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After Takara managed to get a lid on her emotions she sat down with Tetsu and the others at a nearby table, all of them watching.

"I don't understand," Tetsu said weakly as he examined her. "You're my sister? Really?"

"She has to be, dude," Katsuchi said, "she looks just like you and everything."

"I am," Takara replied, "I really am your sister." Tetsu shook his head at this, as if not able to believe it, and then rubbed his forehead.

"I'm so lost," she said, "I thought Kronos said he found me somewhere...isn't that what he said?"

"It is," Azzie replied, "it's what he told all of us."

"Kind of strange he just managed to find a bunch of orphans out in the middle of nowhere, no?" Drake asked leisurely. The other three seemed to genuinely consider this for the first time.

"It's a lie," Takara replied, "along with a bunch of other things I'm sure. You weren't found, you were stolen from us. Stolen from our home."

"I was?" He asked, and she nodded. "How did it happen?" At this, Takara frowned. She looked down at the table and played with her hands.

"It was a long time ago," she replied. "We used to live in the Eastern part of Fiore. Village called Avani. You weren't more than four when they took you."

"Four?" Azzie asked, "that's the age we all wound up with him."

"Doesn't surprise me," Takara replied, "it's easier to make kids believe you than teens or adults. It wouldn't that much convincing her magic to make you forget. I remember it so vividly. That man came to the village. Said he was just visiting, but made such a show of seeing all the kids. Next thing we know, you were gone."

"Was it Hades?" Drake asked, curious.

"Yes," Takara replied, gritting her teeth. "It was Hades. I recognised the bastard as soon as I saw him again."

"I..." Tetsu started, before closing his mouth again. It didn't take a genius to see he was lost. Just a simple look into his eyes could have told you that. Takara took his hands in hers and smiled weakly.

"I looked for you," she said as her voice cracked. "I didn't listen to our poor parents when they forbid me from doing it. And then I got caught and imprisoned, but I never stopped hoping, never stopped dreaming this day would come." Tetsu's eyes were glued to their joined hands.

"Parents?" He asked, "are they alive still?"

"I'd hope so," Takara replied, "Given everything that's happened I haven't had the time to check in at home. But we can go back. We can be a family again. What do you say?"

"Family?" He asked, eyes boring into her. She nodded enthusiastically.

"Family," she said, "we can be whole again." Tetsu stared at her for a good long while before he looked back at their hands. No one said a word for a moment.

"We have more important things to focus on right now, sadly," Drake said. "Remember what Poseidon said, Takara?"

Takara wanted to kick his teeth in for interrupting her moment with Tetsu, but deep down she knew he was right. This battle wasn't over yet. She still had a role to play.

"I remember," she replied as she pulled her hands from Tetsu's, "I need to be bait."

"Poseidon?!" Katsuchi exclaimed, speaking up for the first time in a while. "Bait?! What the hell did we miss Drake?!" Drake took a minute to explain what had transpired before they had arrived. About Poseidon, the Children of Nyx, and everything. The trio looked positively stunned through all of it.

"Fuck..." Katsuchi hissed as he ran a hand through his hair.

"So, we found her then?" Azzie asked hopefully.

"In a sense," Drake said. "We still need to draw of a Child of Nyx, though. And if Poseidon was telling the truth, then they should be after Takara and Jason."

"So we need to use her as bait," Tetsu mused, his voice rough and irritated. He sounded like their father.

"I've already agreed to do it," Takara interrupted, not letting her brother interject. "I have to do it to get Nashi back."

"What about your friend over there?" Tetsu demanded.

"They're after both of them," Drake repeated, "It would make no sense to only go after Jason."

"Except they might," a new voice said. Takara looked up as Jason joined them, hands in his pockets.

"And why is that?" Drake asked. Jason was quiet for a moment, looking at Takara. Her eyes widened. No, surely he wasn't-!

"Because I'm a former Child of Nyx," he replied, making everyone's eyes widen. "If they're going after any of us, it'd be me." No one spoke for a moment, taking into account what Jason had revealed to them.

"If that's the case, we'll keep a close eye on you," Drake said after a moment of silence. His voice was harder then before, which was probably due to Jason's revelation. "Can you give us any sort of heads up on what to expect?"

"Not anything specific, no," Jason replied. "I haven't spent any amount of time with them in a decade or so. But I can give you all their names and powers. People like Eris, Nemesis, Moros, their powers. Would you like that info?"

"Eris?" Drake asked. Takara looked over at the man to see he had a flicker of recognition on his face. "Did you say Eris?"

"Yes, why?" Jason asked. Drake frowned deeply at this, looking down at the floor.

"I have a feeling we might be seeing her," he said, "She's, what, Chaos?"

"No, Strife and Discord," Jason replied, "Though I suppose Chaos isn't entirely inaccurate." Drake's frown deepened, muttering something under his breath. "Why do you think we'll meet her?"

"Let's call it an educated guess," Drake replied. Takara knew he was hiding something now, he made it obvious. Then again, he also made it obvious he didn't plan on sharing right now.

"Did you want me to tell you about her powers or...?" Jason asked, Drake shaking his head.

"No, I think we'll be fine with her," he said. "Let's just say Eris and I have met and leave it at that." Takara made a face at this, wondering what situation could have let to Drake and Eris meeting. This guy really had a history, huh? "I'll leave you guys to yourselves for now. Come and see us tomorrow, Takara, Jason. We'll have a plan prepared then." With this the Dragon Slayer walked off, leaving the five of them by themselves.

"Sometimes I wish he'd tell us what he's thinking when he thinks it," Takara muttered.

"Trust me, he won't," Azzie replied as she stood and grabbed Katsuchi's shoulder. "Well, I think we'll leave the siblings alone for now so they can talk. Don't you think, Kat?" The blonde smirked over at Tetsu as he stood, nodding.

"Sounds like a fair plan to me," he said. The pair also walked away, and Jason snorted.

"That does sound like a fair plan," he said to Takara. "Have fun, Taka." With this, Takara was left with her brother, and for a moment she almost considered taking him and running away. Instead, she turned to her brother and smiled.

"Did you have any questions you wanted to ask?"

"The next hour or so Takara spent telling Tetsu all about their home and their family. She told him about their parents, their hometown, and the friends they'd had when they were little. Tetsu seemed shocked every time Takara said something that line up with one of his limited childhood memories, but that was to be expected. After all, up until a few hours ago he had no idea he even had a sister or a family.

"Wow," Tetsu said after a story about his birthday. "Sounds like we had a pretty nice little town."

"We did," Takara answered, "it was nice.

"And you gave it all up to find me," Tetsu said. Takara felt a stab of pain at this, thinking back to how her parents pleaded with her to stay.

"We weren't complete without you," she said, "Our parents were poor, they couldn't hire a guild to look. I took it upon myself to look."

"And fractured the family even further," he replied, looking confused. "Why?"

"Because I was young and dumb," Takara answered honestly, thinking back to how foolishly brave she had been back then. "I thought I could find you and sabe our family. Turns out I just ruined it even more." The siblings were silent for a moment before Tetsu sighed.

"Well, you told me your story. It's only fair I tell you mine."

With this, Tetsu launched into his own story. He explained the lies Kronos had fed him and the other kids in Devil Advocate, how they'd been led to believe he was some kind of saviour and that their families had abandoned them. He told how he'd been taught the lost art of Iron God Slaying, and how he and his guild had gone up against Fairy Tail and a guild called Crime Sociere. He explained that even though he followed Kronos' orders, he never liked it. How, even as a kid, he'd realised he wanted out of Devil Advocate. After he'd gotten his ass handed to him by Nashi and Elise, he and Katsuchi had taken that chance. They helped the guild defeat Kronos, and after that went their separate ways.

"But you joined the guild," Takara pointed out, gesturing to the Fairy Tail mark on Tetsu's arm. He smiled down at it.

"That's another story," he replied.

He explained how, some months ago, he, Katsuchi and Azzie all had the same dream. A dream about a man telling them that Fairy Tail needed their help and that they needed to head for Magnolia. He told her how they'd come here to find the city in ruins, and how they'd helped Fairy Tail fight off The Olympians in the final hurrah of the battle.

"After that," Tetsu continued as he gestured back to the mark, "They offered us a spot in the guild. a place where we could belong, with friends and a family we could trust. So we took it. I haven't been this happy in a long time." Takara offered him a weak, sad smile. Hearing him say those things hurt, even though she knew that up until this point he never even knew he had a family out there who missed him.

"You found a place you belong," she said. Tetsu smiled.

"I guess I did," he replied as he watched the mark. Takara felt her emotions returning, and reached over to grab his hands.

"I never thought I'd find you, Tetsu. Sure I dreamed, but after I got caught in Tartarus, I..."

"I'm not going anywhere," he said as he squeezed her hand. "You'll never have to look for me again." With this, his eyes moved away for her and towards the bar. "Think we can trust your friend over there?" Takara looked back to find Jason at the bar, having a drink. She frowned at this.

"I don't know," she replied, "I really want to trust him. Honestly, I do. But finding out that he used to work with The Olympians, and that his magic is based on trickery...I really don't know."

"You said he helped you and Nashi escape, right?" Tetsu asked.

"Well, that was the idea," Takara replied. "We were all supposed to escape, but Nashi got caught up fighting Thanatos and got cornered...Jason made me leave with him." Tetsu watched her for a moment before he hummed in irritation.

"As much as I hate to admit it, he made the right choice," he said. "If you'd both gone back to help Nashi we would not be here."

"So I keep getting told," Takara admitted, still not feeling any better about it. "Still, sometimes I wish there was more I could have done."

"Not point dwelling on the past when the future is waiting for you," Tetsu said with a reassuring smile. "If I kept thinking about the horrible shit I did in Devil Advocate, then I'd never get anywhere." Takara watched as pain flashed in his eyes.

"Did you do bad things for them?" She asked quietly. Tetsu looked down at his hands.

"I did," he answered. "I know now why those things were bad but, back then, it was all about survival. Nothing else mattered but making sure Katsuchi and Azzie survived. The others guys there were somewhat unlikable. Except Maya, I guess. Kinda." Despite wanting to know about his life, she found herself not all that interested about the less likeable members of Devil Advocate. If they were even alive, that is.

"None of that matters," she said, "You're making up for it now, it spades."

"Just like you'll make up for leaving Nashi behind by saving her now," he replied. "See? It all works out in the end." Takara just laughed weakly, resting her head of Tetsu's shoulder as he wrapped an arm around her.

"I damn well hope so."

"Drake we hear what you're saying, but we aren't sure." Ultear replied, frowning at him. Drake wasn't sure how much more clear he could be. "How can you be sure Eris will show up?"

"I'm not sure, I'm guessing heavily," he said.

"On what information, again?" Damien asked.

"The info that she came after us when we were in the future."

It wasn't all that much to go on, but Drake had had this theory since they'd been on Mount Cryc a few months back. It was convoluted, and honestly strange as all hell, but it made sense in his mind. Somehow.

"I think certain things have to happen no matter what," he said. "That even when we went to the future, into a timeline completely different from our own, that certain events still occurred."

"Based on what information?" Simon asked as he pushed his hair out of his face. "As far as I've seen, no events have lined up so far."

"My Mom is pregnant," Drake said.

Silence fell upon the group at this, everyone staring at him.

"When did that happen?" Simon asked, "How long has she - ?"

"Not long ago, but it's not just that," he continued, "Back at Cryc when Crime Sociere and Simon saved us, my Dad told me that he knew he'd been a shit Dad and needed to do better. He said that our experience at Mt. Olympus made him realise that and how much I meant to him. In the other timeline, he realised that when we all disappeared from the Grand Magic Games. It made him a better Dad to Kaida, and like I said, my Mom is pregnant."

"Okay, that lines up oddly I'll admit," Elise said. "But that still doesn't -"

"And now, we find out that a group of people are hunting Takara and Jason. And of that group, we met Eris in the future. She came to stop us from going back to our own time and repairing the timeline because she wanted Nashi. And now, they want Takara and Jason. Does that not seem weird to you guys?"

The group of old friends fell silent again, exchanging glances between one another.

"So you think that no matter what, certain things still happen?" Ultear summarised. Drake nodded.

"Yes," he said, "they sent Eris after us last time and they very well may do it again. Like I said, it's not a complete science, but I'm willing to bet on it."

"So am I," Steph said, finally speaking up. She had not been present when they had all been in the fractured future, but she listened intently to the explanations. "I trust Drake." Drake gave her an appreciative smile, one she returned.

"You guys are forgetting that Nashi and Luke fought Eris," Damien said, "and in case you haven't noticed, Nashi ain't here. Oh, and Luke isn't exactly able to answer that question."

"Suppose we could try and ask him," Elise mused with a snort.

"What, and have him shit his pants?" Ultear asked, laughter passing over the group.

"Look, just be on the look out for her." He said as he pocketed his hands. "You all remember what she looks like?"

"Yeah," Elise said as she stood, "Multi-coloured hair with daddy issues like a motherfucker. That sum it up?" Drake scoffed.

"Sounds about right, yeah."

"Are you sure this is the right way to go about this, sir?" Thanatos asked. Hades made a face and looked over at the man.

"I don't know why you seem so insistent on asking me this," he said. Thanatos straightened up at this.

"Because you are the man I trusted my life to," he said, "My brothers and sisters, they trust you as well. There is apart of me that, after all of this years, needs to be told just what the plan is." Hades stared at Thanatos for a good long while, not sure what to make of him. He'd always been a loyal follower, making sure that Tartarus was secure and that no one ever did something he disapproved of. And yet, he always saw a man who wasn't completely sure. Wasn't totally convinced.

"Do you not trust me?" He asked him.

"Of course I do, sir," Thanatos replied. "I'd lay my life down for you but, if it truly comes down to that, I want to know what exactly it is my life is disappearing for."

"You needn't know anything, save for the fact that we must secure the King's rising."

"Yes, but why allow Fairy Tail to get here? Why allow them in?"

"It's all relevant, Thanatos. It's all required for the King to meet this world, and change it for the better."

Look at that, I got a chapter out! I hope you all enjoyed, leave a review! Let's try and get five!

Chapter 359: Baiting