Here we are everyone, this next part of our little arc. I hope you all enjoy what we have for you today.
That said, I do hope you enjoyed it and you leave your thoughts in a review, it would be REALLY appreciated. Thank you very much.
Speaking of which, I want to thank every single one of you how already has left a review. Really, I cant thank you enough.
Special shout outs go to sephiroth12285 Green Espada XenotheWise135, draconichero21 Nora Anak Zangetsu Ossan, Greatkingrat88 and Evan Deviant. Thank you all so much for the multiple reviews, it means a lot.
Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach of fairy tail. Those belong respectively to Tite Kubo and Shounen jump and Hiro Mashima and Weekly shounen magizine. This is just for fun!
Kenshinverse Disclaimer: As you can probably imagine I do not own the Fairy Tail or Bleach series or any of the characters that appear either. The honor of being the man behind Fairy Tail belongs to the one, the only Hiro Mashima. Oh, and Bleach's creation rests solely on the shoulders of Tite Kubo. Oh sure, I've purchased plenty of manga, DVDs, video games and maybe a few too many Rukia Kuchiki and Erza Scarlet action figures and statues, but the series themselves? Oh no, they're certainly not mine. You'd know if it were me in charge. Though to explain how different Bleach would be, well to detail that would take a higher word count than this story will eventually end with. Though oddly enough, little would actually change about Fairy Tail. Huh. Go figure.
Bambietta Basterbine found herself sitting alone on a bench within the Clover train station, the Quincy slowly pulling her wounded right arm from its sling. The pain caused her to bite down on her lower lip, Bambietta cursing her weakness. She knew this had to be healed, that much was certain, but she was unsure of the healer she was being presented with.
This Wendy Marvell, she was just a kid. Bambietta could not even begin to imagine placing either her fate or her faith in this youngster's hands, but she knew she had no other options before her. Getting to Porlyusica in the middle of the mission was out of the question, and the same applied to scrapping together any more Ginto capsules by raiding a store for supplies. There was still the option to fight with one arm, but even Bambietta knew that was a foolish strategy despite her earlier bluster.
She had to rely on this child, this Wendy. It was all that the world had given her as an option. The fact that said option was noticeably hesitant and worried did not leave Bambietta with any favorable feelings towards the matter.
"I hope this isn't a mistake."
Bambietta watched as Wendy began to move away from the other mages, leaving behind her travelling companion. That one had especially surprised Bambietta. It was another cat, another talking cat. Carla was her name and she was the polar opposite of Happy in just about any way that Bambietta could imagine. The only thing they seemed to have in common was that they both annoyed the Quincy, though Carla's attitude was quicker to draw Bambietta's ire than Happy's silly antics.
Liltotto, however, had been much more content with this Carla's personality. She had tried to hide it well, but Bambietta had noticed the glimmer in her friend's eyes, as of the other Quincy had found the uppity cat adorable or something.
"So, you... uh... got hurt pretty bad, right?" Wendy asked, the young mage coming towards Bambietta. "I don't know if I can help, but I'll tr-"
The young girl suddenly tripped then, falling flat on her face. Bambietta could not even see what she had stumbled over, but the sight of the clumsy action only added to reservations to the hope of being healed.
"Hey, you okay?"
Bambietta was not unsure of what had just happened. She understood that well enough. She had used Hirenkyaku to propel herself towards the fallen Wendy in an instant, crouching down before her. However, it was why it had just happened that she could not explain.
"I'm... fine," Wendy stammered as she stood back up and dusted herself off. "I just... I do that a lot. I guess. I'm sorry!"
Bambietta watched as Wendy acted far too formal for her liking, the young girl practically bowing in shame for her error. The Quincy shook her head and looked at her calmly. "Oh no, you're a chronic apologizer, aren't you?"
Wendy glanced down. "I'm sorr-"
"Nuh uh." Bambietta put a stop to that by wagging her left index finger before Wendy's very eyes. "No more apologizing and no more tripping. At least not now."
Bambietta sat right down on the floor then, leaving her damaged right arm to rest in her lap.
Wendy was simply confused. "Huh?"
"Now you don't have to come to me, I came to you," Bambietta said with a sigh. "So, heal away, white mage."
Wendy did not know what to make of this woman before her, but she was determined to do what she could. However, there was one problem. "I'm so-"
Bambietta glared at Wendy.
"Uhm, that is... Can you take off the bandages? I can't exactly heal what I can't see."
Bambietta's expression grew even sourer. "Trust me, someone like you shouldn't see what's underneath. You're not even old enough for PG-13 and I'm pretty sure what that dumb fu- fudge muffin did to my arm is Rated R."
Bambietta could see Wendy staring at her in confusion, the Quincy returning the expression. Even she could not understand the ridiculous phrase she had used to clean up her language around Wendy at the last second. All she could do was mouth the words 'fudge muffin' in complete confusion.
"Anyway," Bambietta began to say, the Quincy starting to shift in place and prepare to stand, "if you can't heal me without seeing what happened, then I guess I'll be on my way."
"But you're hurt!"
Bambietta halted her movement then, looking at Wendy once more and taking in the worried expression on her face. It was just like what she had seen from those she considered her friends back on the train.
"So what?" Bambietta asked. "I'm not your concern. I'm a big girl, so I can-"
"Please," Wendy said. "I came here to help people, so just let me... let me help you."
Bambietta sighed, the Quincy running her one good hand right through her hair. "All right, have it your way. But..." Bambietta reached up to her right shoulder and began to undo the bandage. "I'm sorry."
Wendy just looked at her with a rather sweet, if quizzical expression. "I thought you said no more apologizing?"
Bambietta paused for a moment, the Quincy chuckling for a moment. "Do what I say but now what I do, kid. Seriously. For your own good."
Bambietta began to unravel the bandages, keeping a close eye on Wendy's face. She had to admit, she was impressed by the young girl's unwavering determination to see this through. The Quincy could see the fear and hesitation in her eyes, the optics wavering, but Wendy was keeping as calm as she could. Bambietta had to admire that, but she knew the composure was going to slip soon enough.
Soon enough that was the case. As blood and torn flesh came into view, Wendy began to breathe more rapidly, the young wizard bringing both hands up to cover her face.
Bambietta paused then. "I said you don't have to do this. I'll manage."
"N-no," Wendy stammered. "I can... I have to do this. If I don't... If I don't... then I came here for nothing."
She was brave, Bambietta had to admit that. It was something she could respect, a person who could be brave in the face of horror. Still, there was a part of Bambietta that did not want to put someone so pure through this, but she knew she had to. Slowly she unwound the bandages, exposing her damaged arm to the open air. The Quincy grit her teeth then, a newfound rush of pain searing across the limb.
"It's so terrible," Wendy whispered. "Who could do something so mean?"
Bambietta closed her eyes then, knowing the answer to that. She could. She had. Several times over she had done something this 'mean.'
"You've seen it," Bambietta said at last, "so look away and use your magic."
"That's not..." Wendy took a deep breath, trying so very hard to avoid throwing up at the sight of the ragged flesh and exposed bone. "That's not how it works. I need to... need to concentrate on the injury to fix it."
Bambietta watched then as Wendy reached out with both her hands, keeping them hovering no more than inch away from the horrific wound. A white light began to overtake the young mage's hands, the magic slowly spreading towards Bambietta's torn flesh.
The Quincy flinched as she began to feel a cold air moving across her flesh, causing goose bumps to break out across the pale complexion. She watched then as the torn muscles began to reform, the flesh itself knitting back together slowly but surely.
However, despite the healing, it was not a truly pleasant experience. While there was magic involved, this was no simple wave of a hand and the damage undone. No, this is a complete reversal, the pain flowing through Bambietta as the injury began to mend under Wendy's power. It was a far cry from using a Ginto capsule, but the Quincy knew she had to grin and bear it.
"I'm not hurting you, am I?"
"No, no," Bambietta replied through grit teeth. "Just trying to practice my game face for when we all go fight some monsters."
"I can't... can't do that," Wendy replied. "I'd just slow you all down."
"Is that a fact?" Bambietta watched as the magic light faded from Wendy's fingertips, the Quincy beginning to move her hand about to test that it was good as new. "Because I'm pretty sure you got me make in the race, kid."
Wendy's face came alight suddenly with nothing but jubilation, the young girl ecstatic. "You mean it! Really? You're not just saying it to be nice?"
"Oh believe me," Bambietta began to reply, "I don't lie to be nice."
"Does your... does your arm feel better?"
"Oh yeah, good as new." Bambietta brought it up by her side, flexing her fingers to and fro to make that point clear. Then, still remaining seated on the floor, she reached out and patted Wendy on the head, ruffling her hair. "Thanks, kid."
"It was nothi-"
"No, it was something," Bambietta said. "Thank you for putting up with looking at my arm. When I was your age I wouldn't dream of looking at a wound like that."
Bambietta paused for a moment, realizing that she had just lied. She had seen wounds much worse at Wendy's age, the majority of them having been done by herself thanks to the less than pleasant childhood she had. Bambietta remembered those images quite well, having committed them to memory long ago.
"Just... try to forget what you saw," she continued. "Okay?"
Bambietta began to stand then, the Quincy patting her bottom to rid her skirt of any dust or dirt it had picked up from the floor. She was about to move then, to rejoin the members of Fairy Tail, Blue Pegasus and Phantom Lord, but she was stopped by a tiny voice.
"I don't think I should."
Bambietta looked down at Wendy then, taking note of a rather sad expression on her face.
"I don't think I should," the young girl repeated, "because I'm just going to keep seeing stuff like that on this mission, right?"
Wendy's nose twitched for a moment, the girl sniffing back as best she could, a tear escaping from her right eye despite her best efforts.
"I came here because I had to help people, but I... I don't know if I can do it..."
Bambietta began to grow nervous, the Quincy knowing full well she was ill-prepared to handle or placate an upset child. Bambietta began to wave her hands before her, a nervous expression overtaking her face. "Hey, kid, there's no reason to cry and stuff. Come on, I'm a total dummy. Nobody is going to get as hurt as bad as me, so you don't have anything to worry about. No, seriously! I fell down a flight of stairs once and became a bloody mess! Silly, clumsy Bambi, that's me!"
Wendy began to calm down a little bit, looking at the Quincy. "Your name is Bambi?"
There was a slight giggle then, one that broke Bambietta's stammering and left her right eye and its brow twitching. "Yeah, is that a problem?"
"No," Wendy replied. "I just thought it was a... nice name, that's all. It's really cute."
"Uh huh," Bambietta replied, folding her arms across her chest. "Cute, right. Well just for your information, my whole name is Bambietta Basterbine."
"That's a pretty name," Wendy said with a smile.
"Okay then," Bambietta said as she began to walk back to the others. "First time for everything..."
The Quincy's voice began trail off, Bambietta feeling someone tugging at her cape. She continued to walk, but glanced down her side to investigate. What she found was Wendy close to her, the little mage clutching at Bambietta's cloak tightly with both hands.
"You're scared, aren't you?" the Quincy asked, reaching down with one hand and placing it atop Wendy's head. Bambietta glanced towards the skylights of the train station, taking note of the monsters flying through the air, their silhouettes caught in the moon light. It was clear enough that the child had good reason to be so terrified. "You said you're from the Cait Shelter guild, right?"
"Yeah," Wendy answered, still sticking close to the Quincy. "Is there something the matter?"
"I told you I never lie to make others feel better," Bambietta said, understanding that was technically a lie, considering her own secrets. "So, I'll be straight with you. I'm not all that happy a guild master sent you out here alone."
"But... but..." Wendy began to stammer. "I wasn't alone. Carla..."
"Yeah, yeah," Bambietta interrupted. "Sorry, but I don't think the cranky Mary Poppins kitty would be a helpful guardian with all these monsters around."
"Who's Mary Poppins?" Wendy asked in confusion.
"This world," Bambietta sighed, "is denied so many classics..."
"Okay..." Wendy was confused but tried to defend her situation. "Master Roubaul, he didn't even know things were this bad when he sent me here. Our guild just received word that there had been trouble here in Clover, so I volunteered to help heal anyone who needed it."
"Really, the Magic Council didn't see fit to tell you guys that the monster attacks were still ongoing?" Bambietta remained puzzled. "They told us and the other guilds. I bet it was that tattooed jerk Siegrain. Guy's a real di- dirtbag."
"We... we didn't hear anything from the Magic Council," Wendy offered up meekly. "We just heard rumors of a bandit gang having gone through Clover, so I... I chose to come here to help anyone they... they hurt. Master Roubaul let me go, saying it'd be a good mission for me. But then I... I saw the monsters and..."
Wendy suddenly clung to Bambietta's cloak even more totally.
"Totomaru saved me and brought me here. And I... I was... so s-scared..."
Bambietta heard it once more, Wendy crying a bit. She glanced down and could see the little mage wiping her eyes with the cloak. For the briefest of moments did the Quincy grow upset, yet she reigned in that impulse.
The Quincy stopped walking, instead crouching down in front of Wendy and placing her hands on the trembling girl's shoulders. "Hey, hey. No tears, just like the apologizing and the tripping, okay? You're safe now, you hear? You got a bunch of big tough grown-ups to protect you now. So, no being scared either. You don't have any reason to be. Not anymore."
"Say, Bambi," Liltotto suddenly said, slipping beside her friend. "Are you feeling all right?"
Bambietta looked up at Liltotto then, a smile on her face. "Good as new thanks to this darling little trooper. Heck, now I can use my right hand to- give people the thumbs up again!"
Liltotto was rather curt with her response. "Yeah, uh huh. That's the type of sign language you're so fond of."
"Don't mind her," Bambietta said, looking back at Wendy as she stood up. "She only hurts with words because she cares. Anyway... Lil, Wendy. Wendy, Lil."
"It's nice to meet you," the healing mage said, reaching out to Liltotto with a hand to be shaken.
"I'm sure." Liltotto turned to her friend then. "Bambi, can we talk... in private?"
"What's the matter, Lil?" Bambietta turned only to find her friend already walking to a corner of the main room. "Lil?"
Bambietta turned and gave Wendy a thumbs-up with her right hand before she went to follow her friend.
"I'll ask again... are you feeling all right?" Liltotto asked, the blonde Quincy leaning up against a wall and peeking out from under cap's visor. "Did you lose a lot of blood before the healing? Did it make you feel a little off? Or does that spell of that Wendy girl's give you an unnatural high?"
"What are you talking about?" Bambietta asked, growing frustrated. "This is me, nothing but me, Lil."
"Right," Liltotto contested. "You've always been the friendly and outgoing type. Bambietta 'Kindness to all Creatures' Basterbine."
"Okay, I am not appreciating the sarcasm," Bambietta said, her eyes narrowing as they looked at Liltotto. "Come on, I can be friendly. Wasn't I with you the first day we met?"
Liltotto reached up and lowered her hat down, cutting Bambietta out of her line of sight. She was quiet at first, letting her friend hang for some time. "This is... different, Bambi."
Bambietta began to grow defensive. "No, it's not."
"Yes, it is!" Liltotto shouted, raising her voice and catching Bambietta off guard. Then did she return to her quiet ways, unable to look her friend in the eyes. "You're... happier here, aren't you?"
Bambietta did not know where Liltotto was going with this, but it did tear at her heart a little bit nonetheless. "What? Am I supposed to be miserable the rest of my life or something?"
"No," Liltotto replied softly. "It's just... you were never this happy back in the Vandenreich."
"Well maybe that's because I'm pretty sure no one in this guild is going to stab me in the back!"
Bambietta covered her mouth with a hand then, instantly regretting that she had spoken on impulse. It was true, she understood that greatly, but she also knew that the truth hurt.
"You're right." Liltotto stood up from the wall then, bringing a hand up towards her shoulder to cover her emblem from sight. "And maybe I was too. You'd be better off if I just left this guild."
"Lil!" Bambietta reached out quickly, grabbing her friend's hand with one of her own. She pulled it away then, allowing the Fairy Tail emblem to stay in sight. "Stop that, you hear me? Look, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, it's just..."
Bambietta suddenly grew red in the face, the Quincy trying to regain her composure. She let go of Liltotto, not willing to let her friend see the confusion etching itself upon her.
"You know I've always had a soft spot for kids, Lil."
"What? No." Liltotto moved in front of Bambietta. "Weren't you the one who was going 'Kill the chibi Arrancar! Kill the chibi Arrancar!' when the Vandenreich invaded Hueco Mundo?"
"It was a Hollow," Bambietta replied. "That's what we do. And I didn't say anything like that at all, thank you very much. I was just yelling at Bazz-B to kill it with fire. And besides, the drool factory got away before he could even lift a finger."
"No more lies," Liltotto said, uninterested in Bambietta's attempts to divert the conversation. "Please tell me what's going on, Bambi."
"You know I don't lie." Bambietta's shoulders began to sink. "I don't know, okay? I just... I like some of these people. That's all."
"But-"
"That's it," Bambietta interrupted. "It doesn't have to be super complicated, Lil."
The blonde sighed and moved away from the wall towards Bambietta. "I guess it never is with you."
"Damn straight," Bambietta said as she snaked an arm over Liltotto's shoulders, walking her back towards the others. Then she glanced at her. "Wait, was that a shot?"
"Nope."
"Right..." Bambietta chose to ignore it, the Quincy instead focusing on the matter at hand. She slipped a hand across Liltotto's shoulders and began to guide her back to the coalition of wizards.
As they approached, they could see Happy trying to get the attention of Carla, the blue cat holding out a fish that neither Bambietta nor Liltotto could even hope to guess where he had gotten it from. Carla was having none of it though, the white feline having turned away from Happy, having crossed her arms across her torso in an act of clear indifference.
"That cat," Liltotto began to say, "she's the perfect pet for me, don't you think?"
"Lil," Bambietta replied, "what did we say about stealing?"
"Don't do it in front of people?"
"Okay, there was that," Bambietta said, nodding in understanding. "But I don't think it would be a good idea to make that kid cry. I really can't handle that again."
"Is somebody just a big softie deep down?" Liltotto could not help herself. It was rather fun to rattle Bambietta with a little teasing, if only because it was so easy.
"Oh please," Bambietta protested. "I just don't like the sound of a kid crying, all right? It..."
Bambietta's face grew sullen then, the Quincy glancing away from Liltotto as they rejoined the group. The blonde Quincy was about to say something but her words were cut off even before they began.
"Oh good," Jenny said with no hidden amount of sarcasm. "I'm so glad you two are willing to grace us with your presence."
"Well, aren't you a little sarcasm factory," Bambietta replied with a trace of irritation in her voice.
"Pot, kettle," Liltotto whispered just low enough that neither Bambietta nor Jenny heard.
"Now then," Jenny began to say, the mage taking a seat on a bench and crossing her legs, "I assume both master's Makarov and Jose informed you all about crisis that Clover is facing."
"Well, even if they didn't," Natsu began to say, "we can kind of see all the monsters outside the windows."
"Okay, good point," Jenny replied with a sigh, the mage glancing towards the skylight and taking notice of the beasts that were basking in the moonlight. "In any event, we all have a lot of ground to cover if we're going to protect the civilian population. With that in mind, I think it would be totally ideal if we split into groups of two."
"Oh, you and the Phantom Lord guy would go great together," Bambietta teased, nudging Liltotto in the shoulder. "We can even give you a celebrity couple name. Liltottomaru! What do you think?"
"I think you're getting me back for the shot earlier," Liltotto replied. "Besides, I'd rather stay by your side."
"Come on," Bambietta said. "What have I always told you?"
"Lie, cheat and steal?"
"And?"
Liltotto sighed. "Try and be social with new people?"
"That's my girl!" Bambietta slapped her back. "And I know just the person who should team up with!"
Quickly did Bambietta moved, dragging Liltotto directly over to Liltotto. The dark haired Quincy wrapped an arm around the mage, bringing her and Liltotto close together.
"So how about it?" Bambietta asked. "Levotto has a nice ring to it..."
"Bambi," Liltotto said, a trace amount of outright whining slipping into her voice. "I want to protect y-"
"Ah ah ah," Bambietta interrupted. "You need to bond. And Levy here..." Bambietta did not want to simply say she could use a strong partner. "She's my first friend here, so I want it to be the same for you."
Levy looked at Liltotto, giving her an honest smile. "So, you and me, huh? That works for me."
Bambietta slipped away from the two, giving them both a sly look. "Now I don't want to regret this. So, no sharing any embarrassing stories about me, you both got it?"
Jenny watched in irritation, the Blue Pegasus mage tapping a finger against an arm folded across her chest. "Well now, isn't this just nice. Shouldn't the one in charge of this mission assign the teams?"
Bambietta glanced at Jenny, the Quincy realizing that she was technically meant to defer authority to this woman. It was something she could do, having not been a part of the upper echelon of the Vandenreich, but she had always been one to overstep her bounds and land atop the toes of the gods. To his credit, Yhwach allowed that to go only so far. Bambietta had always known her limits around the god in the flesh she considered him. However, this Jenny individual was no such thing.
"Oh, go right ahead," Bambietta replied to the Blue Pegasus mage. "Wow us with your team making abilities."
Jenny glared at Bambietta, the wizard growing more and more irritated with this whole task she had been assigned. This was supposed to be her vacation, but now she was left to see the task of protecting Clover to the end. She did not mind protecting those who needed help, not at all. It was having to command the ragtag group before her that was growing wearing. To keep both Fairy Tail and Phantom Lord's sole representative from imploding to dealing with a neophyte from Cait Shelter, that was bad enough. Now she had to put up with an attitude?
"Okay, so Levy and... Liltotto was it?" Jenny said. "You two are a team. Simple as that. As for the rest of you..."
Bambietta began to inch her way towards Lucy, trying to give Jenny a hint. She was more than willing to team up with her roommate and semi crush. Lucy's pretty tough with her spirits…and frankly, I wouldn't mind the eye candy either.
"Lucy Heartfilia of Fairy Tail," Jenny said, pointing at the Celestial Spirit mage, "you shall back up Totomaru of Phantom Lord and scout out and eliminate any monsters on the west side of town."
Bambietta's shoulders sunk as she watched Lucy walk off looking a little sad, the mage moving closer to the Phantom Lord mage. Jenny noticed that and let herself smirk a little. She had noticed Bambietta's obvious tactic and had reacted accordingly. Not only was this a little dig against the woman who annoyed her, she had also found a Fairy Tail mage that she knew Totomaru would not get into direct conflict with.
Bambietta remained undeterred, sliding herself over until she was by Natsu's side.
"Natsu Dragneel," Jenny continued, "I want you and Elfman Strauss to be the heavy hitting group of our team stationed at the mayor's building. If any monsters so much as make a move towards it, I want you to take them out."
Bambietta's soul clenched up as she watched Natsu enthusiastically run over to Elfman, Happy following behind the Dragon Slayer. The Quincy looked around then, taking in the sight of those who were left. She moved closer to Cana then.
Jenny knew precisely what Bambietta was up to, wondering if the woman had any idea she was giving herself away far too easily. "Cana Alberona, I want you and Gray Fullbuster to patrol the southern sector of the city."
Bambietta grew dejected then, her hopeful aspirations plummeting. The Quincy looked to her dwindling pool of options then, noting Loke lowering his sunglasses and giving her a wink. Bambietta nervously smiled in response.
"So he makes you smile, huh?" Jenny whispered. "Loke, you shall assist me in tracking down the lead, S-Class monster!"
"I'm all for assisting a pretty lady with any need," Loke said as she walked towards Jenny, "but just so you know, I'm only A-Class."
"Oh, you're S-Class in the looks department," Jenny replied with a teasing wink. "But don't worry, I'll handle the heavy lifting if we find the big, bad S-Class beastie."
"Hey!" Bambietta shouted, the Quincy growing irate. "What am I? Chopped liver? I'm going solo?"
"Oh, I think someone already wants you as a partner," Jenny teased, giving Bambietta a smirk and nothing more.
"Huh?" Bambietta felt it again, a tug on her cape. The Quincy glanced down and could see Wendy Marvell looking up at her, Carla by her side. Bambietta turned her gaze then, glaring at Jenny. "There's no way you're putting a little kid out there in harm's way!"
"One," Jenny began to answer, "she's a wizard. Two, we can't just leave her alone in here. And three, she's a healer. Judging by how beat up you got coming to Clover, you probably need all the help you can get."
Bambietta did not like this woman from Blue Pegasus, no she did not. The Quincy's body began to shake slightly, Bambietta's hand closing into fists. "Why you little-"
"Uhm, you'll protect me, right?"
Bambietta felt her anger dissipate then in an instant and she looked down at Wendy. The blue-haired wizard looked nervous as always, leaving Bambietta to wonder if it was in response to her apparent moment of anger. She tried to put on a smile and placed one hand atop Wendy's head.
"Sure, kid. You've got nothing to worry about."
Time moved forward, the trio of Bambietta, Wendy and Carla finding themselves patrolling the eastern side of Clover. It was eerily quiet, no signs of life presenting itself for the group. Neither monster nor civilian was coming into view, leaving the oldest of the trio both bored and annoyed.
"This is just great," Bambietta said as she stretched her arms above her head and yawned. "I guess all the stupid monsters must be sweeping another section of the city. Why does everybody else get to have all the fun?"
"You really think they're not around here?" Wendy asked the mage making sure to keep pace by Bambietta. "That's good at least."
"Good?" Bambietta looked back at Wendy, trying to keep her temper at bay for the sake of the timid young girl. It was successful to some extent. "No, this isn't good. I want to fight some monsters. That's what I call fun!"
Wendy froze up, the slightly raised voice of Bambietta taking her by surprise. The Quincy could see the change she had initiated and she quickly regretted it. Carla saw it as well as marched over to Bambietta, raising one paw at her.
"I would appreciate it if you would apologize to Wendy immediately!" the cat all but ordered.
"I'm being lectured by a stuck up, talking cat that can sprout wings and is wearing clothes." That was all Bambietta could say, at least at first. "What has happened with my life?"
"Stuck up?" Carla grew cross then, planting her paws against her sides. "First you act up to Jenny and now this. Good heavens, you are a rude one, aren't you?"
Bambietta snapped out of her moment of blanking out, the Quincy all but ready to yell in her own defense. It was something she was all but prone to do, yet she caught sight of Wendy looking on with a worried expression on her face. In response, Bambietta chose her words quite carefully, even if they went against her surface-layer feelings.
"Yeah, okay, I'm rude," she admitted, the Quincy's right hand ruffling through the back of her long hair. "It's what I do, but..."
An exasperated sigh escaped from Bambietta as she moved over to Wendy and knelt before her. She looked into the mage's eyes and tried to smile.
"I'm... sorry I got a little pis- prickly." The Quincy was quick to correct herself, trying so very hard to keep her coarse language to a minimum around the young one.
Wendy was not prepared for such a word. "Prickly?"
"Yeah, that's me!" Bambietta said, placing one hand on a shoulder of Wendy's. "I'm just a prickly pear!"
Wendy face lightened up then, the girl almost fighting the desire to giggle. That made Bambietta feel more at ease then, the Quincy continuing to talk.
"It's just, I came here to fight these monsters, so that's what I'm looking forward to."
"But," Wendy began to say in return, "I thought we were here to save people too?"
Bambietta's facial expression went cold for a moment. "I'm no savior, kid. All I'm good at is fighting."
"But... I thought you said you'd protect me?" Wendy grew worried once more, leaving Bambietta to regret what she had said almost instantly.
"And that's how I'm going to protect you," Bambietta began to explain. "If anything around here so much as makes a move towards you, I'll be there."
Bambietta stood up then, raising her right hand up slightly as she looked at it.
"You're the savior around her, kid. All I can do is hurt things. While you..." Bambietta looked over her shoulder to Wendy. "You're something special."
Bambietta turned away from Wendy then, her eyes glancing around just as her spiritual senses did. There had to be something, anything, to fight. Yet all she could feel was Wendy's own magical signature, one that seemed to suddenly spike with jubilation. Bambietta could not see it, but she had to imagine that Wendy was smiling now.
"Good," the Quincy whispered slightly. She began to raise her voice then. "Time's a wasting, kid. Let's get moving."
"Right!"
Bambietta began to press forward, Wendy and Carla joining her side once. The Quincy flinched slightly as she felt Wendy reach out to hold her hand, the young wizard acting as if this was a walk to a candy store or something.
Bambietta's body continued to mind, but her mind lost focus for a moment. She was not here in Clover holding the hand of a timid little girl. No, she was the timid little girl standing by her mother's side, bringing brought to her favorite store in the town that was her home, the place that was the whole wide world to her. For one of the very few freedom's her father allowed her to have.
Bambietta's lips trembled slightly, the corners turning upward. The Quincy's eyes began to water, even if only a little.
Then there was a scream, one that shattered her moment of stolen bliss, the Quincy snapping to reality as she heard Wendy's voice.
"Somebody's in trouble!"
Bambietta smiled then, knowing what that meant. If someone was in danger, then it had to be the work of a monster. That meant one thing to Bambietta. It was the chance for her to do what she did best. This was her chance at inner peace achieved through violence. It would only last a minute, but that was exactly what Bambietta's soul craved at times such as this.
She began to move towards the alleyway on her left, the source of the commotion coming from there, but she looked back at the one that had been assigned her partner. "Kid, I think it would be best if you stayed here."
"But I won't be safe away from you," Wendy said, the young mage glancing around and looking uneased by the situation going on. "Please don't leave me out here alone."
Bambietta heard a scream of terror again, the Quincy trying to speed up the situation. "You've got your cat there. Carrie or whatever her name is."
"Carla!"
Bambietta nodded as the white cat shouted at her. "Yeah. Okay. That." There was a scream again and Bambietta turned away, intent on putting this monster down. Oh, and saving a life while she was at it.
"Please don't leave me out here."
Bambietta looked down her shoulder and could see Wendy gripping her cloak once more. "Come on, kid. You don't spit in the wind and you don't tug on Super-"
"Please."
Bambietta shook her head, finding herself caught between two cries for help. One big, one small. "Okay, fine. Sheesh."
Bambietta moved towards the alleyway, Wendy and Carla in tow. The Quincy knew now that she could not have any prolonged fun with the monster, not with this audience. A quick kill was in order. To that end, Bambietta extended one hand out to her side, allowing magical energies to gather and shift to the spiritual fuel that drove a Quincy's strength.
Wendy watched as a faint blue light began to form in the palm of Bambietta's hand, the young mage having never seen anything like it. Carla was the same, though the cat was not quite as impressed as her friend.
As Bambietta rounded the corner of the alleyway, she could see an older woman pressed up against a wall, terrified in her mannerisms. It was easy to see why, a hulking beast that stood at least eight feet in height lumbering towards her. Its back was to the newcomers, the monster focusing on its prey as it inched closer.
"Look away, kid," Bambietta said, her bow coming to fruition, its pale blue light blinding as she raised it upwards. "This isn't going to be pleasant."
Wendy covered her eyes then, doing as she was told. Yet there was something interesting about the power Bambietta was using. The young mage spread her fingers slightly, peeking out from between them. She knew she was too enthralled by the beauty of the strange magic to do anything else. She watched in awe as a shining arrow formed upon the bow, one that Bambietta began to draw back on.
Then she let it loose and the arrow quickly pierced the monster through the chest. It stumbled forward, a gaping hole all but burned through it, and the beast collapsed to the ground, a tremor echoing across the ground. Wendy gasped slightly, covering her eyes once more in response to the sudden violence.
Bambietta was quick to hear it and as her bow faded from view, she looked at Wendy. "You peaked."
"I'm sorry!" Wendy shouted in response, still keeping her upper face covered.
"Good heavens, child," Carla mused, stepping up beside her, "you look when you shouldn't and keep your eyes obscured now?"
Bambietta crouched down by Wendy, reaching out and gently pulling the hands away from her eyes. "Kid, I thought I told you to look away."
"I know," the young girl said, sniffing back as she did so, "but that magic of yours is pretty."
Bambietta was stunned, at least for a moment. "Pretty, huh? No, it isn't. Nothing I do is ever pretty."
Bambietta saw the confusion apparent in Wendy's face, the Quincy choosing to ignore it for the moment, to put it out of her mind. She could hear the sound of the rescued woman fast approaching and she began to stand.
"Thank you! Thank you!" the resident of Clover began to say, her voice teetering on the edge. "If it wasn't for you, I might have died!"
"Well, there's a surprise," Bambietta replied, looking back at the person she had just saved. "A big monster apocalypse is going on and you, what, decide to hang out in a back alley in the middle of the night? What did you think was going to happen, half-wit? Now run along home and if any weirdoes in a magicmobile offers you some candy, don't get in the vehicle, you moron!"
"Of all the-" The woman began to become as irritated as Bambietta herself, if not more so. "Who do you think you are to speak to me like that?"
"I'm Bambietta Basterbine of Fairy Tail," the Quincy replied. "Oh, and the person who just saved your sorry butt."
Wendy watched as the two stared at one another, leaving both herself and Carla to wonder who would break first.
"I can't go home! Not yet!" the woman continued to shout. "I need to see someone first!"
"Oh, come on!" Bambietta yelled in return. "Look, I like a... sleepover as much as the next lady who's been cooped up too long, but now is not the time or the place for that sort of thing!"
"No, you-" The woman started to calm down, raising a hand to her face as if she was getting unsteady on her feet. "It's my son. I need to find the local doctor for him."
Bambietta's eyes went wide. "What?"
"He'll die if I do nothing!" the woman shouted once more, grabbing the Quincy by her cloak. "Please! Help me find a doctor and get home!"
"Okay, all right," Bambietta said, brushing the woman's hands off her cloak. "Enough with the hands on drama. I'll help you if it'll make you calm down. Besides, this is your lucky day!"
The woman became confused. "Huh?"
"Because with me is the one, the only," Bambietta said as she slipped behind her travelling companion and lifted her up by the shoulders right in front of her, "Wendy Marvell, white mage extraordinaire!"
"Wait, you're a healer?" the woman's began to become overjoyed as she snatched Wendy out of Bambietta's arms and pulled her into a hug. "Oh, thank you! Thank you!"
"Bambi, help me," Wendy asked softly, feeling herself held far too tightly.
"So how far away exactly is your house from here?" the Quincy asked, peeking out from the alleyway and noticing that there were still no monsters about, a fact she found quite boring.
"About another three blocks west of here," the woman replied, setting Wendy back down.
Bambietta sighed. "I hope Lucy, Levy and Liltotto are having more fun than I am..."
Levy could not help herself. She was throwing up tremendously into a garbage can on the sidewalk. Liltotto was watching, all the while using a wooden toothpick to remove the trace amounts of monster bits and pieces from between her teeth.
"Let it all out," the Quincy said, rather bored, while also a little disappointed. "That's how most react to my power when they see it in action."
"I'm sorry," Levy said as she meekly looked away from the garbage can. "It's just... I don't know if I'm ever going to get used to that ability of yours."
Liltotto lowered her gaze as she spit out her toothpick. Her eyes obscured by the visor of her hat, she spoke again. "That's what I figured."
Levy cringed for a moment, feeling as if the rest of her lunch was going to come up. She fought against the urge and moved away from the garbage can, walking towards Liltotto. "Come on, don't be that way. I know you're a nice person."
"Yeah right," Liltotto whispered. "Not after what happened."
Levy stopped. "What are you talking about?"
"I didn't do anything," Liltotto continued to whisper. "I could have but I was a coward. And it... it cost her everything."
Levy looked at the blonde young lady, noting that she was shaking slightly. "Liltotto?"
"I shouldn't be here," she said.
"Look, I know you said you want to protect Bambi, but-"
"No!" Liltotto suddenly shouted, still not looking at Levy. "I shouldn't be anywhere near her again!"
Levy did not know precisely what was going on, but the Solid Script mage had heard more than enough from Bambietta in recent memory, she had seen her reaction to Liltotto back in the town of Ruby. Maybe that was enough. "She trusts you now, doesn't she?"
"How?" Liltotto interrupted, her voice calm again. "How can she be so stupid as to do that?"
"Because she cares," Levy said in response, taking one tentative step after another towards Liltotto. "I don't know what exactly went on in your old guild, and I don't think I can even guess what your lives were like there, but I know who Bambi is now. And if she's willing to put her faith in you despite whatever happened, then so am I."
Levy did what she could then, placing a hand on Liltotto's right shoulder. The touch made the Quincy respond, Liltotto looking into Levy's eyes.
"You're all a bunch of idiots," the Quincy said, still unable to compose herself. "It's not that easy! It can't be!"
Liltotto suddenly moved closer to Levy, the Quincy's composure having snapped for a moment. Her face contorted, Liltotto refusing to show her emotions any more than she already was.
"Maybe Bambi is," Levy began to say, placing one hand on Liltotto's back. "Maybe all of Fairy Tail is in your eyes. But that's just who we are."
Liltotto became motionless for a moment, the Quincy suddenly pulling away from Levy. She cursed her inability to keep herself calm and distant, to remain as stoic as she normally chose. She could not understand why she had acted as such. Was it this world, this guild? Was that what had made Bambietta changed, even if only slightly? Was it doing the same to her? Or was this simply the results of their shared recent past in the world they called their birthplace?
"Come on, Levy said, reaching out an inviting hand to Liltotto. "Bambi's let go of her past, so why can't you?"
"Because I-" Liltotto paused. "Never mind. I just want... I want to be as stupid as all of you."
"Well, that's not the best way to endear yourself to Fairy Tail," Levy said with a slightly smile, "but I know what you meant."
"Monsters, come out and play!"
Wendy and Carla were both by the side of the individual who had identified herself as Claire Valentine, the three of them not saying but all thinking the same thing. They all did not appreciate Bambietta having taken the lead while literally looking for trouble.
"We're all going to die," Claire was repeating under her breath. "We're all going to die because of this crazy lady."
"But," Wendy began to contest, looking up at Claire, "Bambi's not that crazy."
"You always do try to find the good in people, Wendy," Carla added on, the cat just as concerned with the Quincy's actions as Claire was. "And I don't see you denying that she's going to get us all killed."
Wendy could see both Carla and Claire looking at her, the cat glancing up and the woman staring down. "What?"
"This Bambietta seems to be fond of you, child," Carla said. "Perhaps you can talk her out of this foolhardy action of hers."
"O-okay," Wendy stammered as she tried to remain positive. "I'll do my best."
The young mage began to move towards Bambietta, watching as the Quincy continued to shout, her hands cupped around her mouth. "Come on, you ugly monsters! Please? This is totally boring!"
Bambietta dropped her hands then, feeling just the slightest bit depressed.
"I want to fight some stuff..."
"Hey, Bambi-"
The Quincy turned, quickly catching sight of Wendy tripping over debris in the road. Acting on instinct, the Quincy moved to her side in a flash, trying to help her up. Bambietta began to wonder if that was going to become a running theme as long as she was in contact with this healing mage.
"You okay, kid?" Bambietta asked. "That was a nasty fall."
"It wasn't that bad," Wendy answered as she got up off the ground and looked at Bambietta. "But I was just wondering... Well, that is... I don't want to be rude, but..."
The young girl was having no end of trouble speaking her mind, yet it did not matter. Bambietta had a feeling she knew exactly what Wendy was getting at. "You want me to stop trying to get us all in a fight."
"Well... yeah," was Wendy's honest response. "I just... I didn't come here to fight, that's all. I just want to heal people who need it."
"And that's fine," Bambietta replied. "But I already told you, all I can do is hurt things, right or wrong. So that's what I'm going to do. It's the mission."
"But can't that wait until after we get this nice lady home and take care of her son?"
Bambietta knew Wendy had a point, she just did not like to admit to it. "All right. Fine. I'll zip my lips."
To accentuate that point, Bambietta ran a finger across her mouth and nodded. Wendy giggled slightly, then shook her own head. "No, please don't." The young mage began to glance away, her hands coming together as one foot nervously dug twisted on the ground. "I'm still really scared about everything, so talking with you might keep my mind of things."
"Don't talk. No wait, totally talk. Just to me." Bambietta smiled slightly. "You drive a hard bargain, kid."
Bambietta stood up then, placing one hand atop Wendy's head as she watched Claire and Carla approach. Only then did she start walking again.
"So, what kind of magic do you have?" Wendy asked, looking up at Bambietta with bright eyes.
"It's nothing special," the Quincy replied. "Just some run of the mill-"
"That bow of yours was so pretty!" Wendy suddenly exclaimed, bunching up her hands tightly as she continued to stare up at Bambietta. "Can you make other weapons like that?"
There it was again. That word. Bambietta was not going to deny this young girl of her opinion when it came to the sacred bow, but she knew the other weapon that was even more her specialty was not going to produce such a reaction. Not considering what she could do with it.
"I can make a sword," Bambietta said gently. "But you shouldn't see such a thing."
"But-"
"You want to see something cool?" Bambietta interrupted Wendy, looking down at her with a smile. The Quincy was not sure if this would actually impress the girl or simply gross her out, but it was worth a shot.
"Yeah!"
Bambietta took in Wendy's reaction for what it was, and she began to slip off her left glove. The pale blue mark of Fairy Tail came into sight and for the briefest of moments did Bambietta stare at it. She was right-handed and had chosen the left for Makarov to adorn entirely to keep the emblem away from prying eyes. Why then had she chosen to reveal it to Wendy as she had?
Bambietta was unsure but she pushed the question out of her mind. Instead, she allowed the magic around her to flow into her body, bringing to life the spiritual energies within her body. The power began to flow through her veins, glowing a bright blue almost directly through her skin.
"Wow," was all Wendy could say as she watched the Blut take effect. "That's so pretty."
Bambietta grinned a little more, unsure of why she was so content that it had not grossed out Wendy. She noticed then that the faint blue glow was running through the Fairy Tail emblem, almost making it shine through the night. The Quincy stared at it then, wondering if she had made a poor decision to hide it from the world.
The moment was lost quickly, however, Bambietta's senses snapping to attention. Something was approaching. No, more than just something. There was a several sources of malevolent desires coming closer.
Bambietta's sweet smile changed to a sickly satisfied one, something she was glad Wendy could not see, the young girl too caught up in looking at the glowing power
"Kid, I'm sorry," Bambietta began to say, "but we've got company."
Bambietta stepped in front of Wendy and the others, holding her ground as she watched two monsters begin to approach. Both stood at an impressive height, green scaled flesh giving way to fangs and teeth, tails extending from their backs. Both lizard men felt as if their strength was more than what Bambietta had fought so far on this mission. that was just fine by her.
"Guess you boys must be B-Class, huh?" Bambietta said as she took several steps forward to greet them, all the while stretching her arms out above her head. "It's about time. Your little buddies up in the sky were just a D-Class depression killer and I can't even say that about the thing in the alley from before. But you guys..."
Bambietta stared them down, noting the oddly human shape to the upright reptilian monsters.
"You guys look like you might be able to make up for how boring this part of town is. At least a little bit."
The taller of the two beasts began to roar then, forcing Bambietta to simply smile.
"Is that a threat?" she asked almost in a teasing tone.
There was another roar in response, now from both monsters working in unison.
Bambietta's eyes lit up in delight. "Oh, it is a threat!"
The duo of monsters ran towards Bambietta then, the Quincy more than willing to meet them halfway. She kept her body wrapped in Blut Vene, knowing that the defensive ability was a must. She had slipped up once already this day, allowing damage that had no business being done to tear her arm asunder. She would not allow such an indignity to happen to herself again.
Yet, in the back of her mind, there was another reason. She did not want Wendy to have to see such a wound again up close again.
Bambietta forced that thought aside as she lashed out with a punch, smashing her knuckles against one of the lizard beasts' faces. It did little damage however, only making the monster flinch a little bit. That bothered Bambietta, but it bothered her more she dwelled on the worry in her mind. It was not that. No, it could not be. She simply wanted to prolong the fight and she knew that Blut Arterie would end it too fast even without the use of her sword.
The sword that she did not want to use in front of Wendy's impressionable eyes.
Bambietta cursed within her own thoughts, the only place she was free to do so with Wendy around. Her own state of confusion was simply irritated. She lashed out with her other hand in response, another fist striking the monster before her. The sight of the beast falling back a slightly step back thanks to the blow brought some clarity to the Quincy's soul.
Violence had a habit of doing that for Bambietta after all.
She lost herself in the moment, just as she always did. Claws tore at her flesh, unable to pierce it. Tails swung out, batting her aside. Yet still she pressed on, her body a living weapon so long as Blut Vene kept it safe. This was a war of attrition, one she was determined to win eventually. Yet as she was beginning to notice, it was going absolutely nowhere fast. The monsters could not hurt her and she could do next to nothing the way she had handicapped herself. She continued to bob and weave, taking ineffective attacks as she landed more of the same. All the while she kept thinking to herself to press her sword into action, but there was Wendy.
There was Wendy, Lucy, Levy and all the others she had met in this world.
Wendy watched on in awe, the girl unable to process the Quincy's erratic but well-timed movements. One moment she was directly in front of a tailed beast, leaping up to drive a knee into the underside of its jaw, forcing the monster back slightly. Another she was driving her fist into the back of a monster's head, making it stumble a little bit. On and on it went, Wendy lost in the moment. The mage did not enjoy violence in the least, hoping that Bambietta would end this situation sooner rather than later.
"Please be okay..."
Then it happened, a clawed hand wrapping around Bambietta's face, a monster catching her by surprise. It slammed the back of her head to the ground, the Quincy audibly gasping in pain.
Wendy gasped as well, hers a product of shock and worry. She took a deep breath, her instincts as a mage taking over. Her cheeks puffed out slightly before she suddenly shouted and exhaled all at once.
"Sky Dragon's Roar!"
Bambietta heard it well enough despite her situation, the Quincy watched as the monster that had pinned her to the ground was suddenly being struck by an onrush of concentrated air, the swirling vortex throwing the beast away. The Quincy sat up and stared at the lizard man, watching as it slammed into the side of a building. Then she looked at Wendy, seeing the young wizard looking at her with pleading eyes that showed nothing but her worried nature.
"Bambi, are you-"
Bambietta was quick to interrupt. "Ki- Wendy, you're a Dragon Slayer?"
"I was taught by a dragon, yeah," Wendy answered meekly. "But slayer, that's a word I don't-"
"Child, look out!"
Carla suddenly panicked, the cat noticing the last remaining lizard man lunging for Wendy as if it had determined her the main threat now.
"No, you don't!" Bambietta made it up to her feet quick, tackling the monster as it was in mid-stride. She pushed it away from Wendy and gave her a quick look, knowing what she had to do. "Sorry, Wendy, but what comes next is adults only!"
A quick burst of Hirenkyaku took Bambietta and her captive prey into a back alley, away from prying eyes. Bambietta threw the monster against the far wall and let Blut Arterie take course through her veins, her sword materializing in her right hand.
For a moment she saw it again, the frightened and horrified faces of those she knew. Of Levy and Lucy. Of Wendy.
Biting her lower lip, Bambietta let the blade in her possession slice through scales and flesh, of muscle and bone, leaving the creature's head to slip away from its body.
Bambietta watched the corpse slump and fall to the ground, red liquid dripping from her short sword. She let the weapon fade then, the remaining blood splattering to the ground with nothing left to cling to.
Bambietta's eyes were cold and impassive, the Quincy wondering why she had gone to such trouble to keep Wendy free of seeing such horrors.
"What the hell is up with me?"
Shaking her head, the Quincy checked herself over, glad to see that no blood had made it on to her clothes. She walked out of the alley then, taking note of the relief that was consuming Wendy's previously worried expression.
"Is everything all ri-"
Bambietta interrupted again. "You're a Dragon Slayer."
"I thought we already-"
"How cool is that?" Bambietta suddenly exclaimed, her eyes beaming. "A white mage and a Dragon Slayer? That's just-"
Bambietta shook her head, trying to compose herself as she approached Wendy.
"You wouldn't happen to know a dragon named Igneel, would you?"
"No, I don't," Wendy answered. "I'm sorry."
"And there you go with the apologizing for every little thing again." Bambietta sighed. "Maybe I could learn a thing from you..."
"Are you looking for a dragon?" Wendy asked innocently enough.
"Well," Bambietta began to answer, "I'd be totally lying if I said I didn't want to see one up close and personal, but it's not me who's really looking for one. Just a guy I know. You already saw him. Pink hair, cheese grating abs. Oh, and his best friend is a blue..."
Bambietta's voice trailed off as she glanced at the uptight Carla before looking back at Wendy.
"Do all Dragon Slayers having flying, talking cats?"
"I don't know," Wendy began to say. "I'm sor-"
She stopped herself then, covering her mouth with both hands.
"So what about it, Carrie? Are you cute little kitties the representation of their powers? The Zanpakuto to her Soul Reaper?" Bambietta paused for a minute. "Not that I've ever heard about a Zanpakuto spirit physically hanging out with a Soul Reaper."
"Goodness gracious, it's Carla," the cat replied. "And I have no idea what you are talking about."
"That's all well and good!" Claire suddenly said, trying to remind her rescuers that she was still in need. "But what about my son?"
"Oh right," Bambietta replied. "That. Yeah, sorry. Beating things up can be so distracting."
It was not the politest thing to say and Bambietta was quick to note the sudden glimmer in Wendy's eyes, something that seemed to give indication that was she was becoming upset at the choice of words and attitude used.
Bambietta sighed, closing her eyes for a moment. Then she opened them as wide as possible, a big smile on her face as she began to speak as boldly as she could, her hands firmly planted on her hips. "Worry not, ma'am. We'll be getting you home and taking care of your son in a jiffy!"
Wendy smiled in response to that, the extreme tone Bambietta having spoken in completely lost on her. It was, however, noticed by both Carla and Claire. The cat was simply dropped her whiskered face into both her front paws while the older woman was shaking her head as she began to walk away and towards her home.
Bambietta did not care. She had made Wendy jump from a bad mood to a positive one and that was enough for her. Even if she could not understand why that put herself at ease, the Quincy still had seen it through.
"So, what dragon trained you?" Bambietta asked as she, Wendy and Carla moved to catch up with Claire.
"Her name was Grandeeney," Wendy explained. "And I miss her."
Bambietta looked down at the young girl and could see her getting visibly upset again. The Quincy knew this was going to be a problem, but this time it was not something she could fix easily as she was not the root cause. "She meant a lot to you, huh?"
"She was like a mom to me I guess," Wendy answered, her voice soft and unassuming. "But then she disappeared. It... hurt, but if it weren't for Grandeeney, I wouldn't be who I am now."
Bambietta had to wonder now. Both Natsu and Wendy had spoken of their dragon parents vanishing. It was odd, but she had other things to concern herself with. She needed to find something to find common ground with and maybe cheer up the girl. "I can relate, Wendy. If it weren't for a cranky old lady, I wouldn't..."
"... Be who I am today!"
Lucy had been unsure of what to expect when Jenny had assigned her to work alongside a complete stranger from the Phantom Lord guild. She had no grudge against the rival guild, not like Natsu and the others, since she was far too new to Fairy Tail. Still, she had been prepared for just about anything, whether he was simply aloof or openly hostile.
What was happening now, however, was the one thing she had not been prepared for.
"Remind me never to ask a complete stranger about how they honed their magic powers," Lucy whispered to herself as she followed along behind the Phantom Lord wizard. She had asked to simply break the ice as she and Totomaru had been patrolling Clover, completely unaware that he would launch into a retelling of his life story that was so painfully detailed that the Celestial Spirit mage had become completely aware of each and every mission Totomaru had endured throughout his tenure as a wizard, right down to finest of details. "Say, that's all good, but-"
"And then there was the time..."
Lucy's shoulders sunk in response, the mage all but admitting defeat. She could only hope that Totomaru did not eventually reach the present in his story. Lucy simply began to start mumbling to herself, Totomaru completely unawares. "Please don't reach the present. Please don't start telling me about this mission. Please don't start telling me about how you're telling me your life story. Please, please, please..."
"And then Master Jose sent me here to- monsters!"
Lucy perked up at the sound of that word, the mage wondering how she could have ever been happy to be under attack. She looked around and could see that Totomaru and herself had been surrounded by at least a dozen creatures, the majority of them appearing to be well ten feet long. A low hissing sound was pervading the air, the ends of the creatures' tails rattling about.
"Overgrown snakes," Totomaru said, a sweat drop sliding down his face. "Why did it have to be overgrown snakes?"
"You're scared of snakes?" Lucy asked as she made sure to keep her back against Totomaru's own so that neither of them could be taken by surprise.
"No!" was his response. "I just don't like them! They're icky and slimy and slither all over the place. And those tongues are just-"
"Look out!" Lucy dove to the ground and Totomaru did the same under her advice, a snake's fanged mouth piercing the air where they had both just stood.
"You okay, fairy girl?"
Totomaru began to pull himself up from the ground, realizing what he had to do. He hated the fact that he had to work with one of Fairy Tail's own. He had come to Clover to fight, not to babysit a rival guild member. Still, he knew his duty. He was a member of Phantom Lord's Elite, a part of its Element Four, but even he did not wish to get on Jenny Realight's bad side. That would completely impede his hidden dream. He was going to ask her out on a date one of these days, he swore it.
"Open the Gate of the Golden Bull! Taurus!"
Totomaru watched on as veritable monster appeared from a golden like, the humanoid bull wielding a massive axe. Taurus put it to good use, batting aside several snakes with ease.
Totomaru had to admit, he was impressed with this Lucy's potential as an apparent Celestial Spirit wizard, but he was also somewhat vexed by one simple fact.
"I'm being outdone by someone beneath A-Class? Oh no." A fire began to form in Totomaru's right hand as he stood. He looked at several of the snake monsters surrounding him and threw the palm forward, letting the searing flames consume them all. "That really burns me up!"
"Oh wow," Lucy said as she glanced back at Totomaru. "It's Natsu all over again."
Totomaru heard that, extinguishing his flame as he turned to face Lucy with some amount of annoyance evident in his tone. "Don't be comparing me to Salamander! That little matchstick is nothing compared to Phantom Lord's number one-"
"Lucy Kick!"
Totomaru prepared himself to dodge, the fire mage not the least bit surprised by the Fairy Tail guild member's actions. Of course she would verbally assault someone who insulted a comrade. It was what he would do after all. It was what Master Jose had instilled within him since joining Phantom Lord. None were allowed to besmirch the guild's honor or pride.
He was ready to dodge it, prepared even, but Totomaru was left surprised when Lucy's momentum took her directly past him.
"What?" Totomaru turned his body completely, watching as Lucy pushed back a serpent that had been all but poised to strike the Phantom Lord wizard in his moment of distraction. He was quick to finish the job then, striking it down with a blast of flames. He then looked at Lucy with some level of skepticism. "Why did you bother doing that? There's no love lost between our guilds."
"I don't care about that!" Lucy shouted, growing a little annoyed with Totomaru's reaction. "I don't care if you're Fairy Tail or Phantom Lord! Either way you're just a person! Isn't that enough?"
Lucy turned away, crossing her arms across her chest, the mage beginning to wonder if Bambietta was rubbing off on her a little bit.
"A 'thank you' would be nice."
Totomaru was simply dumbfounded. She had an attitude befitting what he expected of a member of Fairy Tail, but he also knew it was only in reaction to his own actions. She had helped him after all.
"Thanks." It was difficult to say, perhaps too difficult, but he had managed it nonetheless.
"There, you see?" Lucy asked as she looked back at Totomaru and winking. "That wasn't so hard, was it?"
Totomaru said nothing, looking away himself. "Let's just get back to monster hunting, all right?"
"What a dump," Bambietta muttered under her breath as she began to follow Claire into her apartment. "There's no way we're going to get much of a reward for this."
Claire heard exactly what the Quincy said, but she chose to ignore it. Arguing with the ill-tempered individual who had helped her get home to save her son would accomplish nothing. "Chris? Chris, where are you?"
Bambietta and Wendy moved about the cramped apartment, looking around as well as Claire continued to shout. Soon enough Wendy screamed, catching Bambietta off guard. "What's the matter?"
"He's... he's..."
Bambietta moved closer to Wendy, following the frightened wizard's eyes. Soon enough she saw a young boy lying face down on the floor, faint amounts of blood around his head, a gash a running across it.
"Damn." Bambietta could not help herself, not even in front of Wendy. She moved fast, picking the unmoving boy up and placing him down on the couch so that he was facing up. She could see it, his face and chest completely still. He was not breathing. Bambietta moved her hand down and pressed its index and middle fingers down on one of the Chris's wrists. She could feel it then, his pulse eerily slow but steady. "He's alive at least. But he's not breathing."
Bambietta looked down at Wendy, receiving a look of worry from the girl.
"I can't... I don't know how to do that."
"But... white mage." Bambietta looked at Claire then. "Come on, some CPR is kind of-"
"My son! My son! My beautiful baby boy!"
"Okay, she's on the hysterical version of cloud nine." Bambietta looked down at the unmoving Chris, knowing what she would have to do. "I..."
"Please," Wendy said, staring at Bambietta with pleading eyes. "You can do it."
"This isn't... what I... what I do." Bambietta shook her head and knelt down beside the couch. "Okay, fine."
Bambietta placed the heels of her hands against Chris's chest, pressing down on it again and again. Soon enough she shifted her attentions upwards. She tilted Chris's chin up and then moved her face close to his. She paused for a moment, then began to do her best to breath into him.
Wendy watched on in nervous trepidation, Carla by her side. Bambietta continued to do what she could, moving from face to chest and back again. A minute passed, one that seemed to go on for an eternity.
Then, at long last, Chris begin to breathe.
"There we go," Bambietta said as she stood back up.
"You did it, Bambietta!" Wendy shouted, moving closer to the Quincy and wrapping her arms around her.
Bambietta flinched, not expecting the reaction at all. "Wendy, what are you-"
"You're a hero," Wendy interrupted.
"No," Bambietta replied, "I'm not. You are. Now go on. Heal away."
Wendy pulled away from Bambietta, looking up at her. "But I need to know what's wrong first."
Bambietta stared at Claire with hard eyes. "You heard her. So, what's wrong with him?"
"Chris, my son! He... he..."
"What is wrong with him?" Bambietta repeated, glaring at the stressed out Claire, all the while raising her voice. "Wendy can't help if-"
"He was attacked by one of the monsters earlier and it infected his blood... It tore up his stomach! It's why I couldn't dare to take him outside to the doctor!"
Bambietta reached down and pulled Chris's shirt up, revealing a dark purple skin tone that pervading his chest and stomach. A gash was running across it, dried blood still present.
"Wendy, I-"
"I can do this," Wendy said, reaching out with her hands, a faint glow once more returning to them. "I... I can do this."
Bambietta moved back a bit, gently placing her right hand down on the mage's shoulder. "We both know you can."
Time moved on, Bambietta watching as the gash began to heal slowly but surely. More minutes continued to come and go, the violet markings slowly receding inch by inch until there was nothing left.
Wendy breathed a sigh of relief as she let her powers fade. She watched then as Chris slowly opened his eyes.
"M-mom?"
"Oh, my baby!" As Chris sat up, Claire was quick to embrace him, holding him tight. She looked at Wendy then. "How can I ever repay you?"
Bambietta could not help herself, the Quincy smiling slightly at that question.
"There's no need," Wendy said politely and with an honest smile. "I'm just glad we could help is all."
Bambietta frowned.
"Nonsense!" Claire sat up then, moving into her kitchen. "You deserve something for your efforts!"
Bambietta smiled again. It faded just as fast as the first, however, when she saw Claire return with two wrapped ice cream sandwiches. "That's it?"
It became a frown then as Claire handed them to Wendy. "Two just for you, my little angel."
"What about Bambi?" Wendy asked.
"She's kind of a meanie," Claire said simply. "And grouchy."
"But... I'm an angel too," Bambietta whispered under her breath. "I even had wings once."
Bambietta sulked then, the Quincy barely even listening as Claire bid her, Wendy and Carla farewell, the trio leaving the apartment and finding themselves back on the streets. All Bambietta could wonder was if it paid to be nicer to people even if she did not know them.
"Here."
Bambietta heard the sound of Wendy's voice, the Quincy glancing down and taking notice of the young girl offering her one of the packaged ice cream sandwiches, all the while Wendy eating the other one.
"Wendy, you don't have to-"
"Yeah, I do," the young Dragon Slayer interrupted. "You helped her son too."
Bambietta smiled and took the offering, unwrapping it and taking a bite. She reached down and ruffled the hair atop Wendy's head as she did so. "You're a good kid, Wendy."
Carla watched on silently, the cat admitting she was happy to see Wendy making a friend outside of the Cait Shelter guild. It had been a long time coming.
Wendy leaned her head to the side, resting it against Bambietta's side as they continued to patrol. It was quiet, the two simply enjoying their reward in peace. She could not help but like that. "Bambi-"
"Oh! Monsters! Yay!"
Bambietta quickly goggled down the rest of the ice cream sandwich, licking her glove fingers as she began to run forward, her skin blazing with the power of Blut Vene. Wendy was left in her dust, the Sky Dragon Slayer staring on blankly as Bambietta quickly began to engage a dozen low level monsters in combat.
"She is a crazy one," Carla said as she approached Wendy. "Even compared to Fairy Tail's rather questionable reputation."
"Yeah," was all the Dragon Slayer could say at first. "But... she seems really nice."
Wendy and Carla watched as Bambietta smashed a monster's face into the side of the building, repeating the motion several times over.
"You were saying?" Carla asked.
"She seems really nice," Wendy repeated. "Just... deep down."
And with that, chapter 13 comes to a close. Now, I know a few of you may be thinking that "nothing happened, what the heck?" Trust me when I say this chapter was nessarcy. Its building up to something you'll all enjoy. Trust me, you'll love it.
I do hope that all of you enjoyed the interactions with Bambietta and Wendy though. I really, really want to know your thoughts on it, and where this could go from here.
Chapter of Fairy tail this week was pretty decent, but Bleach...Well, Bambi, any words on it?
Bambietta:...Well, far as I'm concerned I would have died no matter what I did now. I mean, for fucks sake, that bastard Zaraki has a Shikai AND a Bankai now!? WHAT THE SHIT!? I thought it was a constant release shikai, but nope! Your telling me that he killed 3 stern ritter without taking off his eye patch with his base zanpaktou!? After one of them even turned into him!? Not to mention he killed that powerhouse Gremmey with shikai, and now, he's taking on Gerard, one of the strongest guys I have ever known in my life, one of THE most powerful quincys to ever live, was already doing pretty well against him, which no, I DID NOT think was possible for anyone else besides Yhwatch and Hatchwald... and he's JUST got bankai?! BANKAI!?....I'm going to be surprised if the soul palace isn't destroyed by one swing of whatever the hell Bankai that monster gets.
Sooo, you don't want to fight him?
Bambietta: I WOULD FUCKING DIE!
Jesus, wasn't expecting this kind of "Oh shit" from you till we got to Acnologia.
Bambietta: Who?
Oh, you'll find out eventually.
Bambietta: Oh yeah, that doesn't sound fucking ominous at all.
Oh like it matters, this conversation isn't even cannon.
Bambietta: You mean to cannon, or the fanfiction?
Both.
Bambietta: Well, With all that said and done, please leave us some reviews. we REALLY like getting them, and they help me know when we're doing a good job or not. So please, if you really like this story, give us your thoughts on the story in the form of a review, as they help us want to do more chapters. That way I can really know just how awesome I actually am!
