Finally. FINALLY I'M DONE WITH SCHOOL. With everything going on, I can now get back to all my stories. Though of course, life can be unpredictable, the rate of updates I can do for these stories will be severely limited.
Felipe1402XZA: I hope you meant as friends.
TheEmeraldMage: Trust me, more changes will occur in canon.
Peanutsaber: Yusei is at the end of 5ds, so he does have Shooting Quasar. Maki is after season one of Fire Force. And Oliver is from the season five finale of Arrow.
CRUDEN: Thanks… I guess.
Zatil Hidayah Spensa: I'll switch around the teams since making a third one feels kinda lazy.
Fanreader123456: Glad you're enjoying the story, my friend.
BanRedfox: Hehehe, a lot more villains will work together. There will be way more problems for everyone than in canon. Oliver stopped him from going off, but yeah, Yusei had to ensure nothing went bad.
DragonTamer1: Hope you mean they would be friends cause I got a Ryuko pairing in mind.
Fpinheiro96: You'll have to see;)
To recap: The Fairy Tail guild gathered to see the battle between Natsu and Erza. Although it started out well, but then, Erza and Yusei were taken to trial for their actions against Lullaby. However, before they could be taken to their cells, a man named Adrian Chase arrived and made an offer to the council: either allow Yusei and Erza to leave or have evidence of their role in Lullaby exposed. Reluctantly, the council agreed and allowed them to leave, though the Fairy Tail wizards felt there was something wrong with Adrian.
Will the group learn who Adrian Chase is? And what will the Magic Council do with Fairy Tail? Let's find out…
'Fairy Tail guildhall, afternoon'
"Seriously?! It was just a bluff?!" Lucy questioned with a surprised tone as she sat in front of Erza and Yusei, who had just returned from their 'trial.' Needless to say, their arrival was unexpected to most of them. Honestly, everyone thought they would at least spend a day in a cell or something so the Magic Council would show them what would happen if they disobeyed them.
"I knew something like this would happen. It's just like the Council to scare us." Gray muttered in anger while crossing his arms.
"Still, I'm glad both of you made it home alright." Maki told Yusei and Erza with a smile. Truth be told, she was worried that Yusei would be forced to confess that he was from another world, which would mostly likely lead to her and Oliver's arrest as well.
"Thanks, but I don't think it's over yet." Yusei confessed with a frown as Mira gave him a cup of tea.
"Well, as long as everyone's alright, that's all that matters." Mirajane told him with a sweet smile.
"Still, we must be cautious from now on." Erza told everyone with a serious and stern tone. "It is true that me and Yusei were able to leave without any consequences, the fact remains that the Magic Council will do anything to shift the blame onto us."
"How was it you were found not guilty? I doubt anyone would want to defend Fairy Tail." Oliver couldn't help but ask with somewhat narrowed eyes. Being the ever so cautious guy he was, Oliver found it convenient that Yusei and Erza were left off the hook after that frog lady came to arrest them. There was just something that didn't add up.
But… he then felt an arm wrap around his shoulders, followed by the feeling of something soft against his arm.
"Come on. Why so serious all the time? Just be happy they're here." Cana told Oliver with a smirk.
"You'd be right, Oliver. But someone DID step up." Yusei told him with a serious tone. "For some reason, he had evidence that the trial was fake and that me and Erza would be used as scapegoats. Not to mention papers that proved it was the Magic Council's fault for Lullaby being stolen."
"Hmmm… now I'm curious about this mysterious person." Makarov finally spoke out with a sagely hum. "I am grateful for what they did, but their methods are questionable."
"Aww, who cares?! You're out and that's all that matters!" Natsu yelled before he gave Erza a toothy grin. "Say, we still haven't finished our fight, Erza!"
"I'm not in the mood right now." Erza sternly told him while sipping her own cup of tea. This didn't stop Natsu from igniting his fist, rushing towards her in full force.
"I'm not letting you off the hook that easy!" He shouted with a victorious chuckle. Sighing in annoyance, Erza stood up from her chair…
*SMACK*
Faster than anyone could see, Erza slammed her metal fist into Natsu's stomach, causing him to gasp while his flames disappeared. With a whimper, Natsu fell on the ground.
"How's that?" Erza asked rhetorically while looking down at Natsu. Most of the guild simply stared at Erza in pure shock, though there were a few who sweatdropped.
"And he's out!" Happy cheered out as many of the guild members began laughing at Natsu's expense.
'Humans are such foolish creatures.' Oracle thought with a sigh while perched on the nearest window sill. However, as much as she didn't want to admit it, she found it a bit refreshing to see Fairy Tail act like fools. Much better than the boring people she worked with prior. However, she soon felt something in the air, making her narrow her eyes.
"Is something wrong, Master?" Mirajane asked Makarov, who had just let out a tired sigh.
"I'm fine. Just sleepy." Makarov confessed with tired eyes, much to Mirajane's surprise. He then looked ahead with narrowed eyes. "He's coming." Before she could question him, Mira suddenly began to feel tired, making her grab her face. Then, losing all her strength, she fell on the ground with a loud thud.
"Mira?" The Champions quickly stood up, surprised by the white haired barmaid's sudden act.
"Mmmm… so sleepy…" Laki muttered while rubbing her eyes.
"Dammit… not again…" Gray said tiredly, trying his best to stay away. One by one, the Fairy Tail wizards all succumb to sleep.
"Yusei… Oli… ver…" Even Maki was unable to stand up as she fell on the table, head first. Yusei attempted to draw a card, but he then lost his footing, falling to sleep as well.
The only one who was able to somewhat fight against this was Oliver, though he was leaning against the table to support himself. He could faintly hear footsteps coming from the front of the guild. Forcefully turning his body, Oliver saw a newcomer arrive.
They were a rather mysterious figure, wearing a dark blue cloak and their arms and legs are mostly covered in bandages. They seem to wear a dark blue bandana with a silver forehead protector, and a green mask that obscures the bottom half of their face to hide their identity and sandals.
The figure began walking forward, making sure not to step on anyone along the way. Oliver gathered what little strength he had left to requip his bow and an arrow.
"Don't… move…" Oliver tiredly warned as he began pulling the arrow on the bow, trying to get a good visual on the mysterious figure. Seeing this, the figure stopped, looking at Oliver.
"You're resisting. Impressive." They said in a somewhat rough, male tone. Yet, for some odd reason, Oliver could have sworn he had heard that voice before. Then again, he was too tired to even think, let alone move.
"It's fine, Oliver. He's one of us." Makarov revealed to Oliver, making his eyes widen. "Mystogan."
The newly revealed "Mystogan" said nothing as he walked past Oliver, making his way to the request board. Finding a job that had a high bounty, he tore it off the wall and walked up to Makarov to show him. "I shall return." He said calmly.
"No, wait. Lift your sleeping sleep first." Makarov ordered the cloaked figure, who said nothing and began to walk away.
"Five… four… three… two…" It was then he reached the doors to the guildhall doors, where he would finally cancel his spell. "One." And with that, Mystogan was gone.
The instant he was outside, everyone had awoken in surprise… except for Natsu, who opted to keep sleeping like it was no deal.
"Aww, man. Was Mystogan here?"
"Seriously, what a jerk."
"Does he really need to knock us all out whenever he comes by?" Everyone began commenting groggily about the masked Fairy Tail member, which only shows how many times this had actually happened.
"Myst-who?" Maki asked while yawning in her hand.
"He's a contender for Fairy Tail's strongest wizard." Elfman explained while stretching his arm.
"And for some reason, he doesn't want anyone to see his face." Gray added while rubbing his face.
"He just came in and took a job form before leaving. He's definitely hiding something." Oliver spoke up with a serious tone, though many of the members looked at him in surprise.
"Wait, you actually SAW what he looked like?" Macao asked in a bewildered tone. Even he hadn't seen Mystogan, and he was a damn veteran!
"He's not the ONLY one who's seen him." A new voice called out from the second floor, getting everyone's attention.
The speaker was a very tall and muscular young man with blue/gray eyes and blond hair slicked back, its numerous spiky strands pointing backwards, though some fell down in a small tuft on his forehead. He has a distinct lightning bolt-shaped scar on his right eye and his eyes have dark circles, with each of them possessing a single, prominent eyelash jutting outwards. He donned a leopard-print, orange tunic with dark-lined sleeves reaching down below his elbows, and fur on the lower edges. He sported a bright red cape, tied on the front with a garish knot, which bore a large, lighter Fairy Tail symbol on the back, and loose, baggy dark pants tucked inside light metal greaves. Around his waist was a simple belt to which he attached the device linked to his Magic Headphones. He also had a small chain tied around his right wrist. The young man gave a cocky grin as he looked down at everyone while leaning against the railing, his hand under his chin.
"Laxus?" Elfman asked in surprise.
"Talk about rare. You're never here." Wakaba added.
"And here's another contender." Gray informed the newcomers, who looked at Laxus with interest.
"Mystogan's a little shy. You should all at least respect his privacy." Laxus told them with a grin before he looked down at Oliver. "Though, I admit, I wasn't expecting anyone else to actually fight through his sleep spell. Even red over there fell asleep with all the other weaklings."
"Weaklings?" Maki said with a frown, not liking what he was implying. Natsu, hearing Laxus' voice, quickly got up with a glare.
"Laxus! Come down here and fight me!" Natsu demanded with a glare, making Laxus grin even wider.
"Getting your butt kicked once today wasn't enough?" Gray asked bluntly.
"Tch. If you can't even win against the redhead, why even bother fighting me?" Laxus asked arrogantly, catching Erza's attention.
"What is THAT supposed to mean?" Erza questioned, now glaring harshly at Laxus. If he was implying that she was weak, then they were gonna have some problems.
"I'm saying that I'm the guild's strongest wizard." Laxus declared to everyone with his arms extended. Everyone could just feel the amount of arrogance he had.
'Great. He reminds me of how Jack was before joining the Signers.' Yusei thought, making the comparison. At least his friend had more compassion, even when he was acting cocky.
"Come down and prove it!" Natsu yelled.
"Why don't you come up and try me?" Laxus challenged Natsu with a knowing grin.
"Fine!" With that, Natsu ran towards the bar, jumping off the table and heading straight towards Laxus with the intent to beat him.
*SMACK*
Unfortunately, Makarov anticipated this and grew his hand to giant size, slamming Natsu to the ground like he was a bug.
"You're not allowed on the second floor, Natsu." Makarov calmly told Natsu with his eyes closed. "At least not yet."
'That was rather excessive. Then again, everyone in this building is overdramatic.' Oracle thought as she watched everything unfold.
"Huh. Looks like you made him grumpy." Laxus teased Natsu, amused at how pathetic Natsu was.
"That's enough out of you, Laxus." Makarov quickly shouted, making sure not to leave Laxus out of the scolding.
"The most powerful one in the guild isn't a chick or some hooded weirdo!" Laxus started to say while squeezing his hand. "You want to know what the strongest wizard looks like? You're looking right at him!"
Everyone in the guild either glared at Laxus or merely looked away. As much as everyone wanted to deny it, Laxus IS one of the strongest wizards in the guild. Even more so than Erza herself. So his claim isn't completely untrue.
"Are you done?" Oliver suddenly spoke up, not even looking at Laxus.
"Huh? What was that?" Laxus questioned with a frown, wondering why the blonde haired man spoke up like that.
"I said are you done?" Oliver repeated while drinking from his mug. "The way you boast about your strength sounds like you're compensating for something. Maybe it's a lack of confidence, or maybe you just like hearing the sound of your own voice. Either way, it makes you look weak."
Everyone in the guild hall, even Erza and Mirajane, looked at Oliver with wide eyes and some even had gaped mouths. Was he ACTUALLY standing up to Laxus of all people? This new guy, who JUST joined them one day ago?!
*CRACKLE*
In a flash of lightning, Laxus appeared behind Oliver, giving him a cold glare.
"Are you REALLY trying to start something, asshole?" Laxus asked Oliver with a hint of anger in his voice. He was already annoyed that he wasn't going to knock that annoying clown Natsu out, but now this guy comes in and starts insulting him? Like hell he was just gonna walk away from this!
Oliver, without saying a word, stood up and turned towards Laxus. Despite being an inch shorter, he still glared at the blonde lighting user like he would any criminal he hunted down.
"I've fought people who had power, who always boasted about it. But you want to know what happened to them?" Oliver asked rhetorically. "They lost. All because they got cocky and didn't think things through. I'm telling you that the way you're acting now WILL end with you on your ass. So, think before you start boasting about being the strongest wizard. Because frankly, I know Natsu and Erza can beat you."
It was a rare sight to see Laxus this angry. His eyes were wide in shock before he gave Oliver a glare that could even make Zeref's demons flinch. Gritting his teeth, Laxus opened his left hand, lightning shooting out of it.
"Then how about you and I go outside and I show you just how cocky I am?" Laxus asked, more like demanded, Oliver.
"ENOUGH!" Makarov shouted, having seen enough of this arguing. "Laxus, you've done enough. Leave."
Laxus looked over his shoulder and saw Makarov giving him a deep glare, which showed how serious he was. He then looked around, seeing Erza, Gray, Yusei and Maki standing up, ready to jump in if things got out of hand.
So, with a scoff, Laxus closed his hand. Pocketing his hands, he began walking towards the exit, but not without slamming his shoulder against Oliver's. Everyone just watched in silence as Laxus let the building, with many of them sighing in relief.
"Wow, that was close." Lucy said while putting a hand over her beating heart.
"That was manly, Oliver! I didn't think you had it in ya!" Elfman congratulated the archer while slapping his back.
"Yeah. Only the master's been able to talk back to Laxus like that. You got guts." Gray commented, a hint of respect in his voice.
"Like I said, I've dealt with people like him." Oliver simply said with a shrug. Given his line of work, he was bound to fight those that were way stronger than him. Solomon Grundy, Deathstroke, even Damien Darhk. "But I am curious why Makarov didn't let Natsu go upstairs."
"Oh, I can answer that." Mirajane said as she walked up to the table with a smile. "You see, that area is reserved for advanced members of the guild."
"Advanced?" Maki couldn't help but ask.
"The jobs upstairs can only be accepted by S-Class wizards. They are called S-Class quests and they have higher rewards than the job requests down here." Erza chimed in.
"I'm guessing S-Class is the next level wizards can go, right?" Yusei questioned, curious to hear more about this.
"Yup. They're jobs that are so dangerous, that one wrong move could be your last, so they're reserved for only the best wizards." Mirajane continued as she began gathering the empty mugs to clean later. "But the high risk means a higher reward. Master Makarov hand picks the wizards he thinks are capable of handling these jobs. There are only five people in the entire guild who are considered S-Class."
"I'm starting to get it. Only those strong enough can take on S-Class quests since someone like Lucy might not make it back alive." Maki spoke up before she turned… and saw Lucy looking down with a cloud over her head. "W-Wait! I didn't mean it like that! I'm not saying you're weak or anything! But compared to someone like Natsu or Gray, you're…"
"No… I get it…" Lucy said with a defeated tone, though the sting of her friend's words still hurt.
"Want a fish to cheer you up?" Happy asked while waving a fish in front of Lucy with puffed cheeks, trying not to laugh. However, Lucy angrily slapped the fish away, prompting Happy to chase it. "My fish!"
"So, who in the guild is considered S-Class?" Oliver asked politely.
"Well… there's Erza, Laxus, Mystogan, Gildarts." Mirajane then gave them a sweet smile. "And there's me too."
"HUH?!" Lucy and Maki both gasped in shock while Yusei and Oliver slightly widened their eyes. Of all people, they didn't expect MIRAJANE, the barmaid and the sweetest girl in the guild, to be S-Class.
"Is it really that surprising?" Mira asked with a tilt of her head.
"Well… yeah!" Lucy said while standing up. "I just… didn't expect you of all people to be S-Class. That's amazing!"
"Thank you. But, I'd rather stay here than go out there. After all, there's no amount of money worth risking your life for." Mirajane told her with a closed eye smile.
And with that, the rest of the day went smoothly for everyone. The stress of the fake trial, as well as Laxus' appearance, was slowly fading away.
However, a certain Dragon Slayer had other plans.
'Magnolia canal, evening'
Lucy was feeling rather chipper, all things considered. Despite how crazy everything was, today was overall normal, and she definitely wanted that after the stuff with Lullaby and that village Oliver was in. Plus, the cool night wind was able to put her at ease with everything.
'Mystogan and Laxus. They're pretty strong. No wonder they're S-Class. I can't believe how many famous wizards are in Fairy Tail.' Lucy thought with a smile. 'And now I'm starting to get the ranking system for everyone.' She could already imagine her friends being mid tier, with some like Happy being the lowest of the low. 'Then again, I wonder where Yusei, Maki and Oliver would be. Probably higher than me.' As annoying as Happy was, he wasn't wrong when he teased how weak Lucy was. However, she got over her self-loathing while clenching her fist. "Well, I guess I gotta start working my way to the top. As she got closer to her apartment building, she noticed a certain Fire Soldier standing outside with a nervous expression. "Maki?"
"O-Oh… hi, Lucy." Maki told her with a nervous smile, making Luck raise a brow.
"Is something wrong?" Lucy questioned, making Maki chuckle.
"Ummm… kind of?" Maki said while scratching her arm. "Well… we've got guests."
"Guests?" It took Lucy a moment to realize who she was referring to, making her groan. "Is it them?" All Maki did was give a nod. "Alright, let's just get this over with." Feeling all her joy disappear and be replaced with annoyance, Lucy and Maki walked up the stairs, reaching their apartment. Grabbing the handle and finding it unlocked, Lucy opened the door, prepared to face whatever was waiting for her.
"Welcome… home!" Lying on her bed was none other than Natsu Dragneel and Happy the cat, with the former doing sit ups without a shirt while the latter was trying his best to lift his tiny dumbbell. Lucy screamed while her eyes bulged out of her eyes.
*SLAM*
Shocked by what she saw, Lucy dropkicked Natsu in the stomach, making him gasp in pain. "You guys stink!" Standing back up, she gave the two a deep glare. "Why don't you jerks work out at your own house?!"
"Come on, Lucy." Natsu told her with a sheepish grin. "If you want to work together like a team, we gotta train like one." He then pulled out a pink dumbbell and offered it to Lucy.
"We thought you'd like the pink dumbbell." Happy added with a smile. "We gave the blue one to Maki."
"And I'm grateful." Maki told the cat with a smile, though she did seem nervous still.
"I don't care what color dumbbells you have, I'm not lifting weights with you!" Lucy shouted at them. However, Natsu and Happy then began to do pushups on her floor. "Are you even listening to me?!"
"We gotta kick it to high gear if we're gonna beat Laxus and Erza." Natsu said with a determined face as he continued to do push ups, with Happy agreeing with him.
"I just want a little peace and quiet! Is that too much?!" Lucy complained, feeling her frustration grow every second.
"Natsu, maybe you should tell Lucy what you told me." Maki suggested, much to Lucy's confusion.
"Oh yeah." Natsu said while giving Maki a thankful nod. "I've made a decision. Our team is ready for the big time: S-Class!"
Much to Lucy's horror, Happy pulled out an S-Class job form.
"HOW DID YOU GET THAT?! I THOUGHT WE WEREN'T ALLOWED TO GO ON THE SECOND FLOOR!" Lucy shouted with eyes the size of dinner plates. She knew Natsu and Happy would do stupid stuff, but this just took the damn cake!
"Well, I just climbed the stairs and took it!" Happy told her without a hint of remorse.
"You little cat burglar!" Lucy shouted at Happy, making him and Natsu chuckle.
"Since this is our first S-Class quest, we decided to go with the smallest reward we found on the board." Natsu informed her while putting on his vest. "But seven million is still a lot of jewel."
"But we aren't ready for it!" Lucy warned Natsu while pointing at the form. "If the master found out you had this, he'd be furious!"
"That's what I tried telling him." Maki chimed in with a disapproving frown.
"Yeah, but I bet he'll be really proud of us if we do it." Natsu told them, still grinning. He knew he had what it took to be S-Class, so by doing this quest, Makarov might see his potential and end up promoting him. 'Then I can show Laxus just how strong I really am.'
"Natsu, this has to be the dumbest thing you've ever done." Lucy said with a sigh as she sat down. "If you wanna rise up the ranks, then you have to follow the guild's rules."
"Geez, we're never gonna reach S-Class with that kind of attitude." Natsu replied with a pout.
"You can handle this on your own. Me and Maki aren't going with you, so you can forget it." Lucy said with a tone that screamed finality.
"But the job is to save a tropical island." Happy explained while showing Lucy the flyer. Despite how much she wanted to go against this, Lucy couldn't help but look at it.
"A tropical island, huh?" Lucy asked as she looked at the flyer. A tropical island setting does sound like a nice change of pace.
"It's the cursed island of Galuna~" Natsu and Happy told her in an ominous tone to scare Lucy, which definitely worked.
"No way! Definitely not going now!" Lucy quickly shot them down while turning away.
"This is still a bad idea, Natsu." Maki said in a scolding tone. "It's not too late to go back and return the job. I'm sure Erza or someone else will take it."
"Come on. Where's your sense of adventure, Maki?" Natsu asked with a frown. "I know it'd be fun to do with our team. Plus, I can get Yusei to come with us. We can totally do this."
"I doubt he'd actually agree with that." Lucy flately told Natsu before realizing something. "Say, where is Yusei?"
"Oh. he said he wanted to work on his runner, so me and Natsu left him at home." Happy informed her with a smile.
"Okay. I guess me and Happy'll get that key they were offering to say Galuna. I thought you'd want it since it's your thing, but, oh well." Natsu said with a shrug as he and Happy began to leave… through the window.
"Can you at least us the do-wait, key?" Lucy shouted before she stopped. Due to having their backs turned on her, Natsu and Happy were able to grin evilly as their plan was coming to motion.
"Oh, nothing. Just a gate key that goes with the big reward. Since you're not going, I guess I could use it to pick my teeth or something." Natsu told her with an uncaring tone. Widening her eyes, Lucy looked at the flyer once again and realized they were right. "But… if you DID come with us, we might give it to you."
"Oh no. Don't even think about it, Lucy. They're trying to trick you." Maki warnede Lucy, realizing what Natsu and Happy were doing.
"Not to mention all the people that need help on Galuna." Happy added while giving Maki his most secret weapon: the big eyes. "I'm sure they need a hero to come help them. I guess only me and Natsu are kind enough to help them while you two stay open, eating cake. Just think of how many of them are screaming, BEGGING for a beautiful fire witch to save them." Maki bit her lower lip, Happy's words echoing in her mind. He was playing dirty, but damn was he convincing. Now, she couldn't stop thinking about all the people that need saying, and as a Fire Soldier, it was her duty to go to them. If she just stayed behind, would that make her a terrible person? Could she just let those people suffer?
"... Okay… we'll go."
'Fairy Tail Guildhall, the next morning'
Oliver was always someone who wanted to keep a schedule. After all, being stranded on Lian Yu taught him how to survive, and to survive, you needed to train.
That's what he decided to do this morning. Wearing a dark green hoodie and black sweatpants, the Green Arrow jogged through Magnolia, letting out small pants so he wouldn't run out of breath too quickly. He had already done his stretches and now just enjoyed a nice jog before heading to the guild for breakfast.
"Good morning."
"Hey, don't push yourself."
"I really need to start working out again." As he ran, Oliver could hear some of the citizens greeting him or just going out their day. It was nice. Refreshing even compared to the gloominess of Star City. Even after years of fighting crime, it was still as corrupt as ever, with no signs of slowing down.
'But still, I can't stop trying to change it.' Oliver thought to himself with narrowed eyes. He made a promise to his father to save Star City and he'd be damned if he failed it again.
"Hey!" Oliver was brought out of his thoughts by a loud, familiar voice. Slowing down and turning his head, Oliver caught sight of Elfman and Cana, with the former of the two waving his arm.
"Elfman, Cana." Oliver greeted them as he stopped. "Good morning."
"Hey. Going for a little work out?" Cana asked rhetorically.
"It's part of my usual routine. Plus, it felt right." Oliver explained with a shrug. "Are you two heading back to the guild?"
"That's right. We're teaming up for this quest I've had my eyes on. It needs a real man and woman to do." Elfman boasted with pride before a thought occurred. "Say, you should come with us. With the way you talked back to Laxus, I see you as a real man!"
"I don't mind." Oliver said, not seeing a problem with it. As important as it was to find this Ankhseram guy, he still needed to make money to survive and the jewel he got from the mayor wasn't going to last.
"Nice. But first: breakfast." Cana told them as the trio began to make their way towards the guild. There was some small talk here and there, though Oliver kept the more private questions a secret for obvious reasons.
However, as soon as they opened the doors to the guildhall, they noticed something was off. Everyone seemed to be in a panic about something.
"What the heck's going on here?" Elfman spoke up loud enough for everyone to hear him.
"You won't believe this. One of the jobs from the second floor's missing." Wakaba explained while blowing out some smoke, much to the surprise of the trio.
"We still don't know who took it since it couldn't have just walked away." Macao added with a frown.
"It was either someone strong or really stupid." Laki commented, trying to deduce the thief.
"I know who took it." Everyone looked up to see Laxus sitting at a table on the second floor with his legs on top of it. "A little blue cat flew up here and ripped it off the board." Everyone gasped at the revelation.
"It was Happy?!" Mirajane questioned with wide eyes. Why on earth would Happy be the one to break one of the biggest rules in Fairy Tail? Several of the guild members began theorizing that it was a plan made by Natsu and possibly Lucy.
"They got some nerve taking on an S-Class quest." Alzack said with a disappointed tone.
"I don't know if I'd call it nerve. But, it's definitely dumb." Bisca added on what her partner said.
"That's a serious breach of the rules." Laxus said with a smirk as he looked at Makarov. "Hey, Gramps! A stunt like that'll get you kicked out of the guild, right? Of course, it's not like those losers will come back, anyways."
"You knew it was Happy, but you didn't do anything about it?" Oliver spoke up, glaring at Laxus. "What's your gain, Laxus?"
"What? I just said I saw a blue cat take it and try to be sneaky. How was I supposed to know it was Happy?" Laxus asked with a shrug, no guilt in his voice. Several members glared at Laxus for his callous response, with Oliver clenching his hand. Cana patted his shoulder, giving him a serious look.
"He's not worth it." Cana whispered low enough so only Oliver could hear. She too was annoyed by Laxus at times, but given how strong he was, it was wise not to get on his bad side.
"This isn't good. Which job was it?" Makarov asked, not hiding his disappointed tone from anyone.
"For lifting the curse on Galuna Island." Mirajane informed him, giving Laxus a glare that would send shivers down the spines of many.
"WHAT?!" Makarov shouted with wide eyes. Of all the quests to take, it had to be THAT ONE?! Everyone else had a similar reaction, though Oliver was the only one left out of the loop. It didn't take a genius to realize how serious this was. "Laxus, go fetch them at once before they get themselves killed!"
"Yeah, right. I got better things to do, Gramps." Laxus shot him down with a shrug before giving a cold grin. "Besides, isn't everyone in Fairy Tail supposed to take care of themselves, right?"
"So you'd rather let them die than even lift a finger? You really are a coward, Laxus." Oliver said in a serious tone, much to everyone's shock.
"Oh? You calling me a coward, Queen?" Laxus asked, his grin turning to a frown.
"Three people are out there on a mission that only S-Class wizards like you and Erza can do. But instead, you decide to stay here and do nothing. It shows how pathetic you are." Oliver replied, his voice slowly mimicking his "Green Arrow" tone. "You don't deserve to be S-Class."
Laxus stood up from the table, glaring heatedly at Oliver. Everyone began to gulp in fear of what Laxus will do, especially when he is angered.
"LAXUS." Makarov warned the blonde male with a deep tone, ready to grow to his giant size. "DON'T." Laxus merely growled in annoyance before he left.
"I'm not wasting my time fighting a punk who won't save anyone, anyways." Oliver said before he looked at Makarov. "Makarov, I'll go find Natsu and the others."
"By yourself?" Mirajane asked with a hint of concern. She didn't know Oliver for very long, so she didn't know what he was capable of. Plus, he was just one man trying to find two people and a cat.
"No, he won't." Gray Fullbuster stood up from his chair, giving Makarov a serious look. "I'm going with him." Everyone could tell how serious Gray was and the fact that he's been able to keep up with Natsu only meant that he was the perfect candidate.
"Hey, has anyone seen Natsu or Happy?" Walking in the guildhall was none other than Yusei Fudo, who was in search of his two roommates. However, he noticed everyone giving him a look, making him raise a brow. "Did I miss something?"
'Hargeon Port, some time later'
"Wow, this brings back memories." Lucy said out loud as she stood in the middle of Hargeon, covering her face from the sun with a smile. Given how far Galuna was, the group decided to rent a boat, and what better place to go to than where it all started? "It only seems like yesterday when we met here for the first time."
"It practically WAS yesterday." Natsu informed Lucy flatly. "You don't have to get mushy. Plus, it isn't the same since Yusei isn't here."
"Oh yeah, you mentioned this is where you met him." Maki said, recalling what Lucy had told her before.
"You should've seen him, Maki. Yusei punched Bora so far, he hit a bell tower! It was so cool!" Happy informed her, smiling at the memory.
"Wait… Yusei did that? I thought it was Natsu." Maki said in a surprised tone. She never pegged Yusei to be a violent guy, despite the way he dressed.
"Well, let's go find a boat." Lucy told him in an almost too chipper tone. "We'll need one to get to Galuna." At the mention of his greatest weakness, Natsu paled as he rushed in front of Lucy.
"Are you crazy?! Forget the boat! Let's just swim to Galuna!" Natsu told her desperately.
"And you think I'M the crazy one?" Lucy asked with a sigh, knowing how Natsu would react to this. "There's one way we'd be able to reach Galuna just by swimming."
For the next hour, the group tried their best to find a boat that would take them to Galuna. However… it seemed as though everyone wanted nothing to do with said island. Many said they were busy or just plain out said they didn't want to go. They heard that even pirates were reluctant to go since many of them never came back. Overall, it didn't fill the girls with any confidence about the mission.
"Well, it looks like we're swimming after all~" Natsu said cheerfully, happy to avoid getting in a vehicle.
"We AREN'T swimming, you idiot!" Lucy shouted at Natsu with a glare. However, before the two could argue…
"I. Found. You." The group screamed as they turned out, finding Gray standing behind them with a smirk.
"It's Gray!" Lucy shouted in horror.
"What the heck are you doing here?!" Natsu questioned his rival.
"Gramps found out about your harebrained scheme and sent us to get you." Gray explained with his arms crossed. Everyone gulped in fear. They should have known Mira would have figured out the request was gone and most likely would have told Makarov. But Natsu was expecting them to at least be halfway to Galuna by now. But…
"W-Wait, you said us… who do you mean?" Maki questioned, a feeling of dread in her chest.
"Oliver said he'd look for you guys, so I went with him. Then Yusei came in and heard what you did, so he's here too." Gray explained, giving Maki a look. "You know, I expected Lucy to follow the idiot…"
"HEY!" Lucy shouted with a tick mark on her head, though Gray ignored her.
"But I thought you were smarter." Gray finished with a shake of his head, making Maki deflate a bit.
"Hey, leave her out of this! I was the one who brought her." Natsu told Gray with a frown. It was one thing to insult him, but insulting someone like Maki is too far. "And anyways, we aren't in any danger yet, so there's no need to bring us back."
"If you come with me now, you might avoid getting kicked out of the guild." Gray informed them, making Maki and Lucy gasp.
"Kicked… out…" Lucy moaned, feeling all the color on her skin disappear. She just joined, and now she was gonna get kicked out?! She knew this job wasn't worth it, even with a Gate key on the line!
"I don't care! I'm going on this S-Class quest!" Natsu declared as he glared at Gray.
"Man, you're way out of your league here, idiot. Just come home." Gray said with a deep frown. "When Erza finds out, she's gonna be so angry, she might actually kill you." He paled up at the thought of Ezra with one of her large swords ready to cut him down. Everyone else gulped in fear before Happy flew up to Gray.
"Gray, you got to save me, please." Happy begged Gray while landing on his shoulder. "I told them it was a bad idea, but they didn't listen. Natsu forced me to steal the S-Class request or else he wouldn't give me any more fish!"
"YOU ARE SUCH A LIAR!" Lucy shouted at Happy.
"I have to prove my power to Erza, so like it or not, I'm doing this!" Natsu declared once and for all with fire in his eyes.
"Master ordered me to bring you here, so I'll drag your ass if I have too!" Gray argued while butting heads with Natsu.
"Hey, why don't we all calm down? You're making a scene." Maki urged the two, noticing the looks everyone was giving them. However, they ignored her as they prepared to use their respective spells on one another. With a sigh, Maki decided to do what she usually did when Shinra and Arthur were about to attack…
*SMACK*SMACK*
"OWWWW!" She smacked them both hard on the head, though she made sure not to completely knock them out. "Why would you do that?!"
"Because you two were being idiots." Maki scolded them in a similar manner to Erza, though her glare was not as intense.
"Hang on, you're wizards?" One man asked while standing up from his boat. "Have you come to lift the curse of Galuna Island, by any chance?"
"Yeah, we are!" Natsu immediately told him. The man stared at them for a few moments before gesturing them to his boat.
"Get in. I'll take you to Galuna." The man said in a serious tone, much to their surprise.
"No way! We're going back now!" Gray declared before he reached out to grab Maki's arm. "We need to go before-" However, he stopped when he started feeling Maki's arm. He raised a brow at it. "Huh, you are beefier than you look."
"... What?" Maki asked in a low tone, something the others caught.
"Yeah. It kinda feels like I'm grabbing Natsu or something." Gray said without thinking. He couldn't help but make the comparison as he held her limb.
'Uh oh.' Was what the trio thought as they backed up, feeling something arrive.
"Are you calling me… A MUSCLE BOUND GORILLA?!" Maki shouted as she raised her face, which looked oddly like an actual gorilla. Gray widened his eyes as he quickly let her go.
"Hang on! I didn't-" But it was too late as Maki grabbed Gray and threw him hard on the ground, breaking the concrete of the dock before he lost consciousness.
"Well… that takes care of that." Natsu said as he carried Gray on his shoulder. "Nice one, Maki." As she calmed down, Maki realized what she did and gasped.
"Oh no! I d-didn't mean to… he just… I…" Maki stuttered, horrified with what she had done to Gray.
"Don't worry. He'll be fine… I think." Natsu told her before throwing Gray on the boat, his head hitting the side and leaving a visible bump. "Come on before Yusei and Oliver find us."
"Are you sure it's a good idea?" Lucy asked with a concerned tone.
"We don't have time." Natsu explained before he shivered. "Besides, if Gray went back, they would've sent Erza next." Lucy realized what he meant and shivered as well.
"Good point. Let's go!" With that, Lucy and Happy jumped on the boat. Maki stood there a moment with a conflicted expression before she eventually went on as well. Seeing everyone get on his boat, the man untied it from the harbor and began sailing.
However, little did the group know, Oracle was watching them.
"Fools." She said with a frown before she flew after them in the event they needed her expertise.
'Later that day'
"I wanna die…" Natsu moaned as he laid on Maki's lap, his face turning a light green. Being on a boat for several hours can really be hell for someone who had motion sickness.
"You know, you should've expected this to happen, Natsu." Maki told him while rubbing his head in an effort to help him.
"Thanks… you're… a pal…" Natsu said, making Maki smile. The sun had already set not too long ago, yet the group were still in the middle of the ocean.
"This is starting to get scary." Lucy whimpered while hugging her knees.
"Yeah, well at least you aren't tied up!" Gray shouted, having woken up not too long ago with a headache and his arms tied up. He then glared at the sailor, who was powering the engine of the boat with magic. "This is your fault too, buddy? Why'd you decide to let us on?"
"My name's Bobo." The man now identified as Bobo said as he looked back at Gray. "And if you must know, I used to be a citizen on Galuna Island." He then adopted a horrified look. "But, I had to leave. I just couldn't take it anymore." The others, minus Natsu, looked at him in confusion. "I should warn you: tragedy befalls anyone who steps foot on the island. There's no avoiding it, unless you lift the curse, of course." Grabbing his tarred cloak, Bobo lifted it to show his left arm.
What everyone saw shocked them to the core.
Bobo's left arm was wrinkled and was colored in an eerie dark purple. In fact, it looked as though his arm was sucked of all its blood.
"Oh my god." Maki muttered, putting a hand over her mouth. She had seen some VERY terrible things, but this was just nightmare inducing.
"What the hell happened to your arm?" Gray asked, trying to keep his composure as he stared at the limb.
"Is that the curse?" Lucy asked with a gulp. Bobo didn't answer, though he did look ahead.
"We're almost there." He said while looking ahead, getting everyone to stare. Like he said, there seemed to be an island in the distance with a glowing light on top of it. "That's Galuna Island." Everyone, minus Natsu, looked at the island, wondering how serious this curse was. If there was some way they could stop it, then they would. Even Gray, having heard of this curse from Bobo, wanted to help out… as long as he was untied, of course.
"That's weird. Why's the mountain top glowing like that?" Lucy couldn't help but ask. There didn't seem to be a lighthouse from what she was seeing, so there had to be an explanation to it. She got no response. "Bobo?"
But once she turned around… Lucy and the others found that Bobo had disappeared.
"What the?!" Lucy exclaimed in shock.
"Did he fall out?" Gray theorized while looking around for any sign of Bobo.
"If he did, we would've heard the splash." Maki commented before she noticed the waves getting a bit bigger. "Uh, guys?"
"What's that sound?" Lucy asked, hearing the rippling of water around the boat. Gray turned around and let out a gasp.
"Lucy, Maki!" The two girls turned to Gray when he called them out… though now, they wished they didn't.
"TSUNAMI!" A large tsunami began to lift the boat higher and higher, slowly pushing it to its side.
"HANG ON!" Everyone grabbed the edge of the boat as strong as they could. However, it proved to be pointless as the boat was ripped apart, causing them all to fall into the water.
This was not what anyone had in mind for an S-Class quest.
And there you have it. The beginning of the Galuna Island arc, one of my okay arcs in Fairy Tail. It isn't trash like Alvarez, but it never really hit me. Still, this arc has to happen story wise, so I can't complain.
Like with the Lullaby arc, I will make some changes for this arc, especially towards the end so that Gray gets a good ending. Plus, having the Champions play a role in this arc will add more action to this. I hope you guys did like Oliver being the one calling out Laxus' bullshit. He may have developed later on in the series, but I still hated him when he was introduced, so someone had to bring him down a peg. That will lead more into the Battle of Fairy Tail arc.
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Next time: Cursed Moon.