CHAPTER 6: A NEW PLACE

"Walk!"

"Juvia that's.."

"WA-LK!"

"You've been in bad health for past few days. So we.."

"WALK!" Juvia said with a stubborn wolf face.

"Okay. Okay I get it. Geez. Now hide your ears."

"Yayyy!" Juvia jumped around in excitment and so did Natsu who was watching from side lines.

Erza mostly avoided taking Juvia and Natsu out for anything. Mostly she left them home to buy the groceries and stuff. She was always afraid that if she took them out people would somehow find out about them and she didn't even liked to think what would happen after that.

It wasn't that Erza wouldn't always take them out , she did take them to the park or for a walk every now and then but she would always make them wear hoodies and avoided any conversation with people. She even isolated herself for them. Erza always thought she didn't need anyone if she had Juvia and Natsu. They were everything to her.

Erza took them for a walk in the park in afternoon. Wile walking along the track a man who was walking his dog passed by them. The dog started barking at Juvia who held her mother's hand while walking. Horrified Juvia let go of Erza's fingure, got on her fours and started barking back at the dog.

Seeing this the man and Erza both got surprized though both had different reasons. Erza suddenly picked Juvia up and started heading towards the exit in a fast pace. While making their way towards home Erza thought every one was looking at them with surprised and disgusted eyes and whispering about them to each other. Erza became more afraid and horrified than she ever was and started running towards their home and didn't stop until they were safe inside the house.

"Uwaaaaaa... Uwaaaaa... Uwaaaaaa..."

"What time do you think it is?! Stop with the noice!" Erza could hear her neighbours shouting from the other side of the door. It was middle of the night and Natsu had been crying for an hour or two, Erza tried her best to calm him down but she didn't know what to do.

"I am so sorry." Erza bowed infront of her neighbour.

"Every night it's the same thing, for crying out loud!"

"I am really sorry for this." Erza bowed again.

"Teach them some discipline!" The neighbour said with an anger and left.

Erza hurriedly closed the door and made her way back to their room to look after crying Natsu who laid crying beside sleeping Juvia. Erza picked him up and tried her best to calm him that most of the nights Erza would take Natsu and Juvia to the park in the middle of the night whenever Natsu started crying. But that didn't work either.

One night when they were at home and Erza was asleep Natsu and Juvia turned into wolves and a as a mischief they "woo"ed like wolves which Erza tried them to avoid but in the end she got scolded by the manager of that apartment complex.

"It's written in the lease that pets are prohibited in the apartment."

"We don't have any." Erza tried to convince them.

"Don't lie. We'll find out about them. Do you get it, if you do things your own way, you are more than welcome to go some place else you prefer."

That got Erza by surprise.

"From the children consultation center?"

"Yes. Your neighbours are worried the children are in penil." said a man who was standing outside the half opened door with another women.

"What do you mean?" Erza asked feeling a bit afraid. She didn't like the situation.

"Our research shows that your children never had a medical check up or went through immunization, did they?" the woman said coming in front of the half opened door, which was now less than half open, trying to open the door a bit more but Erza didn't let her instead she tried to close the door.

"It's alright. They are healthy." Erza tried to close her door but the women held it from out side.

"If it's ok, we should at least try to take a look at them."

"Well that's..."

"Just for a bit. It's jut to comfirm wht you are saying is true." said the man

"It's not possible." Erza tried to close her door with more force but they held it again from out side.

"If this keeps up, we'll have no choice but to suspect you of ill-treatment and neglect." said the women.

"Please go away." Erza said with anger and this time succeeding in closing the door. Erza leaned her back on the door and sighed. That night she kept up all night thinking the solutions of their increasing problems watching Juvia and Natsu asleep peacefully.

The next day in the early morning near five, when sun was rising, Erza took Natu and Juvia for a walk in the park when it was empty in a way to clear her head. She sat on a bench while thinking. Natsu and Juvia were happily playing infront of her. She looked up and saw giggling Juvia and Natsu chasing each other in their wolf formes. After watching them for a while Erza called out to them.

"Juvia! Natsu!"

"Yes mother." Juvia answered while running towards Erza Natsu following behind.

"What do you want to do from now on?" Juvia and Natsu didn't get her question and stood dumfolded on their feet while they had their wolf appearance.

"To be human or wolf?" Erza tried to explain.

"Huh?" they still didn't get it. Why was their mother asking them that.

"I was thinking of moving.." Erza smiled and looked towards the sky. "to a place you can choose whatever you want."

And with that all of them watched the sunrise completely.

"We'll start with the vacant houses by the town hall." the dealer informed Erza. "We gradually get more people saying they want to live a country life, but they don't stay long."

They were driving through the fields to go towards the country side. There was alot of fresh air. Erza felt refreshed. The scenery of the mountains from afar and the greenery every where made Erza even more satisfied with her decision. She looked towards the back seat and saw Juvia and Natsu sleeping peacefully leaning to each other.

"The elementary schools and hospitals are thirty minutes away by car. And if it's a middle school it's two and a half hour away by one way bus and train. A round trip in five hours." the dealer kept informing Erza. ''Even if you want to raise your kids in good environment, I'd say city is much more convenient option." he shared his personal opinion. Erza couldn't argue with him on that but she had her own reasons.

Erza looked outside her window and saw a bit snowy mountains and some houses at the bottom which matched perfectly to the pictur tht she had in her hand. It was the same picture which Jellal had of the place where he lived.

The dealer showed them the first house which she liked in an instant although it wasn't in a perfect shape.

"It's huge." Erza had a sleeing Juvia on her back and Natsu on her front.

"Although the rent makes this place seem almost free the prise for the repairs would be insane since it's an abandoned house..."

Erza wondered around the house and saw an empty field when the dealer slid open the other front door which was bigger than the previous one.

"Is that a field?" Erza asked jut to confirm.

"Ah! It is. But this place is not suited for self sufficiency. Animals come down from the mountains and damage the fields. Even if you took the time to plant vegetables, they'd just eat them all. The house in this area became empty because the humans around here were driven by them."

"So the neighbour hood?" Erza asked.

"Neighbour hood? No one ever comes down so you won't see them. Would you like to see some place else. Around the village might be more better.."

"I'll take it."

"Huh?!"

"I am taking this house." Erza said with a smile.

And that was beginning of a new start.