sting had gone when he found out that Natsu had defeated the Lullaby demon (Sting chose to leave out the fact that Natsu had had help). The building was cylindrical in shape, composed of fifty or so compartments that looked out over a central circular area. Draped over each of these compartments was a large banner depicting the guild's mark. Rogue slipped through the crowd, found Sabertooth's banner, and was about to sit down when three rounds from a large gavel rang through the room.

"Order!" proclaimed a no-nonsense looking young man with a Magic Council seal on his robes. "We will now start the proceedings. From Quatro Puppy… Goldmine! Take your seat."

"That name was only supposed to last for the tournament…" grumbled Quatro Puppy's master as he made his way towards his seat.

Each of the guild Masters was called up one by one to take their seats. Some of them were from guilds so obscure that Rogue had never even heard of them before. He did recognize some, however: Makarov of Fairy Tail, of course; Bob, of Blue Pegasus; and Ooba Babasaama, of Lamia Scale. "From Mermaid Heel… Marina! Take your seat."

Oh, thought Rogue, she's actually fairly famous, but I've never seen her before. She's always busy, so I've heard.

That was funny, because Rogue definitely had seen the woman who walked out there before.

Wait.

"You're not Marina," the Magic Council representative stated the obvious.

Kagura bowed. "My apologies. She is very busy, and so she sent me in her stead.

"I don't know why you're surprised," someone called from the audience. "She never attends meetings!" The catcaller was quickly shut down by a baleful glare from Kagura, who calmly walked over and took her seat. Rogue was desperately resisting the urge to call out to her. Remember, Rogue. Business. Business. Business.

"From Sabertooth… Sting! Take your seat."

Rogue took a deep breath, and for the first time, walked into the spotlight all by himself.

At first, he just got stares. Then, people started whispering. "Wait, where's Sting, and why's his lame old partner here?"

"It's not fair, I was counting on Sting to get my dreamy fix for the day!"

"Sting always has the best jokes! I was counting on him to lighten the mood of this drab meeting!"

Rogue cleared his throat. "Master Sting is deeply ill and therefore unable to attend the meeting. I am here to substitute as best I can."

He walked away as fast as he could towards his seat up in the stands. He was so focused on his destination that he didn't notice who was sitting directly next to him.

"Hi, Rogue."

Kagura gave him a friendly smile. "Strange coincidence, isn't it?"

This cannot be happening to me. Kagura just watched me get humiliated in by the entire federation of guild Masters. I am absolutely pathetic. I must focus on business to prove I'm just as good as Sting. Can't allow myself to get distracted.

Rogue was staring straight ahead. "Uh, Rogue? Hello?" Kagura waved a hand in front of his face. He didn't even blink. What's going on? Did I do something wrong?

The meeting started. Rogue tried his best to focus, but the topics of discussion were positively dull, and he was not prepared to engage himself in them. He found his eyes wandering over to Kagura, who of course was focusing intently on the discussion, adding her opinions when necessary.

Rogue just kept sneaking peeks at her. He couldn't help himself. This would be the last time he'd ever get to be near her, after all. After the meeting was over, she would go off to fantasize about Sting like all the rest. After all, who would want to be friends with some loser like Rogue?

This time, Rogue's eyes did not manage to avoid the danger zone. Despite the brevity of their contact, they soon were completely transfixed, mesmerized by Kagura's beauty.

Rogue could tell she had caught him staring.

Great. Now I'm a loser, I'm not good at politics, I'm way less good-looking than my partner, and I'm a pervert.

Kagura pondered Rogue with a puzzled expression on her face. He seemed deeply troubled by something. Something other than the whole "Shadow" thing. She wondered whether she should ask him now. Or maybe not. No! This could be my only chance for a long time!

A billion years later, the meeting finally ended. As the other guild Masters started filing out of the meeting hall, Kagura grabbed one of Rogue's hands with both of her own. "Rogue, I really need to ask you something."

She's going to ask about Sting, isn't she.

Rogue's eyes were opened incredibly wide. In each of them was the look of a cornered animal. Kagura could feel the sweat on the back of his palm.

Kagura ran the words through her mind before she could say them.

She opened her mouth.

Rogue stood up and tore his hand from her grasp. "No. I know what you're going to ask, Kagura. And my answer is no. No, no, no! You're going to have to find him on your own!" Rogue ran out of the hall as fast as his legs could carry him.

All that was left on Kagura's hands were beads of Rogue's sweat and a few of his tears.

Kagura's words were still stuck in her throat: Unbeknownst to myself, I've been searching for someone who completes me, who fills the hole in my heart that used to be taken up by revenge. Do you think that someone could be you?"

Gah! Rogue, you fool, come back! Come back!

I'm sorry about that, guys.

I really am.

Anyways, don't forget to rate and review. Express your sorrow and displeasure to me. Trust me, I can handle it!

Jokes aside. Thanks for reading. Have a day that doesn't suck.