Chapter Two
"I'll make tea," she said irritably, smoothing the back of her sweater and hoping that it hadn't been stretched beyond recovery.
"Thank you," said Erza. Even in civilian clothes, she looked like some kind of aristocracy, with her frills and her class. Even sans armor, it was clear that Erza was a force to be reckoned with. Of course, Sigrid didn't need to see Erza to know that; the other wizard had dragged her her by the scruff of her neck.
"Where did you get that fish, anyways?" she asked as she dug around Lucy's cabinets. "I swear it appeared out of nowhere?"
The tea was pushed way to the back. Evidently Lucy was more of a coffee drinker. The selection was kind of pitiful and it was all bagged. Sigrid supposed that she could settle. Cheap Earl Grey was good enough.
"That's my fish!" said Happy proudly.
"I caught that one," Natsu pointed out. Sigrid rolled her eyes. What had she said earlier about a noise threshold?
"Yeah, but it's my fish," Happy insisted.
"You always say it's your fish."
She filled the pot with water, glanced at the stove, and then shrugged to herself. The kettle whistled right away.
"Huh, that was fast," said Natsu, yawning.
"Do you know where the teacups are?" she asked, still a little peeved. "I get the feeling you're here more often than the rest of us."
"Hm? They're in that cabinet there," Gray directed, leaning lazily back in his chair.
"You too? Geez," she grumbled. "I don't think she's going to be happy. I wouldn't be."
Erza, as usual, was unfazed. "I'm sure she'll understand." Sigrid set the first cup in front of her and poured water over the teabag. The immediate fragrance was a little disappointing. Perhaps she'd leave behind some better teas as an apology.
"Yeah, especially since we brought food!" Natsu cheered.
"Is that all you think about?" said Gray, smirking.
Natsu opened his mouth to say something, but Erza fixed him with one of her trademark stern looks until he was slumped in his chair. Instead, he stared grumpily into the tea Sigrid was pouring for him.
"How did we beat her home, anyways?" Sigrid said as she picked up on the muffled sound of chatter outside.
"Lucy? She's probably been talking the whole way here," Natsu answered, just in time for the door to swing open.
"—of like my family." She was beaming and looked positively cheerful for a split second. Unfortunately, the mood changed quickly.
"Hey," said Gray, raising his arm in greeting.
"Nice place you have," Erza said cheerily, sipping at her tea already. Must like it weak.
"Welcome home," Happy called.
Natsu just glanced up at her, and Sigrid said, "Sorry. I was dragged here against my will."
"THEY LIKE TO SHOW UP WITHOUT ASKING FIRST!" she yelled, looking comically shocked. Sigrid took an instinctual step back, but the projectile, which turned out to be a suitcase, hit directly where it was intended: Natsu's face. "Why are you here?!"
"Since the guild's been attacked, we can assume there are Phantom Lord members in town," Erza explained, sipping away at her tea.
"They've probably found out where everyone in Fairy Tail lives by now," added Gray.
"Where we live?!" cried Lucy, who looked much less upset by the company now.
"Mira said it'd be safer if we holed up together," he finished.
Sigrid started, her face contracting in to a scowl. "Wait just a minute! You told me Master Makarov said that. Did you seriously lie through your teeth so I'd trespass with you?"
"You can't talk to Erza like that," said Natsu, who appeared to have gone gray.
Erza didn't look angered, but it was obviously that she was about to turn the other cheek, per se. Right then, Sigrid would have accepted it. But Lucy, who looked shaky, interrupted. "No, it's okay," she said. "I really don't mind the company if that's what's going on. Please stay!" She laughed nervously, twiddling her thumbs a little. Her face was flushed, and Sigrid caught her glancing nervously at the doors and windows.
"I'm glad I'm not intruding, then," she said, still a little bothered. This all felt like an attack on her dignity. Her she was, speaking to the infamous Natsu and his frenemy Gray for the first time ever, and they'd already witnessed Erza dragging her through the streets like an insolent child. She liked Erza, but she wondered if the other woman had forgotten how to interact with someone mature and not so… whatever those two were.
But, of course, if she wanted to claim maturity, making a scene in the middle of the room wasn't the way to do it. Private confrontation would be better. She leaned against the counter and glared at her teacup, trying to focus in on the gentle humility of the spirit Plue instead of Natsu's chaotic magic or Erza's intense single-mindedness or even Gray's control coldness. Still, she thought there might be steam coming out of her ears.
I don't answer to Mira. And I certainly don't answer to you.
"I guess she's right," Lucy said thoughtfully. She was obviously confused, though. She didn't know the full scope of the conversation. And neither did Natsu and Gray, for that matter.
"That's why everybody in Fairy Tail's havin' a slumber party tonight! Cheer up, Siggie, it'll be fun!" Happy said. His name suited him.
"I don't think you've known me long enough to give me a nickname," she said grumpily.
"You are an attractive teenage girl, after all," said Erza to Lucy, smiling pleasantly now. Maybe she thought she was off the hook. "I wasn't entirely comfortable with you being here alone with Natsu and Gray. I felt I could only relax if I stayed here as well."
"It's not time to relax!" said Natsu, who had been irritable for most of the night anyways.
"So it was already decided that these two were gonna stay with me?" asked Lucy, who sounded irritated again. "Why'd they have to come to my place?"
Sigrid took Natsu's chair since he'd apparently decided to stay moping on the floor and relocated it back at the table. She left it open in case Lucy wanted to sit down, and she had way too much nervous energy to sit still anyways. Even so, she couldn't help but smirk at such an easy shot. "You can give up the ghost, Lucy. You're just mad that we're not going to let you get up to any shenanigans."
Lucy flushed wildly and shook her head. "Don't say that, it's so not true!"
Gray, too, had gone a little pink. "Yeah, no way!"
"What are you talking about?!" yelled Natsu.
"Wouldn't want to wake the neighbors," said Sigrid innocently as she collected the empty tea cups.
"She looks embarrassed, Sigrid, maybe we shouldn't be so crude," Erza suggested, though she too looked entertained.
"I guess you're right," said Sigrid, winking at Lucy. "I guess I shouldn't make assumptions." I'm still mad at you, she-devil.
"Assumptions?!" Lucy cried, hands on her face. "What do you mean, assumptions?!"
"Wow, you sure have a lot of dirty clothes," Sigrid heard Happy say. She turned to see that he was digging around in a little artisan-woven basket, like Lucy's dirty underwear were his business. And Plue looked suspicious, too; his pack was turned to them, he was leaning down, and he was holding something. He sounded quite happy.
"What are you doing?! Get out of my stuff!" the blonde shouted. "You better stop that right now or you're both dead meat!"
Natsu jumped up faster than Sigrid could perceive. "Hey Plue, did you find something to eat? Don't go hoggin' it all!"
"There's a whole fish on the table!" Sigrid said.
"It's my fish!" said Happy for the millionth time. "Look, Erza, I found some frilly panties you might like!"
A lot can happen in three seconds.
Possibly the most shocking thing was that Erza actually got up to eyeball Lucy's underwear. "I can't believe that you'd actually wear something like this, Lucy!" She was blushing furiously and sounded a little scandalized. Sigrid covered her mouth with her hand and Lucy let out a cry of exasperation.
"For someone who was so worried about those three getting up to some hijinks around here, you don't seem too concerned about airing out her drawers in front of a couple of young men," she snorted into her palm. Not that it was of any consequence. Natsu was stuffing his face with a whole drawer of candy and Gray, who was obviously no Puritan, had stripped almost naked himself.
"I need to get some shut-eye, so can you try and keep it down?" he requested. He looked a lot like he was reveling in the whole situation.
"You guys are taking this make-yourself-at-home thing a little too far," said Lucy, but meekly and without heat.
"Gray, you can't sleep in Lucy's bed!" Sigrid said sternly. "You're a guest. Hey, what are those papers?"
"DON'T READ THOSE!" Lucy screamed.
"So much for the neighbors."
"We have a serious problem," Erza declared. Yeah, I can think of a few. "You boys' hygiene. I refuse to sleep in a room that reeks of sweat."
She felt suddenly self conscious. She'd been walking for days. It took a lot of self-control not to sniff herself then and there.
"I don't wanna take a bath right now," whined Natsu.
"But I've already gotten to bed," drawled Gray. He was still reclined lazily on Lucy's bed in only his underwear and the mass of bandages over his stomach and chest.
Erza "I'll-be-mother" Scarlet materialized behind their backs before anyone could blink. Rather than her usual threatening aura, she looked eerily cheerful. Her grip, tight on their shoulders, must have hurt; their eyes were practically popping out of their skulls. "Come on, boys. Do we have to take a bath together like when we were kids?"
Lucy gawked. "What kind of relationship do you guys have?!"
"No kidding," Sigrid said. "Erza, looks like we should have worried about you and not Lucy."
"That was a cheap shot," declared Happy, who looked unapologetically amused, especially since Erza had decided to ignore her. "That's Fairy Tail's strongest team for ya!"
"What does that even mean?!" mused Sigrid.
"More like Fairy Tail's strangest team," screeched Lucy.
"I hear you're a part of it," Sigrid shot back with a smirk.
Lucy, who looked embarrassed at the very thought, just let out a groan.
The dishes have to get done sometime, she thought, rolling over so that she was facing the ceiling and letting out a sigh of exasperation. I guess sometime might as well be now.
Natsu and Gray snored like a couple of freight trains. It was horrible; she couldn't sleep a wink. When they were in synch, Sigrid swore she felt the floor shaking. When they weren't, it was just constant growling, almost like they were actually awake. She wasn't sure what was worse. So she stood up, glanced over her comrades, and tiptoed across the floor with all the silence she could muster. In bare feet, it wasn't hard.
The wooden teacups were still where she'd set them on the counter, next to where all the empty fish plates had been moved. Otherwise, it was very tidy. Lucy kept a neat place for a teenage girl. It was a credit to her. They'd be doing the young wizard a disservice to leave a mess, anyways. Already, they were intruding in her space. No matter what she'd said that night, Sigrid, at least, didn't belong here.
It was childish, but she'd needed to take care to remind herself the night before that being with them for one night didn't mean she was a part of the team. Sure, they were a part of a team together: Fairy Tail as a whole. But she shouldn't be offended when most of the meat of the conversation happens when she's in the bath or cleaning up, or just when she has little to contribute.
It wasn't comforting, but it had become a kind of mantra throughout the night.
It kind of hurt to admit to herself that it even bothered her. After all, she'd been alone in her travels and work for so long that it almost felt like she needed to be immune. But that was silly and in her heart of hearts, she knew better. People are social creatures. If I was an exception, I wouldn't have joined Fairy Tail at all, even if I knew I didn't have to be around often.
The teacups clinked in the sink and she heard stirring coming from the bedroom. The snoring continued, and no one's magic reacted. The disturbance hadn't been enough to wake them; that, at least, was good. She glanced over her shoulder into the gaping darkness of the doorway. Sure enough, everyone was still lying down. Natsu had just rolled over.
Yeah. I can't get used to the company. And teams don't work for me, anyways. She had to be on the move constantly. Already, she was itching for action; her skin crawled here in a civilian neighborhood, washing the dishes like a tamed housewife or domestic servant.
There wasn't a dish rack, so she idly searched through the drawers for a towel. They seemed quite loud and her ears were a little strained it her efforts to listen in on movement in the other room, especially over the snoring. So the sudden appearance of another person was less than alarming.
"It's a little late to be doing dishes, Sigrid," said Erza, who'd appeared behind her without warning and procured a clean towel from oblivion.
"I know, but there's no use in just lying down and listening to those two snore. How are they not waking themselves up?" she asked, making a point of staring directly at the cups instead of the wizard, even as she turned to face her.
"It is a little obnoxious," the red-head admitted with a muted smile. "But that's obviously not all that's keeping you up. I'm sure you've encountered noisier things before."
"You're not wrong," Sigrid admitted, drying the last of the dishes and sitting down at the table, propping her head up on her elbows. "There are a lot of things troubling me right now, but I think they're just the same things that trouble everyone else."
"Ah. The attack," said Erza.
Sigrid figured she'd better take that one. Erza wasn't exactly emotionally perceptive, and in this instance, she was grateful for it. "Exactly," she agreed, turning her thoughts to that instead. "I guess the trouble is that we don't know their motive. They obviously have one, and if it isn't obvious already, this just means that destroying the guild hall was step one of x. We haven't seen the last of them."
"You're right," Erza said, looking troubled. "And I'm sure you know that the foremost attacker is a significant threat."
"I do," Sigrid said, frowning a little. "I knew before I even sensed his magic. I've seen his work before."
Erza looked a little surprised. She knew, after all, that Sigrid never showed up to interguild events. "When was that?"
"A few times," she answered, wishing that she'd made tea again instead of cleaning the cups up. Unfortunately, the whistling of the kettle would have woken the others. Even weak tea would have been a relief. "He causes enough destruction to rival some of our members. You know his reputation."
"I do," the other said, glancing out the window. "Sigrid, what did you detect about the attack?"
"Not a lot that you don't know anyways." Sigrid leaned back lazily, her eyelids drooping with tiredness. "But I can tell you that he was there alone."
Erza's eyes widened. "Are you certain? Maybe others came but didn't use magic."
"How likely is that?" she rebutted. "Anyways, you don't have to use your magic to leave a signature. It's just a weaker one. The Dragonslayer sure used his; if he was anywhere but right in the middle of anything, that drowned it out."
"So it's possible that he did something other than destroy the guild hall."
Truthfully, she hadn't thought about it. "Possible? Likely."
Erza looked more troubled than she had all day. "That's useful information. I think even the Master believed that this was just our rivalry at work."
"I wonder what else they were after," Sigrid said after a long moment of silence.
"We'll have to look into it tomorrow," Erza replied. "You should have brought this up right away."
"Yeah," she answered. "I'm sorry. I was distracted."
"It's a little surprising that you haven't at least seen Lucy before," Erza said with a smile. "She's become quite the icon."
"I'm sure it's hard not to stand out if she's spending so much time with you four," Sigrid said, grinning impishly at Erza.
Unfortunately, rather than taking the joke, Erza looked a little bothered. "Fairy Tail is a family, Sigrid. But most of our members have only ever heard of you. Natsu, Gray, and I have been here since we were just children, and both of them mentioned to Lucy earlier that they've hardly exchanged a word with you."
"I don't mean to seem standoffish," she said, a little offended.
"I don't know that I'd use the term 'standoffish'. When you visit the guild hall, you talk. No one thinks of you as unfriendly. But I would say that people are either hurt or confused at the duration of your stays."
"That doesn't make any sense." It did, but she didn't want to admit it. "If people would just ask, then I'd tell them it's not them, it's me. I just can't stay put. It makes me nervous."
"Waiting for others to take the initiative is unwise." Her friend's gaze felt very sharp all of a sudden, and Sigrid looked away. "I would suggest that you make a point of spending some small amount of time at the guild. Perhaps you could get used to it."
"Hmm."
"In fact, I'd like to invite you to join us on our next mission as a team."
"So soon?" Sigrid raised her eyebrows. "How can a mission be on the table already? We have to figure out what's going on with Phantom Lord, right?"
"Don't be ridiculous, Sigrid. Of course it'll be at a later date," Erza replied, crossing her arms.
"And is the invitation on behalf of the whole team, or is this a 'you're invited to Lucy's house' kind of invitation?"
She looked particularly stern in the dim lighting of the kitchen. "You know as well as I do that the others would be delighted to have you."
Perhaps out of spite, Sigrid replied, "I don't, actually. I don't know them very well. You mentioned it earlier."
Erza shook her head. "Don't be childish."
She exhaled deeply. "I'll think about it."
"I appreciate it," Erza said, her face softening. Of course, this was only for a moment; then something changed. She looked very noble, putting her balled fist over her chest, her eyes shining with valour. "I apologize that my words were offensive. I didn't mean to imply that you're rude or unapproachable. If—"
Sigrid shushed her, flushing. "You're getting loud, you'll wake the others!"
"—if it would help make it right, you're welcome to strike me."
"No. No, that's fine." Sigrid shook her head, blinking a few times. The conversation had exhausted her, especially once the emotionally obtuse Erza managed to glimpse the tip of the iceberg. Suddenly, the snoring in the other room didn't seem so loud. "I think I need to get some shut-eye."
"As do I," Erza said, stretching her arms. "I have a feeling we're in for an exciting day tomorrow."
Sigrid nibbled her lips. "Me too."
Somehow, in the next hour, she managed to fall asleep.
It wasn't unpredictable that someone who travelled constantly and woke at the first hint of sunrise would rise before most everyone in the room. Sigrid had expected it. Unhappy though she was at how little rest she'd gotten, she sat up just a moment after opening her eyes, collected her bedroll, and placed it on a chair at the kitchen table. She would, after all, be back, and leaving her things behind would be a way of warning Lucy without waking her up at the asscrack of the morning.
She had work to do. She'd really failed to realize the truth behind Phantom Lord's attack until talking to Erza the night before, and she thought that it would probably be best to look into the specifics as soon as possible. She also had some errands to run, but those would have to be put off until later, when the shops were open. At least then she'd have an excuse not to be in the guild hall all day.
Her stomach grumbled, but Lucy's apartment was mysteriously devoid of food. Breakfast could be had in the sad basement of the guild hall after it opened up and she'd done some investigating. Tea, however, was non-negotiable, and since no one else was awake to have any, she could prepare it single serve, without the whistle of the kettle. So, as quietly as possible, she dug through the cabinets for the teacups that she'd washed the night before. She finally grabbed one, cracked and rustic, and filled it with water.
Then, just as her magic began to stretch out its feelers for the power to heat the water, she noticed that the power was right behind her and tensed. "Good morning," she said, feeling the cups warm in her hands.
The pink haired wizard yawned, though he looked wide awake. Even after a long night's sleep, he looked less happy and mischievous than she'd ever seen in, be it in photos or Sorcerer's Weekly profiles or anything else. Still, it was an improvement from the night before.
"Mornin'," Natsu grunted. He slid a chair across the floor and she cringed.
"The others are still sleeping," she reminded him, watching the teabag settle in the water.
"Yeah, yeah," he muttered. "Any food in here?"
She rolled her eyes. "That hasn't changed since last night, Natsu. Tea?"
Natsu groaned. "Sure, I guess. You're not headed out already, are you?"
"To the guild hall," she supplied. "Obviously there's work to be done."
"Oughtta be doin' a whole lot more than work," Natsu grumbled. "I can't believe the old man's just going to let them get away with this."
Sigrid spoke before she could stop herself. "I doubt it'll wind up that way." She could see Natsu's startled face in her peripheral vision as she settled into another chair. The woman pursed her lips. Why had she said that? The last thing she wanted was for Natsu to get all fired up right here in the apartment.
"What does that mean?" he asked loudly, hands splayed on the cool wood of the table. Sigrid thumped him irritably and he withdrew the closest hand. "Hey! What was that for!"
She sipped at her tea and glared at him. "Quiet." Her voice was stern, but in the moment, she felt thoughtful. She didn't know Natsu well, and certainly not well enough to discount him. She took a moment to examine him closely. He was only a little taller than her, and looked more serious than usual; Natsu had the kind of healthy, attractively muscular look that should have been expected of a mage who spent much of their time active and on missions, especially those involving combat. His eyes were huge, though. That, combined with the unruly mess of his pink hair, made it seem as if Natsu was just a young adult wearing a child's head, or perhaps a child wearing an adult's body. Given how he supposedly behaved most of the time, she leaned towards the latter. But in the moment, big eyes and all, he seemed serious enough that it would have felt dishonest to treat him like some dumb kid.
Besides, Natsu, who held more love for their guild than most of its members combined, probably deserved to know what was going on as much as anyone.
"The attack probably wasn't a random act of aggression," she said finally, drinking away at her tea. "It's way too risky for a guild or guild member to do something like that without a reason."
"But what reason could someone possibly have for attacking Fairy Tail like that?" Natsu growled. He was getting loud… again.
"Hush. I don't know. Obviously I'm not a member of Phantom Lord," she said, her words crisp and clipped. "But the fact that we don't know what they were after already makes me think that they'll do something again, and soon. I spoke with Erza about it last night. She agrees."
Natsu opened his mouth and, when she glared at him in warning, spoke in a strained whisper. "We can't just lie down and let them attack us again! Anyways, what are they gonna do? The guild hall's already destroyed. Do you think they'll go after people's houses or somethin'?"
Sigrid frowned at the thought. "That seems like a valid concern, but again, I don't know. The best we can do is stay cautious. And I'm going to check the guild hall to see if they left any clues later."
Natsu frowned. "Shouldn't the military do that?"
She decided not to take this as an attack on her capabilities as a wizard. "It's interguild nonsense. None of the military's business until civilians or public property is involved."
"That sure explains why they come runnin' everytime we overdo it," Natsu said with a chuckle. Then his face went hard again. "Fairy Tail can handle our own problems, anyways. And you said… you think we'll get the chance?"
"I don't know if it'll be an option," she said into her teacup. "If they continue to attack us, or if whatever they want hurts our guild, we'll be forced to retaliate. Besides, Master Makarov isn't exactly relevance of the Council. If this keeps up, even he'll lose patience." She finished her tea and stuck out her tongue, feeling her nose wrinkle. "Foul. Really."
"Really? Tastes fine to me," Natsu said, staring suspiciously at his cup.
"No accounting for bad taste," she replied with an eyeroll, ignoring whatever offended noise he made and snatching up his cup to rewash it. "I'm headed to the guild hall."
"Already?" he asked, looking a little surprised. "It's pretty early." Then his eyes lit up with mischief. "You're hoping to get there before everyone else so you can investigate, aren't you?"
Busted. She stopped in her tracks and turned to look at him. "Yes. I'd prefer not to be interrupted as I'm going through things."
He grinned, but there was a darkness in his eyes. "I'm comin' with ya."
Sigrid frowned at him. "You do realize I'm not going to go running after them in the name of vigilante justice, don't you? I'll take what I find straight to the Master—and Erza. That way we can stop anything else from happening. As tempting as it is, going after Phantom Lord would be reckless. " She had a sudden jolt of inspiration. "What was that you all were talking about earlier? Surely you don't want a repeat of that."
Natsu shivered furiously, then braced himself again. "Look, I won't run off. I just wanna be in on it. Besides, if you're right, I'll get my chance anyways." He grinned wickedly, muscles in his arms tense. She wondered idly what was going on in his head. Was it just aggression, pent up rage, anticipation? Protectiveness? Injured pride? What took the forefront?
"Fine. Just let me go through everything in peace. Unless you can be helpful."
"Hey! I can be helpful," Natsu said. It sounded a little like he was pouting.
"Sorry. You have quite the reputation." She dried the cups and set them back in the cabinet, but threw the bad tea in the garbage.
Natsu laughed again. "Yeah, I guess so. Was that the last of it?"
Sigrid shook her head. "No, but I'm going to replace with something more suitable for people who don't like the taste of dirt. That's the least I can do, since Lucy was kind enough to host me."
"You stayin' here tomorrow night too?" Natsu asked as they snuck out the door. It was still a little dark out, and the air still had a pleasant morning chill. She glanced over at him, noting again that he was basically half naked. Maybe his fire magic kept him warm. After all, sometimes one's magic did affect their bodies as a whole. But she was pretty sure that fire magic didn't usually keep their mages warm all the time. Maybe it was a Dragon Slayer thing, or maybe Natsu was constantly doing magic to warm himself enough to show off his eight pack. She snorted a little at the thought. He didn't seem like that type of show off, but you never know.
"Hopefully not," she said. "It's a nice place and all but I don't want to linger longer than necessary."
"Well, where else are you gonna stay? Erza won't let ya wander off on your own," Natsu challenged.
Sigrid gave him a startlingly deadpan look. She was admittedly still annoyed about the night before. Being dragged through the streets had been demeaning, and Erza had stretched the neck of her sweater. True, she'd been just drunk enough to argue for the sake of arguing, and hadn't been at her most mature, but it was an insult at the deepest level to be treated that way. "Erza lets me do nothing. If she tries to drag me anywhere tonight, it'll be unpleasant for everyone."
"You're gonna try and fight Erza?! I'd like to see that!"
"For pity's sake, you're still yelling."
He looked curious now. So did Sigrid herself, but the reasons were very different. "What kind of magic do you use, anyways?"
"I use a kind of caster magic," she answered, distracted. "It's—do you hear that?"
Natsu frowned. "I do. Right around the corner. Sounds like a lot of people."
The made eye contact. The dragonslayer looked suspicious already, and Sigrid wondered if he'd heard the whispers of the townspeople yesterday, and was thinking the same thing. "It must be serious for so many people to be up at this hour," she said finally, feeling a sense of foreboding as they turned the corner to see first a mass of people, then a tree, and then some kind of macabre display.
It's them.
Her eyes widened for a moment and she felt something drop in her stomach. There wasn't much time to think about it, though; Natsu went running towards the tree like a bat out of hell, shouting incoherently and shoving people out of the way. Her first instinct was to stop him before he hurt someone by mistake, but then she caught onto one of the whispers. It was quiet, a fringe, but it was there. "Why are they still hanging up there? Why hasn't someone gotten them down?"
Hanging. Not hanging as in 'hanging by the neck until dead'. Not hanging as in 'suspended'. They hung, instead, alive. Three people pinned to a tree by tight bands of metal at the wrists and elbows, their feet more than a couple yards above the ground. It was Levy and her two friends, those guys whose names Sigrid hadn't bothered to remember. How long had they been hanging there? Had the weight of their bodies wrenched their shoulders from the sockets yet? What was worse: their pain, or now, their humiliation?
Maybe worst of all was Levy. Sigrid tried to recall with clarity what she'd been wearing the night before. A skirt, a blue vest, a little low-cut. A bra, but her chest had been mostly covered. She had a sweet kind of modesty to her, and the perpetrator had really outdone themselves trying to humiliate her. The vest was torn town the middle and the skirt was tattered; the pale skin of her stomach was exposed, and she'd been branded with Phantom Lord's emblem. Even from where she stood, all the way at the back of the crowd, she could tell that it was a burn. It must have been an agonizing violation, especially there, somewhere so soft and unprotected. Sigrid had to forced herself to look away, choking, and followed the natural line of action down to the sandal hanging loosely from Levy's left foot.
Why are they still hanging there?
"Excuse me," she said, eerily calm. "Who said that?"
"Huh?" said someone, turning around and then jabbing at the person standing next to them. "It's a Fairy Tail wizard."
"I recognize them!" said the other guy.
"Who said what?" asked the first.
"Someone made an inquiry," she said through gritted teeth, "as to why my friends here are still hanging from a tree. Who was it?"
"That's Sigrid Rahabdotter," someone else exclaimed. "Did you come here to get them down? They've been here for hours!"
"Yeah, it's barbaric!" cried some moronic woman. "That poor girl in the center!"
Sigrid felt Natsu's magic almost explode with intensity as he struggled to restrain himself before she ever heard him say anything. "WHY DIDN'T YOU PEOPLE DO ANYTHING?"
"Get out of my way," she muttered, pushing her way through the crowd. "Get out of here. This isn't a fucking zoo."
"Are you gonna get 'em down?" someone yelled again.
She reached Natsu as quickly as possible. He looked on the verge of literally exploding, and given the circumstances, there was little she could do to defuse him. "I'm going to get these people out of here," she said, her voice as icy as she'd heard it in a while.
"How dare they," he growled, staring up at their three guildmates. "I'll kill them!"
So will I. Sigrid turned towards the crowd, her face a picture of controlled neutrality. "All of you need to leave now. I can hardly believe that so many of my fellow citizens of Magnolia would just stand here and watch three people suffer for hours. Has no one called the military or tried to contact another member of our guild? I know you all know Fairy Tail." She was practically spitting. She could feel her cheeks getting red. "All of you, leave!"
You have a reputation, she heard Erza say as she balled and unballed her fists, watching most of the crowd clear without question.
"Why aren't more of you leaving?! Now!" she snapped at the remainder. She could feel her magic doing its work. Her body temperature began to rise, but, curiously, she felt something cold and hard at her fingertips. No matter; this was more important than controlling her temper.
"We're allowed to be here," someone argued. "This is public."
She seethed. "You have the right to be in a public place, but when you observe a crime, it's your civic duty to tell an authority instead of notifying the neighborhood grapevine and then gawking like a degenerate moron." Sigrid found the man who'd said it. He wore hideous glasses in the shape of triangles, but had beautiful blue eyes and a smug face. He was young. Young and stupid, obviously. "I'll ask once more that all of you not involved leave at once. If you don't, if you speak to the media, if you spread gossip, or if you otherwise further the hurt to these three people…" She inhaled. She felt uncomfortably like a raging inferno, herself. "I will take it very personally. And I will deal with it, personally."
The guy's friend, who wore similarly ugly glasses but was dissimilarly very unattractive, looked to be whispering sense into his friend. They left even quicker than anyone else, and soon, the crowd had thinned to nothing. It didn't ease the angry pounding in her ears.
Ten. Nine. Eight. This isn't working. Seven. Six. "We need to get them down," she said finally. Her voice had fallen to a vicious whisper. "Please go get the Master. Or anyone, actually."
"I ain't leavin'," Natsu hissed.
"Alright," she said, rubbing her face with her hands. Tears threatened to fall as her anger intensified. "I'll get help. Don't let anyone come near, you understand? I'll be right back."
Natsu met her eyes again. He looked terrifying, but Sigrid felt no sympathy for Phantom Lord. "No problem," he snarled, and she nodded sharply, turned away.
Those pieces of shit had brought it on themselves.
so, it's been a minute since i published this? hehe.
the truth is this chapter has been written all along, but i was waiting until i had more material to post it. it's been literally a few years, so i can't remember for sure what happened, but i guess inspiration was just not striking around this time. 2019 was a very bad year for me and truthfully a lot of my projects came to a grinding halt at that time.
so, will i update again?
i would like to. to be honest i look back at a lot of my old writings with distaste, which is why most of my incomplete projects have been taken down. i actually like this one, though. so i would like to continue it. but i'm not going to stress too hard about it, since that's one of the things that made writing a lot less fun for me back then.
so… keep your eyes peeled. chapter three is also fully written already, and i started chapter four before quitting in 2019. i will commit to publishing at least that much, and writing out a loose outline to get everything else started.
thank you for your patience with me. i know some people followed this story back then, and i appreciate you immensely.
till next time. 10.27.2023