"It's been a full day since they left…" Romeo said while pacing back and forth in Magnolia's open square. The festival did continue, since it wasn't properly enjoyed the day before.
"What if that explosion really did…" Max started, but he was quickly hushed by the others.
"Don't be stupid! There's no way they'd go down to something like that…!" Sting scoffed. "They're way too strong for that to happen."
"Even so…you can't deny the possibility…" Rogue was the one to spoil the moment with the words no one wanted to hear, but even so it had to be said.
"I certainly hope that is not the case…" Hisui mumbled to herself while clasping her hands together softly.
"Oi, Saeko…" Kuro said while lightly tapping the pinkette on the shoulder. "You okay? You've been staring at the sky for a while now…"
"Huh?" Saeko blinked a few times before responding with a bright grin. She was clearly aware of something that the others were not. "Oh yeah, everything's just fine! The stars have calmed down a lot since yesterday for the most part…"
"That's a good thing, right?" Kuro asked just to make sure.
"Of course!" The pinkette responded with a bright grin.
"Still no word from any of them, however…" Sherry was pacing back and forth nervously. "What if something happened to Chelia!?"
"I'm sure they're fine…" Raven said while letting out a slight sigh. "They're all tough cookies, right? So I mean…"
"Hm…" Sting stared at one of the entrances to Magnolia rather intently.
"What are you looking for, ya walking glow stick?" Lyon asked Sting while crossing his arms. "You're staring at that area rather intently."
"Hush, ice pop…" Sting returned the nickname while holding his hand up to tell Lyon to talk to it. The white dragon's nose twitched slightly as he picked up a slightly familiar scent. Not just one, but a few.
"You smell it too, Sting-san?" Leon asked while walking beside Sting.
"Oh yeah…" Sting nodded to Leon slowly, a slight grin forming on his lips.
"Huh…?" Yukino tilted her head in slight confusion, wondering what the two dragon slayers were going on about.
"OIIIII!" Natsu shouted from nearly across the city. He waved to the group waiting at day two of the festival while everyone else traveled behind him. "We're back, everyone!"
"There they are!" Romeo's eyes lit up with excitement. "Natsu-nii!" It didn't take long for everyone to gather within Magnolia Square, where the constant questioning of their wellbeing began.
"LAXUS!" The Raijinshu jumped and clung to their leader. Laxus nearly fell over from the assault but managed to keep his balance. "You kicked serious butt, didn't you!?" All three of them seemed to ask at the exact same time, causing Laxus to roll his eyes in the slightest annoyance possible, a small smirk forming on his lips.
"What? Did you expect anything less of me?" The cocky S class mage replied.
"CHELIA!" Sherry immediately tackle hugged her younger cousin, nearly bringing her down to the ground. "I was so worried about you!"
"Wow…this is kind of awkward…" Diamond said while rubbing her arm, looking away.
"Wait a moment…" Makarov began in a serious tone, his gaze shifting over to the Ex-Dealer members. "What are they doing here?"
"Yeah…!" Max shouted. "Aren't they the enemy!?"
"Speaking of…" Leon began looking around once again, real hard this time. "I just realized something…what happened to Ace…?"
"Oh yes…" Hisui nodded slowly. "We didn't see what happened after that explosion…"
At the mention of Ace, just about everyone's heads dropped slightly (save for Evanee and Sidney). "He gave his life for us…" Erza finally spoke out, causing those who weren't aware of it eyes to widen.
"Y-You mean he's…" Romeo didn't dare say the words.
"Stop talking about it…!" Tia shouted in frustration. "Just stop it!"
"Tia…" Lucy reached out for Tia, but she was shooed away. "Oh, right…"
"So, would you mind explaining what the rest of this is about then…?" Makarov asked while pointing to the Ex-Dealer members: Heartless, Jack, Tia, Spade, Strong, Daigo, and Diamond.
"We don't mean you any harm…" Spade spoke out. "You see…we've figured out on our own that Dealer was a bad place for us. We confronted King on our own, and though Joker handed our asses to us…it was worth it knowing we choose the right path."
"I see…" Makarov nodded, then turned to Heartless and Daigo. "And you two? Last time I checked, you two did some rather heavy damage…"
"It was all a façade…well…" Heartless stated. "My being a part of Dealer was, but everything I did cannot be forgiven and forgotten so easily, if at all. I know this. I'm really Seven's First Captain of the Magic Council that hardly exists anymore, thanks to my doing, ironically enough."
Before Makarov could ask anymore, Hisui stepped up with Arcadios, looking Heartless right in the eyes. "What about Crocus?! You can't tell me everyone has lost their homes there…!"
"Don't fret, Princess Hisui…" Heartless nodded, pulling up a lacrima screen. "King gave me access to Meteor G before I betrayed him." She pressed a few buttons, causing a red magic seal to appear above the capital. The same beam from before shot out, causing everyone to get extremely worried for a second, but when it faded the city was good as new.
"What was…" Hisui spoke with complete amazement at the revival of Crocus.
"When you have as much magic as this in your disposal, you can do just about anything…" Heartless replied, though the way she said it didn't exactly deepen everyone's trust in her.
"So, you're all here on neutral ground, yes?" Makarov asked for confirmation.
"Well…we aren't here to cause trouble, that's for sure…" Diamond said with a slow nod.
And upon hearing that answer, Makarov's eyes began to shine a bright yellow light. The aura he was letting off sent a chill down the regular mages' eyes. "Good. Now remember this; you've hurt my children and you'll never be forgiven for that. If you dare to hurt them again…"
"W-Whoa…! Chill! Chill!" Jack flailed in a comical manner, quite intimidated by Makarov's wrath. "W-We aren't gonna do anything, I swear!"
"There he goes again, going overboard…" Mirajane said while placing a hand on her cheek, a soft giggle escaping her lips.
"Y-You have our word…!" Even Tia was intimidated by Makarov's presence.
"Good…" Makarov's eyes returned to normal and he turned to everyone else. "Now, let's finally enjoy this festival, shall we?!"
.
.
"Watch it…!" Hyde grunted as he was tossed into a cell. He, Aiden, and the other subordinates were all tossed into separate cells by Siegrain and Cosmic Star.
"How could it have come to this…" Aiden sighed while calmly closing his eyes.
"Look at it this way," Siegrain said with a growing smile. "At least you'll be awake to spend time in your cell this time." He then turned to Cosmic Star, giving a slight nod. "Excellent work. It appears as though everything turned out for the better."
"For now, anyway," Gaia said with a slight shrug. "We still have the issue of Pergrande lingering about…"
"Yes, you've told me…" Siegrain nodded, crossing his arms behind his back.
"Though, don't expect the attack anytime soon…" Magnus said with a stern nod. "The king of Pergrande is crazy, but he isn't crazy enough to march into a war unprepared."
"I'll make sure everything is ready for that time." Siegrain replied. "With the loss of Correll, things are going to be a bit more of a bumpy ride…but that's fine."
"Well, you go ahead and do all of that…" Shadowlore said while turning around rather impatiently. "You see, there's a party going on back in Magnolia and I'd rather not miss it."
"He's right…We've been separated from the festivities for far too long now…" Daryan agreed, following right behind Shadowlore to leave the Council Headquarters. "I miss all the babes!"
"Same!" Shadowlore high fived Daryan and the two quickly left the building.
"There they go…" Alex said with a sigh before facing Siegrain, bowing curtly to him. "I'm sorry for the abrupt leave, but we really must be going now…!"
.
.
"Wow, I didn't realize how lively this place could actually be…" Tia said while observing all the people having fun in the festival.
"Yeah…it's something else…" Jack admitted quietly.
"Aren't you glad I stopped you?" Tia asked with a curious expression. "If I didn't…I don't think we'd be here right now…This atmosphere is…."
"Enjoying yourselves?" Lucy asked while walking up with Erza.
"Huh…?" Tia blinked, immediately turning her head with a small huff once the female duo arrived. "What's it to you…?"
"Doesn't matter to you, does it?" Jack snapped, but there was only annoyance behind his words, not the usual hate.
"So evasive…" Lucy said with a sigh, but there was a slight smile on her lips. "I guess you two really are brother and sister, huh?"
"What's that supposed to mean?!" Jack and Tia exclaimed in unison.
"No need to be so aggressive," Erza said with a soft smile. "Though you shouldn't let Master's words get to you too much, you should certainly keep them in mind."
"Pfft…that old fart doesn't scare me…!" Jack crossed his arms, looking away while puffing his cheeks out. He was bad at lying, clearly.
"I don't plan on bringing anyone any harm…" Tia spoke under her breath, looking away.
"Try to have fun, okay?" Lucy smiled at the pair before walking off with Erza.
"Fun…?" The word seemed to linger on both Jack and Tia. It was a strange word when they really thought about it.
.
.
"It's only been a day, but it feels like I haven't had a drink in a long time!" And there was Cana, hitting up the bar as quickly humanly possible. Of course, Bacchus and Royal were already there along with her.
"I need a refill after being away for so long!" Royal chuckled, taking a swig of the mug in his hand, a content sigh finding its way out of his lips soon after. "Ahh…"
"That's the good stuff, ain't it!?" Bacchus grinned, taking a large gulp of the mug in his hands. He then raised his arms and exclaimed the infamous "WILD!"
"FOUR!" Royal and Cana drunkenly exclaimed, all their cheeks already a red color from the alcohol they consumed.
"You all seem to be having a bit of fun…" Satoshi chuckled while taking a stool at the bar, ordering some beer for himself.
"Oi, you drink too, old man?" Royal asked with that drunken questioning look.
"I enjoy a drink every now and again." Satoshi replied. "So I hope you don't mind if I join ya."
"Not at all!" Bacchus said with a wide grin. "Come on, the more the merrier! Oh, I got an idea! How about we drink until there's one left standing!"
"You're on!" Cana said while slamming her mug on the table. "I won't go down this time!"
"You're still lacking years of experience, rookie…" Royal said with a cocky grin. "Just sit back and watch the professionals go at it."
"This oughta be interestin'…" Satoshi chuckled to himself while nodding to accept the challenge. "Let's see what you're all capable of then!"
.
.
Nearby, Alexander was informing Sting of what happened to Minerva after their encounter. Sting nodded slowly in understanding, placing a hand on his forehead. "So, she got away, huh…?"
"Right after we stopped Nirvana," Alexander replied with a slight "tsk" following. "Kind of disappointing, don't you think?"
"Just a little…" Sting replied with a sigh after. "Either way, you did good work! You know…if you want, you can always come back to Sabertooth. We're not the guild we used to be."
"I know," Alexander said with the slightest of smiles. "I'm impressed at how far you've come, Sting. I didn't think you'd be running Sabertooth, or be capable of doing so."
"I didn't think so either…" Sting responded with a light hearted chuckle. "But, I wouldn't be able to do so alone." He then looked over his shoulder to his guild mates, Rogue, Yukino, Rufus, and Orga. They were arguing about something silly while Yukino tried to calm the bunch down. The sight only caused Sting to smile. "My comrades have helped us come this far. So…whaddya say?"
"It's a tempting offer," Alexander admitted while looking back over his own shoulder. Twilight Zone had their usual antics going on, meaning that Melanie was beating up Flynn in a comical manner for something he probably didn't even do. "But for now, Twilight Zone is my place."
"I understand that completely." The guildmaster then turned around, beginning to walk off while waving a hand. "But, if you ever feel like coming back to Sabertooth, the doors are wide open." And once he was far away enough, his head dropped down slightly. "The same can be said for you too, Lady…"
.
.
"So, King is still at large…?" Hisui asked Heartless and Daigo with a frown.
"He managed to escape from what I heard…but who knows if he's going to try anything. He doesn't have any more power on him…" Heartless replied. "And there's nothing for him to attack…"
"But we should still careful…" Arcadios was clearly doubtful of the situation. We never know when he'll strike…if he does…"
.
.
"Oh, Mirajane! There you are!" Jenny oh so casually approached Mirajane with a sly smile forming on her face.
"Jenny? What is it?" Mirajane asked with a curious brow raised. She knew Jenny wanted something.
"I have a proposal for you, to make up for the Games two years ago,' Jenny continued, pulling Marlene along from the sidelines. "I suggest we have a battle right here!"
"Another one?" Mirajane blinked a few times at the proposal. She looked around, realizing that a crowd had begun to form around the three models. She could see what direction this was going in. "Very well. A modeling competition between the three of us?"
"I suppose so!" Marlene beamed. "I was surprised when Jenny-san came to me with the idea, but it sounds like fun! I haven't done a shoot in a while…"
"Is that so…?" Mirajane nodded slowly. "Well, I can't see any harm in doing it…What does the loser have to do?" There was always a catch to these kinds of things.
"The loser has the pose in anyway those judges see fit after!" Jenny then pointed to the panel of judges, which consisted of Makarov, Gildarts, Shadowlore, Daryan, and Ichiya. "And those photos will be posted in the next issue of Sorcerer's Weekly!"
"I can't see this going well…" Lucy said with a nervous sweat drop.
"I don't understand what's even happening…" Cynthia said while licking some ice cream.
"This is gonna be good…" Gildarts grinned to himself like a child. He and the other judges already prepared a list of categories and were already drooling over the images.
"Who let the most perverted guys here be judges…?" Selene asked with a huff.
"This is perfect…" Jenny thought to herself while turning away, the largest of sneaky grins forming on her lips. "Marlene's still an upcoming and fresh model. So there's no doubt in my mind that she'll be coming in second place; and I know these judges prefer my good looks over Mira's any day. I happen to ask them beforehand just before things got crazy the other day. Which means…that Mira will have to pose in front of these guys in the most embarrassing poses, and those pictures will be all over Fiore! It's the perfect revenge for having me pose nude all those issues ago!"
"Uh…is she okay…?" Luke asked while pointing at the evil twinkle in Jenny's eyes. "She's looking pretty evil right now…"
"Luke, it's better if you just don't question it…" Jaxon said while patting Luke on the back in a friendly manner.
"Those lucky ducks…" Macao said with his face a bright red. Just the thought of watching another model off got him excited.
"Why can't we be judges…!" Wakaba asked.
"You two need to calm down…" Romeo replied to his father and his father's friend with a heavy sigh, eyes narrowing.
"I'll never understand the attraction to these sort of events…" Kagura kept silent and just shook her head.
"Are the judges ready?" Jenny asked.
"We're more than ready!" Daryan said with a nod.
"Let the modeling contest begin!" Shadowlore exclaimed with much excitement in his voice. "The first category is…Swimsuit wear!"
"Who let Shadowlore be a judge in this!?" Alex finally realized this grave error.
"It's too late to stop it…" Hiruka said with a subtle shrug. "Just sit back and watch the show!"
And on the cue, Jenny, Marlene, and Mirajane were immediately dressed in two piece bathing suits. The crowd around just awed in complete amazement at being able to watch such a spectacle up close. "D-Does this kind of thing happen often…" Draco asked while staring at Marlene.
"Not often enough…" Waiston said while openly staring at all three females.
"You've got to be joking…" Tia pinched the bridge of her nose in complete annoyance. "Is this what they do for fun around here…?"
"Oh…!" Makarov in the other judges stared with comical hearts flowing out of their eyes. They all quickly wrote down their scores for this particular category before moving on. "Next up…" Makarov began after clearing his throat. "School girl uniform!"
"With thigh highs." Gildarts quickly added.
"Yes, men, thigh highs are very important…" Ichiya nodded quickly in agreement.
"We concur," Daryan and Shadowlore nodded in unison.
"What is with these judges..?" Reve sighed, though he had an amused grin on his face. He honestly wanted to see how this was going to end.
"I've never done outfits like this before…" Marlene said while bending over slightly, picking up one of the books that magically appeared.
"You're keeping up!" Jenny struck a pose, and immediately the crowd began to lose it.
"Ara…" Mirajane simply smiled to the crowd. She glanced at Jenny, who seemed to have the overall lead in this little competition. Though, she wasn't too worried, and she just did her usual, which managed to make the crowd go crazy.
"This is pretty awesome, if only a certain kitty were to get involved…" Shadowlore said while eying Milliana.
"NO." The cat mage immediately hissed at him.
The contest continued, filled with varying kinds of uniforms for the three models to wear, ranging from things such as the skimpiest outfits, to battle wear, and so on. "Why are there so many categories…?" Cygnus asked with a few blinks.
"The power of imagination…" Was Daryan's response. "But! We have the votes tallied up!"
"That was fast…" Marlene said with a few blinks.
"No hard feelings for the loser, okay?" Jenny spoke with a sarcastically sweet tone towards Mirajane.
"Let's see…the person with the second most votes is…Marlene!" Makarov exclaimed, and it was just as Jenny predicted.
"Second place…I suppose that's okay, I had fun!" Marlene said with a wide smile.
"As expected…" Jenny's grin began to grow; she could already hear her name being called first.
"And the person with the most votes, taking first place is…." Makarov let the suspense grow for a few seconds before finally saying something. "Mirajane!" The crowd cheered loudly, while Jenny just stood there with a shocked expression, the color draining from her face.
"W-What?! No…!" Jenny refused to believe it. "How did I get last place!? I was supposed to win and embarrass Mirajane…!"
"Now, now…" Shadowlore and Gildarts began to drag Jenny off. "A deal is a deal, isn't it?"
"This isn't faaaaaaair!" Jenny whined, flailing in a comical manner as she was dragged off by the two.
"Have fun, Jenny!" Mirajane waved to the weeping Jenny while giving a shrug after.
"She did well, men," Ichiya nodded.
"I kind of feel sorry for her…" Wendy said with a slight smile.
.
.
"I think we should close off this festival with a victory song, to celebrate the victory over Dealer," Makarov suggested the idea, and a large majority of them agreed.
"Hey, has anyone seen Mira? I think she would be perfect for this…but…" Cynthia asked while looking around. "I haven't seen her since Jenny was dragged off an hour ago…"
"I think she went back to the guild with Gajeel…" Natsu said with a shrug.
{At the guild a few minutes ago}
"What was it you wanted to show me…?" Mirajane asked while stepping into the guild's library first.
"This!" Gajeel then slammed the library door shut, boarding it shut with multiple iron poles. A comical sinister expression crossed his face. "Giheh…" He then went off to change, while Mirajane stood in front of the barricaded door, blinking a few times as she began to realize what happened.
"Gajeel…!"
{Festival}
"Don't worry, I got this!" Gajeel said while appearing in his fancy white suit, shades on his eyes as he strolled up with his guitar. "I've been working on a new song; see…so get ready to hear this victorious fanfare!" With a grin, the iron slayer began to strum his guitar. While the guitar sounded good…the lyrics did not. "Shooby do bop…We went to Dealer…and kicked their asses…!"
"This is already sounding bad…" Lucy said with a nervous smile.
"Geez, who let this guy on stage…!?" Droy shouted with a comically angered expression.
"Yeah, he stinks!" Jet commented.
"Eh…" Levy wanted to say something to defend Gajeel, but she opted not to and just stayed silent.
"Get off the stage, metal head!" Natsu grinned at the negative reception Gajeel was getting.
"You wanna go, Salamander!?" Gajeel stood up, lunging in the air with his leg held back.
"Any time, tin can!" Natsu replied, leaping in the air to meet Gajeel halfway, their legs entering a deadlock.
"Really, now…!?" Lisanna sighed heavily. "Some things just never change…"
It was around then that a bubble appeared in front of both dragon slayers. Before they could react to it, it popped, and they fell to the ground instantly in a state of slumber. "Hmph…" That was Mirajane's fury at its lowest. She dusted her hands off and pouted towards the sleeping Gajeel. "Locking me in the library? You could've just asked to sing in my place!"
"He can't hear you…" Lily mumbled, afraid of what Mirajane would say if she heard him.
"Uh…" Cynthia fidgeted around slightly before standing up. "I'd like to sing something…!"
"You can sing?" Was Erza's immediate question.
"…I dunno." Cynthia shrugged. "But, I'd like to give it a try! We've all come along way…so it's like a little victory song for all of us!"
"I say go for it!" Aira nodded while clasping her hands together.
"Mira, would you mind playing for me…?" Cynthia asked before clearing her throat.
"Sure thing," Mirajane nodded and picked up Gajee's guitar, adjusting the strings a little bit before nodding. "If you're singing what I think you are, maybe I could join in too?"
"Mhm!" Cynthia nodded, and the two began to sing the duet.
"When you're on the road, far from home, you don't have to feel alone. Just stay brave and strong, because we're right there beside you. Don't lose sight of yourself, because you've got all of us. If we ever get to the point where we distrust ourselves, in the moment look; the sun and the moon can't shine anymore."
"…" Tia took a step back, letting out a disgruntled noise while placing a hand on her chest. She shook her head slowly and began to walk off.
"H-Hey…" Lucy whispered, immediately following behind Tia. "What's the matter…?!"
"Nothing…" Tia replied with a soft scoff. "You worry about other people too much, especially me. It's a little annoying. …I just want to give him a proper goodbye."
"Oh…" Lucy could see what Tia meant. With a soft smile, Lucy nodded slowly and let Tia be. "I understand."
"Good," Tia nodded. "I'll be back, don't worry…
"With our outstretched hands, beyond the light…the future we've been wishing for is waiting…" Tia continued the line of the song with the smallest of smiles appearing on her lips. "As the person I am….I'll embrace it all…even your sorrow…" She felt like Ace was right beside her, which caused the smile on her to waver, but still, she kept walking.
"And this is the Song For You…" Cynthia and Mirajane finished the note in unison, and as soon as they finished the crowd erupted in a loud cheer. There were some people begging for an encore.
"W-Wow…they liked it…!?" Cynthia's cheeks turned a bright red color. She sheepishly rubbed the back of her head while bowing her head. "A-Aheh…"
"I didn't know you could sing like that!" Wendy said with sparkly eyes.
"Neither did I!" Cynthia replied.
"Encore!" The crowd cheered.
"Well…" Cynthia looked towards Mirajane, who smiled.
"One more wouldn't hurt!" Mirajane responded.
.
.
Jack: So, a new year, huh...
Tia: It looks like things are going to change for us going forward.
Heartless: In which case, we have to start this new year on the right foot.
Next time: X793