Here's the next chapter, guys! I figured I'd introduce a couple of new OCs I created since I don't have any real plans for this chapter. I hope you all enjoy it!
December 6, X790
It was a fairly cold day as Jason entered the Phoenix Dawn guild hall, replacing his T-shirt for a dark blue light sweater.
"Boy, it's getting pretty nippy out there." Jason said as he walked over to a table where Sakura, Flora and Spiral were sitting together.
"Jason, how was your visit to your parents?" Spiral asked.
"The same as last time." Jason answered. "They won't stop pressuring me to find a girlfriend. I keep telling them there's no one in or outside the guild that I'm interested in."
"Why not just say that you've already found one and never show her to them?" Flora asked.
"I can't lie to my family like that." Jason replied, resting his chin on his hand. "But at this rate I'm going to be forced into marriage. Doesn't matter if I like them or not."
"Why is your family pressuring you into marriage?" Sakura asked.
"I've told you how I was the first child in my family to have magical abilities." Jason said. "They want me to marry a wizard so that their grandchildren can be wizards, too."
Aqua then came by and sat down at the table. "Hey, guys! What are you talking about?"
"Jason's family is thinking about forcing him into marriage." Flora answered.
"I keep telling them I'm still waiting for this special girl to return." Jason said.
"Jason, has it ever occurred to you that it's possible she might not ever come back?" Aqua asked.
"NO!" Jason shouted and stood up. "SHE CAN'T BE DEAD! I WON'T BELIEVE IT! I WON'T!"
"Jason, you need to understand that you need to move on." Aqua said. "Just find another girl and I'm sure things will work out."
"… You know what? Screw this, I'm going out." Jason said as he stomped out of the guild hall.
Everyone else in the guild hall just looked toward the entrance.
"… You know, you don't have to be such a dick about it!" Spiral called out.
"Honestly, I don't see what the problem is." A voice spoke from another table.
The group turned toward where they heard the voice to see a boy with short grey hair wearing a white hoodie with a black T-shirt underneath it and dark blue khakis sitting at another table, simply writing on a bunch of papers that were scattered about his area.
"Either way, it's a lose-lose situation." The boy said. "Even if he does accept the arranged marriage, he doesn't have any sort of affections toward the woman and the likelihood of conception decreases greatly."
"… Is a kid lecturing us on childbearing?" Flora asked. "… Come to think of it, who is he anyway?"
"I just joined the guild earlier this morning." The boy said. "My name is Schroder McCloud (Age 10)."
"… That name is so silly!" Sakura chuckled. "How about we call you 'Shroud' for short?"
"I would prefer you not to call me that." He replied.
"Too bad, we're calling you that." Sakura said.
"Come to think of it, that guy looks new, too." Spiral said, pointing toward a man sitting at another table.
The man had messy brown hair, carried a large gun on his back and wore a tan coat over a white shirt and blue dress pants. The man was also drinking a bottle of booze.
"Is he… Is he drinking?" Aqua asked. "… At 10 in the morning?"
"Yo!" The man said as he waved his hand to Spiral and Aqua.
The two of them walked over to the man.
"You members of this guild, too?" The man asked.
"Yes, and you must be new." Spiral replied.
"The name's Tristan Mercer (Age 27)." The man introduced himself. "Just joined the guild myself. Heard a rumor that lot of powerful wizards were here, strong enough to even give Saber Tooth a run for its money."
"That sounds like a bit of stretch." Aqua said nervously with a sweat drop on the back of her head.
"What was all that yelling about earlier?" Tristan asked.
"Well-" Aqua was about to say.
"Aqua, I don't think Jason wants us telling people, even our own guild mates, what's happening in his life right now." Spiral said.
"You certainly know how to respect a man's privacy, kid." Tristan said.
Jason was at the pier, sitting on a bench and looking out at the ocean. He was grasping his hands together tightly and he looked like he was about to cry.
"Jason, what brings you out here?" A voice asked.
Jason looked up to see Ethan standing right in front of him.
"I…" Jason said before letting out a big sigh. "My family is pressuring me into a relationship and… I just can't do it… Ethan, when I met Fairy Tail 6 years ago there was this girl on their team…"
"Oh, I see." Ethan said as he took a seat next to Jason. "You have a crush on this girl. Who is it? Don't worry, you can tell me."
"Uh…" Jason felt a little nervous to answer.
"How about this?" Ethan asked. "I'll tell you the girl I have a crush on and then you can tell me yours."
"Okay."
"I… like Lucy." Ethan blushed. "Okay, who's yours? Erza?"
"… Wendy… I was 12 when I met her!"
"Heheh, it's okay."
"She was so nice… and she was so adorable… It was the first time I ever found myself liking a girl… I've been waiting for 6 years and she hasn't come back. My family is pressuring me and now all of my friends are saying I should move on to someone else. You're lucky, Ethan! At least you can still wait for Lucy! I'm going to be trapped in a loveless marriage, living out the rest of my life in a miserable existence!"
"… Well, I don't know what else to tell you." Ethan said as he stood up. "But all I can say is… your friends just want you to be happy."
"Then why were they telling me to move on?"
"They'd rather see you with someone you actually like and got to know than someone your parents just picked out for you."
Jason simply looked down and sighed. "Thank you, Ethan."
"No problem. If you ever need to talk again, you know where to find me."
Later that day, Jason had returned to the guild hall and entered Blaise's office.
"Master Blaise, are you in there?" He asked.
It seemed as though Blaise was talking with someone through a communications lacrima.
"Oh, Jason, what brings you here?" Blaise asked.
"Jason?" A voice spoke from the lacrima.
Jason walked up to Blaise and saw that she was speaking with Kagura through the lacrima.
"Master, can I talk to you about something important?" Jason asked.
"Oh, sure." Blaise answered. "Kagura, I'll have to call you back." She ended the communication and turned to Jason. "So, what is it you want to talk about?"
"Remember how I said that my parents are pressuring me to find a girlfriend, but I'm still waiting for someone?"
"You've mentioned it, yes."
"Well… I haven't told anyone this, but my parents said that if I don't have a girlfriend by the end of the month they're going to force me into an arranged marriage."
"But you still haven't moved on, have you?"
"… No… And if I'm forced into marriage, they're going to make me quit the guild. I feel like I have no control over my life anymore."
"Jason…" Blaise said as she placed her hand on his shoulder. "You're a Phoenix Dawn wizard. If they even dare to take you away from us, they'll regret it."
"Thanks." Jason said, starting to tear up.
"However, that doesn't mean you shouldn't look for someone in the next month."
"But who the hell am I supposed to ask out? I need a wizard girlfriend and the only girl around my age here is Aqua and I'm just not interested in her."
"Well, you have to find someone."
Jason groaned and left the office and Blaise went back to her communications lacrima.
"Sorry, Kagura." Blaise said. "Jason needed to get something off his chest."
"What's wrong with Jason?" Kagura asked over the lacrima.
"His parents are forcing him to find a girlfriend within the next month or they're going to force him into an arranged marriage and leave the guild." Blaise answered. "I… probably shouldn't have said that. Jason wouldn't like it if I went around telling everyone about his problem."
On the other end of the communications lacrima at the Mermaid Heel guild hall, Kagura was talking to Blaise in her fancy bedroom.
"No, no, that's okay." Kagura said to Blaise. "How is Jason taking it?"
"Not well, I'm afraid." Blaise said. "He's still hoping for this girl to return to him and based on the words he used, he must be miserable right now."
Kagura could feel her heart tightening upon hearing that. "… Blaise, tell Jason to meet me in Hargeon in two days."
"Kagura, what are you-"
"Just leave everything to me."
The communication was cut off and Kagura was about to take a sip of tea.
"… Why did I just get myself into?"
December 8, X790
In the port town of Hargeon, Kagura was sitting on a park bench until Jason walked up to her.
"Kagura, you wanted to see me?" Jason asked.
Kagura stood up. "Yes. Listen, Blaise told me about what's happening with you."
"This isn't some sort of prank, is it?"
"No, it's not. Jason, when I heard how miserable you were… I just couldn't bear to leave you like this. That's why…" She closed her eyes for several seconds. "I want to be your pretend girlfriend."
"… Uuuuuhh…"
"You just take me to see your parents at the end of the month and they'll be out of your hair for a while. If they ever ask why we're not engaged, it's because I don't feel ready yet."
"… You know, at first I wanted to avoid lying, but at this point I'm willing to go with anything. Thanks, Kagura."
Kagura lightly smiled. "You're welcome."
"You know, if I wasn't waiting for that other girl I'd actually consider asking you out. But you're probably not interested."
Kagura could feel her heart shake a little, but she kept a straight face. "Um, you know, I feel bad for dragging you out here for a short talk. How about I treat you to 8 Island? Think of it as paying you back for the tea a few months back."
"That's very thoughtful of you. All right, let's eat."
A/N: Yeah, I stopped the chapter a little short because I didn't want to force anything in there that's not needed. But I hope you all enjoyed it! Stay tuned for next time!