Kinana blinked when she heard a crash outside the window of her room, followed by swearing. Pulling the covers away, the twenty-three year old walked on shaky legs to open the window.
"That hurt," The man sat up, rubbing his head. He blinked and looked up, locking eyes with Kinana and they both gasped at the same time.
"I know you," She whispered, staring at the maroon-haired man- an older version of the boy from her memories.
"K-Kinana," He said, eyes wide.
"Kinana!" He exclaimed, running through the trees. He cupped his hands around his mouth. "Kinana!" His ears twitched when they picked up on small hiccups from behind a tree. He found his purple haired friend with her knees pulled to her chest, stifling sobs.
She looked up when he knelt in front of her, and his eyes narrowed when he caught sight of the ugly bruise on her cheek.
"I did it again. My mom got mad at me," She sniffed, rubbing at her tears furiously. The maroon haired boy shocked her by pulling her forward into a hug.
"When we're big, I won't let anyone hurt you,"
"Erik," She breathed, before blinking. Kinana's eyes widened. "Erik! You- Where have you been? You went missing…"
"I-I got raised by a dragon," He blurted, "And you-you- Got turned into a snake?" Kinana giggled, crossing her arms and leaning out the window.
"Yeah. After you left, I ran away. Staying was pointless without you," Her smiled turned into a frown. "But some things are still fuzzy,"
"How did you get turned?" Erik leant back on his hands. Kinana thought for a moment before her face vanished in the window. Before Erik could speak, she jumped and landed beside him. "Kina!" He exclaimed.
"What?"
"Mirajane's going to kill me if you get injured so soon after the Master turned you back," Erik groaned.
Kinana sat criss-cross facing him. "You're scared of her? She seems nice enough,"
"She's gotta be some sort of monster if she's mated to Laxus," Erik mumbled under his breath.
"Laxus?" Kinana asked, tilting her head.
"My brother. But what about you?"
"Well," She chewed her lip, thinking hard. "I guess it was a year- No, six months. Yeah!" She nodded. "Six months after you left. The village got raided by dark wizards. Anyone young and strong was taken captive while everyone else was killed or had run away. My parents were killed, and your father tried to run but he was killed as well," Kinana began. "They took us to an island, and put us in cuffs and such and forced us to work,"
"The Tower of Heaven," Erik said, earning a nod of agreement from the purple haired woman.
"Yeah. I was there for a while, but something happened," She frowned. "And- One of them turned me into a tiny snake,"
"And that's when I met you, as Cubellios," Erik nodded. "Is that all you remember?" Kinana curled up, pulling her knees to her chest.
"If I'm being honest, I barely remember anything. Most of it comes in flashes," Green eyes met purple, "But I remember you. Your name and your face. And you make me feel safe,"
Erik went pink at that, opening his mouth when.
"Erik!" The two sweatdropped when they heard the roar, slowly turning to look up at Mirajane.
The Alpha was glowering down at them, arms crossed, a dark aura around her. She had small horns on the top of her head, lightning crackling around them.
"I told you to leave her alone and let her rest! She's been through enough and she doesn't need you bothering her!" Mirajane yelled out the window, glaring at him.
"I-It- I was just going to check on her! I didn't think she'd even recognize me or that I'd recognize her- And it was Kina's idea to jump out the window I told her not to!"
"It's alright, Mirajane!" Kinana called up. "I feel better. And Erik helps my memories!"
Mirajane sighed, "Well will you two at least come inside?"
o - o - o - o - o - o - o - o
"So you know Erik from before the Nest?" Mirajane asked, the other two sitting at the kitchen island as she stood.
"Aye. We were friends in our old village. About six months after he left I was taken to the Tower of Heaven, but everything after that is a bit of a blur," Kinana frowned. "I keep hearing this voice, asking to hear my thoughts,"
Erik blanched, before turning to look at Kinana. "You can still- You hear that?"
"It's you?" Kinana blinked.
"Yeah" He nodded. "When you were still Cubellios we could speak telepathically, though my responses were usually verbal,"
"Don't even try it," Mirajane deadpanned. "Kinana still needs to rest. Once she's on her feet again, go for it,"
"Mira, she's fine, I can still stick around just to help anyway," Erik gestured. The twenty-five year old crossed her arms with a roll of her eyes.
"No. Erik, the Master still wants to speak with you, so head back to the guild- Yes, now," She gave him a look when he opened his mouth, "I'll stay here with Kinana. She'll be fine, Erik," Mirajane gave a knowing smile. "Laxus was the same way when I got back from my last mission. He refused to leave my side for days. You males and your senseless worrying,"
"Sh-Shut up!" Erik growled before leaving the room, tugging the collar of his coat up.
"The language of dragons," Mirajane told Kinana, "We can teach you, if you want,"
"No, I," Kinana frowned, "I understood what you were saying perfectly," She went silent, thinking. It was a while before she stood up, "I think I'm going to sleep. Maybe resting will help my memory,"
"I can only imagine how you would've reacted," Mirajane smiled to herself, looking out the window. She twisted her wedding ring around her finger, thinking of the man who gave it to her. "Laxus..."