It was night time now; the soothing silence of the area was only broken by the quiet chirps of the crickets hiding within the grass. "It's been…a really…really long day…" Lucy said with a heavy sigh while resting on the grass within the forest the group was in after the explosion of the Dealer Hideout. "From dealing with Aiden to Dealer, I thought we'd never get any rest…"
"You're telling me…" Aira said with a nod of agreement. She laid on her back, a sad smile on her face. "It's been a long day indeed…but I'm finally ready to go home. I'm just a little upset that…we'll be going one short…"
"If it wasn't for him…" Erza started. "We wouldn't be here right now...Though; when I look back at that moment…he must've known things were going to play out like that in a way…"
"What makes you say that…?" Diamond asked while rolling her sore arm.
"He went in without hesitation," Erza replied, now thinking back to Ace's final moments. "All to protect us…"
"I don't think it's a good idea to talk about that too much right now…" Lucy said while pointing over to Tia, who was nearby sitting at the base of a tree, Jack right beside her. There was also Lisanna, who couldn't help but be quiet the whole time after things settled down. "I don't know how well they're taking it…"
"It doesn't bother me if that's what you're insinuating!" Jack shouted in a more than usual aggravated tone. He then grunted and began to storm off, while Tia just sat there for a few moments before walking in the opposite direction of Jack.
"Oh…" Diamond sighed, rubbing her head while looking down at the ground. "I've never seen Tia so depressed…and Jack has never been more irritable…"
"No doubt Ace's death has them shaken up more than we think…" Aira replied with a small nod. "Still…I wonder how they got here in the first place…"
"That reminds me…I have questions for Heartless and Daigo…I'll be back later." With a nod, Erza began to walk off.
.
.
"I totally kicked ass!" Natsu said with a wide grin, rubbing the victory over King in Gray, Gajeel, Takeru, Draco and Cygnus' faces. "You should've seen it!"
"You asshole!" Gray shouted; the two immediately butting heads once again. "You only got all the glory because I wasn't there!"
"You mean, because I wasn't there!" Gajeel growled, entering the rivalry fray. "Takin' all the glory for yourselves against Joker! I was supposed to get a piece of the action as well, bastards!"
"You can argue all you want…" Cygnus said while waving a dismissive hand. "If Tak and I had gotten anywhere NEAR the fray, it would've been over before it started."
"He's right about that," Takeru said with a nod. "You just got lucky the door closed before we could get inside."
"White Eclipse would've handled the entire thing," Draco said with a nod.
"You wanna tussle again!?" Natsu said, stepping forward to the two Eclipse mages.
"You can't take us!" Cygnus said, gladly accepting the challenge Natsu threw down.
"You're not leaving us out of this!" Gray said while stepping next to Natsu.
"Pfft!" Gajeel scoffed, stepping next to Gray. "We'll settle this! 3…2…1…!" The six mages all swung at the same time, only to find that their bodies were so wore out the straight punches they were ready to throw gave out midway through and they all just collapsed on the ground. "…This wasn't a good idea."
"When our magic comes back we'll put you in the body bag." Cygnus grunted while laying on the ground.
"Doubt it!" Gray scoffed.
"You want that one shot again?!" Cygnus shouted with a comical tick mark on his forehead.
.
.
"So…what are you planning on doing now…?" Mirajane asked Diamond, Spade, and Strong.
"Oh…" Diamond blinked a few times, rubbing the back of her head. "I never really thought about what I'd do if I left Dealer…"
"The first thing I plan to do is take Spark home…after that, I'm not sure…" Spade said with a shrug.
"I guess this kind of what if wasn't expected…" Strong replied.
"Well…we're all heading back to Magnolia…" Lisanna chimed in. "So…if you want, you three can come with us?"
"I guess we don't really have much of a choice in the matter…" Diamond said with a small smile.
.
.
"There you are…" Sidney said as Erza arrived to a small clearing. There was Gildarts, Reve, Evanee, Heartless, Jack, and Daigo all waiting for her.
"Sorry I'm late, there was something I needed to attend to before this…" Erza said before staring right at Heartless. "So…you have some explaining to do."
"A lot," Reve said while crossing his arms. "Last time we were informed, you were a member of Dealer, not the head captain of Seven's Magic Council."
"Along with your little lap dog…" Evanee said while gesturing to Daigo.
"Now that's just hurtful…" Daigo said with a sigh, hanging his head over in a comically depressed manner.
"Not only that…but Ace told me that you destroyed Seven's Magic Council…what is the meaning of all this…?" Erza said with her eyes narrowing even more.
"Allow me to explain…" Heartless said in a calm voice. "Originally I was a member of Seven's Magic Council, along with Daigo. Being the head captain, I was tasked with the hardest of jobs. It was only natural. My father was the chairman of the Council, and he was the one who tasked me with infiltrating Dealer."
"Well that seems like a pretty rough task if you ask me, considering…" Gildarts began.
"It actually wasn't. This was before Dealer became too large. It was still a threat, don't get me wrong…" Heartless explained. "I did just that, and my cover was well hidden. King found my performance splendid and had me promoted to S class quickly, right alongside Jack and Tia, but still under Joker and Ace at the time. Then, one day, I was tasked with the mission of destroying the Council…I couldn't leave a single member alive."
"So you did?" Sidney inquired.
"Not at first. I went and told my father what I had to do. He told me that no matter what, Dealer had to be stopped at all costs, even if it meant their life. I couldn't do it, but I knew I needed to. So…" Heartless placed a hand over her chest, letting out a soft sigh. "My father called Satan himself. He gladly removed my heart, in exchange for the powers I have now. With that, I also lost the feeling of what love and regret felt like. I did as I was told, and destroyed the Council. Daigo was the only member I ended up salvaging because I knew I would need his strength to defeat Dealer in the long run."
"And as you can see, it ended up working pretty well," Daigo said with a small bow.
"So…my story is genuine," Heartless said with a nod. "Oh…and one more thing? Remember when you all were getting your magic sapped within the miniature base we had you all captured in? The one who let you out was me. I knew you had no way out, and I needed to see how you would fare against Dealer."
"Before you leave..." Erza spoke up. "What happened to Minerva? I know she was with you. I was expecting to fight her."
To that, Heartless shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not sure. King tasked her with defending Nirvana, but only Spade retuned to the base afterward. I suppose she left." After that, she turned on her heel and began to walk off. "I have to report to Queen Vena about all of this. King is out of the picture...and he entrusted me with everything concerning Meteor G. As such, he has no means of hurting anyone anymore."
"Sounds legit," Gildarts said with a shrug.
"No regret…or love? Sounds…believable…" Erza said with a slow nod, now looking to Jack. "And you? What are you and Tia doing here? I'm sure you two were locked up…"
"I came to explain that," Jack said while waving Erza off. "Don't get your panties in a bunch."
{Flashback}
"I have a job for you too…" Siegrain said with slight smirk. "If that's how you really feel, I'll allow you to leave here just to tell King that."
"In other words, you want us to apprehend him." Tia stated while looking up.
"That's correct, my dear," Siegrain nodded, arms crossed behind his back as he turned around. "I'm sure by the time you get there; Fairy Tail and friends will already have done the job."
"You have faith in them?" Tia questioned.
"Not at all," Siegrain replied with a dry chuckle. "I just know that there's too much at stake for them to not win. They're a troublesome bunch when they want to be."
"Whatever…" Jack scoffed, standing up in his cell. "Enough talk, let's get going already. I want to give King and Joker a piece of my mind!"
"Aren't you a pushy one?" Siegrain chuckled lightly at Jack's statement before nodding. "Very well. You have a mission now…and I'll even throw in a bonus; if you bring King back here, or at least come back with Dealer defeated, I'll let you go for a short time."
"Are you allowed to do that?" Tia asked with a brow raised.
"I can do whatever I want," Was the only thing Siegrain replied with. "Though I don't appreciate what your little brother did to Magnolia, it did help draw out the major criminals we were looking for in the long run. Take the offer or leave it, it's your choice."
{End flashback}
"So we're here. By the time we got there, the fighting was already over!" Jack complained. "You worked too quickly."
"We're efficient, what can we say?" Reve said in usual cocky attitude.
.
.
"There you are…!" Luke nearly shouted, walking towards Heartless with a glare in his eyes.
"Luke, wait…!" Selene rushed after Luke, only to slide to a stop right beside him.
"Oh…" Heartless blinked a few times. "I remember you. Luke Cloud…" Luke only clenched a fist as she spoke so nonchalantly to him.
"You…" Luke growled, barely able to contain himself. "I don't care if you're on our side or not…that doesn't change anything that you did."
"What I did…?" It took Heartless a few moments to realize what Luke meant, only for her eyes to widen ever so slightly.
"You know…" Selene said while giving Heartless a slight glare.
"Oh, yes…I remember now…" Heartless nodded slowly, crossing her arms while keeping her gaze dead set on Luke. "I know I have no excuse for it…but I deeply apologize for putting you through such…"
"Shut the hell up!" Luke suddenly shouted, slamming his fist right into Heartless' cheek. Her head snapped violently to the side. Selene knew it was coming, but she didn't think it would be so soon.
"…An event…" Heartless continued while ignoring the pain in her cheek.
"How can you still talk like nothing happened?!" Selene growled, now feeling the urge to punch Heartless herself.
"I truly am sorry…" Heartless replied. She tried to muster up the honesty, but the lack of regret really made it difficult. "I took your loved one away from you…I know words are not enough, but…"
"Tch…Nothing you say or do will ever fix it. She's gone now. She has been for a while…" After saying that Luke turned around and stormed off, Selene following right behind him."
"…I wonder if he feels the same sort of hatred and contempt towards me as I had for King for making me kill those I loved once…" Heartless pondered the thought to herself, a sad smile crossing her face as it actually began to worry her. "If I can cause that feeling in others…maybe I'm no better than King himself…"
.
.
"I didn't think today would ever end…" Cynthia said while sitting next to Wendy in a clear, looking up at the full moon. "But it's finally over…"
"Mhm…" Wendy nodded slowly in agreement.
"I'm sorry I'm such a handful…" Cynthia sighed while dropping her gaze to the grass. "Things would've been a lot easier for you guys if I hadn't been involved…"
"What are you talking about?" Wendy blinked a few times. "There have been a lot of things we wouldn't be able to do without your help, Cynthia!"
"You think so…?" Cynthia slowly brought her gaze up to Wendy's. "Even so…I almost broke the promise I made to you guys. I never got the chance to say anything, but I'm really sorry, Wendy. I didn't mean to scare you."
Wendy shook her head slowly, giving her best friend a genuine grin. "Don't be sorry! I'll admit, I was really scared…but I never stopped believing in you for a second. Really."
"Wendy…" Cynthia bit her lip, feelings her eyes beginning to water. "There's…one more thing that's been bothering me…since the other day."
"Huh…?" Wendy blinked.
"When I was fighting that Future Rogue guy…he showed me what my future was going to look like…and I…" Cynthia choked up the words, unable to believe that she was about to say it. "I…killed you."
"Wh…" Wendy's eyes widened at the information she was just given.
"I'm scared!" Cynthia immediately shouted, still fighting to hold the tears back. "It was in my face…that was me, but not me at the same time…! I don't want to hurt you Wendy…I…"
Wendy shook her head gently, placing her hand atop Cynthia's in a comforting manner. "Cynthia, look at me…"
"Hm…?" Cynthia slowly looked at Wendy, right into her eyes. "Wendy, I…"
"Stop it." Wendy cut Cynthia off. "Just because it's something you saw doesn't mean it's for real! I refuse to believe it's real for even a second…want to know why?" Cynthia nodded slowly. "Because I know that you'd never hurt me intentionally."
"I…" Cynthia was stunned by Wendy's words. She couldn't hold the tears back anymore. She wrapped her arms around Wendy and just began sobbing. The amount of faith they had in each other was truly touching.
"It's okay…I'm right here, Cynthia. I'll always be here for you…" Wendy replied, a soft smile on her lips as she tried to fight back her own tears.
"Y-you have to promise me something…" Cynthia spoke out while continuing to sob. "If I ever go out of control like that again…I want you to use everything you have to take me down, okay…?"
Wendy wasn't sure that she liked the sound of it at first, but she nodded slowly. "Okay, Cynthia…I promise I won't hold back…but I don't plan on losing you again.
Not too far off, Chelia, Carla, Happy, and Pantherlily were listening in on Wendy and Cytnhia's conversation. Chelia clapped her hands together quietly. "Aw…now that's truly love if I've ever seen it…"
"Those two…" Carla said to herself with a slight smile. She then turned to Lily, only to see his eyes watering.
"Truly touching…" Lily said with a firm nod, comically trying to ignore the happy tears he was about to spill.
"Are you about to cry…?" Carla asked with her eyes narrowing.
"Of course not!" Lily responded while turning away. "A warrior never cries!"
"It's okay to cry for love if it's touching!" Chelia replied while patting Lily on the head, but he shooed her hand away.
"It's also okay to cry when the fish gets away from you!" Happy chimed in, though his comment had nothing to do with the conversation at hand in the long run.
"Em…" Chelia merely shrugged. "I suppose so…! Love comes in all sorts of forms!"
"You're too innocent for your own good…" Lily eventually said with a soft smile.
.
.
The members of Twilight Zone sat around a campfire, isolated from the others. With everything said and done, there was but a single question lingering on their minds. "...What do we do now?" Flynn was the one to break that uncomfortable silence. Their guild was destroyed, two of their members, including their Master, dead...
"We can always start trying to rebuild..." Alexander suggested. But that still left a very heavy tension lingering in the air.
"We can nominate who can be the next master...!" Melanie suggested, hopefully.
"...Or we just end it." Evanee said, arms crossed. Once again, her tone made everyone look at her like she was crazy, but she wasn't.
"W-What are you saying, Ev?" Rylo looked at her with concern. "Twilight Zone Zone is our home."
"Was." Evanee closed her eyes. There wasn't a Twilight Zone left.
"Hey, hey!" Taranis shot up, giving Evanee a glare. "What are you trying to say here?! All we gotta do is go back, fix everything up, and...!"
"Do you think that'll be enough?" Evanee kept her eyes closed, but everyone could feel as if she was gazing upon them. "Do you think we were, together, strong enough to stop what Dealer could do? We managed against Nirvana, but in the grand scheme of things...we didn't do anything noteworthy. We aren't strong enough as a group. Maybe Twilight Zone itself is holding the rest of you back from your full potential.
"Are you trying to say we're limiting ourselves by staying here?" Alexander was trying to remain calm about this.
"That's right." Evanee then stood up and turned around. "When we get back to Fiore tomorrow, Twilight Zone will be no more. You're all free to do what you want."
"Wha...!?" Everyone else gasped.
"And maybe one day, when everyone is stronger, including myself...we can meet again. Try a second time." She let those words linger. Of course she cared about the people in Twilight Zone...but she was cursing herself for not being strong enough, or even there when she needed to be the most. If she were...maybe Calesteus and Adacore wouldn't be gone. But the fact she thought 'maybe' was enough to make her feel this way...
.
.
"Hey…" Lucy walked over to Tia, taking a seat right next to the bluenette.
"…What do you want…" Tia mumbled. Her eyes were red and her cheeks were puffed out from all the sobbing she did.
"I just…wanted to see if you were okay…" Lucy muttered quietly.
"Do I look okay…?" Tia snapped before letting out a heavy sigh. She didn't mean to snap, but she hardly had the energy to apologize.
"You can cry on my shoulder if you need to…" Lucy offered, slowly turning her head to glance at Tia.
"Like I'd do that…" Tia replied with a weak scoff. "…My eyes are dried up, anyway. My throat is a little hoarse too…I guess that's to be expected when you've been crying all day…" She then stood up slowly, only to dust her dress off. "Don't even lie, I look like a complete and total mess now, don't I?"
Lucy stood up, facing Tia with a small smile. "We all have our bad days, you know…? I know how hard it must be to lose someone you cared about deeply…."
"Don't act like you know how I feel!" Tia snapped again, for real this time. Without thinking, she took her hand and slapped Lucy across the face. Lucy's head turned to the side, her cheek now a bright red color from the impact. Tia stood wide eyed for a few seconds as she realized what she did pulling her hand back, looking down shamefully at the ground. "I-I…I'm so sorry…I didn't mean to…"
Lucy turned her head back to face Tia, gently placing a hand on her cheek. She winced, the stinging sensation hard to ignore, but she choose to try anyway. "That's quite a hand you have there…" She joked through the pain before continuing with what she was going to say. "When I was younger…just a little girl to be precise…my mother passed away. After that happened…my relationship with my father became so distant…The only friend I had around then was Aquarius, and she didn't like me that much…and still doesn't." Lucy spoke with a sad smile, recollecting all the painful memories. "I ran away from home and ended up joining Fairy Tail thanks to Natsu. But soon after, my father hired the guild Phantom Lord to try and take me back. My friends almost lost their lives, but we somehow made it through. Later…I confronted my father and told him how I felt about the whole thing. I'm sure you heard about our disappearance for seven years? Well…after I came home, I learned that he died…but he always kept me in his thoughts…"
"Why are you telling me this…?" Tia questioned.
"Because I want you to know that you aren't alone," Lucy replied in a soft tone. "I've lost people I care about too…It's never a good idea to keep your emotions to yourself when it comes to these things, you know…? It's always good to have a friend to talk to…we've all lost someone important to us…but we have each other, so we can make it through."
"What are you insinuating…?" Tia bit her lip nervously.
"I'm saying I want to be your friend." Lucy replied with a firm nod.
"….!" Tia's eyes widened at Lucy's request. She never even considered the idea of having an actual friend before.
"You don't have to answer right now," Lucy replied while closing her eyes slowly, beginning to hum a soft tune. "Hm…Hmmm…hmmm hmm…"
"Huh…?!" Tia immediately looked up at Lucy. "What…what is that…? Why are you humming…!?"
"Whenever I was crying…" Lucy began while continuing the soft melody. "My mother would always hum this tune…it calmed me down right away. It was always her way of saying everything would be okay in the end…"
"You…" Tia could feel her eyes watering up again, which she thought would be impossible. Her bottom lip quivered shortly before she just began sobbing all over again, more tears spilling from her eyes. "I hate you…!" she said the first thing that came to her mind, but she didn't mean it. That much was clear as she just clung to Lucy, since she was the closest thing around, all while the celestial mage continued the soft tune.
.
.
"The ship's all ready to go out!" Ichiya exclaimed to the group. "When do you want to leave?"
"Can we wait until tomorrow morning?" Waiston said. "I'm still wiped, and I think I might actually go down if I have to ride that thing one more time…"
"I agree…!" Melanie nodded a few times, rather vigorously.
"Catch a good night's sleep then, everyone," Hibiki said with a nod. "We've got a long trip back, and I'm sure everyone will be happy to see us back."
Next time: Victory Celebration!