She longed to learn who she was and only he had the answer. Problem? He was in Sabertooth and she was in Fairy Tail, two rival guilds. On the road to get answers, she finds herself falling for his partner. [StingxOC] [RoYu] [NaLu] Other pairings inside.
The Shadow's Light
Sting X Nina (OC)
Tactical Problems!
Rosie spent most of the rest day doing just that, resting. The fight had taken a lot out of her, but she felt happy that her family was so close to being the strongest again, a title they actually missed. Plus, she took time to sort her feelings out for both Lyon and Sting, finding she was equally attracted to each for different reasons: Lyon for his cool demeanor and thoughtfulness and Sting for his cocky attitude and light-hearted banter. Those were things she never figured she'd like in a guy, but it warmed her heart if there was a guy with both out there.
She even talked with Lucy about how to hide it from the two boys until she knew which one she was meant to be with. A book Levy gave her explained dragon mating habits and how Dragon Slayers are not that much different. Rosana spent part of the rest day reading and even talked with Gajeel about some of it, since she knew Wendy was too young and Natsu was... Natsu. She blinked when he asked her, Wendy and Natsu to follow him to an underground place with skeletons.
"What did you find down here, Gajeel?" Wendy asked.
"Pipe down and keep up." He replied.
Rosana glared and huffed. "She was just asking, IronHead."
"Why'd you only bring us?" Natsu questioned.
"I wonder if he found something that has to do with dragon slaying magic." Happy pondered as Shina shrugged.
"Possibly." Lily said.
"So then... Why did the gawkers tag along?" Carla asked.
"Excuse us for being gawkers..." Gray said. "Laxus made me make sure Rosie was in good hands... So, unless you wanna deal with him, I'm here."
"We can't help being curious." Lucy said.
Shina giggled softly when Carla shrugged. "Besides, I think it's more fun."
Rosie smiled. "Same. The more friends, the funner it'll be."
"This is it..." Gajeel said.
She looked around to see rather large skeletons scattered around them, her nose catching a whiff of older scents, decades if not centuries old. "Smells funky. Could these be..."
"Maybe Igneel's here?" Happy asked right as Shina hit him. "Ow."
"No. Igneel's scent isn't here. It's something different, though." Natsu replied.
"Definately not Metalicana's rotten scent, for sure."
"Or Grandeeney's..."
"And I think Skiadrium smelt a little better..." Rosie sighed.
"I have a spell to help us find out what happened." Wendy said. "It's called the Milky Way... I want to see if it does work."
"Go ahead." Natsu said as the younger Dragon Slayer used her spell, contacting a dragon who called himself Zerconis.
They learned that Acnologia, the Dragon King, was a former human Dragon Slayer who became a dragon via Zeref's magic. When he vanished, they were ambushed by the Royal guard and their leader Arcadios, who wanted Lucy to come help him with something called the Eclipse gate.
Rosana watched in shock when another arrested Lucy, Arcadios and the other Celestial mage named Yukino, who was working for Arcadios after her excommunication from Sabertooth, which still made her mad. When Natsu tried to attack, his magic was sucked out of him, making her and Gray support him as Lucy was taken away.
Staring at the sky, she felt her emotions slowly die down and let her sort out her thoughts, waving at a few people that, days ago, booed her and her family. Sitting at the fountain again, she glanced to see Rogue, Sting and Rogue's Exceed, Froche, were all silent. Usually at least Sting would have a whitty barb for her or something.
She then noticed that they were missing a cat, which sent warning bells off in her mind. "H... Hey. Sorry bout that beat up earlier..."
"No need... You were stronger than we were..." Rogue said. "I can answer a question if you have one. Consider it a reward for winning."
Rosana blinked and softly laughed. "One? Alright... I have to think of one..." She tapped her finger on her chin before replying a few moments later. "What are you to me?"
Rogue blinked a few moments before looking away, sighing. "I'm your... brother.."
The word 'brother' sent her mind into a tailspin. Rogue was her brother? It would explain their resemblance and how they had the same magic. However, the fact that he was her brother popped a few more questions up, but she had a feeling she'd figure those out later. Her hand went to her forehead as memories of them playing tag as children came back, back when Skiadrium was alive.
"... I remember us playing tag when we were younger." She said, blinking at him before smiling gently. "I just had a few more pop up, but, I'll save them..." Noticing Sting's sour mood, however, she frowned. "What's got you in a funk, pal?"
"Don't act all buddy-buddy with me, girl. Rogue, why're you even bothering?" He snapped, opening an eye.
'There's that jerky attitude I know...' She immediately knew something was up, since he never really snapped like this. It must've been due to the missing Exceed and then she noticed how his eyes were a tiny bit puffy, as if he had been crying. She knew how to see when someone had been crying, due to growing up in Fairy Tail. Just as Rogue was about to scold him, she smiled softly. "I know. I've dealt with others dealing with the same thing. It'll get easier eventually... Maybe he was sent to another world.. Or something..."
"Shut up. Lector's dead. He was killed because he defended me. He's not coming back!" Sting said, glaring at her.
Biting the inside of her cheek, Rosie knew he was speaking out of pain. Mirajane had when they thought Lisanna was dead, so had Elfman. She had tried to act like Laxus, but her tender heart always went out to people who were hurting as she stood up and went over to him, very carefully putting a hand over where his heart was. "Then live for him. He's right here and will always be there. Don't do anything too rash that you think he won't like..." She gave another soft smile. "Some wounds can heal with time, but Erza said something to Mira when we thought Lisanna was dead: 'The whole world can become the enemy when you lose what you love.' Don't make the world your enemy, even if it seems the best thing."
Her words made him stare at her as if she lost her mind, but she turned to face Rogue, who looked stunned at her. "Where'd you learn so much?"
She smiled. "Growing up in Fairy Tail has made me learn how to be sympathetic to others, even if they are an enemy. No one really deserves to be in pain, even if they deserve it. It's who Fairy Tail are." She explained before tilting her head. "I'm just one of them." She giggled softly when she saw Shina fly over and land on her head. "Speaking, this one always knows where I'm at..."
"Well, you know it's either me or Laxus that finds you when you go off... Things are getting crazy back at the bar... Natsu's going crazy because Master won't go after Lucy..." Shina explained.
Rosana sighed. "That's just Natsu for you. He will do anything to keep Lu-Lu at his side, even at the risk of Grampa's anger..." Seeing the confusion on the Twin Dragons' faces, she grimaced. "Lucy's apparently under arrest for some reason... And the 'only' way to get her back is for Fairy Tail to win the Games..." Pausing a moment, she looked to Rogue. "Say, have you been 'talking' to Skiadrium as well? Like when your sleeping or something?"
"A little. He's the one that told me you were, indeed, my little sister." He looked to the side before speaking again. "I'd understand if you don't want it, but I'd like to return to being your brother again."
Rosie nodded. "I'd like that. After all, you're my blood brother. Laxus is my adoptive one." She smiled again before turning, figuring he wasn't a hugger, and aimed to leave. "See ya, boys." She waved as Shina walked with her. Only a few moments later, she found herself surrounded by the same magic that only one person used: Spacial Magic. When she tried to use her own magic, it instead hurt her. "The hell...? Minerva, what're you plotting?"
"Interesting... You are who he talks about... The one who's gotten under his skin..." She said thoughtfully. "And you're one of the two who beat them in the fight... I could use you against those wimps..."
"You'll regret this. I warned you making an enemy out of Fairy Tail is a terrible mistake..." She snarled.
"Now, now... Put the claws down. I especially will make that Titania angry. I want to bring her down to where she belongs: the ground."
"Erza will make you pray for mercy if you dare do anything!" Rosie, who has known the requip mage her entire time in Fairy Tail, knew Minerva was signing a death wish soon. What she wasn't expecting was Minerva using her magic to knock her out.
She woke up to that reddish Exceed shaking her shoulder softly. "... Wake up..." He said.
"Nnn... Where...?" She asked.
"I dunno and I dunno where Sting is. I remember angering the guild master and then nothing."
"Wait... Are you.. Lector?" She guessed, seeing him nod. "Sting thinks you're actually dead, but he'll be so glad to see that you're not."
"Really? I had a feeling he'd miss me. We've been best friends for as long as I can remember."
"Same with me and my cat, Shina. I've never been this long without her..." She said, sighing as she pouted at the thought of her Exceed. "Well, we'll get out somehow... Eh?" She put the cat behind her when Minerva showed up. "Stay back."
"Fool. I control this world. I would learn to never talk down to me, otherwise it will end badly for you. In fact, I'm bored, so entertain me, Fairy. Let me hear your screams as I pluck your wings off of you!" She said sadistically before she began assaulting her with both magic and force, like she had done to Lucy.
Rosana refused to cry out, focusing on protecting Lector from the madwoman at any cost, even if it meant her having broken bones or scars. She felt her back begin to feel hot, her nose picking up the smell of something she rarely smelt: blood. All this as she protected Lector, smiling softly at him. "I... I'll keep you... Safe, okay...?" She asked as she passed out to the stunned Exceed's face.
"Let's change up the game a bit." Minerva's voice said.
Rosie stirred awake, to see Erza and Kagura, but her eyes barely made out the other mage. "Nnn... E..Erza-c..chan..." She whimpered. She heard the uproar from her guild even from where they were as the left eye closed due to the swelling.
"I found a lost fairy, it seems."
"ROSIE!" Erza called, seeing her close friend struggling to see them. "What is the meaning of this?"
"Look at that precious Fairy face... Twisted in pain." Minerva said. "The sphere she's in constantly drains her magic power. It's excruciating."
"Erza-chan! Lookie!" A much younger Rosie echoed in Erza's memory with a big smile as she held out a bunch of flowers. A few seconds later, another memory of her hugging her after Erza claimed S-Class. "Way to go, Erza-chan~ I wanna be like you!" Then one from a few days ago replaced it. "I hope I can be like you, Erza-chan and be both brave and beautiful. Can you cut my hair, please?"
"She's taken her hostage..." Erza said.
Evergreen went pale. "How could she do such a thing!?"
Freed clenched his fist. "Taking someone so young and innocent and using her against Erza, no doubt..."
Bickslow gulped. "Look at Laxus, though..."
The three looked and saw lightning emanating from his form as did the rest of the guild. Lisanna, who was by Evergreen, gulped. "She picked the wrong target. If Laxus gets a hold of her, she's good as dead."
"Yeah... But, why Rosie of all people?" Lily asked.
"There must be a reason... Wait..." Levy turned thoughtful.
"Surrendering won't save this Fairy... Rest assured, I have a much more entertaining plan in mind. I told you I wanted to change the game." When she saw Erza's rage take over her gaze, she raised an eyebrow. "Oh, yes. That scornful look speaks volumes, Titania."
Kagura looked at the requip mage and was about to ask when the look made her words catch in her throat. She wondered how she could be like this and still hide Jellal, knowing what he did. She then remembered how Millianna had said Rosana had been a good friend to not only her, but Erza, since the Tower of Heaven. She even said that Rosana would've been a part of the Tower had things gone differently. "Relea-"
"Perhaps in a bit..." Minerva said, cutting off Kagura's words. "But, first I plan to show you how a queen wages war..."
Erza's glare grew harder. "Last warning. Release Rosana and I will allow you to live." She said, her magic making the stones float around her like she controlled them.
Rosana managed to open her eyes, but only made out Erza due to her red hair. "E-Erza...c-chan..."
"Still conscious? I'm surprised... No matter, you'll be great entertainment that way." Minerva said, letting the magic sphere dig into her prey.
Rosana's scream made Kagura flinch, as well as the other guilds. However, it instead fed the rage for Fairy Tail, including those fighting like Laxus, Gray and Juvia.
"If you want her in one piece, come and get her." Minerva challenged as she switched places when Kagura attacked her, switching with a unprepared Erza, who instinctively reacted and guarded. "You two ladies go ahead and battle it out... I'll go on and take on the victor once she's weakened."
"You're running from a fight you interrupted?!" Kagura asked. "And you call yourself a queen!"
"A true queen arranges the pawns... Speaking of pawns, let's remember the prize of the victor..." She said as Rosana once again screamed out in pain when the magic tightened a little bit. "A queen does not yield to power alone."
"Let Rosie go!" Kagura said, making Erza twitch.
"I'm warning you. NO ONE calls Rosie that except for her family!" Erza seethed, knowing that was the truth. Only those in Fairy Tail or those she trusted could call her Rosie. She headbutted Kagura before Minerva left with Rosana.
Gajeel noticed how the scream made his opponent, Rogue, stop mid-step, as if hitting a switch. "What? Not wanting to fight anymore? I ain't as nice as Salamander or even Shad herself, so start saying your prayers."
Meanwhile, Rosana woke up again to see Lector looking at her in worry. She smiled in pain as she sat up. "Don't worry, I'll keep you safe and you'll see Sting again, okay? Just stay by my side." She said, patting the cat's head softly before standing up and looking around. "Now... To find a way outta here.."
"We can't... only Milady can let us go..." Lector explained, sniffling. "I'm never gonna see Sting again... Huh?" He blinked when she picked him up and held him like a child.
"Shhh.. You'll see that nimrod again, you'll see... Just stay positive. I may be weaker than most, but the strength of my heart is something only those in Fairy Tail have." She gently said. "Sting will be overwhelmed to see you okay... I promise, okay? And a Dragon Slayer's promise is their bond."
Lector nodded and stopped crying, letting her carry him. "Sting said he'd show up Salamander and prove I wasn't a liar... I had said people were picking on him saying there weren't no such thing as a dragon, let alone someone slaying one."
Rosie blinked as she listened to Lector talk about how he and Sting met and how Sting promised to always have his back. As she did, she felt her heart go out to the Light Dragon Slayer and how torn up he had been at thinking his best friend was dead. Underneath that jerkish attitude, Sting was really a softie towards Lector and, according to Lector, even Rogue and Froche. What she wasn't expecting was Minerva appearing again and attacking her, forcing her to hide Lector behind her as she took the brunt of the attack.
Minerva raised an eyebrow after taking out Kagura and earning five points for Sabertooth. "Who's Rosana? Oh, that's right... The little fairy herself..." She opened her sphere and released the unconscious Rosie. "I believe I've earned another point."
"Do you see Rosana's name?" Chapati Lola asked.
"Nope. It's not on here. So she took a non-participating wizard." Yajima said, looking over the list.
Erza smirked a tiny bit. "You seem lost... I took Rosana's place when she didn't show up... Now I see YOUR the reason why!"
"But, she... She's the one that beat..." Minerva blinked as Erza made her way to Rosie.
"Rose, speak to me... Wake up..." Erza said.
Rosie stirred to look up at her friend. "Erza-chan... W-Where's.. Brother..." She passed out asking that.
"Stay with me, Rose!" Erza commanded before feeling wetness and bringing her hand out to show blood and a lot of it, since it covered her entire hand as she then saw a few gashes scattering over Rosana's front as well, angering her. "What the hell is this?!" She demanded, letting everyone see the damage done.
"At first it was to make her learn to respect her superiors, but then you two began to bore me, so I needed to entertain myself somehow. Her screams soon began to become quite lovely." Minerva said, unknowingly angering Erza to a point of no return.
The entire guild shared that rage and Lyon, after being beaten, joined up with a pissed off Gray and Juvia. "That is a bad move, angering them..." He stated before seeing the state of Rosana. "My beloved Rosana needs medical assistance."
Sometime later, Rosana woke up to feeling Lector move around before he came out of her cape that Erza must've left for her, since she hadn't worn one beforehand. "Nnn.. Lector... you alright?" She asked weakly.
"Thanks to you, yeah." He nodded as she carefully sat up.
Smiling gently, she stood up wobbly and opened her arms, letting him hop back into them as she took in the area before looking to the scoreboard, seeing that Sabertooth had one member while her family had all five. "That means... Sting's left, eh?" She guessed as they walked passed the form of their captor plus Kagura before seeing Sting facing off against all five of the remaining members of Fairy Tail, all injured while he wasn't. "He can't believe he can take all five, can he? Even though they're injured, my family will keep fighting..."
"They're stubborn, aren't they?" Lector asked.
"That's one word for it. But, our bonds are our power." She stated as they watched as Sting surrendered to the team, earning their victory and making Fairy Tail win the games, making her smile. "We did it... Huh? Rogue..." She said.
"I guess you've won.. All the answers you want, you can get them now... But we need to get Lector back to Sting..." Rogue said as he helped her walk due to the injuries catching up with her. "You have gained a stubborn streak, Nina... I mean, Rosana."
"Ya know, Nina sounds right... I might think of reclaiming it as my name... As long as I can also call myself Cheney..."
He chuckled lightly. "You can more than do that, dear sister."
"I take it Gajeel did that to ya?" She said, pointing out his scrapes.
"Yeah. I found out never say he's weaker than Natsu Dragneel."
"Between you and me, I'm stronger than the two of 'em." She said proudly as she managed to make her way forward to see her family. "Erza-chan... Everyone..." She said softly, knowing Lector had fallen asleep, waving as Laxus made his way over, as did Juvia and Gray. Blinking, she let Lector run towards Sting, who was crying tears of happiness, matching his partner.
"Lector!"
"Sting! It's you!"
"You're okay! Lector!"
She watched the two hug like they hadn't seen each other in ages before Laxus rustled her hair like he used to. That was before she turned and smiled at her newly found blood brother, seeing that Froche also had tears in his eyes. "You guys did it..."
"Man, that sounds amazing. We can hear it all the way from here." Gray said.
"This is awesome. If they cheer any louder, the ground will start shaking." Juvia said.
"Would they stop? They're making my wounds itch." Gajeel complained.
"Don't act like that." Erza said as she looked to Laxus. "I bet the Master's beside himself with excitement..."
"Putting the old geezer aside, this makes up for seven years of humiliation our guild mates gone through..."
Rosana nodded as she went to gently hug Erza, getting a hug in return. "Thank you, Erza-chan..." She said.
"Thank you. You made me fight even harder, Rose..." She replied before blinking. "I think someone wants to talk to you... Want us to give you some space?" She asked, looking at Sting, who looked like he wanted to say something.
Rosana turned and nodded. "Thanks, guys..." She watched them make their way away so she and the other Dragon Slayer were technically alone. "S'up?"
"Lector told me you got those from protecting him from Milady... I can't thank you enough for not only finding him, but keeping him safe at the cost of those wounds." Sting said.
She shook her head. "No need for thanks. I'd do it for anyone in that situation. I always protect my friends."
"'Friends'?" Sting asked. "But, we're enemies..."
"We were enemies, but can't we turn over a new leaf and start again, as friends?" She asked before Rogue joined them.
"I want to change... I want to be a man who treasures his friends." Rogue said to his partner.
"That's what I feel, too." Froche said, agreeing.
"Then... That's what we'll do.. We'll change and become more like Fairy Tail." Sting said. "Say. Rosana."
"Hmm?" She asked.
"Where's Natsu?"
"I haven't seen him since we fought, so... I dunno... Hey, Lax, where's Natsu at?"
"Oh... Well, we haven't seen the flare yet.." Gray said.
"That's not an issue... Knowing Natsu, then, he probably forgot to light the flare.." Rosie giggled softly.
"Flare? What's that mean?" Sting asked as he stood up.
Rosie looked to the others, blinking as if questioning if they should before they were given first aid, mostly her due to Minerva's assault. She stood between Fairy Tail and the remaining members of Sabertooth as the king explained the situation. She leaned to the two when the king mentioned ten thousand dragons. "I don't smell any dragons... Do you two?"
"Not yet at least... Perhaps they're a while away?" Rogue asked.
Rosie shook at the memories of Acnologia attacking them. "...Just because we can't smell 'em... doesn't mean they're no there... Like with Acnologia... We had no chance until we heard him... But it was too late at that point..."
"That's the dragon that sent you and the others into a seven year sleep, huh?" Sting asked, getting a nod before seeing the terror on her face.
"I can't bear another like that... Ten thousand dragons will... I refuse... No.. Never again..." She repeated, getting Gajeel's attention.
"Yo, Shad... We've got it this time... There's no way we're losing again..." He said. "Let alone losing seven years again. You keep rememberin' we're Dragon Slayers for a reason."
She puffed her cheeks out. "Oh? And we couldn't hit Acnologia seven years ago... Explain that, IronHead."
"It got lucky..." He said, listening in to the king's speech.
"I beg of you... Don't let this kingdom fall into ruin." King Toma E. Fiore begged.
Rosana cheered with her guild. "We're gonna pay back some dragons~"
"This kingdom's been good to us wizards." Sting added, his back against hers.
"It's our duty to protect it." Rogue added.
"Thank you all." The king said, crying.
"All right, time for more rampaging!" Gajeel said, grinning.
Rosie giggled as Sting spoke. "We're up against dragons."
"A perfect opportunity for us Dragon Slayers to shine." Rogue added as his sister nodded.
"Imma show both you boys how to beat dragons. I may have been taken offguard by Acnologia, but I'm still better than you two." She jeered, sticking her tongue out.
"You're on, Rose." Sting said, chuckling as Rogue shook his head.
Shina landed on Rosie's head, smiling as Lector spoke. "Those flying lizards can't beat you!"
Froche smiled. "I'll cheer for all three of you, okay?"
Shina nodded. "I've got Rosie's back no matter what."
Bringing a hand up so her partner could high-five her, Rosana nodded. "The best team is you and me, Shina~" She then saw Lyon walk over to be between her and Gray.
"I suppose I can stomach working with you..." He said.
"Just try not to slow me down." Gray replied before Lyon turned and placed both hands on Rosana's shoulders. "Hey-"
"My darling, I will give my all for you." He said.
Rosana gulped and chuckled weakly, forgetting how this was something he did before Laxus grabbed the Ice-Make wizard's collar.
"Back off, Romeo... She's kinda busy." He said.
"I'll fight for your heart, darling Rosana!" He called as he was dragged away.
"Who... was that?" Rogue asked as Sting looked as dumbfounded as Rosie was.
"Lyon Vastia, a friend of Gray's from Lamia Scale... And apparently he fell in love with me at first sight for him..." She sighed before tilting her head. "Ignoring that obsessive part of him, Lyon is rather cute and kind towards his friends... Plus, he's a pretty decent fighter. But, sadly, I've yet to have that one that 'wows' me with things. I want someone who can not only deal with Laxus's protectiveness but also be as soft as a feather..." Shaking her head, she giggled. "I dazed off there... Sorry."
Rogue smirked a little. "You were always one to daydream, Nina... Even as kids, you were always staring at the clouds... Glad to know that's still there."
"Eh? 'Nina'? I thought the name was Rosana?" Sting asked, clearly lost after regaining himself.
"My real name is apparently Nina Cheney. I've grown up, however, with the name Rosana Dreyer." She said. "When this is done, I'll see about resuming my real name, Ryos.."
"Sounds good to me." He agreed.
I had time and a half with trying to update this chapter, with my router being to slow with the speed I had upgraded to plus using all my data on my phone just to try and save some of these. But, now I'll be updating after I get done at work, which is normally 11 pm-ish CST... Enjoy~
~~Kiwi~~