March 19th, x779
Outside Cait Shelter's woods, a teenager with black hair and red eyes was dashing through the shrubbery at the earliest hours of dawn. His eyes narrowed with a vein bulging in his forehead. His expression could be considered wholehearted focus as if he was a cat chasing a mouse, except this mouse wasn't fluffy and skittish.
No, the mouse the boy was chasing was tan, elderly, wearing a feathered headdress, animal hide pants, and a childish grin accompanied by an even more childish taunt: "What's wrong, kid? You've been quiet. Cat got your tongue?"
"Fuck off," Vera grumbled as he chased Raubol through the stray trees and over the exposed roots on the forest floor. Vera's jaw clenched as he passed Raubol. He used a tree as a springboard and launched himself back at the older man with his sheathed sword in hand.
Vera could see the smirk on the old fucker's face as he swung his sheathed katana, and Raubol's body flickered out of existence less than a second before his blow would hit. The occurrence was so common that Vera could practically predict what Raubol would say next.
"Missed me."
It didn't stop it from being annoying, though.
"Should I slow down for you?" Raubol's voice echoed from the treetops as Vera gnashed his teeth. His eyes twitched as Raubol cackled out and began strolling through the treetops, dragging Vera along the most infuriating game of whack-a-mole in history. It was a game that lasted hours.
Every time Vera got close to the old fool, he would disappear, often with a parting jab at Vera's pride. The taunts included: "Oh my, that would've hit me in my twenties." "I wonder if there's anything to do tomorrow?" "Hey kid, you are getting hungry? I could eat." "Ha! What was that, kid? Not even Wendy hits as much air as you."
Vera's increasingly irritated responses included: "Fuck you." "You should die tomorrow." "I'll fucking eat after I hit you." "Wendy should find a new guild master that isn't fucking senile!" As well as many more that tested his vocabulary and patience.
A patience that lasted until the sun had crested over the horizon, and his tired heaves filled the air. Vera damn near used his sword as a can as he caught his breath and heard Raubol land next to him, "Well, kid, good job. My toes almost ache."
"Fucking hate you," Vera murmured between breaths as Raubol chuckled and patted him on the back. The cooldown from the impossible game of tag lasted a few minutes before Vera was ready to set his sword to the side and heard Raubol sit. Vera took a moment before he sat crisscrossed next to Raubol.
This was the next part of Vera's routine. Meditation. One of Raubol's two requests in return for staying at Cait Shelter. Vera closed his eyes, took deep breaths, and calmed his mind. It was familiar.
Vera remembered it from the lab. He was in the center of his room for hours, doing nothing but sitting and meditating. His concentration was fully invested in the magic inside his body, waiting for the day he could utilize it. This was the same. He just had to stay here and focus on his magic container. He felt it swirl around in his chest, without anywhere to go.
Just breathe...
Meditation was something he was used to. It was no wonder he fell back into the habit so quickly.
Don't do anything else.
Vera relaxed his muscles as he sat for at least a few minutes. His eyes closed as he felt prickles on his skin from the wind, and his mind flickered toward his magic container and settled there. He nudged it a few times; he always did, and like always, it failed to get past his skin.
It wasn't surprising, but now even his innate magic wouldn't bypass the barrier, which was a sad development. The subtle reminder was that he wasn't forgiven and forced to live with it. Vera could only accept that and give up on nudging Sho awake. There was no point. He still had a long road ahead.
Weird...
In the meantime, he focused on the buzzing sensation on his skin. It was faint, like the softest whisper he'd ever heard, but it was there. Maybe it was always there? He only noticed it during meditation when his mind was quiet enough to listen. Vera had no clue.
This always feels weird.
He enjoyed it nonetheless.
Oh well... at least it's... nice...
Vera let the thought drift away as he basked in the buzzing sensation. It was in the air and the trees. It felt loud in a soft sense like the world was humming a smooth tune that he was strained to listen to.
He listened to it for a long time until the hair on his neck prickled for a split second, and he jolted. Only to be pelted in the back of the head with an apple, snapping him out of his meditation as he heard, "Ha! Sorry kid. Thought you might want a snack."
"How thoughtful," Vera grumbled sarcastically as he took the apple and bit into it. It was good, and he ate it as he got up and started getting ready to head back to Cait Shelter. The first training session of the day was over. Now, he had to bathe by the river and prepare for his next ordeal.
I wonder if Pepe will help me make this a pie.
They were cooking lessons with Pepe.
Vera wasn't a great cook. He could admit that. He knew eggs, toast, sandwiches, and the staple of his last two years: cereal. It was an easy meal he could eat whenever he wanted, and more importantly, it was the easiest way to get food ready quickly. If he ever wanted something else, he'd spend Jose's money on one of the many restaurants around Oak Town. That's why he never felt the need to cook.
"You're going to give Wendy food poisoning, Vera."
Pepe was never shy about making him regret that.
"You're also putting too much salt. You want it to taste bitter, not like the ocean." Pepe said as she watched the teenager pout in an almost adorable fashion. She would've felt sorry for the kid if he wasn't holding a plate of rice and beans salted to hell and back. She wouldn't even get started on the boy's chicken off to the side. It was better to leave that to nature's animals.
"Start again."
They had a better chance of digesting the charred dish.
"This time, try not to burn my house down," Pepe added with a smirk as she watched the gloomy teenager stiffen and then scowl. Vera grumbled under his breath that he 'wasn't trying to burn it down' along with something vaguely along the lines of 'also it would be your fault for having a flammable hut,' which Pepe couldn't deny.
The Nitvit Tribe was old-fashioned, both in architecture and culture. They loved the traditional, and right now, she was trying to teach this little brat some conventional meals. So far, they had a spotty track record at best, although he'd improved immensely since the first few lessons.
He could make many essential dishes, but the more complex ones that required keeping track of multiple ingredients, temperatures, and recipes simultaneously were difficult to learn. Not that it wasn't expected, but still, Pepe wants to teach the kid something special—something he could take back from Cait Shelter.
"Hey, kid. Do you like salmon?" Pepe asked as she tried to devise a list of meals that wouldn't burn. The first on her list was a salmon-based soup with some Pueblo bread on the side to add to it. She loved both, and the ingredients weren't hard to find, so he could make it himself when the brat went to Oak Town. Yeah, it was a good plan. Now she just needed him to be on board so they could-
"Eh, it's okay."
Never mind. Change of plans. It didn't matter whether the brat was on board or not. She would make him an excellent salmon-based soup with some Pueblo bread, and he would enjoy it. Every second of it. Whether he liked it or not.
"We're going fishing right now."
Because salmon was so much better than okay.
Vera was off to his next task after making and eating some Salmon soup with crunchy yet sweet bread and listening to a sales pitch about how salmon was the best fish on the market. On a full stomach, no less. It felt like he was holding his stomach in as he walked through the woods and toward a stream on the outskirts of the village.
So much... soup... too much... bread.
Vera burped as he lumbered past the greenery. That soup had been pretty yummy. It tasted much better than all the grilled fish he'd been forced to eat on the trek from the lab to Fiore. Maybe that's why he could tolerate it more, even though he thought the bread was a thousand times better. So good.
It was almost worth the inevitable chewing out he'd receive for being late. Courtesy of the six, seven? Vera wasn't sure exactly how old Wendy was, to be honest, but either way, he had promised to 'play' with her every day after making lunch with Pepe. Somewhere far away from the other members of Cait Shelter, they would gut Vera alive if they knew what he was doing.
"You can stop hiding, Wendy..."
He spent every day out here, an hour after noon.
"It's only delaying the inevitable."
And beat the absolute breaks off of Wendy.
"You want to pass along the message, Carla?" Vera asked as he stood by the stream and looked up at the white cat sitting unhappily in a tree. Vera would be dead if looks could kill, but he was stubborn and shrugged off their unofficial witness's judgment. Instead, he chose to tilt his head towards the river only a few meters from his feet. "Is the water cold?"
Vera stepped back as a blast of air shot out of the river, dousing him lightly as the tornado shot into the air. He smirked as he saw a little girl with short blue hair, a yellow dress, and brown eyes jump out of the water. Her breath ragged as she pointed and yelled, "How'd you know!?"
"I didn't. I do now, though." Vera shrugged as he took the sword at his waist and tossed it to the side. His feet slid into a fighting position as he watched Wendy smack herself in the face for falling for such a simple trick. It was a little funny and adorable, but that didn't change the fact that Vera would beat her to a pulp. Mostly because he promised to train her, which was a proven method. The success rate was 1 out of 1. But there was also another one.
"Well, Wendy..."
Wendy could heal herself. Completely.
"Whenever you're ready."
Vera had always wondered what it would be like to have a punching bag that could fix itself.
Wendy had made a choice the night that Mystogan lost his arm: She wouldn't be forced to run away and come back to see someone she loved hurt and bleeding out. To do that, she needed to be stronger, so ever since then, she had asked members of Cait Shelter to train her. She had improved slightly but quickly realized it wouldn't last.
None of the members of Cait Shelter, including Mystogan, would agree to fight her. They taught her the basics, like how to throw a punch, and she was genuinely grateful, but it wasn't enough. She recalled the eeriest moment of that night: the venom that wafted off that maroon-haired man. She knew she'd die if she tried to fight him with just the basics.
That's why she asked Vera to fight her when he said he'd stay in Cait Shelter for a while. She had Grandneeny's magic and the basics all her guild mates had taught her. She wanted to test it out. She wanted experience, so she asked Vera since she figured he'd understand her desire.
He agreed, and she threw her first punch at another person during their first spar. It was hesitant and weak, but in her defense, she was still nervous. She didn't want to hurt anyone. She just wanted to learn how to herself. She had thrown that first punch hesitantly, fearing she might hurt someone.
That misconception was corrected immediately. She wasn't nearly experienced enough to hurt Vera, and she learned it the moment he smacked her fist away and countered by punching her in the stomach hard enough to steal the breath from her lungs. She had never been hit that hard before, ever. She vomited.
It was a wake-up call more than anything. She was sure that even if any of the Cait Shelter members agreed to fight her, they'd never hit her that hard. She didn't know what that meant about Vera as a person, but as a teacher, he was taking her seriously. She appreciated that. Even as she kneeled over and heard Carla's enraged scream, "Wendy!"
Wendy couldn't see it, but she was sure Carla would try to rip Vera's eyes out. Carla's voice was a vicious growl: "What did you do?"
"What?" Vera said uncaringly. "She asked me to fight her. What did you think I was going to do?"
"She said fight her, you psychopath! You almost killed her!"
"No, I didn't. I hit her. If I wanted to kill her, she'd be dead. Now get out of my face and stop being so overprotective. It's not appreciated, cat."
Wendy got up before it could escalate, wiping some of the spit from her lips as she tried to meet Vera's eyes. Her breath was heavy as she watched Carla stop in her rage, mouth agape, while Vera smirked, "See."
Wendy had charged, being knocked back instantly, before trying to get back up again.
"She doesn't need it."
Every time since then, it has been similar. Today wasn't an exception. Wendy had tried to make an ambush beneath the water, but it had turned up flat. Now, she was trying to use her magic to make herself lighter so she could jump up and aim a punch at Vera's face. Only for him to take half a step back, grab her outstretched arm, and knee her in the stomach before she fell to the ground.
Wendy was pretty sure her vision flickered off, but she punted across the training grounds before she could pass out. A whimper escaped her lips as she felt her arm sting in pain, her eyes tearing up as she crawled to her knees and braced. Only to be greeted with nothing, meaning that this was a break. She had learned that quickly, too. Whenever Vera wasn't attacking her, he expected her to heal herself.
Come on... don't waste his time.
Wendy learned never to let that reprieve go to waste.
No one else is going to take me seriously.
Wendy clenched her teeth as green magic fluttered around her body. The bruise on her arm faded quickly as her injuries were replaced with a dull tiredness. She was lucky. Healing herself was a lot less stressful than healing others. That's why she could return to her feet after a few seconds. She looked up and saw Vera give a dramatic yawn.
Okay... serious enough.
Wendy pouted as she watched Vera chuckle in response, settling back into his fighting stance as he prompted her to continue. His legs were loose, and his feet were slanted lightly. Wendy figured early on that Vera liked to fight loosely like the wind.
It was strange. Wendy felt closer to the wind than anyone, but she couldn't enrapture it—not in a way that worked for her. Grandneeny had told her that the wind was like that. It was different for everyone. Wendy felt like Vera's 'wind' was like the wind in a canyon—harsh in some areas, calm in others, tearing through rock sometimes or around it in others—anything to make it to the end.
I don't think I can do that... no, I definitely can't.
Wendy couldn't be a harsh wind. It scared her if she was being honest. She was sure Grandneeny would agree too, say that she had to find her wind, but she didn't know where to start. She couldn't mimic Mystogan's silent breeze or Raubol's laughing gale. Even the most beautiful one she'd seen, Aria's, she couldn't mimic his great sky. She was lost.
How do I find my wind?
Wendy frowned as she ambled. She was circling Vera as she tried to get her thoughts together. She was lucky that Vera was willing to wait on her this time; the last time she tried this, he'd charged her and told her not to be stagnant in front of an opponent. It was an easy way to die. She wouldn't be surprised if she only had a few moments before Vera tried to teach her that lesson again. She had to hurry...
Wait...
Why did she have to hurry again?
Why am I always the one attacking him?
Wendy paused in her footsteps, her eyes wide as she saw Vera dash towards her the instant she stalled. Her moves became frantic as she hastily put enhancements on her legs and jumped. Her escape halted as she felt a hand grab her ankle and slam her down into the ground, enough to knock the wind out of her.
Huh... maybe that's why.
As well as knock her out completely.
Carla hated Wendy's training sessions. No, scratch that. She was okay with it when the other Cait Shelter members did it. She even enjoyed it the few times she'd seen Mystogan help Wendy, even though he always seemed awkward around her. He was always careful with Wendy.
"Wendy!"
What Carla hated was the teenage psychopath who beat Wendy to a pulp every other day. It was awful, and no matter how much she'd tried, she couldn't get Wendy to stop. She could only fly before Wendy, positioning herself between the black-haired teenager and her precious Wendy. She hissed protectively, "You went too far!"
"So you keep reminding me," The boy, Vera from Phantom Lord, responded blandly as he walked away from her and towards his sword, hooking it to his side as he picked up his water flask and sipped. Carla bared her teeth as she watched the boy turn towards Wendy and walk their way. Carla flew before his face and venomously hissed, "You're not going anywhere near her."
"Oh, No. Whatever will I do?" Vera rolled his eyes as Carla watched, stunned, as he grabbed her by her head before tossing her over his shoulder. Carla uttered an indignant and disbelieving yell as she used her wings to catch herself in the air. Her vision was red as she flew towards the boy heading towards her, Wendy, and tried to tackle his back. The boy didn't even budge. He barely grunted and looked back at her with a raised eyebrow, "Seriously? That was the big plan? You weigh like five pounds."
Carla growled in embarrassment as she was picked up by the dress and held in front of Vera's face, her claws out as she tried scratching only to his air. She was held at arm's length as the boy looked at her unamused, "You done yet?"
"Shut up! Stay away from Wendy, you- you!"
"You what?"
"You bully!"
"Bully? That's a new one," the boy said as Carla nearly lost it. She was sure a vein was bulging in her head as she lost all reservations, and her anger boiled over: "Yeah! Bully! You act like you're helping her, but all you're doing is beating up a little girl!"
Carla had seen enough of it at this point. This jerk beats Wendy to a pulp every day and acts as if he is helping her. It didn't matter if Wendy always healed it afterward. To Carla it just looked like a damn bully beating up someone weaker than them, she was done.
"Wendy might think you're helping, but I don't! I know what you're doing."
The filter on her lips had been loosened too far, and her vision was tinted by too much rage. She didn't notice the cold look that crossed the boy's face. Not until she'd said something that crossed the line. Using information she'd heard from his lips when he explained to Wendy why he was visiting.
"You're just mad because you don't have magic anymore! You're just taking it out on her!"
Before she could blink, she immediately felt his hand move to her neck, holding it with enough force to keep her in place but not to leave a bruise or cut off her air. Fear crawled up her throat as she met his gaze and realized his eyes were dead. She couldn't speak.
"Could you shut up?"
She didn't even want to breathe.
"You have no idea what you're talking about." The boy murmured icily as Carla gulped, opening her mouth to protest before she felt his fingers constrict an inch more, a subtle reminder of her position. She shut her mouth immediately and watched in horror as the boy whispered, "I'm mad because I lost my magic? Of course, I am, so what?"
Carla gasped as the hand at her throat loosened, and she was released. Her wings kept her shakily in the air as she immediately backed away from the boy, watching hesitantly as he scratched the right side of his chest and spoke with controlled malice, "If I wanted to take my anger out on something, I'd go fight a monster. At least then, I'd get a decent fight out of it. But Wendy asked me to fight her, so I did it how I saw fit. I don't see the issue."
"You're doing it wrong," Carla spoke up through her hesitation, a little bravery in her heart as she floated out of the boy's reach. Her eyes narrowed as she watched the boy scoff uncaringly, "How?"
"You're cruel to her. Too cruel."
"You don't know the definition of cruel." The boy snapped, his eyes narrowed on Carla like a lion. Carla tried to hold her ground, but each word the boy spoke scared her with how logical they were. "Neither does Wendy. Who would give her a taste of it if not me? Well?"
"That's not the point."
"It's exactly the fucking point!" The boy hissed as Carla flinched back, watching as he scratched his chest harshly. He did that sometimes when they talked. It was a habit. She didn't know why, but she forgot about it quickly as the boy tapped Wendy's prone body with his foot, "You're babying her. It's not going to help her in the long run. It'll just stunt her growth."
"You're exaggerating, and I'm not babying her. I just don't want a child-"
"If I were to stop training right now, how long would it take her to catch up to me?" The boy cut her off as she huffed and narrowed her eyes. Her stubbornness was put on the back seat as she tried to be objective. She had watched all their fights for three months, and Wendy never got close. The gap was so wide it looked insurmountable.
"Ten years," Carla murmured begrudgingly. It annoyed her to admit it, but the gap was so wide it looked insurmountable. She hated seeing Wendy try helplessly to clear it. Only to get hurt at every step. She hated it, and she hated the person responsible.
"Why? Want me to feed your ego more? Is that it?"
Carla hated Vera. She truly did. He was-
"If I did nothing, she'd catch up to me in three years."
Not what she was expecting.
"What?" Carla said as she tilted her head, searching the boy's face for a lie. She didn't find one. All she saw was the boy's scratches increasing rapidly, "I said three years, cat. That's how long it'll take. You said it yourself: I don't have magic. Wendy does, and her magic is top-tier. I don't mean by Cait Shelter or Oak Town standards, either. I mean by Ishgar's standards."
Carla felt her stomach squirm as she watched the boy's fingers freeze, his nails digging into his shirt right above his chest before he released it.
The air seemed to shift, and Carla felt her breath leave her as the boy gazed through her, "But Wendy hesitates in everything. She hesitates to throw a punch because she's scared of hurting me, and she hesitates to use the full extent of her magic because she fears messing up. Wendy's getting in her way more than anyone."
Carla felt like cold water was dumped on her head, her mouth agape without any words to accompany it as she watched the boy speak scathingly, "You want to get in her way too?"
"I'm not getting in her way. I'm protecting her!"
"How? By holding her hand? You're babying her. That's not helping." The boy hissed as Carla shrunk in on herself. She bit her lip as she watched the boy turn around, walk toward Wendy, and murmur, "How about this cat? If Wendy says she wants to stop, even once. I'll stop. Without question, but until then, I will do what she asked me to and fight her."
Carla fumed silently as she watched the boy take out his flask, open it, and hold it over Wendy.
"You can watch from a nearby branch or something. I don't care."
Carla's claws dug into her dress as she watched the boy flip the flask over and dump cold water all over Wendy's sleeping face. Wendy woke up with a startled yelp as the deranged boy tapped her head and said uncaringly. "Come on, Wendy. Heal yourself. We still got another round left."
Carla felt her anger and frustration boil silently. She still hated this boy, but Carla knew when she'd lost a battle. She huffed and flew back to the treetops, watching unhappily as Wendy gave a dazed nod and started healing herself. Ready for another beating disguised as training.
What an uncouth youth. I don't care what he says. Wendy shouldn't be doing this—getting beat black and blue for days on end. It's not right.
Carla glared uselessly at the boy. She didn't need her visions of the future to know that Wendy's turmoils were far from over. She had months of precedence to go off of. Wendy would pass out at least once more, and Carla couldn't convince Wendy not to. Edolas knew she had tried. All she could do was watch and hope the boy would leave Cait Shelter soon.
She's too young.
He was a bad influence on Wendy.
The training session didn't last long after that. Vera beat Wendy up for getting inside her head so much; she was her worst enemy sometimes.
Then, he went to his next session. By then, it was well into the afternoon, and he was already tired. He'd woken up before dawn but still had hours left over.
He had to meet Qecha, and then after, he'd be pouring over Torch's notes well into the night. He would be surprised if he got over four hours of sleep these days, but it was worth it. Especially since this particular point in his schedule was one he found valuable.
Hunting. It was the second thing Raubol had asked him to do in exchange for staying at Cait Shelter so long. He had to hunt for the community and himself when available. So far, it was going okay.
He'd learned simple stick and rope traps quickly enough, and fishing was never a problem. What was a problem was when he'd picked up a bow for the first time. Vera sucked with a bow; the first-time Qecha gave him one, he aimed at a tree and shot nearly shot a cat twenty meters to the left of it. Carla was still pissy about the close call.
The moral of the story, Vera was a shitty shot. Jose had discovered it years ago. Now Qecha confirmed it, so when Vera was tasked with hunting a flighty rabbit without using traps, he had to go the old-fashioned way, with a sword by his waist. He had to sneak up on the fucking annoying ass rabbit and kill it.
This time...
The problem was no matter how close he got, he couldn't catch the stupid fucker by surprise. Its ears would twitch, and he'd see the exact moment it was about to dart off. Vera would lunge at it desperately, watch his swing miss by an inch or two, and have front-row seats to the rabbit hippity hopping away. It was so annoying, but today Vera had an idea. A solution!
I'll get it.
He just had to get in a spot and wait.
Just give it time.
Vera took a small breath as he settled down in a nearby brush. He'd left some bait a few yards away, close enough that his sword could reach but not close enough that he could. He had tried this multiple times, but the results usually included the rabbit running a second before he tried to cut it down.
Vera had almost discounted this option and wondered if he could chase the rabbit down on foot and outlast its meager endurance, but before that, Qecha filled him in on what he was doing wrong—why he kept startling the rabbit away.
Qecha said it sensed my presence.
Presence. Everything had it. Animals, in particular, were great at noticing it. Their heightened senses and instincts to avoid predators always clued them in when something with a dangerous presence was closing in on them. Vera's hungry thoughts had been leaking when he aimed to cut down the rabbit, so to fix that problem, he had to mask his physical presence. He couldn't let the rabbit be clued in that it was about to be his next meal.
Typically, this would be easier said than done. For most, this was like asking people to stop using their brains when they were about to attack someone. Most of the time, it isn't possible.
Vera had met people who could mask their magical presence if they wanted to. Jose and Aria did it all the time. Aria because he wanted to be less threatening and Jose to fuck with him. But that was the magical side of things, and Vera wasn't nearly a skilled enough mage to pull that off. Thankfully, Vera was a far better fighter than a mage, and he had already experienced masking his dangerous thoughts around others.
Just a puppet...
A whole year's worth, in fact.
With no strings.
Vera felt himself fall into the trance he had grown used to back in the lab. He felt himself slip seamlessly back into the mask he wore every time the doctor was around. If his mind was numb, how could the rabbit have noticed it? If his thoughts were silent, then how would the rabbit hear it? The answer Vera was hoping for was that it wouldn't.
So Vera lulled his thoughts to nothing. He made his mind robotic, and after hours of staying still as a stone, when the rabbit had peered out of the surroundings and got a tad too close to the food it was craving. Vera moved.
'Click'
And the rabbit was dead before it even noticed.
The walk back was spent happily. Vera didn't talk much to Qecha, but in his defense, no one spoke that much with Qecha. He was a reserved individual, and Vera was okay with that. He was more excited that he'd finally gotten his first kill. Official kill, without a trap to speak of.
I can't wait to cook this bad boy up and eat it.
Vera licked his lips as he held out a blood-soaked brown bag filled with two halves of the rabbit. He was thinking of a roast, but he'd also gotten Pepe to make that apple pie he'd been craving.
He couldn't do it himself since he wasn't allowed near the apple tree near the back end of Cait Shelter. Since she was making it, maybe some rice and rabbit meat would be better. The apple pie could be the desert he desperately craved after a long day's work.
I wonder if it'll taste better since I-
"Vera!" A little girl's voice rang out and pulled Vera from his thoughts. As he looked up, he saw Wendy rushing towards him from the edge of the village.
It looked like many villagers had gathered, but before Vera could ask why, Wendy had caught up to him and spoke in a frantically rushed manner, "Vera, I can explain! I tried to find you and bring you back, but you were in the woods, and it was getting dark, and he said he had to go and-"
"Woah, calm down, Wendy. Take it easy, what's up?" Vera asked as he tilted his head towards Raubol, only to receive a sheepish glance away in response. Then Vera looked at Carla, and the flick of her tail that seemed smug put a frown on his face.
He didn't know why, but he felt he was missing something. Yet when Wendy finally collected herself and filled him in, the dots connected so well that he wanted to slap himself in hindsight.
"Mystogan came back, finally."
He'd missed Mystogan's arrival. That's probably why all the villagers were outside. To greet their newest member returning after a longer-than-expected trip away from home. If it was just that, Vera would have chalked it up to him being oblivious and moved on to try and find the hermit, but unfortunately, Wendy wasn't done handing out bad news, and Vera wasn't finding said recluse. Not anytime soon, at least.
"Mystogan said he had to go somewhere. He left while you were still hunting."
Vera had spent three months waiting for Mystogan to show up, and the bastard had fucking left. He didn't even have the decency to put Vera to sleep or anything.
That piece of shit.
Vera got in a lot of trouble for the words he inadvertently taught Wendy that day.
Vera left Cait Shelter the following day. He assured Wendy that he'd had a good time and that it had nothing to do with her guild (and promised her that if she ever needed a sparring partner again, all she had to do was stop by Oak Town), but he couldn't justify staying longer.
So, well before dawn, he was on a train back to Oak Town. His head tilted towards the window, and his mood was downright sour after waiting three months for nothing.
He'd wanted to talk to Mystogan, the only S-class mage in the story, solely to use magic tools, but instead, he'd been out of the village the one-time Mystogan wasn't.
Fucking slippery bastard... I'd rather be put to sleep than this shit.
Vera was annoyed, to put it lightly, but after a few good minutes of stewing, he could calm himself down. He was still fucking pissed at Mystogan, but looking back on it, he guessed he couldn't call his stay at Cait Shelter a total waste of time.
He enjoyed it, for one. More importantly, though, he felt he learned much, especially regarding Torch's notes.
They don't look like gibberish anymore...
When Vera first got them, he thought he was reading a different language. After three months of them being his only reading material, he could grasp some common phrases and their meanings.
He was still far from where he wanted to be, a couple of years at least, but progress was progress, and he would always take it.
It was the same with the sword at his waist. He was getting closer to utilizing it. He could already more or less quick-draw it, thanks to the hunting and the fact that his old sword functioned somewhat similarly. Coating it in electricity was the last hurdle he had to grasp, and then it was a straight path to Laxus.
It's x779... I have five years.
Vera had five years until the story started. Five years until he'd have the excuse and the opportunity to take Laxus on without the headache of the Thunder God Tribe interfering.
In five years, he'd have a chance. To make this fucking itch in his chest finally go away. He'd devote himself to that single goal for the next five years. Nothing else mattered.
I have to be ready by the time the story starts.
Vera's path was set. All he had to do was chase it. Anything he found useful, he'd utilize. That way, when the time came. He'd do it when he finally had Sho back and could become more than just a weak mage with a mighty shadow. He'd pay Laxus back tenfold, and he'd do it happily.
I'll burn that fucker like he burned me.
Vera smiled at the thought, unsure how far he'd take it but sure how he would start. Vera's plan was set in stone at this point, and if someone asked him there, on that train heading back to Oak Town after three months mostly well spent at Cait Shelter, he'd say nothing would change it. At the moment, he was content with sitting on this train to Oak Town. Maybe even take a nap to rest a bit-
'RING'
Never mind. He heard his communication lacrimal ring and picked it up. Greeted by a voice he hadn't heard in a while, it said, "Well, rodent, glad to see you haven't died off in a ditch somewhere. That would be dreadfully embarrassing."
"You're not getting rid of me that easily, asshole." Vera smirked as Jose huffed from the other line, "Shame. I'll have to try harder next time."
"You're the worst."
"Possibly. Regardless, I've only called to give you some news. When are you coming back to Oak Town?"
"I'll be there in a few days. Why?" Vera asked as he tilted his head, curious why Jose would call so suddenly. Until Jose said, "Wonderful if you had delayed a few months longer, you might have missed the recruits."
"Recruits?" Vera's smile grew as he got some ideas of what would come. "What, tired of debt bating Me and Siegrain?"
"Please, Rodent, Runt 3 is also a part of that equation. Don't think you're special."
"I would never."
"Good. Now, moving on to business, four mages aim to join our ranks within the next year—two from Oak Town. Boze and Sue. They're not impressive, but also aren't weak enough to dismiss." Jose commented half-heartedly. Vera rolled his eyes and lazily asked, "Who are the other two then? Can I assume they are impressive?"
"Of course. Aria's had his eye on one of them for a while, and I got a hag from the council to hand over a troublemaker she'd been taking care of. They're both excellent quality." Jose commented smugly as Vera mentally prepared himself for the ego trip Jose was going on. Vera would rather not listen to Jose praising himself for his choices as a guild master, but even Vera would admit he was excited.
"They'll be here in a couple of months. It'll take a while for them to adjust, so I will count on you to make the transition as smooth as possible. Don't disappoint me, rodent."
Vera knew them from the story. It was impossible not to. They were the only mages to stick around after Phantom Lord fell, and they even managed to join Fairy Tail. Vera was having trouble keeping the excited smirk off his face. In less than a year...
"I have high expectations of them."
Juvia and Gajeel would be making their way to Oak Town.
Meanwhile
Raubol sat atop a lonesome tree in the woods of Cait Shelter. It was one of the oldest left in the forest, a couple of feet higher than the rest of the tree line.
It was the perfect place to rest; more than that, it was the perfect viewpoint for the surrounding woods. That is why Raubol came here. It didn't take him long to address the robed figure hiding in one of its many branches.
"He's gone now. You can come out, Mystogan."
Raubol tilted his head curiously, watching the robed figure walk out, carrying three staves on their back, one recently repaired so the cracks along its edges were still visible.
The figure tilted his head towards the sunset, brown eyes silent and an empty sleeve billowing in the breeze as Raubol asked, "So want to tell me why you've been hiding out here? It would've been much easier if you taught him those lessons rather than having me do it."
"I have no idea what you're talking about." Mystogan shrugged as he picked an apple from one of the branches and looked at it quietly. His single arm bathed in orange sunlight as he took a bite and muttered, "I simply suggested taking him hunting to pass the time. It's quite boring out here."
"Oh, and meditation isn't? You're a terrible liar." Raubol chuckled as he watched Mystogan sigh, taking another bite into the apple before tossing it to the wayside.
Mystogan glanced towards the horizon before turning and gracefully stepping off his perch, "He looked violent. I figured some meditation could calm him down a little." Mystogan fell seamlessly towards the ground meters below, landing with a crunch of dirt, yet not a single sprain from the fall that would've killed a regular human.
"The boy has amnesia, you know." Raubol said, watching as Mystogan hesitated in his first step, still thinking as Raubol continued, "He mentioned it during one of the morning sessions. He doesn't remember anything barring the last few years."
Raubol's words drifted quietly, wafting through the air until Mystogan hummed, "I see." Then, he vanished in a cloud of mist. The chirping birds and fading winds accompanied Raubol's quiet gaze as he turned toward the horizon and watched the sunset.
It hadn't been long in the grand scheme of things, but Raubol had thoroughly enjoyed his time watching over Siegrain's friend. The boy left an impression on him, the same way Mavis had.
Funny... after all this time...
If magic itself ever loved someone, it was Mavis.
The world keeps surprising me.
If it ever hated someone, it was Vera.
A/N: Welp, that's the end of Phantom Trails. Sorry if these weren't as exciting or action-heavy as others, but I felt they were necessary for future content I have in mind. That said, I can't promise when the next arc will be up, although it's obvious who it will be about. I have too much going on right now, but I hope to start on it within the month, if not in a few weeks. Either way, I hope you enjoy it. Let me know your thoughts on the story and where it might go. See you :)
P.S. I'm wondering what your guy's favorite characters are in this story since I'm about to introduce Juvia and Gajeel. Mine's Jose. Aria's a close second. I love that big crybaby. In the actual anime, it's probably Mystogan.