Hey there, everyone! We're back, and a month early to boot! I've managed to make decent enough headway where I now felt comfortable enough to release chapters again, and… Well, I'd be lying if I said the trailer released for the next part of The Thousand Year Blood War wasn't playing a part in my decision for an earlier release.

I am equal parts HYPED for what's to come (more Bambietta and the rest of her posse, more Sternritter and extended/new scenes) and DREADING it (...Zombietta. FUCK.)

At the very least, it seemed that now was the best time to put this out. So I am. XD

But, you're not here to hear me babble, no, you're here to read more of the adventures of Bambietta Basterbine in her time in Fairy Tail. So, let's not waste anymore time, and get right back into the thick of things, shall we?

Bleach is owned by Tite Kubo and Shönen Jump. Fairy Tail is owned by Hiro Mashima and Weekly Shönen Magazine. I own NOTHING. This is all just for fun.


One day. That's it. That was it.

When she had left her home to gather new herbal material not found in East Forest, Porlyusica had been positive that everything would have remained as it was when she returned. It was only going to take one day after all. At most, a tree or two may have been knocked down for some lumber, much to her irritation, but nothing all that considerable. People tended to leave the forest, her home, well enough alone.

Yet, somehow, someway, over the course of just one day, she had returned to find her home to be filled with charred trees, craters that littered the landscape, and a much clearer horizon. If not for her decades' worth of experience dealing with Fairy Tail's destructive antics, she had no doubt that she wouldn't have been able to resist her overwhelming urge to scream.

Jets of steam escaped the old woman's nostrils, flames burning in her pupils. I'm going to find Makarov, and I swear, if Fairy Tail is in any way responsible for this… I will kill him.

However, before she could even begin to head down to Magnolia to shout in Makarov's ear about what had transpired in her absence, she heard feet softly tap against the ground behind her… on what had previously been a completely empty road.

Porlyusica spun around, and to her surprise, she saw a young woman with collar length black hair, and brown eyes. She wore a white blouse with a blue tie, a short black skirt, gray tights, and white heels. Her eyes widened as soon as she glanced at the destruction.

"Oh, goodness. I know Father said that the damage he had done to the forest was extensive, but I never imagined it would have been quite like this. I'll have to–"

"What the hell are you doing in my home!?" Porlyusica demanded as she stomped towards the newcomer. Under normal circumstances she wouldn't have acted this brazen, especially with how this woman was able to sneak up on her so easily, but Porlyusica's wrath over her destroyed forest was still going strong. That wasn't even addressing how the words she had used had made it abundantly clear that she at least knew the individual responsible for all of this. "I don't need any more of you humans to further devastate what little home I have left!"

The woman frowned. "Oh, this was your home? My most sincere apologies. My father told me that he had quite an intense spar here, and your home unfortunately paid the price for it as a result. I'll be sure to make proper compensation as soon as possible."

"Compensation!?" Porlyusica shouted as she glared at the woman. "I'm not interested in money! No amount of money can bring back all of the life your father needlessly destroyed! The trees, the land, the wildlife! All irrevocably damaged or destroyed because of a spar?! At the most, all you'll do is help fund the process of renewal that will take hundreds of years to properly–"

"Ma'am, with all due respect, I'm going to need you to be quiet so I can properly fix this," the woman said as she closed her eyes, appearing deep in thought. "I need to focus so I can make things right."

Porlyusica stomped her foot down. "Are you deaf, woman!?" She shrieked. "I already told you, money can't–"

(Song of choice, Requiem, Code Vein OST)

However, before the older woman could truly get going on her rant, an immense pressure left her momentarily breathless. It wasn't focusing on her, but rather the entirety of the forest. Even so, despite being on the periphery of this… whatever this was, the woman could feel her old bones beginning to shake and shudder.

What!? What is-

Yet, before Porlyusica could continue with this line of thought, Mette opened her mouth… and a beautiful voice escaped her lips.

For but a moment, Porlyusica felt all of her anger and vitriol for the woman before her eyes vanish as she began to sing. Somehow, someway, the mere sound of this angelic voice brought a soothing embrace to her very being.

But while her anger had been momentarily soothed by the song, her outrage from the destruction of the forest threatened to reemerge… Only for her shock and awe to be magnified at the sight before her eyes. Little by little, piece by piece, the devastated landscape before her was slowly yet surely returning to its natural state.

Ashen trees had their bark and leaves restored; flowers, once completely uprooted or utterly destroyed, returned in full bloom; and the empty river bank that had once been filled with fish and flowing water was slowly refilled with water.

No, it wasn't just the forest itself. Much to her further shock and awe, animals of all sorts were being created right before her eyes. The deer, Vulcans, bears, and various other forms of wildlife… It was as if they had never vanished in the first place.

Poryluisca looked back to the woman as her song began to wind down, her eyes widening more and more as one single realization came to her.

This girl… She can't be human!

This was not a feat that any mere wizard, nay, even a wizard saint could accomplish. Yes, Warrod Sequen, founding member of Fairy Tail and former member of the Four Gods of Ishgar, may have been able to restore the vegetation to what it once was, but to recreate the animals? To create life itself? It went well past the realm of magic… and trespassed into the realm of the divine.

The song ceased, the woman opened up her eyes before she gave Porlyusica a cheerful smile. "There, all done."

"That's… That's not possible." Porlyusica stuttered. Everything had been like it once had. No, not as it had been; better. The fall leaves that had permeated the forest before her departure had been replaced with bright green leaves despite it having been the fall season, and several trees she had recognized that had been cut down for lumber had been brought back, taller than they had been in their prime. Birds flew amongst the trees chirping their cherry tones, rabbits hoped about, even her cabin, which she had thought lost, had been returned… it was inconceivable.

Slowly she turned around and faced this mysterious woman. "I… I… I don't know what to say."

The mysterious woman waved her right hand nonchalantly. "You don't need to say anything. It's the least I could do after what happened."

Porlyusica couldn't help but stare at her in utter confusion. "Even after everything I said…You still-" She then shook her head, the stubborn side of her quickly propping up once more. "How did you do this?"

"Oh that? I just used my own special power." The brunette answered with a slight tilt of her head to the right. "Sorry I couldn't fix it sooner. I'm still not truly used to this power of mine. It's a little…complicated."

"And the song?" Porlyuica inquired.

"Oh, that? That simply helps me concentrate on something as complex as this." The woman said before her lips curled upwards. "Anyways, it looks like everything is back in order. I should probably head back to the capital. Father wouldn't want me to dilly dally."

She turned around and began to take a step, no doubt preparing to use whatever she had earlier to return home. But before she could, she felt a hand clasp her shoulder. The brunette turned around to see it was from none other than Porlyusica. "Oh, is something the matter? I can assure you that everything should be satisfactory."

Porlyusica simply stared back at the woman before her glare lessened considerably. "I just wish to know your name. That's all."

"Oh, that's all?" The woman replied before she smiled. "Just call me Mette."

The pink haired woman glanced down before she finally mumbled something. "Thank you… Mette."

Mette slowly took Porlyusica's hand off of her shoulder before she smiled. "You don't need to thank me for anything. Simply think of this as setting things straight."

She took a few steps back then as she glanced around. "It is a beautiful forest. I'll be sure to come by and pay it a proper visit. But for now, I'm afraid I have other business to attend to. Take care!"

Then, before Porlyusica could say anything else, she vanished right before her eyes. The pink haired woman stared where she had been for a few seconds before she sighed.

"I'm getting too old for all of this."


As the sun was beginning to rise over the hills that surrounded Magnolia's north, a lone man made his way through the streets of Magnolia. To be frank, Lille Barro could scarcely believe what had transpired thus far. The day prior had been much more eventful than the leader of the Schutzstaffel had anticipated with E.N.D.'s surprisingly early appearance, the demon proving to have been every bit the threat Yhwach had believed him to be. After the beating he and Gerard had received and the diplomatic nature of their visit, the quincy had fully expected to spend the rest of his time in Magnolia simply serving his lord as best he could.

What he had not anticipated however, was the bizarre request His Majesty had given him only twenty minutes ago.


"Please forgive my impertinence, Your Majesty. I must have misheard you." Lille had inquired towards his king as he and the rest of the Schutzstaffel kneeled down before their king early in the morning. It was supposed to be nothing more than a routine morning audience with their king, where he would simply lay out the plans for the day. Yet what he had sworn he had just heard had left him baffled.

"I said," Yhwach began again, an eyebrow just barely raised. "I wish for you and Gerard to go about Magnolia and make some friends from the Fairy Tail guild. I would request the same of Jonathan and Ria, but they currently have other tasks pertaining to diplomacy to which they need attend."

"Yes, but to what end, Your Majesty?" Lille asked. "I understand the need to restore diplomatic relations with the Kingdom of Fiore, and to make contact for your eventual desire to forge an alliance with Fairy Tail, but surely that can be done without forming unnecessary attachments."

Jonathan couldn't help but chuckle at his colleague's confusion. "I would have thought it rather obvious, Lille. The more bonds forged between our forces, the easier we'll be able to function as an eventual cohesive unit when the time for our cooperation eventually arrives."

Gerard grinned. "I, for one, look forward to it! They seem like a lively bunch whose company I would be more than willing to enjoy! In fact, I believe I already know whom I shall visit first!"

Ria gave a small smile. "I think making a friend or two could do you some good, Lille. You really do need to learn to lighten up and relax a little."

Lille narrowed his eye at her. "Nonsense. As long as I can properly serve as His Majesty's sword and shield, I don't need such–"

"If you won't heed my words as a suggestion, then I shall make it an order," Yhwach said with a slight smirk. "Now, go forth, my elite guard! Your new comrades await."


"I suppose I may as well make the best out of the current situation," Lille muttered as he resisted the urge to sigh. Whom exactly was he supposed to interact with anyways? It wasn't even seven o'clock in the morning. No doubt most individuals were either on their way to their occupation or were only just beginning to wake from their slumber.

That wasn't even to mention the problem of holding a conversation with any he did find. What could he possibly talk about with any of these mere mages that he could hope to connect with? The weather? Some other inane form of idle chit chat? How banal could one get?

It wasn't that he was looking down on the members of Fairy Tail, per se. From the brief time he had spent in the guild hall, most of its members seemed… adequate. Decent enough people, to be sure. But he wasn't some mere human like the rest of them. No, he was a holy messenger of His Majesty, a true god. It was his Heilig Bogen that smote any and all sinners that would blaspheme the Father of the Quincy race. On what grounds could there possibly be for him to hope to relate with any of them?

But before he could ponder any further, a gunshot rang out, disrupting Lille Barro's line of thought. A gunshot? With a trace amount of spiritual pressure to boot. Interesting, I didn't think the people of this world used ballistic weaponry along with their magic. The takeover of Bosco had him kill plenty of mages that guarded the capital, but the lot of them either used some sort of magic that allowed them to fight with their own bodies, or the use of a magical sword or spear. A gun had never entered the equation. Another gunshot drew Lille out of his thoughts. This warranted further investigation.

Tracing the sound of gunfire and the trace amount of magic unleashed with each shot, Lille was quickly able to find the gunmen in question.

They were firing in the middle of a grassland near East Forest, the area restored by Princess Mette, no doubt. One was a young man with lightly tanned skin and long black hair which covered his right eye. He wore a long brown poncho, a dark brown shirt, and tan pants. The other was a young woman of fair complexion with long green hair and dark purple eyes. She wore a cowboy hat, a polka dotted scarf, reddish brown boots, and a black, strapless, one-piece dress. The pair each had their own type of gun. The man wielded a pair of revolvers while the woman carried a large sniper rifle.

Lille Barro glanced over towards where their guns had been pointed, one of his eyebrows slightly raised. There were many targets littered throughout the grasslands, each of them filled with holes aimed at the desired target. Be it targets shaped like humans, or an oversized dart board, all of them had a near perfect shot.

These two did this? Lille pondered. That's not half bad marksmanship. Most of his fellow sternritter had long forsaken the bow once they had received their schrift, many of them simply preferring to utilize their schrifts over the basics of quincy combat. While this certainly didn't apply to all sternritter, it certainly had to most, and as a result, their marksmanship, while certainly above average, was nowhere near what it could have been. To see two aspiring gunmen already at this level… He could not help but smile ever so slightly.

One target in particular caught his eye. There was a target about eight feet tall and four feet wide that seemed to have nary a scratch on it. The material wasn't like the rest, either. Whereas the other targets seemed to have been made out of wood or a tin alloy of sorts, this one in particular was of a metal he was not familiar with. It didn't look like iron, steel, or even titanium, as it shone with a distinct brightness.

"Damn it all," the woman sighed in apparent frustration. "Even with my new sniper rifle, it's still not punching through."

The man shook his head. "Well, I guess that's to be expected. It is made out of adamantine after all. That stuff isn't going to break easily. Last time Natsu tried breaking some, he had to have Wendy patch up his right hand."

His partner groaned. "Yeah, I know, but I was hoping with these new guns, we could have at least done some kind of damage. The next time our guild gets attacked, I want to be ready and really make a difference!"

"Perhaps I could provide some insight?"

The two promptly turned around as Lille Barro approached, their eyes going wide.

"You're… one of the Emperor of Bosco's attendants, right?" The man asked as he and the woman shared each other a quick worried glance. What on earth was he doing here?

"I am the head of His Majesty's Royal Guard, the Schutzstaffel, Lille Barro," the quincy informed them.

He's the leader of the royal guard!? The two panicked. Obviously the man before them had to have been of some importance, but the head of the Emperor's Royal Guard!? That wasn't just a position of significant importance politically. It also must have meant he had considerable power, given the strength they had witnessed from the emperor the day prior.

"I-it's an honor to make your acquaintance!" The woman shouted before she recomposed herself.. "I'm Bisca Mulan. My friend over here is Alzack Connell."

"Yeah! Is… there anything we can do for you?" Alzack asked with some minor concern.

"Not necessarily. I was simply intrigued by what I heard. It's not often that you see one using firearms being used in combat alongside magic."

Bisca smirked. "Yeah, it's not really a commonly used magic in Ishgar, but where I came from, it was the quickest option to learn. I didn't exactly come from the most cozy of neighborhoods, so I had to adapt as fast as I could."

"As for myself, I've just kinda always found myself interested in guns, and I had a knack for magic, so I felt it was a good combo," Alzack mentioned.

"I see. In that case, would either of you care to inform me what you're doing with that particular target over there? Something tells me that there's more to this than mere target practice."

Bisca nodded. "You got that right. Ya see, a while ago our guild was attacked by Phantom Lord, a rival guild. They wrecked our guild hall, and even worse, one of them really beat the tar out of our friends." The green haired mage felt herself trying to hold back some rage, as she personally had yet to fully forgive Gajeel for the incident.

"But when we attacked Phantom Lord back, it all went south," Alzack continued. "It seemed like we were winning at first, but then one of their S-class caught Master Makarov off guard and robbed him of all of his magic all at once. We had to head back after that."

"And that's when they fought back, in full force," Bisca added. "We did what we could, and for a while, we held our own pretty well. Hell, for a second or two, we thought that we had it in the bag, but once Jose got involved… We were taken out so quickly, we couldn't do anything." Bisca gripped her gun, eyes flashing with anger. "If it wasn't for Master returning, we would have all died! I felt so helpless, and I never want that to happen again, so… so I wanted to find a way to get stronger!" She then glanced down towards her firearm. "I was hoping that I could start making a difference with better weaponry, but it looks like it's not nearly enough."

Lille felt a pang of sympathy run through him as Bisca explained her situation. He understood how she felt all too well, surprisingly enough. After all, he too had failed in mission to properly protect His Majesty. He had been unable to kill Kyoraku Shunsui and Nanao Ise and that failure had prevented him from killing the traitorous Uryu Ishida and preventing the use of that accursed Still Silver Arrow. Perhaps it was because of this same empathy that he spoke his next words. "May I have a look at your weapon for a moment?"

The members of Fairy Tail raised their eyebrows, befuddled by his request, but Bisca handed over her sniper rifle regardless. "Um, sure. Here you go."

Looking down, Lille Barro carefully inspected the gun in his hands before he glanced back towards Bisca. "Tell me, how does this 'Guns Magic' of yours work?" Lille asked.

"Oh, that? Well that's easy. We just fire off a bullet from our gun of choice to damage our enemy created by our magic… Depending on the type of gun, we can fire off various different bullets with all kinds of special abilities," Bisca answered.

"Is that right?" Lille said before he handed back the rifle. "In that case, I'd like to see an example of it firsthand."

Bisca blinked. "Oh, um, sure. Do you have a preference for which target I use?"

"The one you've had difficulty with will suffice," he answered.

Bisca nodded her head before she took lined up her shit, her eyes narrowing at the target before she cried out "Stinger Shot!" and pulled the trigger, the attack hitting it's mark, only for the magical bullet to bounce off of the metal surface, revealing not so much as even a scratch had been made.

Bisca sighed at her disappointing display. "See what I mean? The gun's just not strong enough." She then gritted her teeth. Damn it, I'm going to have to save it more money for an even better gun!? This one already cost me a whopping 100,000 jewel!

"You needn't necessarily acquire a new weapon for the results you desire." Lille calmly spoke, disrupting Bisca's internal rant. "All you need to do is simply increase the power of the shot you're firing."

Bisca promptly turned her head, her confusion evident. "Excuse you? I know you're not exactly an expert in gun's magic, so you should probably know that's a really bad idea! If you put too much power into the shot then the barrel of the gun will burst and it'll be no longer usable! Not to mention I'll be losing about half of the shots I'd be able to take!"

"It's true that quantity has a quality of itself in certain situations." Lille Barro admitted. "However, if your attacks can't even hurt your opponent, then the number you can fire is completely irrelevant. I believe that up until now, you've used the minimum amount necessary for your shots to maximize the sheer number you'd be able to utilize. Tell me, is there any truth to that?"

Bisca nodded her head. "Yeah, it is. It's… kinda how the guns are designed."

"I see. That would explain why you hadn't considered this option until now, though I suspect you did have a lingering suspicion. To achieve the desired results what you need to do is concentrate your shot into the perfect bullet. Neither too weak to hurt your foe, nor too strong to damage your weapon. The margin for error is likely considerably narrow I'll admit, but it's not impossible. Should you find that balance, then I have no doubt you'll discover a significant improvement."

Bisca wasn't quite sure how to take what he was saying. It wasn't exactly an entirely new concept for her, but up until now, almost all of her attempts in the past had resulted in broken guns and misfires. That wasn't even taking into consideration the time it took to generate a stronger bullet from her weapons. To make one that would truly make a difference in power it would take her approximately ten to fifteen seconds. To the uneducated, a difference of ten to fifteen seconds didn't seem like all that much. However, on the battlefield, even less than a second could be the difference between life and death.

Furthermore, to ensure that the shot was perfectly molded into the barrel, that would probably add even more time into the equation. Before she had joined Fairy Tail, Bisca had found her current method had worked just fine. Back then, she had to deal with being outnumbered on a regular basis, and her quantity of ammo had proven to be her key to victory many times.

But how well has this really been helping me lately? Bisca thought. Back when I was on the run, I couldn't afford to let my guns break. Money was tight, and I didn't have anyone to back me up if I lost a weapon back then, it was just me and Sunny. She then looked over towards Alzack, as a small smile creased her face. But I'm not exactly alone anymore now, am I? Heh, I guess I've just stubbornly kept onto this old habit of mine out of instinct. At the rate the guild's growing, I'm going to be facing stronger and stronger enemies… I can't let this dumb mentality hold me back anymore.

Her resolve now returned in full, she got down to one knee and prepared to take her next shot, surprising Alzack. "Bisca, are you sure? You paid a lot of money for that. If it breaks now, then-"

"If it breaks now, then it'll be my own damn fault," Bisca interrupted. "I didn't buy this thing just so it would make me look cool! I bought it so I could make a difference!"

Bisca took a deep breath and closed her left eye, narrowing her right in focus on her target. It had been a while since she tried to fire a bullet of such quality, and she had little doubt that she would likely ruin her weapon in the process.

But there was that stubborn part of her that refused to allow something like that to stop her. Not just because she wanted to get stronger, not just to prove a damn point… But because of her pride as a Fairy Tail wizard! She focused both her mind and her magic for over half a minute, trying to mold her next shot into the perfectly crafted bullet until she finally snapped her other eye open and pulled the trigger.

"Stinger Shot!"

BANG!

The bullet fired from the muzzle of the gun twice as fast as it had prior, Alzack having completely lost sight of it the moment the trigger had been pulled. The bullet crashed against the adamantine target before it fell to the ground. Like the shot before, the bullet hadn't fully pierced, but in its place was a sizable dent, the metal having been pushed inward by the force of the magical attack quite a fair bit.

Alzack gasped before he looked back at his green-haired companion. "Alright, Bisca!"

Bisca smiled as she got up to her feet before she looked down at the barrel. There was a small crack lining its surface, but the damage was ultimately superficial. Nothing that couldn't be easily repaired, at least. Well, I might not have done quite as much damage as I hoped, but it's a hell of a lot better than what it was.

"Not bad for a first attempt," Lillie admitted as he observed. "This is one of the beginning basics that all quincies learn once they manifest their Heilig Bogen. Usually, it takes them a week to month to perfect. For you to grasp it as well as you have on the first shot is rather impressive."

Bisca looked back towards Lille. "Wait, so you're a quincy like Bambi and the others?"

Lillie had to resist the urge to scoff at the comparison to the lesser sternritter, but he managed to reign himself in. Doing so would likely destroy any good faith he had, admittedly unintentionally, built up through their brief encounter. Besides, it wasn't the worst of comparisons to be made. "Yes… Broadly speaking. However, I am of a much higher caliber of quincy than they are."

"Really? Well, I guess you're not a member of your emperor's royal guard for nothing." Alzack remarked.

"Yeah, I guess it does stand to reason. Even if Bambi, Lil and Candi are among some of the strongest non-S-class mages in the guild," Bisca admitted. "Still, thanks for the advice. Although, with how long it took me to fire that shot, I don't know if I'll be able to really use a shot like that in a one-on-one fight."

"The goal should be for you to fire with that level of concentration in as little time as possible," Lillie answered. "At this point, time and practice will be key to helping you master this new skill. The quicker you're able to fire a shot such as that, the better. And then, one day, perhaps if you practice long and hard enough–"

He swiped a hand across the chain around his waist, and in his hand appeared a large, black sniper rifle with a green fur coat covering its forestock. At the end of its elongated barrel was a large, black, cross-shaped extension. Hefting it in both hands, he took a shooting position. "You'll be capable of firing a fraction of something like this."

Lille pulled the trigger, a Heilig Pfeil blasting from his rifle and piercing straight through the adamantine target with no resistance before it continued onwards, shooting through tree after tree until it reached the far end of the forest and finally dissipated.

Bisca and Alzack could only stare in disbelief, their jaws dropped, eyes wide open, and their arms totally slack. They knew from his position that he must have been rather powerful, but this was well above and beyond any of their expectations!

"Now then…" Lille said as he looked back at them. "Seeing as how I've little else to do at the moment, let's resume practice, shall we?"

The two gun mages nodded their heads and promptly recomposed themselves. "Y-yes sir!"

Lille cracked a small smirk. Seems like his time in Magnolia would become a bit more fun in its own right. However, before he could begin his next 'lesson,' a large eruption of familiar power came from the distance, not too far from where they were. He sighed.

"Well, I see that Gerard found who he was looking for. I hope for her sake, she's every bit the warrior I've heard."


(Song of choice: Invoke Magic. Fairy Tail OST)

"Have at thee, Queen of the Fairies!"

"ERYAH!"

The winged blade of Titania and the quincy blade Hofnung clashed as the swordsmen clashed right in the middle of Fairy Tail's official training ground. Erza could not find it in herself to relax. After the, in her mind at least, disastrous display she had against the Quincy Kaiser, Erza couldn't help but feel an overwhelming desire to improve her strength once more. She had to get stronger, she had to improve. She knew full well that she wouldn't be reaching her desired level of strength anytime soon, but simply resting on her laurels wouldn't do her any good.

She was very surprised then, when, during her early morning training session, one of Yhwach's elite warriors, the Schuttstafel if she recalled Liltotto correctly, had approached her and requested a sparring match. While initially somewhat hesitant, Erza had decided to accept his challenge. One could only truly improve if they were pushed hard enough, and from what Liltotto had told her was correct, Gerard Valkyrie would be a fierce opponent indeed

The rules of the spar were as few as they were simple. A battle waged with their most basic of weapons. No special armors, no heilig bogen, no schrift. It was purely to be a test of skill with the blade, with Gerard claiming he would fight Erza 'on her level.' While she had initially been somewhat insulted by his choice of words, the muscular swordsman had quickly proven to be every bit as formidable with the blade as Liltotto had claimed.

Erza moved her head to the right just in time to avoid a thrust from Gerard's blade, the edge slightly cutting her cheek before she swung her sword at his chest. The Quincy blocked it with his shield and batted it away before he kicked Erza in the stomach, sending her rolling across the ground.

Erza tried to rise up to her feet, but just as her hands pushed her off the ground, Erza had taken notice of a looming shadow before she rolled her body to the right, Gerard's sword impaling itself into the ground where she had been moments ago.

No mercy. I suppose I should have expected as much from such an experienced warrior, Erza thought as she leapt from the ground, her sword raised high above her head. I'll just have to give him no quarter in return!

Her blade swung down, Gerard lifting up his shield above his head to block the strike, the ground beneath him forming into a small crater before he thrust his blade forward. Erza jumped back to avoid the attack before she came rushing in, her blade poised to strike once more. She aimed her blade at the left side of his neck, the quincy grinning as he parried the blade with his sword before bashing Erza's face with his shield.

Erza let out a cry before she dodged below another thrust of his blade before she kneed Gerard hard in the stomach, the large man losing his breath before Erza rolled out from under him and swung down with her sword. Gerard stopped the attack with Hofnung, but Erza was relentless as she continued to wale on him, the quincy going deeper and deeper into the ground with each strike.

"Ah, now this takes me back!"Gerard said as he blocked her next strike with his shield. He thrust it forward, disrupting Erza's relentless barrage before he returned the favor, thrusting and swinging his sword in alternating fashion. This reminds me of my glory days before I was found by His Majesty over 1000 years ago!

A dodge to the left, a sword parry to the right; Erza found herself constantly on the backfoot. With the exception of the one who taught her how to wield a sword, no one had ever pressed her this hard from sheer skill of the blade alone. No, it wasn't that he was more skilled than her. He was certainly far above the norm in terms of swordsmanship, but the deciding factor was the sheer ferocity and seemingly never-ending stamina he possessed that was truly pushing her. They had been sparring for well over an hour now, and while Erza was starting to slightly tire, Gerard seemed as fit as when they had first started.

Her eyes kept focused on her opponent, waiting for an opportunity to make itself known. The moment Gerard went for another thrust, she saw it, forcing the blade down with her own before she punched Gerard hard in the face. The quincy's head went back from the recoil before Erza punched him in the face over and over, taking whatever advantage she could while the opportunity presented itself.

Yet, her barrage ceased once Gerard made an unexpected move and slammed his head into hers, Erza taking a few steps back before Gerard swung his sword down. Recomposing herself just in time, Erza was able to bring up her blade to block the strike, though her knees buckled from the attempt.

"Ah ha! Good reflexes," Gerard complimented her. "But you'll have to do better if you want to– Gah!"

Erza had taken a page out of Gerard's handbook, slamming her own forehead into his before the quincy raised up his shield to block an oncoming strike just as Erza swung her blade at him. Wanting to prevent a potential stalemate, Gerard took off into a charge and proceeded to tackle Erza through several trees, his shield held in front of his body to properly protect himself .

Erza could feel her feet continuing to skid against the forest ground, the Queen of the Fairies lacking the power needed to properly free herself. No matter how many times she pushed back with her sword, she could not move the shield currently pushing against her. However, power wasn't the only way one could free themselves from this current predicament. Thinking on her feet, Erza pushed back on the shield with one hand and sliced at the ground between her and Gerard, the large quincy tripping over the small hole Erza made, allowing her to escape.

Gerard got up to his hands and knees, the quincy taking note of Erza's follow up attempt to strike him down before he swung Hofnung to properly counter. A powerful shockwave emanated from the pair, slicing down dozens of trees before the two swordsmen proceeded to clash blades once more, the ground beneath them shattering and sinking downwards with each blow.

It seemed that the exchange would proceed without end, as the two continued to properly counter each other dozens of times over. However, Erza had decided to properly put an end to the battle, and concentrated her magic into her next blow, her sword clashing against Hofnung's blade and forcing Gerard to his knees and chipping the blade in the process.

Gerard panted for a moment before he grinned. "An admirable display of strength, Titania, but it was a mistake to damage my blade!"

Before Erza could ponder the meaning of his words, she jerked backwards on instinct. Upon looking down, her eyes went wide. Stretching across the width of her breastplate was a clean cut through the metal armor, no doubt shearing right through the cloth underneath as well if the intense stinging sensation over her chest was anything to go by. Erza winced and pressed a hand to the now-compromised armor. I've been cut?! How? He didn't– Erza looked up upon hearing hearty laughter across from her.

Even as he got up to his feet, Gerard continued to chuckle. "Alright, I think that's enough. I did not mean for our battle to go so far. My apologies, Titania, but my blade, Hoffnung, has a special ability that wounds my foe once it's received any sort of damage. You were both skilled and unfortunate enough to have incurred its wrath."

"I see," Erza remarked as she removed her hand from over her ruined breastplate. Pushing through the pain was no trouble, and fortunately, the cut did not feel too deep. At the very worst, she could get Wendy to get it properly treated. "That's quite the mean-spirited ability you have," she told him.

Gerard smiled brightly. "Well, it can only be used on foes strong enough to even damage my blade in the first place. Even though I lowered my strength considerably, the fact you were able to damage it at all is quite impressive."

He then reached into one of his pants' pockets and tossed a small capsule towards Erza, which she caught effortlessly. "Here, it's a ginto, full of condensed spiritual power provided by yours truly! You should be able to patch up your wound with that. It might not be able to do anything about the immediate pain, but it's the least I can do."

"I appreciate it regardless," Erza said with a nod. She sat down on a nearby felled log and turned away for some slight privacy, sending away her ruined top in a flash of light in order to have easier access to the injured area. Now that she could see it, Erza frowned. Had the cut been much deeper, she might have been in danger of asphyxiating on her own blood. A mean-spirited ability, indeed.

With that grim thought in mind, she slowly drained the contents of the capsule over her injury. Sure enough, the cut on her body healed itself within seconds, leaving not even a scar, though the pain still lingered. Oh, well. Pain was an old friend to her by now.

Gerard smiled. "That oughta do the trick. Although, I must admit, I personally have no need for them myself. I just keep them handy in case anyone amongst the Schutzstaffel needs a miracle."

Having properly finished with patching herself up, Erza requipped into another one of her favorite blouses and glanced over towards the large quincy. "If you don't mind me asking… Why was it that you sought me out as a sparring partner in the first place? Surely one of your fellow bodyguards would have given you more of a proper challenge."

Gerard shook his head as he sat down next to her. "Were it so simple. Jonathan and Ria are too occupied with their own personal obligations towards His Majesty to heed my request and are too inexperienced with their schrifts, while Lille Barro specializes in ranged combat. But after I saw what you could do yesterday, I simply felt inclined to test your mantle as a warrior myself. After all, I wished to see if the rumor's I heard of you were true."

Erza raised an eye. "Rumors? You mean to tell me that word about me has managed to reach Bosco?" Given how secluded the country had been after its attempt to conquer Fiore backfired and its former Emperor had erected the nigh impenetrable barrier to prevent retaliation, Erza hadn't expected any word of her successes to have reached deep into the kingdom.

"But of course! I know not how the word managed to travel myself, but I had heard many tales of your exploits!" Gerad answered. "They claimed that you were a swordswoman of immense skill and with magical power that would allow you to slay entire armies and beauty without equal! I'm pleased to see that there was truth to them after all!"

He smirked as he continued. "It has been far too long since I've found a worthy warrior to cross blades with! When we raided the capital of Bosco, I was unable to find a single swordsman capable of giving me even a modicum of difficulty! But you? Why, this has easily been one of the most enjoyable battles I've had since I have arrived in Earthland!"

"Well, I suppose I should be proud to receive that sort of praise. Though, I don't believe it's entirely warranted." Erza responded. "You said it yourself, that you had to lower your power considerably to match up to my own." She clenched her fists then as she narrowed her eyes. "It's become quite clear that I'm nowhere near as strong as I need to be if I wish to continue to protect the guild. I'll have to grow much stronger than this."

"Ah, the desire to protect one's friends and allies. A noble goal as one can have," Gerard admitted as he looked at his blade, his mind recalling back to his youth.. "I was much the same, a long time ago."


"Remember this well, my fellow warriors of light!" Gerard proclaimed as he stood amongst his men, each of them adorned with a red cape, large round shields and golden helmets as a massive horde of hollow's came rampaging towards them. "Shield your brother as if he were your own body! Strike as one, as if you were all a single mighty god of war! Hold your ground, so that these beasts may not penetrate into our homes and devour our families! Let not a single one through! FIGHT TILL YOUR LAST BREATH!"


"What changed?" Erza asked.

The blonde warrior simply narrowed his eyes, the cries of men, women and children ringing through his mind before he finally answered. "I lost them. I lost everything… That is, until he found me."

"You mean your emperor," Erza said.

"Indeed," Gerard replied. "To go in depth on it would take time, time better spent on more important things, but the long and short of it is that after I lost my home, my friends, and my family, he found me. He gave me a purpose, a reason to live, and it is for that reason that I shall continue to serve him as long as I live!"

Erza, however, was left confused. "I don't understand how you could swear loyalty to one who would so callously use and abandon his own men. Is that not the antithesis for what you used to be?"

Gerard sighed. "I see. So, that's what they told you about His Majesty was it? Well, I suppose from their point of view, they are correct. His Majesty had viewed everyone in his army, even myself and the rest of the Schutzstaffel as expendable. However…I found his goal noble enough to fight for regardless of that."

"How could you say such a thing!?" Erza demanded as she rose up to her feet. "Does your own life mean nothing to you!? Nothing at all!? What about your friends and comrades!? What goal could have possibly justified such pointless sacrifice!?"

"The goal to end such sacrifice in the first place."

Erza's anger ceased, confusion taking over for a moment, allowing Gerard the chance to continue. "Tell me, how much have my former comrades told you about our afterlife?"

"...Enough to know it was less than desirable," Erza admitted quietly.

"Then surely you already know that the Soul Society is nothing more than a public squalor, a hovel for most of its residents. Hollow's rampage the world of the living, feasting on helpless souls unable to defend themselves. The shinigami are far too few in number to truly protect them, and inevitably, innocent souls are devoured and become a part of the wretched hollow, who themselves will live in the lifeless, chaotic land that is Los Noches."

Erza narrowed her eyes. "I don't doubt that you felt the need to enact change, nor do I necessarily disagree with the notion of waging war to achieve it, but that doesn't excuse how he–"

"I was not finished, Titania," Gerard interrupted her. "There is one fact, one single problem that not even most of the other Sternritter are aware of. One that only His Majesty, the Grandmaster, and the rest of the Schutzstaffel knew. One that could no longer be allowed to stand. One that needed to be dealt with, no matter how great the cost."

"What on earth could possibly justify any of such a pointless loss of life?" Erza demanded. "Of your own comrades!?"

"Hell. Do you know of it?"

"Hell?" Erza asked, her mind racing through the conversations she had with Liltotto and what Makarov had informed her of what Bambietta told him of her old world. Hell hadn't once been brought up. Still, the term was far from unfamiliar to Earthland. "I'm vaguely aware of the concept, yes, at least in regards to how it is described in here."

Gerard nodded. "By and large, it is about the same. It is a horrid place where sinners are sent to spend the rest of their days, tormented by the denizens for the crimes they had committed when they were alive. Yes, if that's all that Hell was, I wouldn't be as dedicated to my lord as I am, but there is one difference between your world's Hell and my own that changes everything. In my world… Possessing too much power is a sin."

Erza's jaw dropped. She wasn't quite sure what she had expected, but that was certainly not among the many possibilities she had imagined in her head. "What?"

"It is as I said. In my world, once an individual reaches a certain level of power, their soul is no longer capable of breaking down into reishi to be absorbed into the Soul Society and reincarnate. Thus, to ensure that the world won't be negatively affected, these individuals are instead not reincarnated, but cast to Hell itself."

Erza could hardly believe what she was hearing. She had known that the world that Bambietta and the others had come from was far from ideal, but to learn that simply having power would send one's soul to eternal damnation…

"I've had many friends, comrades in arms, who had such power, die on the field of battle and then inevitably die in the Rukongai thanks to the vile Shinigami. Their souls are already trapped in hell. For over a thousand years, they have suffered needlessly simply for obtaining enough strength to protect their family and friends." He then looked over at Erza, his eyes narrowing. "Does that seem just to you?"

Erza shook her head. "Not at all. To gain power to protect, as far as I am concerned, is one of the most noble goals one could have. No one should suffer for that, most certainly not for an eternity."

Gerad nodded. "Indeed. It is for that reason that I serve my lord despite how he ran the Wandenreich. For he, and he alone, is the only one to possess the power, intellect, and will, necessary to do what needs to be done."

Erza narrowed her eyes. "Even so, does that justify sacrificing so many of your own comrades' lives?"

"If it was to create a world without death, a world where Hell would no longer need to imprison the mighty, a world where my friends could no longer needlessly suffer, then yes." Gerard answered with no hesitation before he gave Erza a question of his own. "Tell me, Titania, would you not feel the same if everyone in your guild was to suffer the same fate as my friends?"

Erza paused for a moment. That was certainly a…heavy question to answer, one that not even she could answer without a bit of thought put into it. After a moment of silence, she finally spoke up. "Then I would go into the depths of hell myself to save them all. But only I and I alone would need to suffer. I wouldn't allow the rest of my comrades to die alongside me in my attempt. The ones who are dead would already be gone, there would be no need for my other friends to suffer needlessly."

Gerard nodded. "Hm. A brave and noble choice to be sure. Your dedication to your comrades truly is one to be admired…but unfortunately as well intentioned as your plan would be, it ultimately does more harm than good."

"I beg your pardon?" Erza asked, her eyes narrowing. "How is it wrong to only sacrifice one's self for the sake of their friends?" Admittedly, she had since learned that such thinking had been faulty. That one should strive to live for ones friends, rather than to die for them. However, she was more than aware sometimes such sacrifices were a necessity. It need not be her default decision as it once had been when facing such overwhelming odds, but if her friends were to be trapped in such a cycle…

"Tis not the meaning of what I said, Titania," Gerard answered. "Your desire to not drag in your friends is noble, I don't think anyone could disagree with that…but it's also foolish. Should you attempt to go and save your friends, alone, what should happen if you fail? You would simply end up tortured among them. And while your friends that still live may be able to enjoy their lives in the future, should they become strong enough, then they would have inevitably ended up there regardless. Suppose then that they found out the truth and went to save you and your remaining comrades, then they too would head to hell itself, but this time it would be without your own power and skill to aid them."

Erza's eyes widened, her breath leaving her body. "Th-that's…"

Before Erza could offer a proper rebuttal, Gerard planted Hoffnung's blade into the ground before he continued. "It is a wonderful thing to be willing to sacrifice one's life for their comrades. But a single warrior, no matter how mighty, can only hope to do so much. You may have viewed the use of my comrades as callous, but I see it as allowing them the chance to fight for their own freedom. If damnation is inevitable for them, then we should fight as one, so that our chances of victory are as high as they can possibly be. Make no mistake Titania, it was not cruelty that had me overlook the loss of life of my comrades. It was simply the best chance that we had to put an end to this madness once and for all."

Erza stared at the ground as her mind raced. She wanted to rebuke him, to come up with some sort of rebuttal to his claim, but much to her horror, she simply couldn't find the words. Everything he just said…it was true. Had she not learned the lesson of solely relying on herself back in the tower of heaven? That desire to fight alone to protect the rest of her friends had gotten Liltotto killed. Had it not been for the R system…she shuddered to think about it.

"I still can't say I approve of any of it." Erza answered as she looked back at the quincy. "However, I can at least understand why you felt it was necessary in the first place. If you truly believed that this was the only way to save your comrades, and to prevent further suffering… Then I suppose in the end you only did what you felt was right."

Gerard nodded. "Indeed. It was not my objection to change your mind entirely, but simply to help you understand why things were the way they were."

"Even so…why do you work for him even now?" Erza asked. "I admit to knowing very little of the afterlife, but I highly doubt that ours would function in the same way, given how different our worlds seem to function…Or are you suggesting that-"

Gerard laughed, interrupting Erza. "AHAHAHA! Oh, no. No, no, no. From what His Majesty has learned, your afterlife is the way that it should be. No, our goal is no longer based on that. What that objective is, I'm afraid that I'm unable to tell you. But I shall at least inform you this much. His Majesty is no longer the man he once was. He's changed."

Erza raised an eyebrow. "Changed? In what regard?"

Gerard leaned back as he looked into the sky. "His compassion has grown more considerably, at least towards those under his command. I suspect his late wife and our princesses had something to do with that, but he no longer views any of us as disposable. Rather, he seems to highly value those under his command. The same goes for the citizens of Bosco. It's why he's even here in Fiore in the first place. I know that this may be a difficult pill to swallow after everything my former comrades have told you, but it's the truth."

"...I see." Erza answered as she looked up to the sky as well. Admittedly, there was no real way to know if her sparring partner was speaking truthfully, but from what she had seen of him thus far, lying didn't seem to be a part of his character. Was she going to simply trust the king because of this? Of course not. She still planned on keeping a close eye on him despite all of this. But perhaps now…she could finally relax, even if just a little bit. "That's certainly good to know."

"Excellent!" Gerard spoke as he got to his feet and offered Erza his right hand. "Now then with that all settled, I wish to offer you my hand in a token of our new friendship!"

Erza looked at him, puzzled. She hadn't expected that. Far as she was aware, this had just been a bit of sparring that had gotten a bit more personal than planned. A way to improve herself and properly gauge her potential future foe. Yet, despite all that, despite it all…The man before her had been very kind throughout their time together. He seemed like an honest soul, one that loved to battle. In that regard, he would have fit perfectly in Fairy Tail.

Perhaps it was because of that reason, even if she couldn't fully trust him just yet…She grasped his hand regardless and smiled. "I'll gladly accept your offer, Gerard Valkyrie."

Gerard beamed as his smile extended to both corners of his mouth. "Excellent! Then, to properly commemorate our new friendship, allow me to give you a proper gift!" The muscular warrior reached into his black pants then before he grabbed a small object and tossed it towards Erza, the S-class mage catching it with ease.

Erza looked down and glanced at the object in her hand. It was a small silver pentacle, much like the ones she had seen Bambietta and Liltotto use in the past. "This is… a quincy weapon? I thought only quincy could use these."

Gerard chuckled. "I can see why you would think that. The truth is much simpler than that. You see, us Quincy use the surrounding magic of your world to create weapons and to fire off our attacks. We simply use our own power to strengthen them. The cross simply acts as a conduit for us to create our weapons. Why, we used to have our arrancar vanguard use Quincy crosses to create their own weapons with their own power. I see no reason why it should be any different for a wizard such as yourself."

Erza raised an eyebrow. "While I certainly appreciate the thought, I already happen to possess hundreds of weapons. I'm not sure if this will be one I'll ever have the chance to wield."

"Oh, but I think you should," Gerard insisted. "You wish to become more powerful, do you not? To protect your comrades?"

Erza nodded her head. "More than anything else in the world."

"Then that cross will be your first leap forward. The weapons you possess now are made of steel and iron. While I am fully aware that you can empower them with your own magic, you may find better results with a weapon made purely out of your own magic!"

Erza glanced down at the cross, narrowing her eyes. The weapons that Bambietta, Liltotto and Candice used did seem to be more powerful than the norm. If she really wanted to take a step forward… Well, what harm could it really do?

"So, I just need to focus my own power into the cross?" Erza asked. Once Gerard nodded, she closed her eyes and began to focus her power into the cross. Wind began to slowly billow around her as the fallen leaves began to slowly swirl around her and she took a deep breath. For a moment there was nothing but silence, but once Erza opened up her eyes, she threw up her right hand into the air, the Quincy cross emitting a bright light before it slowly faded, Erza lowering her arm to look at her weapon.

In her right hand was a silver claymore with a winged cross guard and a star-shaped pommel and rain guard. Bizarrely, despite its large size, it felt lighter than almost any blade Erza had ever held.

"Ah! A fine blade if I do say so myself!" Gerard bellowed as he walked over to inspect it. "Despite its large size it seems to not be excessively pouring out your magic!"

Erza continued to examine her blade before she promptly turned around and swung her blade, the weapon emitting a blue blast of light that disintegrated several nearby trees, leaving only ash in its wake. I see. So it's capable of ranged attacks as well. She smiled as she looked at the sword before glancing back towards her new friend. "It's strong, just as you claimed. I'll be sure to make good use of this weapon. You have my thanks."

The blonde Quincy chuckled. "No need to thank me! I merely wish to see how far you can grow! I sense much potential in you Miss Scarlet!". He then placed a hand on Erza's shoulder before he pointed towards Magnolia. "Now then, I believe that both of us could use a fine meal to help rejuvenate our strength! I've heard that Magnolia has some of the finest bakeries in the land! I wish to sample their cake first hand!"

Erza couldn't help but smile slightly. "I think you and I are going to get along just fine."


After the tumultuous arrival of the Quincy all father the day prior and the ensuing battle that followed, the Fairy Tail members who originated from another world had decided to have a little get together with one Natsu Dragneel. While the rest of the guild seemed to have attributed Natsu's massive increase in power to have simply been a result of his flames of emotion, the Quincy, reigai and arrancar weren't so easily convinced.

The increase in power was simply far too vast for that alone to have been the sole contributor. Not to mention how foul and terrifying the power emitted from the dragon slayer had felt, so much so that it didn't feel like magic at all. No, an investigation was absolutely necessary.

It was for that reason that the six of them had gathered around the miraculously restored Fairy Tail training ground to meet with the dragon slayer. While there was no guarantee that the Quincy Kaiser hadn't brought along a newly created Sternritter with some sort of stealth capabilities to potentially listen in on their conversation, it was a small risk they were willing to take. At the very least, they would be very careful with their word choice to not give off the impression of potential treason towards Yhwach.

It was just unfortunate that the conversation wasn't going anywhere.

"What do you mean you don't remember a damn thing!?" Bambietta shouted at Natsu, the former Sternritter feeling more than a little irate at his reply.

"I mean after he blasted me away into the forest, I don't remember anything." Natsu repeated him. "Did something happen?"

"Um, yeah! Your power just exploded before you and his Majesty started having the showdown of the apocalypse!" Bambietta shouted back at him. "How do you not remember any of that!?"

Natsu blinked in surprise at the latest information. "Wait, I did?" The last he had recalled was the Emperor of Bosco knocking him around for a bit till everything went dark. For him to have actually turned the tide was certainly unexpected, even for him.

Rukia nodded. "Indeed. To be entirely honest for a while there you were easily the strongest member of the entire guild."

That seemed to catch Natsu's attention. "Really!? You mean I was even stronger than Erza, Laxus and Gramps!?"

"Um...Yes, you were." Momo admitted, taken slightly aback by his excited attitude.

Natsu threw up his right hand into the air, his body cladding itself in fire. "Alright! It's about time all that training finally paid off!" His right fist then slammed into the palm of his left hand, a smirk creasing over his face. "Look out Erza, because I'm about to challenge you for a rematch!"

"Candice let out an annoyed sighed. "You're not that strong anymore, you dumbass. It was only when you fought his Majesty!"

Natsu almost immediately felt his enthusiasm deflate, his shoulders slumping. "Seriously? Oh come on, that's not fair!"

Bambietta let out an irritated groan. "Natsu, could you please focus on the task at hand, for five fucking minutes!?" Normally she wouldn't be so upset at her friend, but the entire scenario had left her a bit on edge and more than a little irritable.

"Bambi, please." Liltotto insisted, calming her friend down before she looked Natsu in the eyes. "Natsu, do you have any idea what could have happened for you to have gotten that strong? Any at all?"

Natsu closed his eyes then as he seemed deep in thought, the pink haired mage letting out a low him as he did so. "Hmmmmm." After a few seconds of deliberating he opened his eyes and gave them a cheeky grin. "Nope, don't got a clue!"

Bambietta, Rukia and Candice let out a collective groan, whereas Liltotto and Momo only gave a short disappointed sigh, and Ulquiorra remained as deadpan as ever. Liltotto, no doubt having realized the futility of the situation, decided to speak to Natsu one last time. "Ok, I think we've heard enough. You can go hang out with Happy and do... whatever you guys have planned."

Natsu frowned for a second. Clearly his friends were disappointed with the lack of a real answer he could give them. While he still didn't know exactly what was going on, he wasn't exactly fond of ending things on such a dour note. "Hey, if I figure out whatever it was that helped me get that strong, I'll let you guys know first thing. I promise."

Liltotto smiled, the Quincy pleased that the dragon slayer wasn't going to completely dismiss theirr question after their little get together. "Thanks Natsu. It means a lot."

He gave them all a cheeky grin. "Hey no problem! You guys would do the same for me!" He then promptly turned around as he began to make his way back towards the guild. "Anyways, I better get going before all of the good jobs are taken! I'll see ya later!"

And with that, the dragon slayer took off running, no doubt intent on taking in the most exciting job he could along with his feline friend. The gathered Quincy, reigai and arrancar however, all remained in the open clearing.

"Well that was a fucking waste of time." Candice spoke first, the Quincy more than a bit irritated at the whole scenario.

"Tell me about it." Bambietta agreed. "I still can't believe he didn't remember any of that! I mean how does that even work?!"

"Look, there's no use crying over spilled milk." Liltotto told the two of them. "For now, we've just hit a dead end, and there's not much we can do about it. "

"Liltotto's right." Momo agreed. "We can pick this up later once we have more to go off on. For now it's best we prepare for the festival and act like everything's normal. We've got a lot of work to do after all."

"I suppose that's the best course of action." Rukia added in before she watched Natsu's retreating form. "Trying to force any more answers out of them is more than likely just going to make him upset anyways."

"I must also agree." Ulquiorra finally spoke up. "However, I believe we should try to keep a closer eye on Natsu Dragneel from this point onwards." He then glanced over towards Liltotto. "I presume we can leave that task up to you?"

Liltotto nodded. "Sure. Not like I hate his company or anything. I'll let you guys know if I notice anything out of the ordinary."

"More like you liiiiike him!" Bambietta and Candice cooed together, teasing Liltotto in unison as they took a cue from a certain flying cat.

The blonde's eyes twitched as she frowned, while a slight blush formed over her face as she brought her visor down to obscure her face. "Yeah, well… Fuck off."

She vanished from sight, the quincy no doubt heading towards her crush. Bambietta couldn't help but smile at her fellow quincy, though it subsided into a frown.

Whatever that strange power of Natsu's was… She highly doubted it would be the last they'd see of it.


The last five days leading up towards the harvest festival had come and gone before the members of Fairy Tail had known it. While the Quincy within the guild were still understandably nervous with Yhwach spending the week in Magnolia, the three of them had calmed down considerably after Bambietta had informed them of the "private chat" she had with the Quincy king.

While Candice had the attitude of "Fuck it, I'm just going to enjoy what time I have anyways", Liltotto had used logic to quell her fears. If Yhwach truly wanted to either subjugate or annihilate their guild, there was no reason, at least that she was aware of, that he wouldn't have just done it at the start. It's how he conquered Hueco Mundo after all, and how he created the Lichtreich before that. Ultimately, while she was far from content with his current visit, she knew that spending the rest of her life in fear was hardly productive. Instead, she would follow Erza's example, and keep an eye on the Quincy Monarch.

Having finished their own individual parts to the parade that would finish off the Harvest Festival the day prior, the three quincies along with the two reigai had promptly gotten changed and eagerly awaited their turn around the corner of the guild halls podium. As they began to prepare however, the Quincy king and his entourage entered the guild.

"Your Majesty, with all due respect, I fail to see what purpose we could possibly have for attending a beauty pageant," Ria asked Yhwach. His Majesty was far above the desires of the flesh, after all. She could tell from the confused looks on Lille's and Gerard's faces that they shared her confusion. Only Jonathan remained as composed as he normally did, a confident smirk adorning his face.

Yhwach simply smiled as he took his seat, ushering the others to follow his example. "You'll understand in time, my schutzstaffel. For now, please… Enjoy the festivities."


Before the Fairy Tail guild's main stage, a throng of people, both civilians and guild members alike, had gathered. One might consider the scene relatively tame for what usually went on within that guild's walls, but only because the mages were on their best behaviors… sort of. It wouldn't do to get the citizens of Magnolia or visiting tourists caught up in any sort of guild brawl at that moment, especially with a certain royal entourage present. Besides, no one would dare mess up their chance to see Magnolia's finest mages perform in the main event of that day: the Miss Fairy Tail Contest.

Just behind the steps leading up to the guild's second floor, the capped head of one of those very contestants poked up. Its owner's eyes slid from side to side, gauging the fullness of the room, before she slid back down and out of sight, slinking back down to where the rest of the contestants were waiting in the impromptu waiting room established downstairs.

Bambietta slowly made her way downstairs, a little overwhelmed. Sure, their Miss Wandenreich contests had amassed larger crowds—it's kind of hard to beat the largest remaining population of echt quincies—but that was then! This was now! She had a girlfriend! This kind of stuff was kind of embarrassing now…

Eager to distract herself, she looked around the waiting room. She had been the first one out of the occupants from another world to finish dressing up. Cana had already gone on stage with a bikini, with Bisca following soon after in her own bikini. Then there was Juvia, nervously fidgeting… in a bikini.

Really? How the hell was I the one who put the most thought into this? Bambietta wondered before she glanced over towards Erza. Then again… maybe not.

Erza, ever unpredictable, had opted for an eye-catching gothic lolita outfit, complete with a white bfrilly, deep purple skirt and its deep blue stockings with theShe seemed to be picking at her blouse for some reason, though. Erza certainly seemed to be mildly agitated by something, that was for certain.

While Bambietta did her best to ignore... whatever was going on over there, she found the perfect distraction in the form of her girlfriend. She called out a greeting. The blonde perked up and waved back with a smile, almost returning the greeting before the words died on her lips and her face adopted the awkward look of someone trying not to say something. Bambietta felt like she knew what was on Lucy's mind, but she also felt like it might be more fun to ride the situation out, so she ignored the strange reaction for now.

Bambietta offered up a low whistle before smiling. "I gotta say Lucy, you look absolutely stunning in that cheerleader outfit!" The blonde was currently dressed in a blue cheerleader outfit with white trim, a yellow version of the Fairy Tail guild emblem atop her right breast, her midriff fully exposed. "You're going to kill it out there, I just know it."

Lucy couldn't help but blush. "Thanks Bambi, that means a lot. Truth be told… I'm kinda nervous about the whole thing. I mean, we're going up against Mira and Erza! Not to mention Cana, Candice, everyone else…" She looked away then, her usual confidence somewhat subdued.

Bambietta chuckled at her girlfriend's nervousness. "I never thought I'd see you of all people start getting cold feet about your looks. Trust me, Lucy, when I say you're going to do way better than you think."

Lucy smiled. "Well, if you think so, then I guess I just have to try my best." That odd look returned to her face, and Bambietta felt now was the right time to address it. She had to fight to keep a smirk off her face, though.

"Something the matter, Lucy?"

"Nothing, it's just... Really, Bambi?" Lucy questioned, gesturing to Bambietta's cloaked form.

Bambietta briefly looked down at herself before looking back up. "What d'ya mean?"

Her girlfriend smacked her palm against her own face and sighed. "I figured you, of all people, would have loved the opportunity to wear something silly, or to show off in some way, but instead, you look like you're trying to practically hide inside that cloak of yours." She then pointed a finger above Bambietta's head accusatorily. "You're even still wearing your hat!"

"Well, yeah. Duh."

Lucy sighed again. "Look, I get it, quincies care a lot about their fashion, but you have a lot to work with! You shouldn't just..."

Now, don't get Bambietta wrong; in terms of dreamy blond(e)s who have the capacity to talk her ear off, the one before her definitely takes the cake, pun somewhat intended. Certainly didn't hurt that this mini-rant/lecture Lucy had just descended into was practically about telling Bambietta how pretty she was. However, while Bambietta could listen to and stare at the woman before her for what would likely be an unhealthy amount of time, she also really wanted to see her reaction to the quincy's actual outfit.

Without saying a word, Bambietta simply raised an eyebrow and lifted her arms, parting her cloak and allowing her girlfriend to see the clothing (or lack thereof) underneath. For the typically covered-up quincy, it was a remarkably revealing yet sporty outfit. She wore a red and white sports bra that clung to her, despite surrounding comparisons, respectable bust, and her heart-shaped pin still rested over her left breast, as always. Complementing that were color matching, almost skintight short shorts that truly left little to the imagination, and honestly, Bambietta was even at that moment resisting the urge to adjust them. Completing the outfit were matching white gloves and shoes with red trim, the gloves in particular reaching up to her elbows in order to cover up her Leidenhant.

This time, Bambietta did let herself outwardly smirk as Lucy's voice trailed off, her eyes practically doing laps up and down Bambietta's body as she tried to take it all in. Within seconds, Bambietta would have been hard-pressed to tell someone the difference between her girlfriend's face and a ripe tomato.

"Oh," Lucy said in a small voice.

Truly, a single syllable had never been so satisfying.

Her smirk merely grew with her girlfriend's lingering gaze. "Pretty good, huh? I figured I'd go as revealing as I could while still keeping some dignity, and judging by the steam coming out of your ears, I'd say I chose wisely. Even so, I'm kinda glad Wendy chose now to go to the post office. Show's about to start any minute now, and I'd rather she not be around when Candi has her turn."

"Oh, screw you! I'm actually keeping things PG for once!"

Bambietta quickly turned her head as Candice strolled towards them. Much like them, she too had opted for a change of clothing, wearing a short leather jacket, a white tank top, a leather skirt, and black biker boots.

Bambietta smirked. "Well damn, Candice. I didn't know that the Grease convention was in town. What, are you going to start singing 'Greased Lightning' while you do a dance that should have died in the 70s?"

Candice scoffed. "Oh right, like I'm going to take that from the woman who's probably going to sing some song from the 80s!"

The two glared at one another as lightning seemed to erupt from their eyes, clashing in mid air as they stomped towards each other, no doubt preparing for another "friendly" shouting match, the pair less than an arms length away from one another.

"Miss Fairy Tail hasn't even started yet and the two of you are already making complete asses of yourselves. Why am I even surprised?"

The two were suddenly pulled apart by two arms, the two Quincy glancing down towards the one responsible. It was Liltotto, the Quincy wearing a white leotard with yellow lines going down it's side

Bambietta raised an eyebrow. "Wait, Lil?! You're actually participating!? But I thought you said that beauty pageants were a complete waste of time?"

"Yeah, and that they were just an excuse for beautiful women to validate their beauty to compensate for their insecurities," Candice added, casting a suspicious glance Liltotto's way.

"And I still do, for most anyway." Liltotto answered. "But Miss Fairy Tail isn't just about your own beauty, you know. It's also about your magic and how to use it. I got plenty of spells from that Quincy spell book that Robert gave us that I can put to really good use. That and…" The small woman blushed as Natsu's visage shot through her mind. "He'll be there watching."

Candice chuckled. "Pft, yeah good luck with that Lil. I doubt he has any interest in an ironing board like -GAH!" Candice screamed out in pain before she could finish her insult, Liltotto slamming her foot down on Candice's own. "What the fuck Lil!?"

"Candi, you know that's a sore spot for her. Frankly, you had it coming." Bambietta answered while Liltotto huffed with anger.

"You're lucky I didn't decide to take a bite out of your hair." Liltotto muttered.

"What!?" Candice exclaimed as she glared at Liltotto. "You want to go Lil!? Huh!? Well, do you!?"

"Please, stop fighting! This is supposed to be for fun! There's no need to let things get so out of control!"

"Momo's absolutely right. You're making a disgrace out of this entire pageant. Show some restraint!"

The Quincy's turned their heads as Momo and Rukia made their way towards them. The Reigai of squad five's Lieutenant was wearing a turquoise string Bikini, her hair still done up with her traditional light green hair bun while Rukia was clad in a white Bunny girl outfit with chocolate brown pantyhose.

"Woah, never thought I'd see either of you wearing something like that." Bambietta admitted while Candice let out a whistle of approval.

Momo blushed. "I know it's a bit more revealing than what I'm used to, but I figure for something like this, it's about time I considered following some of Rangiku's advice. I want to do the best I can after all."

Rukia, however, blinked in confusion at their words. "And why wouldn't I wear something like this? I'll have you know this is my way of showing off proper appreciation to Chappy the rabbit! I couldn't think of anything more splendent to showcase that love!"

Bambietta, Liltotto, Candice, Lucy and Momo couldn't help but stare at Rukia in utter bafflement, their heads tilted to the side.

That's why she's wearing it!? Oh my god she doesn't have a fucking clue what that's actually for, does she!? Bambietta shouted in the confines of her mind..

I don't know whether I should be laughing, finding it incredibly sad, or just enjoy the view of her fine ass. Candice pondered….Fuck it, I'm enjoying the view.

Miss Kuchiki…I know Renji said that you loved rabbits but I never knew that it went this far. Momo realized somewhat nervously.

Liltotto simply facepalmed before she groaned. Seriously Rukia? I thought you were smarter than that.

Lucy looked like she had something to say as well, but before she had a chance, she noticed Max ushering her towards the stage. "That's my cue!" Lucy said before she kissed Bambietta on the check. "Wish me luck!" She called out as she ran towards the stage.

"You'll knock em dead Lucy! I know you will!" Bambietta shouted with pride before she looked towards the other's. "You four may as well just give up now! Lucy and I got this in the bag!"

"You really think you can just brush me aside like that? I'm pretty sure I got a good chance here!" Candice argued.

Bambietta grinned. "Candi, I beat you every year for Miss Wandenriech. I'm not exactly all that concerned." She then glanced over towards Liltotto. "And I really don't think I need to worry about you."

Liltotto simply flipped her friend the middle finger before Bambietta looked over towards Momo. "As for you Momo, while I'll admit you've gotten a substantial upgrade, I actually know how to flaunt it. You're too timid to put your new looks to use." Her head then looked towards Rukia. "And as for you, just having a beautiful face and a nice ass isn't going to be anywhere near enough to beat me!"

Momo looked away bashfully while Rukia bit her tongue…before she smirked. "Ok, then what about Erza?"

Bambietta opened up her mouth, closed it, opened it up again before she looked away. "I'll cross that bridge when I get to it."

"Suuuuure you will." Rukia and Candice teased.

"Oh shut up! Since when are you two ever on the same page anyway!?" Bambietta shouted before she stopped speaking, waiting for Max to call her to the stage…but she heard nothing.

"Huh…. That's odd. Should have been my turn by now." Bambietta stated.

"Maybe Miss Heartfilia is still performing?" Momo asked the Quincy.

Bambietta shook her head. "No, Lucy told me what she was going to do, it shouldn't be taking this long. Something's wrong."

"You're more right than you know." Liltotto spoke up. "I'm sensing that bitch Evergreen on stage." Her eyes narrowed then before she clenched her fists. "No doubt she's holding up the show."

"Oh to hell with that bullshit!" Bambietta shouted as she stomped towards the curtain. "I'm not letting that stupid bitch get in the way of me or Lucy's big moment! The Quincy angrily rant through the curtain, prepared to rant and rave towards the woman…only for her eyes to widened upon the stone,statuesque forms of Cana, Bisca, Levy, Juvia, Mirajane, Erza, and Lucy, with Evergreen giving her an arrogant sneer

Bambiettas response was short as it was simple, filled with equal parts confusion and fury as her eyes bore into Evergreens. "What the fuck!?"


Oh…well, that's not good. That's not good at all! Looks like Bambietta and Co have found themselves in a real shit situation this time around! Will they be able to put an end to Laxus's and Emberella's evil scheme? Well, there's only one way to truly find out! Tune in same Quincy time, Same quincy channel!