AN: Thanks NinjaGogeta, name the missing, AliceCullen3, and Goku275.
NinjaGogeta, thank you for pointing that out. I didn't really think about how the bet would be traumatic. To me, her suffering was more from being callously tossed away than from the being stripped part. Don't worry, though, because Yukino will not suffer a horrible experience. After all, this time she has a guild that cares for her.
That's all for now. Enjoy!
"So you sensed the magic yesterday?" asked Juvia, echoing what Meredy had just told her. She had met up with the ex-dark mage to covertly exchange information about the Zeref-like magic that Crime Sorcière had detected each year during the Grand Magic Games.
"Yes," answered Meredy, frowning. "We sensed it flare up in the direction of the Domus Flau around when 'Hidden' occurred. Since then, however, we haven't been able to detect anything."
"Could the magic have been coming from one of the competitors?" suggested Juvia, struggling to recall who participated other than Gray. "Maybe that idiotic Raven who attacked my beloved Gray."
"I don't think so. The signature faded about halfway through, so it probably wasn't anybody taking part in the event. But, given Bluenote's association with them, you might be right about Raven Tail being involved."
Juvia's expression darkened. "I wouldn't be surprised. Those carrion feeders have been harassing Fairy Tail since before the Games began. In fact, earlier today they had some goons attempt to kidnap Wendy from the infirmary!"
Meredy recoiled, horror etched onto her face. "They did what!? Why haven't they been arrested for that!?"
"Unfortunately, we only had the word of the would-be kidnappers as evidence. However, I'm worried that they might try something again tomorrow. Given their habit of taking cheap shots, I suspect that they'll target Yukino."
"She's the one that… uh… lost to Jenny Realight, right?" asked Meredy awkwardly. Juvia nodded. "Sorry about that, by the way. Even if Yukino agreed to it, the bet… it was…"
"Inappropriate!" shouted Juvia as Meredy trailed off. "Following through on that wager could ruin Yukino's life — or, at the very least, her reputation — consequences that Yukino was too excited to think about while she was moments away from fighting!"
"How is she doing, by the way?" inquired Meredy, although she knew the answer wouldn't be anything good.
"As soon as she regained consciousness, Yukino began crying," answered Juvia, frowning as she remembered her guildmate's tears. "After Porlyusica let her go, she asked if she could skip tomorrow's events. She wants to be alone for a bit."
"I get it," replied Meredy. "If something that humiliating happened to me, I'd definitely want some space. I can get one of my guildmates to covertly keep an eye on her and make sure that Raven Tail doesn't make things even worse."
"Thank you so much," responded Juvia. Now that she knew Yukino would be safe, it felt like a weight had been taken off of her shoulders.
Erza wandered through the streets of Crocus in an unsuccessful attempt to distract herself from Yukino's current state. The girl was completely miserable over both her defeat and the bet's terms, which she would now have to fulfill.
If Mirajane hadn't already gone to 'talk' with Jenny, about that wager, Erza would be giving her a very stern talking to.
"Hm? I didn't expect to see you here, Erza Scarlet."
Erza turned and saw a familiar face, though not one she knew well.
"You are Kagura Mikazuchi, correct?" asked the knightly mage. Kagura responded with a firm nod. "The strength you displayed during your match earlier was impressive. I hope that you and I can face off at some point."
"Even if we do, I will not be able to give you a true match," replied Kagura. She brought a hand to her side, brushing it against her sheathed sword. "I named this blade 'Archenemy,' as I shall not draw it unless it's to cut down my nemesis… an enemy I hate so much that it's impossible to live in the same world as him."
"Is that right?"
"It's meant for the man who stole everything from me," spoke Kagura, her voice full of hatred. "This sword is meant to kill Jellal!"
"Huh?" went Erza, tensing up. Obviously, she remembered that Jellal had wronged many people when he ruled over the Tower of Heaven. However, due to her knowledge of his remorse and acts of penance in Crime Sorcière, Erza hadn't thought about how there were people out there who had active grudges against the former dark mage.
"I suppose it's rather fortunate that we met here," mused Kagura, ignorant to Erza's inner turmoil. "Like me, you've suffered at the hands of that man. You were a slave in the Tower of Heaven, and I know from my research that Jellal abducted you seven years ago, when…"
Kagura trailed off, frowning as she thought about that incident.
"It's because of that event," realized Erza. "Whatever Jellal did that earned Kagura's animosity, it took place when he tried to sacrifice me to activate the R-System."
"Anyway," said Kagura, snapping out of her bad memories. "I would like to know if you, being acquainted with that man, have any idea of any hiding places or secret routes he may have."
"I do not," answered Erza tersely. "Although we were close as children, before he… Our interactions since then have not been the sort where that type of information would come up."
"I see," responded Kagura, disappointed. Fortunately for Erza, the swordswoman had mistaken the Fairy's tension for trauma. "Goodbye, then. I'll see you at the Games tomorrow."
With that, Erza was alone with her thoughts again. Only, this time, the Fairy had two things she didn't want to think about.
"Perhaps I should compete in tomorrow's event. It should make me feel better and give me a means of venting all of this stress I feel."
"Well, today went rather poorly," stated Makarov. Before him was Team Fairy Tail B (minus Yukino); Natsu, Rogue, Laxus, Gajeel, and reserve member Romeo. "A single point, a kidnapping attempt, and a miserable friend."
They all grimaced, thinking about the team's final member, who was currently hiding in their inn room due to shame. To give her some privacy, they were having this discussion in the lobby.
"This should be obvious," continued the guild master. "But, unless Yukino herself decides otherwise, Romeo will be filling in for her for the duration of the Grand Magic Games."
"I'll do my best!" proclaimed the young fire mage. While the circumstances definitely could have been better, Romeo couldn't stop himself from getting excited at the thought of participating in the Games alongside his idol — Natsu Dragneel.
"Also," said Makarov, turning toward Natsu to scold the dragon. "Don't take part in any more of the non-battle events. Be a good sport and give your teammates a chance to compete."
Natsu scowled, both because of the request and the fact that he was being treated like a child. He responded to the guild master's words in a sulky tone. "…Fine."
"So then," began Laxus. "If that's all, I agreed to meet up with the Thunder God Tribe."
"Yeah," said Gajeel. "I'm going to hang out with Lily and Levy."
"Frosch wanted to visit a pond and see some frogs," commented Rogue.
Makarov gave a nod, confirming he was done. However…
"Wait!" exclaimed Romeo, slightly nervous. "Before you all go, there's something I want to ask you guys."
"Yeah? What is it?" inquired Natsu, raising an eyebrow.
"For tomorrow's event," said Romeo, gulping. "…codibethontocpte!"
"Can you repeat that?" requested Makarov. "I had a little trouble hearing."
"I said, 'could I be the one to compete?'" clarified Romeo. "I really want to show off how much I've improved since the Tartaros incident."
The five men glanced at one another, then nodded.
"Go ahead!" answered Natsu with a thumbs-up. "Show everyone what it means to be in Fairy Tail!"
"Well, maybe not exactly what that means," joked Makarov. "I'd rather not have to deal with the repercussions of destroying the Domus Flau in the middle of the Grand Magic Games, especially not with the event getting broadcast across the entire country!"
Romeo smiled. "I'll do Fairy Tail proud!"
"Two days have passed, and yet not one of the twelve keys are in our possession!" complained Arcadios to himself. "At this rate, Eclipse won't be brought to full functionality by the time of the upcoming solar eclipse! We'll have to wait another seven years, assuming we aren't destroyed by Zeref or Acnologia before then!"
The knight chief was currently alone in his office, fuming about his recent string of bad luck. "Not only that, but we still have no idea where that intruder went! It shouldn't be that difficult! Why is the Cherry Blossom Holy Knight Squadron failing so much!"
"Sir," spoke a voice, distracting Arcadios from his rant. Kama stood before him, giving a salute. "I have a report."
Arcadios was glad that, of all the possible units to be assigned to the Eclipse project, the Garou Knights had been chosen to work under him. Kama was a very professional man, loyally serving his kingdom even when it meant acting as somebody else's subordinate. Most people in his position would let their pride or ambition get the better of them, yet Kama dutifully obeyed all of Arcadios's orders.
"I hope it's good news," said Arcadios, pretending that he hadn't just been caught throwing a temper tantrum.
"It is," replied Kama, following his superior's lead. "One of the Celestial Spirit Mages, Yukino, will not be attending tomorrow's events in order to recover from the physical and emotional wounds she received earlier. She will be completely alone."
"Good," stated Arcadios with a sigh of relief. However, the recent failures had instilled a bit of caution in the knight. "But who should we send to capture her? She's not as injured as we had hoped, and an unexpected ally showing up is within the realm of possibility. Except, it would be troublesome if whomever we sent was recognized."
"Perhaps we should send the White Tiger Squadron," suggested Kama. "Their failure to guard Dragon Cry has left them with no major duties and a powerful motivation to get stronger and redeem themselves. Additionally, the isolated nature of the White Tiger Squadron has made it so that few people outside the castle would recognize them."
"Yes, that should work," agreed Arcadios. "Fortunately, their leader is an old friend of mine, so I know how to contact them."
Things were looking up. By this time tomorrow, they would have their hands on two of the twelve Golden Keys. Nothing could stop them!
"Well," started the figure as they munched on their dinner. They were currently staying in their inn room 24/7 to avoid unwanted attention. "The innkeeper definitely thinks I'm a weirdo for wearing a cloak and staying in my room the whole time. On the bright side, I've regained most of my strength, and you've finally woken up."
"…"
The figure sat quietly, as if listening to someone. But, if the innkeeper were to enter the room, he would not see anyone aside from the figure, nor hear a voice other than theirs.
"Today's the second day of the Grand Magic Games," explained the figure. "I landed here yesterday, just before the first round began."
"…"
"A guard saw me, but I was able to get away from him," they said. "Then, I shook down a mugger and used his cash to get this cloak and rent this room until that happens."
"…"
"Yeah," agreed the figure. "So, what should I do?"
"…"
"Don't worry," they spoke confidently, cracking a knuckle. "I'll make sure they regret it!"
"…"
"What!?" exclaimed the figure. "Why not!?"
"…"
"Then what am I supposed to do!?"
"…"
"Fine," they grumbled, scowling. "But I better get to do something more exciting the day after tomorrow."
"…"
A few seconds later, the figure's irritated frown vanished, replaced by a smile.
Omake
Jenny had a bad feeling. Before her was Mirajane Strauss, her rival, wearing a smile that felt terrifyingly insincere.
"Why did you want to meet with me?" asked Jenny apprehensively.
"I just felt like we should talk able what happened earlier today," said Mirajane with faux-cheerfulness. "You know, when you had my guildmate agree to a bet where she would be forced to pose nude for a magazine."
"N-now hold on!" stammered Jenny, desperate to defend herself. "That wager was completely optional! Yukino chose to accept it!"
"I hardly think that a young person who's primed for battle is in the right mindset to consider the ramifications of that bet. The pictures would be leered at by thousands of strangers, and the effect it would have on her reputation might never go away."
"That's…" trailed off Jenny, unable to respond.
What Mirajane said was true. When they became models, the two of them accepted that strangers would have potentially-suggestive pictures of them.
Yukino, on the other hand, was completely unprepared for the consequences and would likely become mortified — if she wasn't already. And that wasn't even getting into the insults and perverted requests that would be sent her way once the photos were taken and printed.
"I'm sorry," apologized a chastened Jenny, bowing. "I'll cancel the bet immediately. Sorcerer Magazine won't be happy, though."
"Oh, I have an idea for that," said Mirajane, her fake smile softening into a real one. Despite that, however, the Fairy's words made the bad feeling in Jenny's gut worsen.
AN: The Figure is not alone. I doubt that anyone will be able to guess the identity of the Figure's companion, though. Or the Figure's identity, for that matter. I don't really know how to leave clues without being too obvious, so I haven't really given any hints (aside from a really small one this chapter, which only reduces the number of suspects). Sorry about that. Bye!