Mira woke up with sore muscles.

What the hell...

As well as the purple-tinted sky that signaled it was already dusk and soon-to-be nightfall.

He was supposed to wake me up!

Mira frowned as she sat up. Her new set of bandages clung to her skin as she glanced around the campsite. Her narrowed eyes quickly landed on Vera, Lisanna, and Elfman. The trio was sitting around the crackling campfire and staring at something on the ground between them with a mournful silence.

What are they doing?

Mira furrowed her brows as she quietly got out of bed, standing up and ready to raise hell after not being woken up on time, only to freeze. Her eyes widened, and her head quirked in surprise as she saw what everyone was looking at. It was a small image drawn on paper, a blob about as illegible as conceivably possible, but if she had to guess...

"Is that a dog?"

Her voice cut through the quiet air as Lisanna and Elfman turned around in surprise. Mira caught their initial reactions and was glad to see they looked alright, although it was surprising to see Lisanna's shoulders slump in disappointment at her words. Mira was about to ask what was wrong but got distracted by the odd sight. Elfman approached her and told her they were playing a game where they all tried to guess Lisanna's drawing. Meanwhile, Lisanna sulked after failing to get the correct guess for her intended sketch.

"Why does everyone think it's a dog?" Lisanna murmured as she kicked the dirt sadly. Turning away from Mira's surprised expression, she returned to sit near Vera, who held up her paper and said with a smirk, "You could always just say it was a dog."

"That's cheating, though."

"So, Sho cheats all the time," Vera said with a shrug, feeling pretty glad that Sho was dormant; otherwise, the shadow would've smacked him in the head. It had been a week, and Vera had kept Sho active almost constantly to keep an eye on the younger Strausses and guard while they all slept. The time between training and nightfall was the perfect opportunity to let him recharge.

Speaking of which... I should check on him.

Vera tugged on his magic container, letting Sho reform as his shadow stretched along the ground and circled the paper like it was inspecting it. It only needed a few seconds before it carved something into the dirt and glanced at Lisanna expectantly.

Draw slower and try to hold the pencil lighter next time.

A second passed as Sho tilted his head in thought before carving one last message and returning to dormancy to get some more rest.

Also, a bear does not have a long tail.

Vera chuckled as he heard Lisanna gasp next to him. He then sent Sho an extra 'Have a nice nap' message and returned it to the budding artist. Now that he knew Sho was recharging nicely, he could poke a little fun at the tiny mage in training.

"You know, I think you're bear-"

"Is wonderful. That's what you were going to say, right, Vera?" Mira cut through his words with a thinly hidden threat as she sat beside him and jabbed her elbow into his side. Vera grunted but remained unfazed as he glanced at Mira before deciding to cut his losses and play along. "It's better than Sho's used to be."

Although that's a low bar to pass.

Vera chuckled at the thought before he glanced at Lisanna, who seemed to blink in surprise. Her mouth gaped slightly, and a slight grin stretched across her face. Then she nodded furiously and tried her hand out at another drawing. Elfman sat beside her as the four sat near the campfire, breaking into separate conversations. Elfman and Lisanna talked about the drawing while Mira asked Vera what had happened while she was asleep.

"Why the hell didn't you wake me up?"

Very angrily, might he add.

"It's practically nighttime already," Mira frowned, watching as Vera rolled his eyes and not so subtly pointed to Lisanna, "I forgot. She kept asking me about magic, and I lost track of time."

"Really?" Mira asked before glancing over to Lisanna and Elfman, who talked about magic. Or, more accurately, Lisanna was talking about magic, and Elfman was listening. His face was pensive yet carried a hidden 'interest' underneath his timid expression. In contrast, Lisanna's face was bright with desire. Her unyielding joy about everything magical was etched into her bright blue eyes.

"I didn't know she wanted to learn magic so bad."

Suppose Mira had known that. She would have tried to help them. She didn't see much, but she knew the basics Vera had taught her after learning that her magic was Take Over Magic. Lisanna was reciting the same basics to Elfman while her eyes stayed glued to her drawing as she sketched a new animal and tried to make it perfect.

"Magic is about will."

The world had an infinite supply of ethernano, and when humans absorbed it, just as everything in Earthland did, they could turn it into magic via their magic containers. Everyone could consciously activate magic, but the methods of doing so varied. Some chose the traditional way, through a magic book sprinkled with meditation. Others unlocked it through trauma or surgery. A few naturally did it as they aged, but no matter what, everyone had a chance to activate magic.

"Magic and will are intrinsically intertwined."

Those few who used said magic to its fullest potential, beyond the small conveniences it offered in everyday life, were called mages.

"That's the most basic concept of magic."

Mira was confident that Lisanna would be an excellent mage one day. The way she kept her eyes glued to the page, her tongue poking out ever so slightly as she kept her concentration dead set on drawing a new drawing, was proof of her desire, but there was still one thing Mira didn't understand.

"So... Why is Lisanna suddenly into drawing?"

Mira glanced back at Vera, titling her head curiously as he groaned and looked up at the sky like he regretted everything, "She's practicing."

"Practicing for what?"

"For when she makes her own Sho," Vera said with a dry chuckle as she saw Mira's eyes widen in surprise. Her jaw dropped as she asked, suddenly intrigued, "Can she do that?"

"I have no clue."

"You really are no help, you know that."

"Hey, I told her what I could. I can't help that I don't know how I created Sho."

Vera had no fucking clue how he created Sho. If he even created Sho, it was still up for debate. It was his innate magic, for crying out loud; the whole point was that he wasn't thinking when he first activated it. He didn't read a book on magic and attempt to create it like one did when they traditionally learned magic. He learned it naturally. Same as Siegrain and probably the same as Mira.

He wanted magic, and Sho was the result.

"I have no clue if Lisanna can make her own."

Vera was in the dark as anyone else regarding how his magic worked or came to be. Sho wasn't any help either; whenever the topic came up, Sho never gave a straight answer. The closest Vera had gotten was a 'not important' immediately followed by a 'stop being nosey.' This message was immediately followed by Sho being moody for the rest of the day and Vera deciding not to bring it up again, which was unfortunate for Lisanna because he couldn't help her on her quest.

"If she can figure it out, I'll be the first to ask her how she did it."

Lisanna would have to be on her own when creating her own Sho.

"Hopefully, she gives it a good name, though. Her options so far have been atrocious." Vera added with a sigh, peeking his eyelid open to see Mira huff defensively from next to him. "Oh, come on, she can't be that bad with names."

"Sho the second."

"...that isn't terrible."

"Sho junior."

"...she's paying homage?"

"Mr. Bunny."

"Okay, that one's just weird," Mira replied with a defeated sigh. Mira ignored Vera's chuckle as she glanced at the new drawing Lisanna was attempting, and a thought crossed her mind: "Wait. Why is she drawing animals if she wants to make a Sho?"

"She says she wants her Sho to be animal friendly."

"That's... oddly specific?"

"I know, right?" Vera said with a slight chuckle as he tilted his head back to Mira, gestured towards the fire, and drew her attention to the shadows flickering off the logs. " I'm pretty sure it's because Sho likes destroying her shadow puppets."

"Oh, those?" Mira said with a slight grin, moving her fingers together as she tried to make her own. Her shadow contorted to a mishandled dog head against the fire's backlight as she groaned, "I've been trying to do them, but they never work right."

"Why not ask Lisanna?"

"Can't, big sis clause," Mira huffed as she gave up on her creation and put her head on her knees. Turning her head towards Vera, she asked curiously, "Hey, can you teach me how to do them?"

"It'll cost you."

"Cheapass," Mira clicked her tongue as she stood to go get a jewel or two from her bag, stilling as Vera gently put a hand on her arm to stop her, "Not money, dumbass. I'm not trying to rob you."

"Could've fooled me," Mira rolled her eyes as she shook Vera's hand off and sat back down. Then, she asked, "What do you want, then? A conscience."

"An introduction."

"Eh?" Mira asked with a confused tilt, her eyes quirking as Vera gave a sly smile and offered a pleasant expression, "When you join Fairy Tail, give me a proper introduction."

"Why would you need that? It seems a little excessive, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, but I'm from Phantom Lord," and insanely 'popular' right now was something he chose not to add, "It'll be weird if I just show up unannounced and check out a rival guild. They might see it as me picking a fight with them. I don't want that."

Vera wanted to avoid that if at all possible. He would have found a way around it if he had been going on his own, but now that he had the Strausses with him, it was a perfect opportunity to snip that alarming possibility in the bud: "It doesn't have to be long. Just tell them that I was your escort to Magnolia. That's all."

"So they know you're sincere."

"Exactly," Vera said with a nod, watching as Mira thinned her lips and thought over the offer before giving a slight shrug. "Sure, I don't see why not. If that's all I have to do, I probably would have done it anyway when you took me there."

"Great," Vera grinned as he tapped his forearm against Mira's demonic one, not noticing her stunned expression as he tilted his head back to the front of the fire and held his hands out.

"Alright."

Vera had learned a bit of shadow puppetry from Sho over the years. It made their animal guessing game more interesting when both had a chance to think.

"Let's start with a dog."

Might as well put it to good use.

Lisanna wanted pencils to be reinvented.

Why does it always smudge...

Or replace her hands with ones that could draw instead of scratchy lines.

This is so difficult.

Lisanna huffed as she put her paper down, her arms crossed as she looked at her new creation—a wonder dog with a flower background—before glancing at Elfman, who was looking at it with utter disbelief.

"A... whale stuck in a cave?"

Lisanna's expression fell to stone as she tossed the paper into the fire. Her hands were already moving to the next one as she tried to make a new picture. The pencil dulled in her hand as she heard Elfman sigh from beside her, "I don't get it, Lisanna. What's the point of this, again?"

Elfman still didn't get why she wanted to learn this so badly. He didn't get why she wanted her own Sho. That would be too scary, but more than that, he didn't get why she was so determined. He didn't understand why she kept her eyes on the drawing as she replied with a small sigh, "I already told you, Elfman. I have to make sure my Sho is animal-friendly."

"Okay?" Elfman said uncertainly, his eyes tilted at the picture as he spoke with a small hopefulness, "Ooh, so you want to make it into a rabbit, right?"

Elfman could get behind that. Sho was scary, a rabbit was cute and fuzzy. Sadly, her response was negative and quick as lighting.

"No."

Elfman pouted as his idea was struck down before Lisanna added as a cheery afterthought, "I'm going to make it turn into a bunch of rabbits!

Lisanna wanted her Sho to be able to transform into a bunch of animals. She wanted it to transform like the shadow puppets Sho had taught her how to do: "Then I'm going to make it into a bunch of birds! Oh! Butterflies, too!"

Lisanna couldn't help it; she was just so excited about creating something of her own. Of turning an idea into something magical.

"I want to make something that can turn into all the animals of the forest."

Lisanna couldn't explain it, and she couldn't find the words. Logically, she knew she couldn't make something that felt as... well as alive as Sho, but she wanted to make something close.

"I don't know how Sho works or how he was made."

Lisanna didn't know, and even Vera didn't know. That's why she wouldn't be too hung up if she couldn't make a perfect replica as long as it was close.

"I just know that I want something like it."

She would be satisfied if she created something she liked as much as Sho. So she kept drawing, aware she might hit a dead end because she wanted something she couldn't see yet.

What is Sho made of...

To try to piece the puzzle together so she could make her own version.

He's made of Vera's magic.

From what Vera had told her in their earlier lecture, excluding the few newer things he didn't want to show her because he said it would be too violent, Sho could attach to any surface, which was obvious because shadow, but could also come out of it and become tangible. However, he was much slower out of a surface than on one.

How did Vera make Sho...

Then, there were some other abilities. If Sho's limbs sprouted from Vera's body, he could slightly boost Vera's speed or power. He could even become a living sword if the situation called for it. It could hold things in its shadow world at the cost of speed. It could also drag Vera into its shadow world, too. Then, it could carry him around for as long as Vera could hold his breath and spit him out somewhere nearby.

I want to know.

There were also things Sho couldn't do or refused to do. He couldn't exist without some of Vera's magic because Sho couldn't replenish its own. Then, Sho either couldn't or refused to change shape outside the surfaces it rested on. Oh! Then there was the fact that if Sho didn't like what Vera told him, he wouldn't do it. That was funny. Now that she thought about it, it was also a little weird. Was someone's magic supposed to be able to not listen to its owner?

What makes Sho so unique?

Maybe it was a part of Sho's charm.

Besides being super sweet.

Lisanna giggled at the thought as she got halfway through her drawing. She wanted to draw a wolf this time because the dog was too big. It would work if she did a wolf, which was like a giant dog. All the while, she played with her earlier thoughts.

It's actually pretty cool that Sho can deny an order if he wants to.

Vera made that abundantly clear. Sho automatically protected Vera from most threats, but besides that, Vera usually had to ask Sho to do something, and he would do it. Or think of something, and Sho would catch on and preemptively complete whatever task Vera wanted him to do. Sometimes, though, Sho got bored or didn't want to listen and refused to do something.

It's like he's trying to push Vera's buttons.

Lisanna wouldn't say she condoned that behavior, but she also wouldn't say she enjoyed watching Vera beat the tar out of Mira every day. So, she was a little grateful for Sho's ability to occasionally mess with Vera as payback.

Sho's so much fun.

Lisanna giggled as she drew the finishing touches on her drawing. She liked Sho so much. He was always super funny and super helpful. He could even help her with shadow puppets and carry her around without getting tired. Oh! Then he could get her apples from the top of the trees she couldn't reach. Sho was just so convenient to have around.

It's too bad Vera doesn't know how to create more.

Lisanna could be in literal heaven if Vera created a bunch of other Sho's for her to play with. Oh! She might even be allowed to name some!

Let's see. If he made a tall Sho, he would be Shotall. Big Sho is Shobig, and Small Sho is Shosmall.

Lisanna giggled at the thought of a tiny Sho running around the campfire. Her eyes were alight as she finished drawing and turned her paper towards Elfman, who looked at it with a slight frown before crushing her excellent mood in a single sweep.

"Bear?"

Lisanna would have to ask Sho for more drawing tips later.

For someone who could destroy a tree with a single swing, Mira was pretty terrible at using her hands.

"That's the worst dog I've ever seen."

"Shut up!" Mira hissed embarrassedly as she tried to put her hands in the correct position. Only to hiss as her demonic fingers, more prominent than the human ones, messed up the shape, "This stupid demon arm is getting in the way."

"Lame."

"Oh yeah, what about yours," Mira said with a humph as she pointed to Vera's attempt at a rabbit that had been messed up towards the ears. A grin crawled on her face as Vera flushed and muttered under his breath, "Hey, I'm trying. It's hard to learn from Sho's bigass claws."

"Lame."

"Shut up," Vera replied halfheartedly as he tried making his stupid rabbit again. Internally debating whether he should have Sho come out and help him out before he heard Mira groan and give up, before plopping onto her back next to him and looking up at the sky, "This sucks. I'll ask Sho later."

"Wow, my self-esteem is through the roof right now," Vera said dryly with a sarcastic drawl. He also chose to give up before plopping down on his back and looking up at the dusk-lit sky. Vera traced a nearby cloud before Mira spoke from beside him with a near-pensive tone, "Hey Vera..."

She sounded deep in thought, an observation that was proven correct only a few seconds later, as Mira asked a question that threw Vera for a loop.

"Will Fairy Tail accept us?"

Oh, how the irony.

"My parents always said Fairy Tail was wonderful," Mira said with a tense voice that teetered between hope and fear. Her eyes chose to linger on the sky as she tried to keep herself calm, "I want to believe them. I do, I just don't... I don't-"

She failed. Her voice cracked as she tried to hold it in because she couldn't think about it.

"I don't know what I'll do if it ends up not being true."

Mira couldn't bear to think of all she'd been through, of all she'd put her family through, to have it be for nothing, to have her one wish, her one hope, be false. She would break if she showed up with her siblings, and they called her a monster, too.

"I don't know what I'll do, Vera."

That thought petrified her. That lingering doubt and insecurity ate at her as she looked at the dusk-lit sky and tried to forget about it. She wanted to let it fade from her mind as she waited for Vera's answer, only for it to come with a confidence she didn't expect.

"Fairy Tail will accept you guys."

There wasn't a single hint of doubt in Vera's voice.

"They're a guild that treats its members like family. They're a guild where anyone..." A pause in Vera's voice caught her attention, only for it to pass before she could ask about it, "where nearly anyone could go and be happy."

Mira's gaze shifted from the sky, surprised to see Vera looking into it somberly. His eyes widened as he spoke honestly, "You and your family will be happy there. I don't have a single doubt that Fairy Tail will accept you."

It looked like he was swimming in memories that exhausted him.

"So don't worry about it, Mira," Vera finished as he let out a bittersweet tone and traced a new cloud without a hint of worry, "You'll all be fine."

Vera had no doubt that the Strausses would be fine. They were good people, and Fairy Tail wouldn't have a reason not to accept them.

"Besides..."

Even if they weren't accepted for some insane reason, it would still be fine.

"If they don't accept you guys, I'll just drag you back to Oak Town, and you can join Phantom Lord," Vera said with a shrug. He tilted his head back to see Mira looking at him with a shocked expression. Her voice came out in a surprised murmur. "You..."

Mira tried to find the words she was missing. Her voice became shaky as she gulped and nodded, her head lowered to hide tears that threatened to escape her eyes. Her voice trembled as she spoke genuine and utter gratitude: "Thank you."

Mira was scared of so much.

"Thank you for helping us."

She couldn't explain how relieved she felt not to be scared of her family's future.

"No problem, Mira," Vera said with a low murmur, respectfully not looking at Mira as she pulled her emotions back on track. Vera took a breath and talked to fill the air and give her a chance to recover. "Like I said, Fairy Tail will accept you, but worst comes to worst. I'll convince Jose to let you in."

Honestly, he might not even have to do that. If Vera brought Mira, of all people, into Oak Town, Jose would jump on the chance to recruit her. There was the whole age limit thing, but Vera was confident Jose would make an exception if it came down to it. Lisanna and Elfman might have to wait a few years to join, but Jose would account for that.

He gave Siegrain and me an apartment for blowing up a building. He'd at least give them an allowance.

Vera hummed at the thought. His attention caught as Mira spoke with a more transparent, lighter voice that signaled her emotional moment had passed. "That's good, although I don't know how excited I would be to meet your 'asshole' teacher."

"Wow, sarcasm, how refreshing," Vera said with a roll of his eyes as he turned to see Mira giving him a smug grin that got a small smile out of Vera as he spoke, "Can't say I blame you, though."

Jose was a bastard to meet for the first time.

"Jose doesn't make the best first impressions."

"Oh? Then how'd you first meet him?" Mira asked with a curious tilt of her head, her eyes rising to her brows as Vera spoke with a dead tone, "Sho stole his shitty merchandise, so he beat the shit out of us."

Vera chuckled as he remembered that day, choosing not to address Mira's downright shocked/concerned expression as he spoke with a nostalgic tone, "He offered to let us join Phantom Lord afterward."

Vera had been a part of Phantom Lord for what, three years? It was at least two.

"Oak Town was the perfect place to live, and the pay was pretty good," Vera wanted to add 'for our crippling debt' but chose not to, "So I said yes."

He was surprised by how much he'd enjoyed it.

"The rest is history," Vera said with a slight shrug, his attention taken as Mira asked with a curious tone, "Is Oak Town that great a place to live?"

"It's the best," Vera replied instantly with a slight grin. His voice dipped into a bit of excitement because Oak Town, indeed, was the best part of Phantom Lord, "It's quiet, the view at the top of the hill is the best, there's a big Halloween festival, and the food is fucking great."

Oak Town had pretty much everything.

"Apparently, there was even a meteor shower last year," Vera added as he saw Mira's jaw drop, her words hitting the air with a dreamy tint. "Seriously? How long was it? What was it like?"

Mira loved the stars. They were one of the most beautiful things to look back on in the village, and a meteor shower sounded amazing.

"I've never seen one before."

Mira would kill to see a meteor shower in real-

"Oh, neither have I."

Vera's voice pulled Mira out of her daydreams. Her head tilted in confusion as she watched Vera shrug and explain, "I just know it happened."

Vera remembered that day pretty well. He sparred with Siegrian, got a good hit on him, and then trained with Jose for a bit before testing out a new spell. He remembered it going pretty well for a while until suddenly it wasn't, and that was it.

"I don't actually remember any of it."

The rest was foggy.

"I've asked Siegeain about it, though, and he said it was pretty cool."

One moment, he was training next moment, his forearms started burning. The next moment, he woke up from that weird-ass dream of Sho's world with a shit ton of bruises, forearms that were sore as fucking shit, and a new order from Jose.

"At least till a monster attack ruined it or something like that, I'm not too sure."

A ban on the spell he had been working on before, whose memories became cloudy. With a strict rule to only try it when he was in S class.

"I tried asking Jose for details but he told me to fuck off."

Which fucking sucked because that spell was cool as shit.

Ugh... I want to try it so badly. Maybe Sho would-

'TUG' TUG'

Great, the one time you're a stickler for the rules.

Vera groaned as he flicked his shadow a middle finger, having woken it up from its nap with his 'treasonous' thoughts. Vera watched as Sho returned the gesture before waving to Mira and slithering to see Lisanna's progress.

I can't believe Jose turned my shadow against me.

Vera clicked his tongue at the thought, returning to Mira as the two continued their conversation. The rest of the fleeting day went by pleasantly as the minutes turned to hours. Eventually, dusk had turned to night, and stars were in the sky. The group was getting ready to sleep after what could have been considered a perfect day.

"Hey, Mira..."

At least until Lisanna asked Mira a question right before bedtime, which ruined Vera's whole night and would likely ruin his entire week.

"Yes, Lisanna, what is it?"

That night, Vera slept in an uncomfortable, cold, dark, damp tree.

"What's fuck?"

It was for his own safety.