Author's Note: Been a minute. As always, thank you for all your support and patience.
Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail. And by now, I have run out of things to think of changing if I did, please feel free to let your creativity run wild in the review section. Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe!
Today's chapter is lowkey and of the slice-of-life genre.
Please feel free to give me your constructive criticism, feedback, suggestions, etc. as are all welcome. I love hearing back from folks.
Spells and attacks will be typed in bold. Thoughts, flashbacks, adn emphasized phrases will be italicized.
Enjoy~
~Magnolia, June, X793~
A bright, blue early summer's sky welcomed another day into the year. Setting aside the broader machinations and dangers underneath the surface, today's Magnolia was peaceful.
The city streets teemed with plentiful residents. Crowds bustled with a mix of those doing their daily necessities as well as those seeking leisure amidst a backdrop of red and orange roofed houses lining the canals that flowed through the city. On this special day, a blue-haired Dragon Slayer, a white-haired girl with cat ears, and a pink-haired Teleportation mage were enjoying a stroll.
Different from her usual fit, Wendy wore a sleeveless, white frilled dress decorated red bows on her chest and around her waist. Her forearms were covered by detached sleeves that matched her dress, leaving her shoulders exposed - including the right shoulder which showcased her blue guild mark. White knee-high socks covered most of her legs as the skirt portion of her dress was short. She wore boots that were white around the foot but became mahogany up the length just below her knee. Her blue locks were up as twin tails with her signature red triangular hair clips latched onto the base of the tails (A/N this is the X791 outfit from right after the time skip).
Carla, in her human transformation, wore a sleeveless, light-blue dress shirt and a navy mini-skirt with a singular white stripe near the edge. A maroon tie with the design of a pink cat paw print fastened itself around her shirt collar. Her feet were covered with simple red sandals. Carla's white bangs were secured by a cat-shaped clip that matched the color of her tie.
Aria dressed more casual for the occasion. She wore a marigold-colored sundress styled with magenta hibiscus vectors. Over her dress, she wore a blue jean jacket with silvery buttons. Her hair was fashioned in a low bun. Her right hand bared the pink insignia of her guild.
The three female mages walked across a reinforced wooden bridge over one of the city's many canals. Carla walked in front. Her white furred tail swaying to convey slight excitement that betrayed her typical contempt exterior. Aria and Wendy trailed her, half a foot behind.
"Remind me, again, Aria-san." Wendy turned her head towards Aria as they stepped off the wooden planks of the canal bridge onto cobblestone road, "Why did you invite Carla and me on our day off?"
"Well...I heard about this newly opened shop that was selling premium mango desserts," Aria bashfully replied as she repetitively poked the tips of her index fingers, "And I really wanted to go. But I didn't want to go alone."
"Desserts..." Wendy's sugar-craving switch flipped on at the mention of 'desserts', her brown eyes suddenly flooded with glitter, a drop of drool nearly barely seeing the light of day formed from the corner of her mouth, "What kind of dessert shop is this?"
"The desserts at the shop are mango-themed, often they are served with sago and coconut flavored ice cream!" Aria, too, began to drool from the corner of her lips as a fluffy imagination cloud formed over her head, showing a divine image of amber mango slices served in a translucent glass bowl complemented with two round scoops of coconut ice cream. She fantasized of glass ramekins filled three-fourths with coconut sago pudding, garnished with diced mango. Her mindscape was soon overcrowded as soft, orange mango mochis covered in coconut flakes bounced into her dream.
"Haaaa~" the pinkette delighted in her mango dessert haze.
"Sa-go?" Wendy titled her head in curiosity, "I haven't heard of those before.
"Sago." the pinkette tried to explain in layman terms, "It's formed from a starch extracted from the poisonous roots of a tropical plant. After it gets boiled and processed, it can be made into squishy, edible little orbs that we can eat in desserts. The texture pairs well with dairy-based or coconut-based creams!"
"Woahhh..." Wendy's mouth opened wide with amazement a thought cloud spawned over her head. She imagined herself scooping a spoonful of crystal-clear orbs that wobbled like jelly after their extraction.
Looking at each other, the two girls clasped their hands together as they squealed in excitement.
"You little girls and your unhealthy indulgence for sweets..." Carla, unamused, blew a tuft of white hair that was not secured by her cat-face clip. She crossed her arms over her chest and looked to the side, "If you two don't hurry up, the shop will run out of stock by the time we get there."
"Ah." Reality popped the girls' fluffy fantasy cloud into smithereens. Snapped out of their sugary trance, Wendy and Aria hurried after Carla, "We're coming right away!"
"Honestly..." the white-haired cat girl shook her before proceeding in the lead.
...
After passing by a row of multiple stores -clothing boutiques, fish markets, and fruit stalls - the three stumbled upon an alabaster-walled shop with an amber tiled rooftop. Slown across the shop's entrance was a white banner with the words "Grand Opening" written in black ink. Flashy yellow posters depicting the shop's various mango dessert were plastered onto the windows.
Noticeably, a single poster showcasing a limited-edition Star Mango dessert stood out from the wall as well. Outside the shop, was a veranda with a view of the lake which the canals converged into. Various white roundtables with orange and yellow striped parasols and necessary recliner seating were set up for customers to savor their sweets in the outdoor sunshine.
The door to the shop was closed shut with pinned paper notice. Wendy and Aria simultaneously gulped as they examined the paper.
"We apologize for our early closure. We have run out of stock for the day. We will open again when our next shipment arrives."
"Hawaaaaa!" both of the female mages wailed as their imaginations of the tart, fruity delicacies they thought they would consume withered to dust in their minds. Mortified, they had sunk to their knees hand in hand.
Placing a hand over her mouth to cover her smile, Carla scoffed at her teammates, "You know, this wouldn't have happened if you guys got distracted."
Looking towards the tables where various customers dined, the human disguised Exceed suddenly gawked at she spotted a familiar, scarlet-haired guild member dressed in a sleeveless back turtleneck, dark-blue skirt, and black boots. Rosy-cheeked, she indulged in a glass cup filled with mango-based desserts. Next to her was a smorgasbord of dessert boxes with the company logo stacked like a pyramid made of cubes.
"Looks like I found the one responsible for buying the last batch of the desserts... I mean, half the store's worth, to be honest," Carla cringed, unamused as she pointed a finger at the culprit.
Heeding Carla's words, Aria and Wendy resuscitated from their discontent and traced her indicating finger to the culprit.
"Oh..." Wendy realized she should have expected this outcome, "Why am I not surprised?"
"But did she have to buy half the shop's stock?" Aria lower lip tucked inwards as she pouted.
Feeling multiple gazes on her, Erza turned to the three female mages eyeing her stash of sweets she paid for with her well-earned Jewel. The scarlet-haired beauty smiled, and waved her hand as she beckoned them to come over, "Oh, it's you three. Care to join me?"
"Reallly?!" Wendy and Aria's eyes reignited with glitter as they bolted right in front of Erza's table.
The S-Class Wizard sweatdropped at her colleagues' eagerness. Knowing that she would have less dessert if she shared, she hesitantly handed a singular parcel, " Why y-yes...of course. My treat."
"Uwahhh! Thank you, Erza-san!" Wendy's eyed beamed as she opened the sweets container. The contents inside shimmered like brilliant gold - diced mango sliced seasoned with sweet syrup mixed with tapioca pearls, coconut cream, two large scoops of vanilla ice cream laden in a pristine, glass bowl.
Wendy and Aria's eyes sparkled with excitement as they both lifted a spoon.
And then...
Half an hour later, the four were seated in white chairs around one of the many seating areas. Aria and Wendy laid back with expressions of pure bliss etched on their faces. Erza's pyramid of dessert boxes was significantly reduced. The Reequip mage looked smugly at her two younger guildmates while sweatdropping, "What's the matter? Done already after just a few boxes?"
Innately, she crossed her fingers under the table, hoping she would not have to feel obligated to give up any more of her sweets.
"I'm...good." Wendy said in a dazed state, her head laid sideways on the table's top, "That was soo good."
"I've had my fill too..." Aria stretched her arms out before resuming a more sitting posture, before leaning towards their senior,"But it's amazing. How are you able to go through so much dessert and still stay so fit and lean? What's your secret?"
"U-um, well," Erza lightly blushed feeling like the pinkette shot an arrow at a dangerous topic. Quickly dissolving her any remnants of flustered constitution, she put her hands on her hips and puffed her chest up in pride, "I work off my sweets by walking it off in my armor."
"Oh~ that must be heavy for most people, but a great way to burn calories. Now that I think of it, Shin-kun has never won a sparring match against you without your armor on," Aria recalled Erza's and Shinji's previous sparring matches.
"No, he hasn't. Maybe I should, then I'd match him in speed, "Erza suggested, crossing her hands over her chest, "Though I have to say, being a mentor for him has been something."
"How so?" Aria was thirsting for the after dessert tea, "Ah-only if you don't mind sharing. I'm just asking because he cares a lot about what you think, despite how little he says his opinion at times."
"No worries," Erza grinned to reassure Aria, "Shinji is a great student. When he came to the guild, he was already a learned swordsman. But it seems Requip magic was something newer he picked up along the way. I mostly offer him advice and practice on that front. Asides from that, it's been fun having a new sparring partner and a new person I can hear back from."
She looked sadly off into the blue waters of the lake, reminiscing of someone else she hasn't been in touch with for a long while, "At least I hear back from him often..."
Wendy and Carla empathized with the scarlet-haired mage for they knew full well who she was talking about. Aria did not comment, respecting Erza's space. Shifting gears, Erza turned to them and flashed, a toothy smile, "Oh, cheer up, everyone. These past few years have been some of the most peaceful I've had! While we're at it, do you guys want to eat some premium limited-time dessert with Star Mangos."
At Erza's enticing words, Aria and Wendy's attention was grabbed. Their second stomachs growled in anticipation for another rare, luxurious sweet.
"Star Mangoes!" Aria and Wendy huffed with hunger.
Carla cringed at her fellow teammates, "Hmph. I'd kill for some Darjeeling Tea to wash down the sweets."
Erza placed a new parcel into the center of the table. Unboxing it, she revealed a pair of glistening, large orange mango-ice cream spheres. The Reequip mage smiled in delight, as she scooped a small spoonful and quickly helped herself.
"Mmmmm..." a pleasant aura emanated from Erza," It's sooo good!"
Observing Erza's reaction, Aria and Wendy shakily picked their spoons up again before taking a bite.
"This Star Mango ice cream tastes amazing!" Aria savored the flavor in serendipity.
"I know, right?" Erza agreed, "Apparently, these were imported from Caracole Island! Glad I didn't have to make a trip half way across the sea."
"Caracole Island? Why does that name sound familiar?" Carla furrowed her brows with suspicion at Erza. Watching the oddly familiar image of the scarlet-haired mage with a bowl of Star Mangos in her hand gave her a dull headache at the back of her head.
Carla bit her tongue, trying her best not to audibly wince as she felt her vision glitch. Reality began to pixelate. The background noise of Wendy and Aria's squeals of delight, Magnolia's busy streets, and the waters undulating in the nearby lake were turned to electrical static.
On a tropical island town with staw-roofed houses in the background, Erza clad in a white bikini top and red sarong embellished an expression of pure happiness as she came back from a kiosk by the beach, consuming a Star Mango Gelato. Natsu, Gray, Lucy, Wendy, and even Mest were there, all in swimwear.
Everything in the vision suddenly blurred and pixelated before Carla snapped back to reality. The myriad sounds of the present day flooded in as she regained her bearings. Seeing Erza, Wendy, and Aria chat away without a care in the world eased her mind a little.
"Erza-san, just curious" Carla interrupted their chat, "Have you ever eaten Star Mango Gelato before?"
"No...not until today," Erza answered, "Why do you ask?"
Carla giggled sarcastically, "Just...curious. Haha."
Erza, Wendy, and Aria exchanged a glance at one another before resuming their conversation.
Carla looked up at the harmless clear blue sky, "What was that?"
~East Forest~
Summer cast its lush green hues on the vegetation the East Forest that lay on the outskirts of Magnolia. The trees produced bountiful oxygen as they basked in the clear day's sun. But the blue sky was hard to find in the forest floors, under the canopies of high trees. A family of tusked, wild boar ran up a grassy slope. Vibrant, feathered birds fluttered from tree to tree, all flew away from a particular area of the woods.
An explosion ensued.
In that specific patch in the forest, Romeo and Shinji were sparring. The Fire Mage wore a black tank top with army green cargo pants and brown hiking boots. His sparring partner, Shinji, was dawned in his Fire Lord Armor. Shinji held his molten-gradient katana in anticipation for Romeo's next strike. The Fire Mage's hands lit up in blue-colored pyres.
"Blue Rain!" Romeo sent a volley of cobalt fireballs launched Shinji's way.
Shinji, on the other side of the onslaught, gripped his blade in a blocking stance. Pivoting his posture, accordingly, Shinji sliced through Romeo's blue flames. Trails of azure embers danced around his person before dissipating.
Focusing his magic energy into his sword's edge, Shinji imbued his sword with rubrous flames that danced like a phoenix's wings.
"Your turn," Shinji warned.
"Anytime," Romeo nodded.
At his teammate's approval, Shinji sprinted towards the Fire Mage with his blade ablaze. Shinji swung left and right. With each swing, Romeo ducked and shuffled backwards, dodging by a narrow hair's breadth. Romeo's back arched parallel to ground as Shinji attempted another sweep.
'Heh," the Fire Mage grinned. Using the momentum, Romeo ignited the soles of his feet with orange fire orbs to propel him backwards. They detonated instantly in small bursts. Before getting caught in the blast, Shinji assumed a defensive stance. Both mages were knocked back. With the extra boost, Romeo flipped over and cast purple flames around his hands. Shinji slid back a few feet, but his guarding posture remained intact.
"Purple Rope!"
From his left hand, Romeo cast a fiery, violet string. Gesturing his left hand to his right and back, Romeo brandished the flame rope like a whip. Shinji, ready for the barrage, maintained his post while parrying each and every whip. As Romeo's whipping speed increased, Shinji's parrying speed picked up to match the pace. Somewhere in the fray, Romeo conjured a second purple fire rope to add to the chaos. The two blazing ropes rapidly meandered like two overlapping serpents.
Strike after strike, Shinji increased his parrying speed to try to compensate for his sparring partner's increased firepower. Every time the flame ropes came into contact with Shinji's katana, the edge's flames burned with greater intensity.
Three minutes went by...
Drawing sweat, both mages felt like they were straining their arms. Tired of the same attack pattern, Romeo nodded to Shinji to signify that he'll switch. Shinji nodded back in approval. Motioning his left hand and his right hand in a spiral motion, the purple fire strings switched assault patterns to a double helix that corkscrewed towards the swordsman.
Shinji used the body of his blade to block the violet helix. At this moment, Shinji's sword burned brighter than before.
Looking proudly at his fire sword's capacity to absorb Fire Magic, he looked at Romeo for approval, "I think it's ready."
"Then let it rip. And don't hold back. I can use pyrokinesis just like my former teacher, so it can't hurt me." Romeo challenged his friend.
"If you say, so," Shinji smiled, accepting his friend's invitation as he rose his katana over his head, "Then I'll take your invitation!"
He swung down, "Vermillion Talon!"
The intense flames that initially coated the sword flew off in the form of a giant, conflagrant phoenix towards Romeo. In response, Romeo assumed a sideways stance where his legs were shoulder's width apart. He put his right hand forward with his thumb, middle, and index fingers pointed diagonally upward like a loaded pistol. His left arm was bent with his left palm hovered parallel to his abdomen; fingers spread out.
Unwavering, unhesitant, he channeled his concentration as he stared into the eyes of the flaming phoenix.
Fierce and fiery the phoenix halted half a foot from Romeo's person. Beads of sweat dropped from his body as he held the intense flames at bay. His erected right fingers vibrated slightly in the presence of the proximal flames. Immediately, Romeo curled his left hand into a fist and lugged the avian-shaped flame in front of him. The phoenix conflagrated, splitting into fiery plumes before subsiding and fading.
From the other side, Shinji stood back and watched Romeo with a grin on his face, "That was cool."
"No, you are!" Romeo grinned back, "Gotta say. I'm glad Wendy's healing fixed your arm as good as new."
Unequipping his vermillion sword into pocket space, Shinji palpated his left upper arm, "No residual pain at all when I swing or feel the impact of other attacks. She's a miracle worker."
The raven-haired male then looked down, crestfallen, "I feel so pathetic. For letting myself get knocked out and poisoned like that. And for burdening her."
"You fought against a tough opponent after wearing yourself out. We all get there at some point, but life goes on. Stop being so hard on yourself!" Romeo walked to his friend and flicked him on his sweaty forehead.
"Ack-Hey!" Shinji winced as he held a flat palm on his recently flicked at forehead as he looked up with Romeo with a teasing grin. All traces of his self-disappointment evaporated from his sapphire irises, "Why'd you do that, 'Flame-Brain'?"
"Huh?" Romeo, utterly surprised by Shinji impersonating Gray, decided to play along for the gag and imitate Natsu. Romeo puffing his chest while he lightly punched Shinji's left shoulder, "You were being a downer...'Ice Princess' ?"
The two then burst out laughing until they were both rolling on the floor.
"I don't-Hahaaa...-I don't know how they-Haaa..- do this all the time!" Romeo attempted speak between chortles.
"Haaa...Could you imagine -Hahaa...- us ending up like...them?" Shinji was losing his breath.
"Nope." Romeo said shooking his head before his relapsed into another fit of chortling.
After laughing away a little longer, the mages caught their breaths. Romeo tugged at the hem of his black tank top to circulate air, "Geez, I think the laughing made me sweat more than the mock battle we had."
"It is kind of hot today," Shinji said as he unequipped the top half of his Fire Lord Armor. In a quick blink, his upper body was clothed in a plain white T-shirt. He turned to Romeo, "Man. The day's not even half over. Should we head back to the guild and look for a request?"
"The first one goes without saying. But I don't think the others would be down to do a job today."
"That's right. Aria, Wendy, and Carla went off to that dessert shop today," Shinji recalled before sighing in dismay, "I guess work isn't in the books today."
"Dude, you need to relax. Working every day without rest isn't good for your health," Romeo patted Shinji's shoulder.
"I guess you have a point," Shinji agreed, deep in thought, "Then, what do you suggest we do?"
"I know a place..." Romeo smirked.
~ Fairy Tail Guild, Magnolia~
Despite going through two renovations after being destroyed (ironically both cases being from disputes with other guilds and not the guild members' bad habits of breaking everything), the members of the guild always put their utmost into reconstruction. Ever since the first building remodeling job after the fight with Phantom Lord back in X784, the newer versions of the guild always included a few extra amenities. Behind the guild building was walled backyard with patches of grassy lawn furbished with sparse palms trees with tropical palm bushes. Scattered by these patches of grass were various cobalt-cushioned lounge chairs. Mosaic pebble tiles of pastel pink, yellow, green, and purple adorned the floor, surrounding a lagoon like pool with crystal-blue waters.
A handful of guild members taking the day off to enjoy the facility were either in the water or relaxing on the lounge chairs. Mirajane, wearing a dark blue bikini top and a matching sarong, walked by the lounge chairs with a tray bearing cocktails and fruity beverages on flat on her right palm. She smiled as she served drinks to some male guild members who ogled at her as she walked away. The glistening of the ring on her finger silenced them as they pictured an angry Master Laxus shocking them with a million vaults of electricity. In the pool, Asuka in a pink swimsuit and scuba-styled goggled, gripped a yellow kickboard as she practiced her flutter kick. She inched towards a Bisca, dressed in a mauve two piece, who had outstretched arms awaiting her dear daughter. Alzack soaked his feet along the rim of the pool wearing brown swim shorts.
Romeo and Shinji arrived on the relaxing scene. Romeo wore solid, fuschia swim trunks with black drawstrings and a singular tangerine "S"-logo outlined white plastered on the fabric of the right outer thigh.
The Fire Mage smiled before turning to his bashful comrade behind him. Shinji wore teal swim trunks with a black waistband and thin black stripes that encircled the hems of the fabric. Between each black line, the teal alternated between a lighter and darker shades.
Shinji raised an eyebrow at the Fire Mage, "Is this what you had in mind?"
"Yep!" Romeo gave Shinji a toothy grin and a thumbs-up.
"I still feel weird taking a day off like this," Shinji lowered his brows at Romeo as he placed his hands in his swim trunk's pockets.
Romeo lightly sighed, "You're starting to sound like someone who has never had a day to relax in his life."
"Of course I have, "Shinji shook his head in denial, before smiling in embarrassment, "It's just been a couple minut-blublublublublub!"
The swords mage was suddenly sprayed by a small stream of water aimed directly at his face. Mouth collaterally shot for extra points.
"Ah! Shinji!" taken by surprise, Romeo followed the path of the water jet and found a orange foam pressure pistol being held by Aria.
She was clad in a lilac bikini top with black straps and a matching skirt with a sable waistband. Her hair was stilled tied in a low bun from this morning. Aria giggled as she showed no quarter towards her first travel companion, "Suprise~ Bet you weren't expecting me!"
"A-Aria, what are you doing here?" Romeo was confused by the pinkette's presence.
When the pressure of the water jet diminished, Shinji looked like a soggy mess. He shook his hair, then slicked his wet raven locks back to reveal his forehead and stare. He deadpanned as he directed his signature, subzero sapphire stare at pinkette, "Ariiiaaaa..."
It was not very effective.
In fact, it did the opposite.
"Oh my god. That was priceless! If only I had a photograph lacrima on me..." Aria internally wailed in glory, before sticking her tongue out at Shinji to maintain her teasing demeanor, "Ehe. Don't mind me. I'm just getting to you to lighten up, just like Romeo-san suggested."
"I'm trying. I guess," Shinji sighed, not expecting her to be unfazed by the icy stare that usually stops his enemies in their tracks.
"Hey, you're making this sound like it's my fault!" Romeo wagged a finger at the pinkette, "Besides what are you even doing he-blublublublublublub!"
Evidently, Romeo's piehole was also not exempt from the supreme judgement of the water guns. But this time, the stream came from a green water pistol. When the culprit's sidekick ceased her onslaught, she sprung from behind Aria to reveal herself.
Wendy was adorned in a green and white checkered two-piece. A portion of the Sky Dragon Slayer's dark blue locks were tied up in pigtails by a pair of white ribbons. She smiled as she lowered the water gun, cutely winking as she mockingly greeted at him, "Oh hi there, Romeo-san. Whatchu doing?"
The two girls high-fived to signify their ambush was a success.
"Ooh. Real funny," Romeo spat some residual water out of his mouth with an unamused expression.
"Well..."Shinji snickered at the fire mage's unkempt wet hair, "It was funny when you got sprayed."
The four of them burst out laughing.
"Wendy! Aria!" the missing team member's voice called out as she exited the changing room. Carla, in her human form, wore a black bikini and with pink laced straps and white polka dots. Her white-furred cat ears twitched with excitement. Her tail swayed behind her.
"Cat ears, cat tail, and a swimsuit!?" Romeo and Shinji both bit their bottom lips when Carla entered the scene. Upon seeing Romeo and Shinji, Carla blankly frowned at the boys, "Oh. What are you guys doing here?"
"U-um, Shinji and I thought we could cool off after sparring at the East Woods, "Romeo replied, finding it difficult to look Carla in the eyes. He immediately turned looked at Shinji.
"Y-Yeah," Shinji confirmed his teammate's testimony, while also trying avoid looking at Carla's eyes, "W-what brings you [guys] to the pool?"
"After we wasted much time on eating desserts, Wendy suggested we go to the pool for a change of pace." Carla said nonchalantly before she tilted her head at the two teenage boys in concern, "Hey, is something the matter?"
Noticing how the boys became more bashful after Carla entered the scene, Wendy and Aria glared daggers at them. Malicious auras emanated from their beings as they glared glinting daggers at them from behind Carla's unsuspecting person.
"Wendy, have you noticed that the boys act differently when their around Carla when she's done up like this?"
"Oh, but of course," Wendy replied while feigning nonchalance, "A bunch of dudes started to look at her differently ever since she started using that transformation. It just goes below par when it comes from your own teammates."
The two girls dropped their water toys to the ground and approached the boys, menacingly.
Romeo and Shinji gulped before taking a step back with each step Wendy and Aria took forward.
"U-um, please have mercy?" Shinji begged for amnesty as his and Romeo's feet neared the edge of the mosaic pebble tiles towards the pool.
"Yeah, we didn't mean anything by it," Romeo shook his hands to plead innocence.
"Nope. Too late," Aria smirked as she snapped her fingers.
"Oh crap," Shinji and Romeo cursed before they dissipated into thin air before reappearing approximately two foot above the pool. They both fell into the water, making a big splash.
Witnessing the seeds of her diabolic plot come into fruition, Carla giggled as she held a hand over her forehead, "Hahaha, the struggles of being a mature beauty weigh most heavily on me when I deign take this for-Ah!"
"Can it, Carla. You're literally a walking fetish," in sync Aria and Wendy shoved Carla into the pool.
"My, my," Mirajane watched from afar after serving drinks to some of her guildmates, "A girl's jealously is something not to be trifled with."
Alzack and Bisca looked at each other while Bisca held Asuka in her arms, "Ah, to be young and rambunctious again."
They both looked down at their young bundle of joy that they brought into the world together.
Romeo and Shinji rose from the blue waters with sopping wet hair.
"Ugh..." Romeo shuddered, "That has been the scariest version of Wendy I have ever met."
"With how long you've known her, I thought you would have seen scarier from her," Shinji tried to lighten the mood.
"Incoming!" Carla wailed as she landed into the pool in front of the guys, dousing them with their third unwarranted helping of pool water.
Romeo and Shinji remerged from the water with Carla. On instinct, Carla shook the water from her hair and ears. Drops of water rapidly pelted Shinji and Romeo.
"Oh, come on!" Romeo and Shinji were too late to shield faces from their fourth dousing.
After Carla finished shaking herself off, her snow-white locks puffed up. A brief moment of silence ensured as the other four mages stared at Carla's effortlessly acquired afro-cat-ear combination. Feeling pressured from everyone's collective gazes, Carla started to blush, unaware of her predicament "What?"
All four mages suddenly burst into laughter as they pointed jesting fingers at Carla.
"Seriously? Why are you guys looking at me and laughing!?" Carla puffed her cheeks in angry inquisition.
"Carla...Haha," between giggles Wendy made a suggestion to her dear friend, "You might want to check your ha-hair in the water."
"Oh?" Carla looked down at her own reflection. Her blush deepened to a shade akin to Erza's hair. She sunk down into the water, her fluffy snowball hairdo still floating above the surface like cotton, before swimming off in humiliation.
Shinji and Romeo continued laughing as the white-afroed Exceed floated off elsewhere leaving a trail of gurgling air bubbles in her wake.
"Haha, I wish I had a photo lacrima to catch Carla's new do," Romeo chuckled as he tread water, "Too bad I missed my chance."
"Why? So you get her back for all the times she called you Conbolt-boy?" Shinji inquired.
"Nah, it's just funny to see her get embarrassed sometimes," the fire mage joked before entering a deeply contemplative mode, "But now that I think about it, I could use it as blackmail material..."
From the tiles, Wendy and Aria held hands as they prepared to jump into the pool.
"Ready! Set!-"
Meanwhile...
"Geez, you really are a lot like Flame-Brain," Shinji joked as he nooggied Romeo's dark purple locks.
"Heey, don't rough up my hair, "Romeo laughed as he tried to catch Shinji's hands.
"GO!"
Romeo and Shinji looked up in the frontal direction and Wendy and Aria were making their descent into the pool. Again, they were splashed with a larger wave that caused them both to be displaced. When the splash subsided, the guys reemerged and spat out water and spat out the water that unfortunately entered their mouths.
Aria laughed as they pointed at their male teammates, "Haha! You should've seen that one coming!"
"Dumb move," Romeo slicked his sopping hair to the sides and sighed before devilishly smiling at their new adversaries," Now you guys are here in the water, with us."
Wendy and Aria immediately stopped laughing.
"Uh, wait a minute, you wouldn't try to..." Wendy shyly interjected trying to alter Romeo's course of action.
"It's payback time, bro!" Shinji declared as he launched water at the girl's direction.
"Hey!" Aria and Wendy laughed as they were splashed.
"And have some of this!" Romeo joined in on the fun.
The four of them laughed as they alternated between splashing and being splashed at. The other members of Fairy Tail lounging by the pool looked on fondly at their younger members having the time of their lives.
At some point in the mix, Wendy, Aria, and Romeo tag-teamed against Shinji. Even while the sword mage's fine figure was being drenched to kingdom come, he laughed along with everyone else. Everyone's smiles and the fun atmosphere were so contagious, he realized he lost his need to maintain a disciplined composure. Shinji smiled a more radiant smile than usual as he splashed each of his teammates back under the warmth of the summer sun, "So this is what a day off looks like...Maybe I'll take more off in the future. Together with everyone."
Welp, hope you guys enjoyed the first slice of life chapter. It felt refreshing to write something that was sillier compared to the other, more serious chapters I've concocted prior. Anyways, I have created an outline for the next arc.
Without further ado:
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Next Arc: Lamia Thanksgiving
Next Chapter: Sky Dragon And Sky God
I mean, how can I not have Wendy as a main character without featuring Sherria at some point. I hope you look forward to some of these interesting character interactions as much as I am.
As always, please feel free to give me your constructive criticisms, feedback, suggestions, etc. but please don't be too harsh with me. If you bully me, Carla's fluffy afro will shoot lasers at you.
Carla: *glares laser beams at Author in fluffy white afro* You best count your days, scheisser.
Author: *gulps while holding hands up in surrender* My a-apologies. Please don't dice me into mincemeat.
Carla: *unleashes the claws* What a fine idea!
The following scene is too graphic to describe in words. In the meantime, let's watch this video of onions getting chopping in a blender to drown out the blood-curdling screams.
Blender: Brrrrrrrr