A/N : Ok seriously, I'm actually stressed about this. This my first big chapter completely out of canon events. This was born from A to Z with ideas coming out of my brain. I'm sorry if things don't make sense, I'm working on it.

But I'm so excited ! So...

Enjoy !

I was at the bar counter, sipping my morning coffee, when someone bursted into the guild. I turned around, my cup slipping from my grasp and shattering on the ground. All eyes were fixed on the front door, where a hooded man was holding Wendy over his shoulder. She was out cold, looking absolutely battered, her face pale. The hooded stranger callously tossed her forward, letting gravity pull her to the ground.

In an instant, I zapped forward and caught her just before she hit the floor. My jaw clenched, eyes blazing with fury, as I glared at the intruder. Mira rushed over, gently taking Wendy from my arms.

Without a second thought, I zapped towards the intruder, but he vanished just as my fist was about to connect. I stared at my empty hand, rage boiling inside me. Before anyone could speak, I zapped outside, determined to hunt him down and get answers.

—

The frustration was overwhelming when I came back an hour later. It was pouring outside, and I was soaked to the bone. As I entered the guild, all eyes turned towards me. My hair was plastered to my face, hiding my eyes, my head hanging low. Mira immediately approached me, placing a hand on my cheek.

"Nothing?" she asked, her voice filled with hopelessness.

I shook my head, signaling a "no," before walking to the center of the guild.

"Where is she?" I demanded, my voice cutting through the tense silence.

"She's resting. It's maybe not a go—" Erza started, trying to calm me down.

"I said, where is she?" I replied, my tone sharp, not in the mood for any delays.

Erza's eyes widened, but she quickly looked down. "Infirmary," she answered softly.

I walked past her without another word, heading straight there.

As I opened the door, I saw Wendy lying in a bed. Sleeping or just out cold, I had no clue. I kneeled next to her and took her hand. "I'm sorry, Wendy. I-I wasn't able to do anything. I promise I'll find out what happened..." I brought her hand to my forehead, fighting back a few tears.

I heard someone approach but recognized the steps. "Haru..." Mira said, stroking my hair. "We'll get to the end of this, I promise. Please, stay calm so we can talk about all this, okay?" she added.

I got up, turning to face Mira. She finally saw my face. My eyes were as red as blood, from the rage boiling inside me and maybe a little crying. She gasped at the sight; she'd never seen me in a state like that before. But she quickly regained her composure and stroked my cheek with her hand, forcing a slight smile. "Oh, Haru... We're here to help her too, remember that," she said, pulling me into a warm embrace.

I returned the embrace, though without much conviction. My brain was racing, trying to understand what the hell had just happened. "Yeah. We'll find out what happened," I said, gently placing a hand on Mira's head before leaving the room.

Back in the guild hall, I broke the tense silence. "Where's Gramps? I need to talk to him."

"He's not here. He left this morning for an important meeting," Gray answered, visibly as furious as I was.

"Fuck!" I snapped. "We have to do something. How can I contact him? Where is he? This can't wait."

"We should wait," Erza interjected, trying to stay composed. "We have no clue where to start or who that guy even was."

"I'm with Haru on this one," Natsu said, stepping forward. "I can't wait any longer to burn down those bastards," he growled, flames flickering around his fists.

"Same here," added Gray, stepping up as well. "Sorry, Erza, but on this one, I think you're wrong. With all due respect."

Erza sighed, her shoulders tensing. "The worst part is... you're all right," she admitted. "I can't stand what happened, and I suggested waiting because I know Master would want us to. But fuck, we need to do something, and we need to do it now," she said, her eyes glowing with anger.

"Mira" I called, knowing she was behind me.

"Yes?" she answered, stepping closer.

"You manage all the missions people take here, right?"

"Indeed, I do," she replied.

"Can you tell me if Wendy took a mission recently?"

"Sure, I'll go check," she said, heading towards the archives.

"I'll come help!" added Lucy.

"Me too," said Levy, joining them.

The girls left for the archives room, and I turned back to the rest of the guild. "Listen up, y'all. Do whatever you want. Wait for Gramps if you like. But I'm not staying here when one of ours just got disrespected and, more importantly, beaten up. So I'm gonna find something, and I'm going after it."

No words were spoken, but the determined looks on everyone's faces told me they were all with me.

"Good. Now let's get to work. We've got bastards to find," I said, my resolve hardening.

—

Everyone was on duty. Macao and Wakaba were poring over maps, trying to pinpoint areas where someone could be hiding. Natsu, Gray, Erza, and I were strategizing how to split up our search and where to find clues about this attack. The rest of the guild members were all contributing in their own ways.

"Haru!" someone called out. "We've got something!" I rushed over to the archives room.

"Tell me."

"Wendy wasn't officially on a mission today, but she was two weeks ago and came back from it three days ago," Mira explained, urgency in her voice.

"Let me see it." I grabbed the paper from her, scanning it quickly. "Seems like a classic thug-chasing mission. Nothing special. But something must have happened. You said she took it two weeks ago and came back three days ago? That's way too long just to deal with a bunch of thugs."

Before anyone could answer, Natsu's shout echoed from the guild hall. "Haru! She's awake!"

I sprinted to the infirmary, bursting through the door. "Wendy!" I exclaimed. She was indeed awake, but she looked incredibly weak, her usual vitality drained.

"Wendy, can you hear me? Do you know who I am?" I asked, my voice trembling with nervousness.

Her hand weakly reached out, resting on mine. "Ha-Haru..." she whispered, her voice fragile and barely audible.

"Yes, Wen, it's me. How are you feeling, princess?" I asked softly, my heart aching at the sight of her.

"T-tired... W-what happened..?" she murmured, her voice weak and trembling.

"I dunno yet, Wen. I promise we're all looking into it. Hey, do you think you can answer a few questions for me?" I asked gently, trying to keep my voice steady.

"I can try..." she whispered, her voice barely audible.

I wanted to cry. Forcing her to answer questions in her state felt like pure torture, but this couldn't wait any longer. We needed answers.

"Okay, Wen. Do you remember where you were before... this happened?" I asked, holding her hand firmly but gently.

She closed her eyes, trying to focus. "I... I was in the forest... just having a walk... but then... someone ... stronger... they... attacked," she struggled to get the words out, her breathing labored.

"Did you see who it was? Anything you can remember about them?" I pressed, my heart pounding.

"A hooded man... dark magic... An emblem... a spider... I couldn't... fight back..." she whispered, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

I gently squeezed her hand. "That's good, Wen. Thank you. Rest now, okay? We'll take care of everything," I said, trying to reassure her even though my own heart was breaking.

Mira, who had been quietly standing by, placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Haru. Wendy needs rest now."

I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat. "Rest well, Wendy. We'll find out who did this to you," I promised, brushing a strand of hair from her face before turning to leave the room.

After that, I explained everything to the guild.

"Does anyone know of a dark guild that has any form of spider in its emblem or mark?" I pressed, desperation creeping into my voice.

No answers.

"Levy?" I asked, turning to her.

"I'm looking into it, but no results yet," she answered, her speed-reading glasses on, with Lucy handing her books as fast as she could.

A painful silence settled over the guild hall. We had clues, but no solid leads to follow. Natsu was tapping his foot on the ground so fast it seemed like he could crack it open. Lucy decided to hand the books to Mira before going to check on him.

"Natsu," she said, sitting down next to him. "It's gonna be fine. We'll find out what happened," she added, placing her hand over his and stroking his hair with her other hand. To everyone's surprise, it seemed to work as he slowly stopped tapping his foot.

Meanwhile, I was pacing around the guild so much I could make someone dizzy just watching.

"Haru, calm down, man. You're gonna make me puke," Gray said.

I stopped in my tracks, an idea striking me. "I know!" I shouted, rushing over to Levy. "Can you check the guild Zorath ? North-west from here."

She quickly searched for the right book before exclaiming, "Right here! Zorath, a dark guild that was disbanded five years ago. Could that mean they're still active?" she asked, looking up at me with wide eyes.

"I don't know, but now we've got our first lead," I said, cracking my knuckles. "Time to pay them a visit and get some answers."

Natsu got up as soon as I said that. "Let's go. Now," he said, his voice serious and determined.

"Wait a sec," I said, holding up a hand. "It's quite far from here. I've got an idea. I remember someone talking about Zorath, but it was years ago. According to that book, the last sighting was northwest. The people who talked about it are in the village of Mistvale, up north." I turned around. "Jet?"

He understood immediately. "Count on me, Haru," he said, getting up.

"Jet and I will go there as fast as we can. We can't afford to lose time by taking everyone. It's a whole day travel. We'll check both places, gather information, and be back by morning. If we find something, we'll come back and plan an expedition," I explained to everyone.

Most people around were just surprised.

Erza approached me. "Haru," she started. "You have the lead on this. We'll follow your instructions," she added.

Even Gray was taken aback. "Erza leaving the lead?" he muttered to himself. "Creepy."

"Good. In that case, we'll leave right now. Jet," I said, turning towards him. "Take my meeting point. If anything happens, just meet me there. Meet up here at 9 AM, in six hours. If you're not back by then, I'll consider you're in danger and I'll send everyone."

He simply nodded, then rushed out of the guild.

"I'll get going as well," I said, steeling myself for the journey.

"Haru," Gray started.

I looked at him and nodded. I didn't even need his words. I understood him.

Mira came close, her expression serious. "Listen to me, Haru. If at ANY TIME out there you put yourself in danger, I'll kill you myself," she said, earning smiles from the people around.

I looked at her, then gently placed my hand on her head. "No worries, keep the guild safe," I said, before rushing out.

A/N : Done ! I really hope you liked it. First time seeing angry Haru.

Onto next chapters, with all our beloved members waiting for Haru and Jet's return.

Until then, see ya !

.Nei.