Hello! And thaaank you guys for your reviews! I really appreciate them so much!
I'm sorry if the last chapter seemed ooc, but people in mourning or around those tend to behave a little differently (for the better or the worse...). Sorry if it seemed confusing with the focus so much on Meredy an Jellal and don't worry, there's no competition when it comes to Jerza - it was not my intention, I apologise.
In any case, thanks so much again for letting me know what you think and I hope you'll enjoy the chapter!
"Lucy said her father died not too long ago… It's… odd how comforting that is. I feel kinda bad but it just gives me courage," Meredy stared into her tea. Erza's lids dropped slightly, watching her with understanding. "Everyone's an orphan, but no one is alone," the pink-haired mage smiled her usual cheery smile. It was wonderful to have it back.
Erza nodded.
"It connects us," she agreed, "and we have Master now," she added with a smile to herself.
"I never knew Wendy had lost her entire guild in one day," Meredy went on. She was still hyped from the day before.
"It was very harsh, yes," Erza gravely said.
"I have to admit, I felt a little stupid about my own problems for a moment,"
"You shouldn't – nothing compares," Erza met her eyes, receiving consent.
"I know, I know. It's just… you're all so strong and… fine with your hardships,"
"That doesn't mean yours are not just as burdening," Erza said. She sipped her own tea and they fell silent for a moment. The fuchsias outside the window nodded in the light morning breeze. The sky was cloudy, promising rain. The house was a pleasant temperature but Erza started to wonder what they would do in winter. Did they have a heater? There was no fireplace, that much she knew.
"How is your guild, then? Were they relieved with the arrest of the Dark Guild we took care of?" She asked. She put down her cup, throwing another glance out the window. She was starting to get hungry.
"As talkative as always," Meredy grinned lopsidedly with a shrug, "I don't hear a lot from them apart from Richard." She said, having to review who he was as his true name was not too known. 'Hoteye' rang a bell and Erza could picture him well, alongside the face of his brother – her childhood friend Wally.
"Jellal said he works without magic now,"
"Yeah, in a café. He's really happy there,"
"It's hard to imagine," Erza smiled with a frown and Meredy nodded.
"We thought so, too, but you change your mind once you see him. I visited him there once or twice and he really loves his job. The lack of danger and hurt, being able to bring joy to others… it fulfils him,"
"That's a very admirable goal," Erza nodded. She peeked out onto the street again. Still no sign of him – and with that, her breakfast. They still had several slices of cake – not to mention ingredients for dozens of meals and recipes – but she had dreamed of omelette and since they were out of eggs, Jellal had had to leave for the market.
"What about the others?" She asked, sipping her cup when she noticed Meredy's sly smirk at her searching gazes. It would sound wrong if she defended herself by saying she was only hungry, so she remained silent about it.
"Sorano joined her sister in Sabertooth, I forgot her name,"
"Yukino,"
"Right," Meredy nodded. She put a finger to her chin in thought, eyes wandering upwards, "Macbeth and Sawyer will probably want to keep working with magic, too. I don't know if they have any guild in particular in mind,"
"Perhaps they'll make their own," Erza suggested.
"Could be," Meredy said. She looked back down when noticing how Erza's hand wandered to her thigh, scratching over the bandage. She winced when receiving a light kick. "Don't, he'll be upset," Meredy winked. Sighing, Erza rolled her eyes, putting her hands back on the table. Her leg still itched but she restrained from rubbing it against the other.
"What about Cobra?" She asked, also to distract herself. The wound still made her feel dizzy from time to time.
"I think he's kidnapped Cubellios – eh, Kinana – on a world tour or something. Whatever he'll do will be with her," Meredy pointed out.
"Perhaps she'll ask him to join Fairy Tail," Erza pondered out loud. She sat up straight when the front door finally opened.
"I've thought about that, too," Meredy approved, "but then there won't be a single secret unheard in Magnolia," she smirked, triggering an awkward grimace which made her laugh.
"Erik?" Jellal asked as he entered the kitchen.
"Yeah," Meredy affirmed. She giggled again upon catching sight of the tiny white feathers on his coat and in his hair. Erza's eyes shone with the same amusement. She wanted to stand, remembering that she was not allowed to walk, waving him down instead.
He put down the carton of eggs, then obeyed. Thinking she was just in the need of affection, he placed a kiss on the top of her head as greeting. She smiled, grabbing the front of his coat before he could retreat. He watched as her hand travelled to his hair, giving a sheepish grin when she plucked out a down, raising a brow.
"The farmer had a chicken with him and it escaped," he explained himself.
"And you tackled the poor thing?" She teased while picking off more and more.
"I almost chased it through someone's front yard but luckily remembered to use bind snake,"
"On a chicken,"
"That's what the spell was originally intended for," he said matter-of-factly and had Meredy's grin not stretched until her ears, Erza would have almost fallen for it.
"Of course," she shot him a look and he pressed his lips together in poorly hidden glee.
"Omelette?" He asked, going back to the counter.
"Yes, please," she smiled widely. Her stomach rumbled as if in response to his offer, making him chuckle. "With tomatoes,"
"Mhm,"
"And cheese," she ordered, hearing with content how the fridge opened and closed. The bowl clinked when he stirred and a few moments later, butter sizzled in a pan, then spluttered with the added egg and milk. "Do we have pears?" Erza asked, watching him. Switching places had been a marvellous idea – she could stare at him all she wanted from her new spot.
"Ehm," Jellal poked into the pan a few times, then eyed the racks in the fridge, "no," he informed.
"Hm…" she hummed. Once they had come to her mind, she could not help but think how perfect a pear would be at that moment. Trying all of those special cakes had really fired up her appetite for more variations instead of the usual strawberry diet.
She sighed to herself. It did not go unnoticed.
Jellal turned, catching the eyes of his guildmate. She blinked at him, understanding. Getting up, she took the chopsticks from him, working them around the edges of the stiffening egg.
"Anything else you would like?" He asked, making Erza look up. She melted into his caring smile, returning it warmly. "Grapes, maybe," she licked her lips in thought, "and can we make pumpkin soup sometime?" She beamed up at him when he already collected his wallet again, buttoning up the coat he had not yet been given the time to take off anyway.
"Anything," he kissed her temple, stroking over her head once before leaving.
"Meredy?"
"I'm good," she declined. The front door closed shortly after. Erza sighed again, this time more deeply and with content.
"Gosh, you're cute," Meredy shook her head, nearly unbelievably.
"Isn't he, though?" Erza raved.
"To think you could wait this long…"
"I don't think we would have if we'd known," Erza admitted. There was no way in hell she would ever allow this to end, not after everything. Not after getting to know just how wonderful it was. How much she truly loved him. "Meredy?"
"Hm?" The pink-haired mage had her tongue stuck out as she tried to roll up the egg against the side of the pan. It fell apart so she just dumped it onto a plate.
"When will you join?" She asked, momentarily distracted when her breakfast arrived, excitedly picking up her cutlery.
"Your harem? Eh, I don't think that's my thing, really," Meredy shrugged, the spark in her eyes telling that she knew what the actual topic was. She sighed then, turning back to the stove to fry the next one. Cooking seemed such a valuable replacement action in the house whenever Erza confronted people with questions.
She waited. Both did.
"When he does," Meredy finally said. It sounded indisputable but there was a hint of rue in her voice.
"You don't have to wait for him," Erza said with emphasis. Also because if she did not, she would not be understood with all the egg in her mouth.
"I will." Meredy simply said. Her shoulders sank a little when she was not busy and she actually turned around to lean against the counter and face her counterpart, unlike someone else who would avoid her eyes whenever there was a more complex topic. "To be honest," another difference between them, though he as working on it, "if you – or they – had asked me yesterday evening, I would have said 'yes' on the spot. I was so happy," she smiled softly, "and I still am, I don't want this to end.
"But I want to wait for him." She looked up to meet brown eyes. "I think he'd be more comfortable if he was not the only 'newbie'. You'll take good care of him, I know that, but I want to do my part and I really think it's both supportive to join together, as well as putting on pressure to actually join," she winked, brightening the mood again. It really was her signature attribute.
Erza nodded thoughtfully.
"You're right," she said, watching how Meredy poked the egg. Jellal was so much faster in serving her. She kicked herself inwardly for being this impatient. And greedy. "But remember that you don't have to – you're not responsible for his happiness," she lectured.
It was a burden to be the sole source of someone's happiness; no one should ever see themselves as that. And no one should ever demand it of someone. It was a burden already, having to be the reason for this depressed man to live, however much she loved him and however much she wanted to be just that. That light.
"I know," Meredy turned with the pan, loading up Erza's plate, "but I want to do this. I… want to do it together," she admitted, hiding her face back at the stove. "I want to go on our first mission as Fairy Tail Wizards together," she smiled to herself.
The advancing autumn brought cold winds and shivers down the spine with it – and a new tradition: showering, opening the windows for the steam to dissolve and then quickly smuggling right back into bed to keep warm as long as they ventilated.
Jellal was extra careful with her wounds but Erza loved showering all the more when he joined. She laughed at every new idea he had for her not to stand on the injured leg, ranging from piggyback rides to a chair right beneath the showerhead.
Now under the sheets, smelling of shampoo and the freshly washed clothes he had put on, Erza giggled constantly. He rubbed her hair dry, as much as possible, furrowing his brows and cursing whenever accidentally crinkling the blanket instead.
"You know I consider discipline very important, but I do appreciate our little escapes here and there," she grinned as they switched roles. He always frowned in her stead when she dried his hair, making her vibrate with another chuckle. Not that they could see much beneath the countless sheets.
"It's not lacking discipline, it's self-care," Jellal said with a sly smile of his own.
"Even better," she gasped, pretending to be blown away by his thinking. She yelped when his finger scolded her with a poke in her side.
"Look at it this way – you have to do it because you know that I wouldn't do it myself," he reminded.
"Is that your excuse now or mine?" She asked and they both laughed.
"I know, I won't," Erza assured when he asked for what felt like the tenth time that day that she should not overdo it.
"Then go back to-"
"I'm just standing here, Jellal, I'm not even touching the ground," she pointed to her injured leg, her toes barely brushing the wooden flooring. He frowned. It looked very uncomfortable. "I can stand just fine," she repeated, also for the tenth time, giving him a look. He sighed and she let her features soften.
"Okay. But then you'll go back to bed," he said and she slapped his arm with the carrot peel she had just removed. He smiled back at her playful smirk, resting his hands on her sides for a moment. Leaning down, he felt her shoulders sink at the contact of his lips on her own.
"Don't put it down," he teased, receiving more carrot peel slaps. She lifted her leg, stealing another kiss before letting him go.
He left with a grin on his face that he did not notice until he saw the excitedly adoring one of his guildmate where she waited at the edge of town.
"I can go alone, you know," Meredy offered like she often did.
"I know," he said, gravel crunching beneath his boots, "but I spent a lot on all of that cake and I promised Erza a day at the Onsen when her leg is healed,"
"Is this new?" She asked, absently taking the thickly padded fabric of his coat between her fingers. He nodded while she inspected his attire, giving comments to which he did not answer. He pretended the light blush on his cheeks to originate in the cold air, walking on while she ranted.
Secretly, he glowed with more warmth than his new clothes could give – they were all picked out by Erza, making him happy and proud to wear them, however ordinary they looked.
"…so cute, it's like a fairy tale. I can't believe I've missed so much – I mean, I'd never even seen you kiss before then," Meredy babbled as they walked, "and how you cook and spend all your money for cake – it's just adorable. I bet the confession was the most romantic and enchanting thing ever," she chattered.
"What?" Jellal frowned with puzzlement, finally turning to her. Meredy looked just as confused at his reaction.
"Your confession," she repeated, "when you finally told her – I mean, now you probably tell each other all the time…" she said, fading out when he stopped dead in his tracks. He stared at nothing for a moment. Meredy tilted her head. She gasped when he spun around, calling after him as he broke into a run.
"Jellal!" Meredy's voice echoed but he did not halt.
Running – sprinting back as fast as he could, Jellal felt his stomach lurch while his feet flew across the cobblestone, threatening to stumble and fall. He did not know whether his legs or the pounding of his heart was faster.
He ignored the stares he got in the streets, hardly registering the people, even when he nearly knocked some over. His lungs burnt, all the way up to his throat, his mouth dry and scratching painfully. His chest was about to burst when he skidded into a halt, slumping into the door while his quivering hand tried desperately to ram the key into the lock.
The door flew open, banging against the wall, startling her.
Erza turned from where she still stood in the kitchen, yelping in shock when he almost ran her over, gasping at the tight hug with which he squished her against him. Her elbow hit a glass on the counter, chipping in the sink.
She waited for a moment, frozen.
"Did you forget something?" She quietly asked, giving a pressed breath when he squeezed her tighter, forcing the air out of her lungs. His chest heaved against hers.
"Yes," he panted, almost desperately, "yes, I have," Jellal gasped for air. He let her go, cupping her face with both hands, kissing her hard. Erza gave a muffled hum of surprise, eyes huge, then fluttering close. Gradually, his movements softened and she melted into them, tilting her chin up to meet his hungrily tender kiss.
"I forgot to tell you," he wheezed, arms winding around her again, holding her close, tightening. Still dazed and confused, Erza frowned, not knowing how to react.
"Jellal…?" She asked with concern but he could not talk just yet, panting. "Tell me what?"
"I love you, Erza," her eyes widened. "I love you, I love you, I love you," he repeated. She stared at nothing for a moment. Slowly, her hands came up, grasping the fabric of his coat. They tightened their grip, tears welling up in her eyes. He felt them, warmly seeping through to his shirt from his uncovered neck, unable to keep his own eyes from itching.
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you before," he breathed. She breathed back, shakily.
"It was rather evident," she managed in a wobbly voice. She was smiling into him, pushing her face against his collarbone. More and more tears soaked his coat.
"I'm glad,"
"Me too…" she sighed, then again, deeply, just breathing as she fell into him. "I love you, too… so much…"