I don't like people.

People are scary.

I don't know what they're thinking.

I can't read their minds.

That's what makes them scary.

"Clarus! You can't treat people like that!"

"He was the one who touched me! I don't like it!"

"You fell. He was only checking to see if you were okay. You did not have to strike him and insult him in front others!"

Clarus gritted his teeth when Jura scolded him. He didn't understand why Jura wouldn't take his side. The others around had their silent eyes on them, unwilling to say anything to possibly worsen the mood. They were looking at him as if he was a ticking time bomb.

Currently, he was being scolded in the middle of Lamia Scale's lobby room where many members watched. They were all watching the young boy with short black hair tremble with his tiny fists, angered by a stranger's act of kindness.

An act that was transformed into something else in the child's eyes.

Jura jolted when Clarus turned around and ran out of the guild hall. "Clarus! I am not done speaking to you!"

"Leave me alone!" Was his screamed answer.

Jura heaved out a sigh and dropped himself on a stool near a table when Clarus disappeared from his sights. He pinched the bridge of his nose with frustration pinching his features. He wasn't too worried about Clarus running off on his own in the streets of Margaret. It was always the same with him whenever he lashed out and got upset, hiding away near some bushes under a tree in a local park to keep an eye out for people as he tried to calm down. It was his safe spot. Perhaps the only worrying thing would be his insistence on making it his safe spot even during heavy rains or thunderstorms.

What Jura was worried about was his inability to allow others into his heart aside from him.

When he was found, Clarus stayed with Jura where he was given kindness through a warm meal to digest, a soft blanket to sleep under, and a gentle hand to treat his wounds and pat his head to help him sleep. At first, Clarus' demeanor was like a white cloth, absorbing everything around him through his curious dark brown eyes and taking it all in as if it was ink, giving it colour.

It was all he could do with his inability to remember everything.

But the cloth that was dyed in different colours had black spots appearing soon.

When Clarus was able to get a better understanding of what was around him, where, he was, who Jura was, what Lamia Scale was, that was when it began.

Jura could see a hurt child that wanted nothing to do with people, too wounded to let them in. He'd try different methods to try and help him, but he was too angry and hurt, unable to trust people. His instincts were making him act that way.It became obvious that Clarus went through something that made him like this.

As if his initial appearance wasn't proof enough.

"Still having trouble with Clarus?" A nearby member asked him, a tone to his voice that gave away slight amusement.

Jura ran his hand across his face and frowned. His eyes remained fixated on the entrance of the guildhall. He didn't say anything to the member for the answer was plainly obvious.

The member decided to keep his mouth shut and look back down at his magazine. Clearly, Jura didn't need any lighthearted jokes right now. An older member, senior to Jura, gave that one person a look of disapproval before returning his attention to his junior. They were not too far in age, but his position as a senior made him obliged to try and help fellow junior members who had troubles.

"If he's too much to handle, why don't you give him over to the orphanage?"

Jura's head perked when he heard his senior's suggestion with a casual tone. If you were to change his words into asking about the weather, it wouldn't sound any different. It's almost unnerving.

And that's what startles Jura.

"Cline… you don't understand. That boy… he's too hurt." Jura was trying to find the words. He pressed two fingers against his temple when when he leaned forward to rest one elbow on his knee. "He doesn't have it in him to trust others. He refuses to open his heart. And if I let the orphanage to him into its care… then…"

"Then he'd be losing the only person who does understand him." Cline finished for him.

It startles Jura how much he cares about that boy.

Only Jura knew the state he was in when he found him by the waters. Only Jura knew the tremble in his hand when he'd clutch his cloak while walking through crowds in town. Only Jura knew the cries of Clarus in the middle of the night. Only Jura knew how to sit with Clarus who sat on his bed with a blanket over his bed with eyes wide awake for hours until the first morning rays. Only Jura would be able to get close to Clarus.

Only Jura would be allowed.

No one else.

And it's almost like a curse in a way.


The victories won by the last Fairy Tail members seemed almost planned, it was almost too good to be true when they all won against their opponents at nearly the same time. Their victories tore cheers out of the throats of those in the audience who belonged to their guild. Mavis was so very pleased to see the each participating member's expression of being victorious.

"Laxus is the winner! He hit the Wizard Saint with a terrific attack! An upset! An upset! He wins an upset! Erza took down the Sabertooth leader and earned five points! Gray won the ice molding magic battle and eliminated Lyon! And Karissa punished her brother with a clear victory! Fairy Tail is strong! Almost too strong! Can they win this without losing a single member?!"

"This is amazing!" Cana basked in the loud cheers for her guild.

"Gray-sama! You're doing amazing!"

"First Master, how is it looking so far?" Max asked with obvious eagerness, wanting to be spoiled of the ending of the Grand Magic Games. If someone could know how this all ends, then it would be ther Fairy Tactician. He was shaking. He was sure that he was going to be unable to hold back his tears.

"Things may not have gone exactly the same as how I predicted…" Mavis started with a smile, "But the results still came out well. I only gave them locations and certain strategies. The way they fought and how they won was all up to them even though I believed in certain positive outcomes after making optimized calculations."

"Oh, so you didn't tell Karissa to go crazy with freezing everything." Warren realized. He never went on missions with Karissa so he was only able to hear stories about her style of fighting from either Max, Gray or Cana, the ones closest to her, and he could confidently say she wasn't the feral fighter type. No, she was the one to take one step back and watch you for a few seconds before choosing how to cook you after weighing her options.

Her fight with Clavis was one that screamed 'let's go fucking crazy!'.

"To be honest, I thought Karissa was going to lose," Max gave him the most incredulous look, "What? You saw how she was struggling at first! She could barely touch him! That guy was using gravity to shut her down, a literal force of nature!"

"I'll admit, I was worried at first. However, I started to realize what she was trying to achieve only after she started blowing up the buildings in the city." Mavis spoke. As a seasoned tactician, it should not be a surprise if her attention was pulled into Karissa's fight, a battle based on a strategy.

"What was her strategy?" Juvia suddenly asked after hearing the First Master speak once she was able to tune down her Gray-volume.

"To freeze her brother with the help of an assurance. She used ice to attack her brother from afar, trying to hit him with strong ice spells that would chill the air and his body. The destruction of the buildings by both twins was also part of her plan. The giant spear that loomed the city and fell into caused more debris and gave off cold air that escaped into the air. The use of her wind attack that carried what they destroyed to create a distraction that would give Karissa enough time to graze the sole of Clavis' boots."

"His sole…?" Levy echoed, blinking. She did all that to touch his sole?

"The ice on his sole was the assurance to make sure she would win. When she released Second Origin, she focused her magic into creating icy wind to catch Clavis. But if Clavis were to regain his wits quicker, she'd lose the opportunity to stop him, she would be out of options."

"Oh! I see now!"

"What the hell are you seeing?" Max scowled at the petite Solid Script mage. "I'm not good with strategy…"

"It's simple really! The cold air, the ice on the sole, the icy wind, it was all to increase Karissa's chances to freeze Clavis! It was the only way for her to win against someone who'd crush her with gravity because you can't easily alter the gravity of temperature!"

"Yes. A very risky strategy because it was to bet on one single move in the end." Mavis sighed. Preferably, it would be wise to have at least one fail safe. But the nature of the fight gave little time for Karissa to think, so she could understand the risk and lack of thought.


Clavis' eyes fluttered open.

He was on his back and staring at the sky that already turned orange, a telltale sign of how long he was out for.

"Are you cold?"

The voice of his twin sister bled into his ears, the first sound he properly registered. He turned his head and saw her sitting back against a wooden box. Her face was more or less covered in frost, the same with her entire body, looking like she just returned from an expedition in the snowy mountains and was finally warming up to the warmth of lower altitude.

"Yes. I'm cold." Clavis' fingers twitched when he shivered.

The cold served as an easy reminder that he lost.

"Sorry, you should be able to be warm soon enough if you just let… nature do its thing." He saw her wince when she pushed herself up to her feet and she stared at her frosted arm with a frown. He wondered if she was feeling some effects from her own spell.

"Are you okay?" Clavis decided to ask.

"Hm? Oh, I'm fine. I'm also cold too though." Karissa approached her brother with sluggish steps, explaining that she was still feeling some effects from their fight. The older twin couldn't help but feel like she wasn't giving him the whole truth even though nothing hinted that she was lying to him. Strange.

Her body was next to him when she settled down into a sitting position on his left.

Nothing was said for a while as they stared at each other.

In no way were they walking mirrors to each other, striking resemblance did however remind them of looking into mirrors when they woke up. They could both see the exhaustion in their faces as well.

"I used up most of my magic and still failed…" Clavis was the first to speak. "You're great."

Karissa's lips tugged for a moment and she shook her head lightly. "Only because you forced me to use up everything I had and the extra I had left. You're just as great."

Averting his eyes, Clavis almost scoffed at her humble answer. "Take the compliment at least."

He wasn't smiling anymore.

"Hey, Clavis. I wanna ask you something. Is that alright?"

Hearing such a question made him quirk a delicate brow and turn his head to give her his full attention.

"Back at the waterpark, you asked me if you were important to me yet. It was a simple question but I couldn't help but feel like that question was important to you, like you needed to know because it was personal."

The way Clavis stiffened when he realized she already had a hunch about the question weighing heavily for him made her realize she was correct in her assumption. A question like that and knowing that it stemmed from something personal was a sure way to remind her that Clavis was still someone she didn't know in his opposite state, a way to understand that there was more to someone aside from their surface.

Surprisingly, Clavis didn't bother to make an excuse.

He let it flow out.

"… I'm a twisted person. I crave love. After escaping that dreadful place, Jura found me…"


"What do you think you're doing?!"

"Haah?! Leave me alone!"

"Oh my god, are you okay?"

Clarus watched from the sidelines as a crowd formed around a duo: a father and son. The day was sunny and the weather was nice, but the people around him expressed nothing but displeasure. A kid was crying on the ground and a few people were checking on him, that little group was expressing worry and were trying to console him.

The other half the crowd were expressing anger towards the boy's father.

Because the father struck his son in broad daylight in front of everyone.

"What kind of messed up person are you?! You don't hit your kid!"

"He was being a bad! I was showing discipline!"

"The hell you were! That's straight up child abuse, you fucking idiot!"

The father growled and pushed a man away from him. "You don't get to fucking talk to me that way! I know how to raise my kid! You telling me you're going to shower your kid with love even when they're bad?! You need to show them that there's a line you can't cross and that you earn love and respect just like everyone else!"

Clarus' eyes shifted to the kid on the floor who was still crying and holding his cheek.

The crying and obvious pain had him holding a hand up to his cheek and he turned his head away.

"Love…"


"I wondered if my mommy and daddy abandoned me because I wasn't a good boy. If I wasn't a good boy… then maybe I needed to be one so that others would love me."

Clavis could remember that little family so clearly. That afternoon and its warm sunlight shined on that little family, like it was the most ideal family. The little boy was holding up flowers for his mother and smiling so brightly when he offered them to her. They were dandelion flowers that you would find in the patch of grass at the local park. Simple flowers that demonstrated the kindness this child had and the love for his mother, something he couldn't understand.

The mother would coo and say 'You're such a good boy! I love you so much!'

The sight captivated him and began stirring something within his soul. The sight was so pure and warm and yet so foreign to him.

"The people in your guild don't like me. So, who cares if I act this way?"

"It does matter, Clarus. To get along with someone, you need to treat them with kindness and respect. You need to be nice if you want people to be nice to you. You can't treat people like they're the enemy."

After seeing that, something clicked in his little brain. Before he knew it, he immediately turned around and started running to the place he could call home: Jura's house. Now that he was reminiscing, it was almost embarrassing to recall the desperation he felt when he walked inside the house and saw Jura packing his stuff to most likely prepare to go on a job which meant that Clavis would be staying with Cline for a few days. As distant as he was with people back then, Clavis had no trouble staying in the same room as someone other than Jura as long as they didn't touch him without his permission, especially when he wasn't looking. Cline was one of the few people to adapted to his issues without complaint.

His small body walked up to him, fidgeting with his hands behind his back as he thought back to the little family. Jura wondered what was wrong with Clavis, wondering why he was suddenly behaving strangely. But before Jura could ask, Clavis finally spoke.

'Dad' was what escaped him.

"...Eh?"

Jura was giving him the most puzzled expression, unable to continue his task when such a heavy word came out of Clavis while looking at him with hopeful eyes.

He immediately stopped it from going any further.

He went down on his knees and placed his hands on his small shoulders.

"Clarus… I'm not your father, you know that, right? I am not fit to be one. I can't be your father."

Karissa felt a twinge of sadness and loneliness when Clavis recounted that memory. But Clavis chuckled to himself and closed his eyes, like he wasn't too bothered by it. Truly, it was really a distant memory that showed that he was naïve. He just needed to learn from it.

"Seeing unconditional love from a parent and realizing I couldn't get it… I decided to be nice instead. After that, I got a taste when people started to like me. Be nice to people and people will be nice to you. After experiencing love, I didn't realize how greedy and selfish I was for it. I want to be someone who can be loved and love in return." Clavis started pushing himself up into a sitting position. "And when I learned I had family… I wanted you, my family, to love me unconditionally… the only kind of love I can get from a family."

When he looked at his sister and saw how she interacted with her siblings, he felt envy.

When could he get that too?

If he couldn't get to know them fast then perhaps defeating his sister and proving he could be just as good as her would incite them to love him a bit more, a desperate thought fueled by his desire to be loved. He saw how they praised her for being good. He wanted the same.

Karissa watched him scratch the back of his neck with a frown as avoided looking at her now that he spilled the truth, like he couldn't bear to see what her face would show in regards to his craving for love.

I get it now.

"I'm glad you're doing well." Karissa paused mid bite to look at him, a little surprise by the change in subject. "I was really scared when I saw you on the hard ground that night."

Ah, right.

Clavis was someone who was looking forward to getting to know his family and love them. To see two of them near death must have been terrible.

"Sorry about that."

Clavis just smiled and shook his head. "No. no. I know it's not your fault. I was just saying that I was worried is all. I wasn't the only one. You and Van basically had the room filled with worried faces."

Karissa let out a small laugh through her nose. "That's what I get for having people care about me." She shrugged, appearing almost sad as if it was a curse. It made his eyes crinkle in amusement. "I heard Lyon also made sure you were with him while heading back since he was worried about you being a target."

"Yeah, he was." Clavis looked to the side and fingered the empty packet that used to be filled with ketchup. His finger was lightly rocking it back and forth. "Yuka would often tell me that I was kind of like the sun… so, I guess… people wouldn't like it if the sun went out."

She stared at him.

"They way you spoke… it sounded like you were trying so hard to have people like you."

"Huh?"

"Were you not lonely or tired?"

Smile and be kind to be loved by others.

People and feelings cannot be forced… that's why he tried to appeal to them in the easiest way possible.

Clavis finally looked at his sister who was not giving him a look of pity of sympathy—no she was looking at him like she was finally able to properly study and understand him like a problem she couldn't quite get until now.

"Were you always forcing yourself to smile and be something others would like? If that's the case, I'd imagine it must be stinging you this whole time, the idea of being loved. It must have been lonely at some point, right? You said that people wouldn't like it if the sun went out. If you don't want to be the sun then you don't have to be. It's okay if people don't like you for who you are. If one person doesn't like you then I'm sure fifty other people would."

Karissa tensed when she saw Clavis' eyes become glassy. Perhaps she was being too direct about this?

"Uh, but this might just be speculation if I'm wrong, you know? But if I'm right, then I get how you feel… I'm okay with being alone but I fear the idea of being abandoned, of being left behind. It's sort of the same?" Maybe this was rambling now.

Clavis' tears finally pearl and slide down his cheeks.

His sister. His other half. Karissa Sinclost hit the center of his core and his emotions when no one else did. It might have been his fault that no one could see past his sunny demeanor but the fact that his sister was able to sense something underneath it all with vague hints was what moved his heart. He put down his happy smile and she carefully pried away the curtains that hid his heart where she found him.

And without his smile and curtains to hide his true self, he was left with fear.

"But it's too late… too many people like me now." Clavis felt like he was standing at the edge of a cliff and was now he was peering down. It was dark and isolated. He kept his sunny demeanor for far too long, if he kept pushing it then he would eventually fall and not climb out of it. No one would be able to reach him if he couldn't climb out, if he lost the courage to make the first move.

Karissa let out a half-hearted 'pfft' and held out her hand. "Okay, then let's start with me. Hello. My name's Karissa Sinclost. I'm sure you know by now but I'm your twin sister but I also want to be your friend."

Will you let me get to know you without the sun?

Will you just let it be a clear sky with some clouds instead?

Clavis eyed her hand with silent surprise before slowly looking at her face, everything just stops when he sees nothing but genuine person willing to accept him, shaking his hand as he slowly made a move to reach for hers. But remembering how others would give him looks of distaste made him stop and reel away, afraid.

"If I do something you don't like, if I be myself around you, you'll get mad! You'll stop liking me and you'll reject me!" He snapped, eyes trembling with insecurity. His sudden outburst made him flinch, he raised his voice at her and it almost sickens him. He didn't mean to. He didn't want her to think ill of him.

Karissa smiled softly at this, seeing the true part of Clavis without any filter: a soul who was lonely and afraid of the change his lack of smiles would bring. He was scrambling around to fix the curtains and preparing to put up a good front to hide himself behind a happy smile, his only way to try and mend what he thought was a mistake.

"There you are. Good. I won't push you away unless you turn out to be a criminal. I don't like being with bad people, and you're not bad. You don't need to be a perfect ball of sunshine. You're allowed to be flawed. And there's no better way to like someone than getting to know who they truly are. Don't you know flaws make people interesting?"

She was encouraging him to let go of his happy persona and be vulnerable with his feelings.

Seamlessly did he move towards her, but not without obvious hesitation as if to test her. The second he saw her lift her arms, open them, he was already on her and hugging her, dashing past the curtains and leaving them behind to properly connect with her. She felt his hair brush her ear, tickling her enough to try and move her head to glance at him to see if he was doing it on purpose. He was hugging her so tightly.

As if to imprint his wish of being love onto her.

As if he was cursing her.

"Please love me."

I guess we are the same.

"Don't reject me. Love me."

"I like you today. I'll like you tomorrow. And I bet, I'll love you in a way you never experienced."

For someone who was cold, he couldn't help but feel so warm when he held her against him. He felt even warmer when her hand came to pet his hair.

He nuzzled his face into her neck like a cat seeking affection.

Karissa looked up at the sky and felt nothing but relief.

I'm glad I asked.


It might have been from the physical and emotional exhaustion; she wasn't sure if maybe only one of them caused it but Clavis soon fell asleep again after having his heart cradled so gently. His body was left lying on the ground, on his back, facing the sky by himself when Karissa decided she needed to keep moving.

Dusk was here when something shot into the sky.

It was the Sabertooth insignia exploding in white in the sky.

"So, he kept hiding away this whole time…" Karissa winced when she could no longer hold it. Her body fell on its knees.

Punishment of Absolute Zero.

For three minutes, the spellcaster's body temperature begins to drop significantly until they reach absolute zero. It has an area of effect due to how cold the spellcaster becomes. Anything they touch will freeze away. For the first minute, the spellcaster's body heat will begin to fade away. The second minute, they are the physical embodiment of absolute zero. For the third minute, they get slower due to the numbness.

The spellcaster must slowly undo the spell to thaw out; the slightest mistake can harm the body.

If the user goes over the time limit, with every second, it becomes increasingly difficult to stop the spell, risking hypothermia. One must be very careful when using this spell…

Those were the same words written in Ur's book and in the same book she found in the library.

However, there was more to the spell.

The three minutes listed is the ideal time for the average tank of magic power. Those who possess greater magic power are able to quickly reach absolute zero within a minute. The reason being that burns through magic power rapidly. If those with greater magic power were too quickly burn through the spell, the faster the spellcaster would reach absolute zero, making up for the lack time and creating more ease in trapping their targets.

To avoid using up all in one go, spellcaster may also temporarily stop the spell if they are able to.

However, once the spell has been casted, the spellcaster will have to still let it runs its course once they resume the spell. They need to follow the aforementioned instructions to thaw.

...

Karissa learned how to pause the spell only because she knew how to not use Second Origin until she was ready. From there, it was easy. She just needed to know when to start, pause, and resume Second Origin.

In a layman's words, it was like holding in a shit and waiting for the right moment to let it out.

Her palm touched the ground when she lost balance on her knees. Immediately, the pavement started freezing under her touch. To avoid worrying her brother, she chose to keep this information away from him. She did well in hiding it, he couldn't have known with how emotional he was being.

"Thaw, thaw, thaw…" Karissa whispered under her breath. Absolute Zero was coming back to her now that she resumed the spell. All she needed to do now was take her time to stop it and thaw out. During that time, she wasn't allowed to move her body. She knew, after training the spell, that sudden movements would result in painful cracks in her skin. She could only image worse injuries if she tried acting against the rules of the spell.

In this state, she would be left vulnerable to any attacks.

The Punishment of Absolute Zero was in no doubt a double-edged sword.

Karissa tensed when she heard footsteps approaching from behind.

The darkness of the sky, the empty streets, the quietness and her defenseless state made her very on edge. She didn't know if Sting would actually show up behind her and strike her down. If he showed up, she didn't think she'd be able to run since it might cost her losing her life. She didn't want to find out.

Come on, just focus on thawing…! The faster I warm up the less injured I'd get if I needed to run!

A figure finally appeared in her sight. They came from around a corner near the alleyway she just passed by but the darkness made it hard for her to recognize who it was. It definitely wasn't Sting. Eventually, just from the build alone was she able to tell who it was, stepping into the moonlight made it even certain.

Laxus.

He saw her on her knees surrounded by ice that spread thinly on the wall and the pavement near her. She looked like a shivering mess.

The older Fairy Tail slowly approached her with almost wobbly steps. His fight with Jura put him in the ringer so it he wasn't surprised when he needed to make an effort to walk straight.

"I take it your fight went well?" Karissa decided to break the silence while she continued thawing.

"I won." Laxus said flatly. "Same to you after everything that happened with your little spell. I could see it from where I was."

"You did, huh? Haha…"

Karissa told Mavis and her team what kind of spell she might end up using to win. Of course, there were a few objections, especially from Erza and Gray once she explained what kind of spell it was. But she reassured everyone and asked them to trust her when swore she practiced it all this time. Laxus had looked her in the eye and asked her if they could trust her to not be stupid and risk her life, if there were things she was unsure of about the spell then he wouldn't allow her to do it.

She was able to convince him she would be fine.

And he could see that she was fine now.

When Laxus was close enough, he let out a grunt as he lowered himself on his knees and reached for her. Karissa flinched away when she saw his bare hand get close.

"What are you doing? You'll get cold."

"I know." Laxus ignored her look of alarm and still reached around her to pull her against him. Immediately, he could feel ice attacking his skin and clothes from where he was pressed against her.

"Laxus!"

The lightning mage dug into his pants' back pocket to pull out a plastic, inside was a small lacrima. Before she could shove him off, Karissa blinked when she saw the label on it with a price tag.

'Warm'

"Wait… when did you get that?"

"Right after the strategy meeting."

Without the use of his other hand, he ripped the plastic with his teeth and quickly caught the lacrima in between them before crushing it into his mouth like candy.

Temperature lacrima.

For people who needed to climb snowy mountains and stay up there for who knows how long for god knows what, temperature lacrima were quite handy to have in case of emergency. The government modified them to make them edible while still keeping the fire element intact. One simply needed to crush in their mouth like candy and they would eventually warm up.

Due to high demand for the opposite during a hot summer day, ice-based temperature lacrima were created for those who couldn't stand the heat.

Laxus bought two in case Karissa needed it.

With his body negating the cold, he reached for his other back pocket and pulled out the same thing. He tore it open with his teeth and then plucked out the blue lacrima from it so that he can hold it up to her mouth.

"Eat. I promise it doesn't taste like shit."

Karissa's dark brown eyes watched him, touched by his thoughtfulness.

If this was before Tenrou Island, this exchange would have been impossible to imagine.

After crushing the lacrima in her teeth, Laxus' big hand ruffled her bangs, making her squint, almost delighted from the gesture.

It was her first time eating this candy-lacrima, which did not taste like anything at all, it was just bland, the very definition of it. The initial reaction to the destruction of the lacrima was strange. It caused a sensation on her tongue that was similar to eating pop rock candy before switching it up to a heat on her tongue as if she ate something spicy. From her tongue, the warmth traveled to the rest of her body.

Too accelerate the process, Laxus proceeded to hug her with his other arm to try and stop her shivering. He would rather pick her up and continue walking but he was too afraid of hurting her.

"I didn't think you'd buy this for me. I mean, because, I said I would be alright. And I was doing fine— don't look at me like that. I didn't say I didn't appreciate this!"

"Is it so bad that I want to help you?" Laxus argued.

"I didn't say that either!"

"You already know the answer, dummy."

Karissa pouted and peeked at the moon with one eye since her face was awkwardly squished against his chest. They stayed together in the middle of the street and waited for her body to return to normal and for the spell to finally cease. Laxus made sure she didn't feel too cold before releasing her safely from his arms. She even made sure she was able to flex her fingers and make a sudden movement with her arm to test her safety.

"Ready?" Laxus looked over his shoulder as he took the lead.

"Mhm."

"Good. Let's keep going."

"Thanks, by the way, for… uh, your warmth?"

"No need to thank me for that. Think of it as me using boo-boo wipes on your knee."

"... At least you cared enough not to yell at me this time."

"I did not yell."

"Big teen raising his voice at a kid is considered yelling in my book. I was traumatized."

"I'm not paying for your therapy sessions."


Fairy Tail – 56
Sabertooth – 52
Lamia Scale – 52

They finally found Sting. He was in an open area where you couldn't miss him. Upon seeing them practically crawl out of the woodwork, he smirked with triumph, already seeing victory ahead of him and behind the battered Fairy Tail members.

"What a view! You were the people I worshipped seven years ago!"

"Enough chit-chat! This is final battle!" Gajeel clicked his tongue, uninterested in hearing boring talk.

"We'll take you one-on-one! Which on do you want?" Gray asked him, ready for anything.

"One-on-one? Please, if he called us out here then why not everyone against one?" Next to Gajeel, Karissa shrugged with a roll of her eyes.

Sting smirked at her and nodded, appreciating that kind of thinking. "Exactly. You can come at me all at once. With your wounds, one-on-one would be boring."

"Underestimate us and that will be your last move." Gajeel warned.

"Underestimate? No, no. I'm showing you all respect!" Sting stood proudly and gave them all a sort of unhinged grin. "That's exactly why I'll crush you all at once! I've been waiting for this moment! I'm going to show Lector just how strong I am!"

Laxus sighed on Karissa's other side. "I ain't got a clue what you're saying, but you're serious? That's pretty bold."

Using a wooden stick for support, Erza took a step forward to situate herself in between Gajeel and Gray and looked at Sting through her messy scarlet bangs. "Very well! If you are prepared for the outcome then we will fight you, Sting!"

"That's how it gotta be." Sting held out his arms as if to praise them all for standing before him, a member of the great Sabertooth, a man with newfound strength that was unmatched. However, the Fairy Tail members could not see what he saw and remained impassive as he boasted about a new power that he demonstrated through a burst of white magic.

Those nine points would be easy to snatch. He'd be ripping the rug from beneath their feet and force them all to fall down.

A chuckle escaped Sting.

But then he stiffened when he took a good look at his opponents.

They were all watching him, waiting for him to make his move so that they would put their all into crushing him. Their unwavering stance was accompanied by flares of magic pressure coming from them, another show of readiness.

He made eye contact with each person.

Gray was daring him to move. Erza was encouraging him to fight to the bitter end for she would do the same. Gajeel was eying him almost like he was prey. Karissa was observing him with patience. Laxus was simply watching him as if he was little cause for concern.

It was novel to see how a human's face expression could rapidly change.

Sting went from being confident and absolute sure in his victory to unease and unsure to ultimate acceptance of defeat as he fell to his knees in front of everyone. His thud on the hard ground under the moonlight echoed.

"I… can't win. I… surrender."

Each Fairy Tail member watched as he placed his hands on his knees and bowed his head in defeat.

The silence was suddenly filled with a loud explosion in the sky. "It's all over! The victor of the Grand Magic Games is Fairy Tail!

His declaration of surrender allowed Chapati to announce the end of the games for the year and give the crown to the winning guild. Fireworks around a giant Fairy Tail insignia lit up the night sky in celebratory colours. Loud cheers from the audience shook the stadium to accompany the fireworks.

With their victory declared, everyone finally released the tension, stopped their magic and breathed sighs of relief.

Karissa clasped her hands while making a loud clapping sound. "Holy shit am I tired?! This is the most I've done with my goddamn magic fuel! I'm sleeping and dying after this!"

Gray quirked a brow at her complaining. "What happened to wanting to feel drained every once in a while?"

"I take it all back. I hate being a peasant mage."

"The hell is that supposed to mean?" Gajeel glowered at her. "Who you calling peasants?!"

Comically apathetic, she theatrically raised her arm and sharply tilted her wrist and opened her fingers as if she was dropping a spotlight on him. The Iron Dragon Slayer swatted her hand away and began throwing retorts at her which she responded with playfulness.

"Alright, that's enough out of you." Laxus put his gigantic arm around her neck, like as if her was close lining her and proceed to drag her away from Gajeel. He knew what was up with Karissa now. The loopiness from exhaustion was starting to jump out of her mouth. He's seen this shit happen before when they stayed up late during a job. God, it was like watching a four year old drink coffee.

"Ack—! My neck!"


The cheers that erupted around the man became background noise when he saw his son and his friend chatting with their teammates. He also saw the Fairy Tail guild in the audience celebrating tearfully when the lacrima vision zoomed in on their reactions.

All he saw was the people he cared about surrounded by good people.

Thank god for that.

More tears appeared in his eyes. As he lifted a hand to wipe them away, he suddenly felt someone bump into him. Startled, he jerked away and saw a young man with his hands up in surrender.

"Oh, I'm sorry!"

His couldn't see his face since it was covered by a hood attached to that long gray cloak he was wearing. Realizing this, the young man straightened up and pulled his hood down to reveal a head full of ivory locks with a disarming smile.

"Are you alright?"


Clavis just wants love bro.

I typed this chapter in one day because that specific day was the only time I felt some inspo for writing. I had none for this month x_x Drew those also on the same day.

I guess it's because I still got a lot more to write before we reach the point I'm itching to write about. Mystery man at the end of the recent chapters is just barely scratching that damn itch lol.

You all know what time it is next chapter. Dragon Time.

Also, the number of times I caught myself writing in present tense instead of past... Maybe I might switch it up one day, who knows.

Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope you have a nice day/night!