I'm so glad this is working again; I was really at my wit's end, about to make a new story from Chapter 101 on...
Thank you, Mitzy for letting me know about this story not working either... I hope it's fixed for good now. And thank you so much for your review! Very happy to know that I made you laugh!
Also to Jsfmp, thank you for notifying me about the glitch - and the lovely praise :D
CheesyDelphox, thank you so much for your review! My goodness, so many kind praises; I'm so very happy to hear! And glad to know that you like both my portrayal of Jellal as well as interaction with the audience; I'm always afraid to be typing waay too much up here... ':D So thank you a lot for telling me :)
felly16, haha yeah his manly pride :D Thanks so much for your review!
Wendy Marvel, thank you for leaving me a review! I'm happy to know you're enjoying!
Somnolent Sushi Roll, I don't know where to begin or even end apart from THANK YOU! Sooo long! Both of them! I'm really enjoying it all so much; it's like reading the new chapter, smiling and scrolling through your thoughts on the chapter :D My updates in a way. 'gracefully with a full stomach' haha, that's Erza for ya. Thank you also so much for the typo correction - is corrected! You even counted the paragraph, which is really sweet, but I can search the document so if you don't want to put as much effort into that, it's fine! Thanks! (Also, no, the honey was not a synonym for any lemony topic xD just honey xD) 'Laxus mispronounced "wife"' xDxDxD I can't breathe xD gladly suffocating, Author-San.
I'm sorry again for the glitch and already for taking long with updates but I will try my best to at least keep them regular. Hope you'll enjoy!
Do some baking, she said. It'll relax you, she said. Jellal wanted to roll his eyes back into his skull. Though, if he was being honest with himself, it was rather fun. Just everything but relaxing.
"You lack proper technique," Minerva slyly watched as he frowned at his slightly lopsided gingerbread. She grinned triumphantly at her own much more symmetrical creation. He let his shoulders drop. Sometimes, it was very liberating not to be as competitive as most others – for example the entire guild of Fairy Tail, and, as it turned out, Sabertooth.
But sometimes, it was too tempting not to fire back.
"And you lack proper judgement," he said with his face ironed into calmness again. It was what riled people up most – the never-faltering composure – and where there was anger, mistakes were bound to happen.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Minerva narrowed her eyes, shooting him a look. Taking the bait almost too easily. "You think they adore my cooking out of pity?" She scoffed. It was undeniable that her guild cheered for her and for a reason. She was a splendid cook and an even better eater from what he had been told. But her audience was too…
"No," Jellal focused on his biscuits again, "it just means Erza's the pickier one," he could not help a smile. She groaned. She had been more than shocked and somewhat disappointed to have encountered the couple, finding them to be a couple and worst of all: Erza to be soft, at least when around him. Not the fierce warrior she had come to respect but a loving and cheesy lover to a man. He had feared for a moment she would go after him. Or stomp his little toe.
"You need a broader clientele…" she shook her head, letting the topic drop. If he had not known better, he would have almost labelled her as jealous.
"No, I only need Erza," he said without missing a beat. With another groan and some incomprehensible muttering about what sounded like 'love' and 'stupid' in the same sentence, she went back to her own baking. She had a contest to win.
Soon, however, the contest of who was the better confectioner turned into which Erza liked better and then whether she could tell who had made it. She never guessed wrong. He had treated her often enough for her not to fail a single time, though she was being fair and let the dessert she liked most pass without taking its creator into account. An easy win for him, but he admitted to be rather sure Minerva would beat him in a savoury cooking contest any day.
Evening descended upon Magnolia but its residents were far from retiring. Fairy Tail at the very top of noise and laughter, the guild drank and joked itself into stupor throughout the approaching night.
Leaning against his shoulder, Erza sat with her beloved at a safe distance on the stairs, overlooking the merry chaos below.
Her outfit was enchanting as usual; it was plainly visible in his eyes whenever they fell on her, which they did quite often. And she did like the short attire a lot, too, the Christmassy red with white plush lining the hems of the dress. Her favourite was always the hat, though – even after the buttons all the way down her front – and even if she had not gotten him to dress up, she had forced a reindeer antlers hairband onto him.
They watched in a comfortable silence and it was hard to abandon the moment she already treasured, the only thing keeping her from fully relaxing being the wish to hand him his present.
She lifted her head off his shoulder when Bisca climbed up to their height.
"Hey," she raised a hand in greeting. Smiling back, Erza and Jellal returned it. "If you're staying a little longer, would you mind keeping an eye on Asuka?"
"Of course not," Erza nodded, already scanning the hall for the little girl. She was hard to miss where she was hopping up and down on a table, Alzack seemingly paying too little attention to her for her liking.
"You can also take her home if you want to leave; we'll come to pick her up then," Bisca went on. A wonderful idea, Erza thought, feeling her lids weight down significantly. "It's just that," she turned around once to steal a look at her daughter to ascertain that she was not listening, "Santa still has to visit," she winked and Erza's smile widened. With a smile of her own, Bisca reported to her daughter who delightedly stormed over to her babysitters, crawling on both of their laps before running off to the upstairs with her arms outstretched like an airship's wings.
"Erza?"
"Hm?" Erza let her head fall back against him.
"Who's Santa?" Jellal asked as soon as Asuka was out of earshot. She laughed out loud at that. With a quick glance over her shoulder, she made sure not to destroy any dreams.
"It's a person whom children believe to bring presents on Christmas – only to those who behaved during the rest of the year,"
"A convenient trick for parents," he nodded in understanding. She had to chuckle.
"Master used to play Santa for us each year," she revelled in those long-ago memories. "I felt so proud and mature once I found out. I never wanted to spoil it for anyone so I kept quiet," she recalled. "Only Laxus teased me by threatening to tell everyone which made me really mad,"
"I can imagine," he smiled widely at her tale. His own eyes were getting smaller with tiredness and she let hers travel the room with a fond warmth in them as she watched those idiots she had spent part of her childhood with.
"Mira loved it when we clashed, even if she had no idea what it was about," she giggled. His arm tugged her closer and she snuggled back into him. "It's a wonderful thing, the faith of children. Being able to believe in such a kind of magic they cannot explain and that solely exists to bring them joy,"
"You know," he drew a circle on the side of her stomach, broadening her smile, "I think you infected me," he said. Confused, she lightly frowned at him. "With the Christmas 'spirit'," he grinned and she squished him in a tight hug. Nuzzling into him, she could not express any other way just how happy it made her to hear those words; to know them to be true.
His hand came up to pet her head.
"I can't tell you how glad I am to be spending Christmas with you," her palm wandered to his face, cupping it as she placed a sweet kiss on his lips.
"Properly this time," the corner of his mouth twitched into amusement and she returned it with a light blush on her cheeks. She had absolutely no idea what had happened that one Christmas. She recalled being naked and encountering him of all people in the street, somehow finding herself in the possession of his coat until the present day without a clue of the rest of the night.
She would ask him, she decided, though not tonight. Her thoughts were growing thin and hazy, her head dropping back onto his shoulder.
It was not long until Jellal carried her home on his back, Asuka blabbing avidly the entire way through the blanket of snow. Erza did not hear a single word, yet she woke up to the girl's voice coming from the kitchen sometime later. Sauntering over from where she had awoken from her nap – mostly due to being alone and unable to hog her beloved – she spotted them at the kitchen table, drawing what appeared to be maps.
"Treasure maps!" Asuka exclaimed, keenly showing hers to Erza. Jellal' handwriting was all over the clumsy lines of crayon. The youngest member of the guild was fascinated by his writing, demanding it on every location she was making up.
Erza lowered her lids when eyeing the by far too seriously sketched map of her beloved. It was more of a blueprint, a big 'X' Asuka must have added with her red crayon marking the bedroom.
"Oh," she leaned over his shoulder, "and what treasures might you find in the bedroom?" She suggestively raised a brow, smirking at him.
"You." Jellal smiled so innocently, her expression softened into adoration.
"I'm home," Meredy's voice sounded down the hallway.
"Not for long," Jellal towered in the doorway of the bedroom, blocking her way. Thunder rumbled that exact moment, giving him a dramatic effect, making both wince. Stunned, she blinked at him in slightly uneasy puzzlement. "With you getting your own place soon," he grinned and her expression brightened delightedly after a short delay. He handed her the mug of hot cocoa that had waited for her for a while now.
Despite it only being lukewarm by now, she sighed vocally upon savouring the sweet taste.
"Don't worry, that'll still take a while," she said, toeing off her boots while he took care of the coat.
"Aw, damnit, we were gonna get it on with," he cursed and she choked on her next sip. Bewildered, completely speechless except for the helpless coughing, Meredy stared at his blushing face. He burst into laughter at her reaction, deeming the embarrassment worth the result.
"The lengths you go at to mock me!" She exclaimed, indignant had she not had to laugh as well.
"Your face though," Jellal grinned, "that cost me a lot," he admitted, sheepishly scratching his cheek. "Come on, present time," he led the way into the bedroom where Erza was happily dipping fruit into a pot of chocolate fondue. On the bed. An extra plate of strawberries at her side.
"Have some," Erza patted the mattress and Meredy exchanged a testing glance with Jellal before daring to sit down in her street clothes. Taking the invitation then, she sat down on the end of the bed while Jellal crawled over to his beloved. "Mmh, don't you have a heavenly body," Erza lowered her lids while feeding him an in chocolate coated apple, the finger of her other hand trailing down his shirt where the first two buttons were casually open.
"Oh, stop, I'm turning scarlet," he played a flustered tone, enticing a giggle. Meredy released a deep groan.
"Urrgh, so cheesy…"
"Spoiling your chances for gifts…" Jellal sang, reaching under the bed to pull out what first looked like a short staff. Taking the in red paper wrapped present, Meredy's eyes sparkled. A rolled-up poster for sure. It was easily readable from her forehead. Not least because she muttered it under her breath, speculating, buying the disguise without doubt in the hopes of something for her new apartment. Excitedly ripping the wrapping paper off, she revealed… more wrapping paper. A new roll of it.
Jellal grinned at the death glare she shot him upon being fooled once again on the same night.
"It has little cacti, look," he pointed at the motive, "they're dancing," he beamed at her as if nothing was amiss. Pursing her lips, Meredy flattened out her face. Neither noticed Erza to be snitching the plate of banana and apple all to herself while the pink-haired mage opened her bag.
"Thank you," she smiled innocently. "I hope I didn't overdo it…" she averted her gaze, almost shyly handing him an envelope. Frowning, Jellal took it. Overdoing it? Praying for her not to have spent too much money on his present, he felt the bulging paper, something not too solid definitely stuffed into the envelope. Breaking the seal, he almost nervously reached in to find… more envelopes. Meredy was already laughing madly at his stupefied face.
"I thought you'd like writing letters so I got you these," she grinned in triumph and he scowled at her for being caught off guard. "There are stars on some," she tapped the sheets, giggling at the look he gave her. Reaching for the forks, they blinked at the now empty bowl of chocolate, only a few puny slices of fruit left. None of them strawberries.
Chuckling, this time at Erza who cluelessly blinked at their momentarily surprised faces, they put the cutlery back. The redhead was not paying attention at all, almost falling asleep on the spot, rather blissfully though. Almost simultaneously, the two former Crime Sorcière members handed over the actual, non-kidding presents. He would wait with giving her the left-over paint, now watching her open the envelope of the voucher to the biggest shop for interior furniture, wallpapers and floorings, not yet noticing his own gift to be of the exact same establishment.
"They have a café?" He asked upon seeing it, slightly dumbfounded to find the logo of his own idea shining back at him.
"Mhm, near the checkout. For when we go and pick out my stuff, I'll be treating you and there's nothing you can to against it!" Meredy pointed her own voucher in his face. Jellal smiled warmly, accepting without complaint for once. She wanted him to come; to help her make choices for her new home. However unspoken, they never ceased to integrate the other into their daily obstacles. "Your turn," Meredy grinned at the two, more at Erza whose eyes fell closed every couple of seconds for too long to still count as blinking.
Thunder rolled again, light rain starting to patter against the window.
"We already exchanged," Jellal informed, putting a hand on his beloved's knee. She straightened her back, blinking repeatedly to focus her vision. The day had significantly tired her out. Asuka had been picked up hours ago and Meredy had spent that time at the guild, partying on, the light tint on her cheeks speaking of a prudent amount of alcohol – the fact that she had to return to his watchful eyes most likely being the reason for her restraint.
"What? No! I wanted to watch!" Meredy complained. He raised an unimpressed brow.
"You almost vomited at an innocent flirt a minute ago,"
"I promised Mira…" she mumbled, awkwardly averting her gaze. The pout disappeared in a yelp and she slapped his hand away were he pinched her arm.
"Then don't make promises about things that don't concern you," he scolded.
"What did you get?" She digressed, turning to Erza. Blinking herself back into reality, Erza stared into huge, questioning eyes.
"We made love twice," she plainly stated, not having the slightest idea of what was going on.
"Erza!" Jellal cringed, cheeks tinging a deep red.
"I didn't need to know that…" Meredy said under her breath, her face adapting the colour of his. "Now I'll have to tell Mira…"
"No, you don't! Don't make such stupid promises," Jellal growled, poking her again and she swatted him away.
"So what did you get?" Meredy hissed excitedly, distracting off the topic again. Sighing in defeat, he reached into the drawer of his nightstand. Erza watched his movements, not quite registering, already starting to doze off again while sitting. Meredy gasped when her eyes flew over the words of the official letter he had given to his love. "Home office?" She asked unbelievingly. He grinned.
"Most days of the week. Jura said probably all week but I'll have to drop by every now and then for conferences and such,"
"Awesome!" Meredy beamed. "What did you say?" She turned to Erza. Jellal followed her gaze when she started to giggle. Snoring quietly, Erza had nodded off, chin fallen to her chest. His smile softened, widening as he regarded her.
Not in her Christmas attire anymore, she looked cuter than ever, now wearing his shirt as she liked to do. She was still holding on to the presents she had given him, unable to take her eyes off them so he had handed them back. The Sorcerer Weekly photo of them, one printed in colour, one black and white and one in sepia, without any headlines or page cuts in the middle. The perfect size for a frame, something he already pictured on the wall. She had proposed his office desk but the idea had left right after he had given her the Council's letter.
Smiling warmly, Jellal lost himself in staring at her adoringly. He did not even notice Meredy repeatedly tapping the camera function of her lacrima, finally acknowledging her when she leaned back to change the angle.
"Don't worry, I'm sending them to Erza," she defended before a word could leave his mouth. "First,"
"Meredy."
"Fine, only her," she grinned. "I'll just leave Erza's present here for her," she rummaged through her bag to find another crumpled envelope. By the time she was done in the bathroom and had climbed up the ladder, Jellal had already guided Erza to lay down – not being met with much resistance as she practically fell over – and settled in.
The rain was stronger now, though the thunderstorm was already travelling across the lake, away from Magnolia.
"Merry Christmas, Erza," Jellal whispered while hugging her tightly. His mind recalled that one Christmas night, her in nothing but his coat, snuggled up to him just as closely and sleeping soundly with her heart beating in time with his.
This time, he was not leaving. This time, they would wake up like they fell asleep – together.