For future reference, apart from the Pandemonium/MPF game, where the participants remained unchanged, the participants for all the other games and one on one battles were drawn at random out of a cup.
Also, sorry for the late update. I struggled a lot with the battle portion of this chapter. Turns out I only needed a long block of uninterrupted time. I hope it turned out well.
The other members of Team B greeted them when they emerged onto Fairy Tail's viewing balcony. A quick glance told Natsu that they had chosen Laxus to represent them. It was hard to overlook a man of his size.
It was a different approach than Team A had chosen. Wendy was a safe choice, reasonably skilled in combat now that she had the chance to train in a real guild that hosted a myriad of fighting styles, with an essentially limitless power source seeing as she only needed to breath to replenish her magic. So long as the air wasn't poisoned at least. On the other hand, Laxus's brawn was intimidating. By choosing Laxus first, the team insinuated that the rest of the members were equally as strong or stronger, enough so that they could afford to play one of their best cards on the first day. They must be hoping to earn points right out of the gate and establish themselves as a team to beat.
Natsu allowed himself to be entertained by the thought of Laxus having to compete in some kind of stealth challenge, because he never missed a chance to needle the master's grandson, before the pumpkin headed mascot began announcing the first event's competitors.
He recognized Rogue from his earlier run in with the Twin Dragon Slayers of Sabertooth, find it more than a little amusing that every team that had a Dragon Slayer chose one. Seeing that though, the pinkette wondered if it would have been better to have picked Gray. Say what you would about each magic having its advantages and disadvantages, there was something about Dragon Slayers that made them insanely difficult to overcome. Next time they would wait and see who was chosen from the other teams.
Natsu knew the Blue Pegasus guy as one of those ridiculous Trimen that flirted with every female but Lucy, mentally reminded himself to pummel Ichiya if the old man so much as looked in his mate's direction, and vaguely remembered the dark pink haired chick as the girl from Galuna Island.
The three unknowns were introduced as Alexei from Raven Tail, a tall man completely dressed in armor wearing a long cape that reminded Natsu of Gramps's own cape and Laxus's jacket (his scent was also familiar but Natsu knew that he had never encounter this man before), Araña Webb of Mermaid Heel, who, based on her name and spider themed full body suit, probably used magic related to spiders, and Bacchus from Quatro Cerberus, who looked hung over although Natsu had no idea how he managed that.
"Now let me explain the first game, kabo!" he said brightly as a multitude of balloons appeared above the stadium. "The game is called "Eyes in the Sky," and I'm sure you can understand why, kabo," chuckled Mato.
Lucy clapped excitedly, eyes sparkling as she envisioned an easy victory. "This'll be a piece of cake for Wendy! Her roar will destroy all those balloons before the other teams get a chance."
Natsu's lips twitched. He normally enjoyed the blonde's optimism, but there were times where Lucy got caught up in her day dreams. Erza was quick to say that it was improbable for the game to be so simple, as Lucy's idea lacked entertainment value.
The lacrima vision shifted to show an up close view of the multicolored, inflated spheres. Emblazoned on the surface was each guild's symbol. The wide shot was then replaced with the individual image of each emblem.
"The object of this game is to pop as many of your balloons as you can within the time limit," Mato explained. "For each one you pop, you earn one point."
"But Fairy Tail will have an advantage," Eve commented. "There are twice as many balloons with their mark than the other guilds. Not that you need an advantage to win, Wendy," he sidled up to the Sky Dragon Slayer, laying an arm across her shoulders and using the other to tilt her face up at him. "I know a fair maiden like yourself would never take advantage like that."
Wendy blinked, taken aback. Before she had time to respond, Laxus had ripped the shortest Triman off. "Don't molest young girls." He glared down at Eve, who had lost his balance when Laxus forcefully pulled him off his guildmate. Eve spluttered at the accusation.
"It's not molesting!" he cried. "I'm appreciating a woman's beauty!" he protested, receiving encouragement from his two partners in crime.
Mato cleared his throat loudly, regaining the eight wizards' attention. "Yes, well, as you can see, that' not the case. Wendy-chan must aim for the blue symbols and Laxus-san the red ones, kabo." His clarification stopped any further outbursts of unfairness from the rest of the teams. "Also, you are not allowed to break another team's balloon. Do so will result in you losing points. Lastly, there are some blank balloons, that is balloons with no symbols. Pop one of those and you're in for a nasty surprise, kabo!"
The announcer was entirely too overjoyed with that idea as evidenced by how he danced from foot to foot.
Natsu rested his elbows on the low stone wall that Makarov stood on; the only way the master would be able to see the games. Those restrictions would make it harder for Wendy. Dragon Slayers weren't meant for precise attacks. Most of their attacks were the wide scale, devastating, leave nothing untouched type. Similarly, Rogue and Laxus were in the same boat.
"Does everyone understand, kabo?" Mato received several nods and words of agreement. He then waved his hand and a timer, set for thirty minutes, appeared in the bottom right hand corner of each lacrima vision screen. A running tally, currently set at zero, slide up the left side of the screen. Natsu groaned, losing all interest in the game. A half hour of nothing but balloons bursting was going to be agony.
"Best of luck, kabo. You're time starts now!"
There was an explosion of movement, and noise as the crowd started hollering, cheering on their favorite teams and wizards, as the eight wizards leapt to the task at hand. Natsu took a long minute to watch Wendy, who was huffing little air bullets. The blue haired teen was methodically destroying balloons one at a time, always sighting her target before releasing her explosive breath.
He spared a brief moment to be surprised by Laxus zipping around like a lightning bolt, before studying the other six competitors. Seven years was a long time away, and because of that he didn't know these wizards or their capabilities.
According to Jellal, Zeref or someone with one of his many creations, had made an appearance at the previous two games. However, Crime Sorcière had only sensed the magic. They didn't have any concrete, physical proof of the Black Wizard. Still, Natsu was inclined to believe his word, if only because Zeref had found him and spoken to him in person. He thought it more likely that someone had an item similar to Lullaby in their possession, because Zeref's direct presence could hardly go unnoticed in Fiore's capital.
At least he hoped so. He thought it highly unlikely that the Black Wizard was attending himself, for the man was afraid of his magic and how easily it could end another person's life. Plus, no one in the audience had ever unexpectedly dropped dead.
Although Natsu really couldn't rule out possession. Either way, the source of the magic would have to from a team that had participated in the last two Grand Magic Games and made it to the top eight.
From research, the Fire Dragon Slayer knew that Sabertooth, Mermaid Heel, and Lamia Scale all fit those criteria. Personally, Natsu didn't believe any of those teams were responsible for the magic Jellal had sensed. Sabertooth was arrogant and ruthless, but that didn't automatically equate to evil, no matter how much the guild reminded him of Phantom Lord.
Natsu resolved himself to keep a close eye and nose on the other six guilds. He had no room for error and couldn't let personal feelings get in the way. He had no doubts he would scent the Black Wizard's magic if it was used, even in the confusion of a stadium full of wizards. Zeref's magic scent was too strong, too pungent to be mistaken.
"Pay attention, you numbskull." Gray emphasized the order with an elbow shoved into his ribcage. "The Games more than half over and you're staring vacantly into space."
The pinkette didn't' retaliate, he could always make the stripper pay for the insult in the safety of their team's inn, but his gaze did jerk to the timer, at 10:47 and counting down. Then he looked at the scoreboard.
With every second Rogue's total was creeping higher, inky black shadows writhed as the burst balloons left and right. Laxus was maintaining second place, but he wouldn't be able to overtake Sabertooth's Dragon Slayer at the rate the younger man was accumulating points. Wendy had fallen to the bottom, resting at seventh, just above Eve, and the other four spots were changing rapidly.
Natsu snorted when Sherry lit up, shrieking in pain as she was zapped. The puppeteer was momentarily dazed, but returned to her task with gusto and a cry of love, and slightly smoking.
Judging by the blackened clothes and hair sticking up on ends and occasionally sparking, Natsu guessed accidentally hitting one of the unmarked balloons was common. Only Laxus appeared unaffected, but it wasn't like lightning could harm him. That did make it more impressive that Rogue was winning, since he must have popped one at least once.
Strategies became reckless as the seconds slipped away. With half a minute left, the pinkette could predict the final standings, which Mato gleefully confirmed when the timer buzzed, indicating the end of the mind numbing game.
"And that's it for "Eyes in the Sky," kabo! First place goes to Sabertooth!" Rogue was silent and stoic in his victory, even as the crowd exploded. Mato's magically enhanced voice rose above them to continue announcing the standings. "Fairy Tail Team B takes second, followed by Raven Tail, Quatro Cerberus, Mermaid Heel, Lamia Scale, Fairy Tail Team A, and in last with no points is Blue Pegagus."
A dejected Wendy made her way up to the guild's designated seating. "I'm sorry everyone," she apologized tearfully. "I was pushing the other teams' balloons away. I should have focused on mine."
"Don't worry about it, Wendy," Lucy said, smiling. "It's only the first day. We can make it up later."
"Lucy's right," Erza stated firmly, fixing the younger girl with a proud look. "Since we go into each event unaware of the challenge, each of us can only do our best. Don't let your performance today drag you down."
Fairy Tail, never known for holding back, was going to give their all in the Games. Not just to prove that they were Fiore's strongest guild, because Fairy Tail didn't care about the title. It wasn't in their nature to back down when innocent lives were at stake.
If they didn't stop Zeref here, the might never do so. The First Master believed that Zeref had waited peacefully for four hundred years because he knew he would meet Natsu, who had sworn to defeat him. He didn't mind waiting for his desire to become reality because he knew when it would occur.
It was the only explanation as to why he hadn't continued with his campaign of despair and destruction. He wanted to be granted peace in death and was willing to wait until someone Zeref knew to be capable came along.
Makarov agreed with Mavis that time travel had to be involved, for how else would the Black Wizard know Natsu's name or his desire to kill him. She also warned the current master that there would be dire consequences if Natsu failed. One only had to look at Zeref's history to imagine the horrible future that awaited if he decided Natsu would never fulfill his expectations.
"Now to introduce our commentators," the Grand Magic Games' host proclaimed. "First is Chapati Lola." He was a short, middle aged man, with a large face, abnormally small eyes, and very square jaw. His nose and mouth were close to his eyes. "Our second main commentator is former Magic Council member and current owner and chef of 8-Island restaurant, Yajima." The old man waved at Fairy Tail, pleased to see his old friend's guild. "Our guest for the day is Mickey Chickentiger, formerly of the Fairy Tail guild and female wrestling champ."
After introducing the three commentators, Mato asked for their opinions on the first game.
"I think I speak for all of us when I say it was electrifying!" Lola laughed at his own joke that only Erza and Mavis found witty. "Sabertooth and Fairy Tail taking first and second was only to be expected. What was surprising was Lamia Scale's placement." The lacrima vision briefly flashed to show the stony faces of said guild. "Sixth place is a little low for them. They've continuously ranked second in previous games. It's a disappointing start."
"And what about Fairy Tail's performance, kabo?" Mato pressed. "Two wildly different standings, second and seventh."
Yajima fielded that question. As a friend of Makarov's, the sympathetic old man was usually in their corner. "I think Fairy Tail may surprise us yet."
"Victory is not set in stone," Mickey agreed. "There are still several opportunities ahead to snatch triumph from despair."
Mato quickly agreed, encouraging the lower ranking teams to not get discouraged by one poor performance. "Now let's move on to the second round, kabo. The first battle will be between Cana Alberona of Fairy Tail's B Team and Flare Corona from Raven Tail."
Fairy Tail's resident drunk set down her barrel of ale, where it came from in the first place was a mystery, and swiftly marched down the tunnel to stand across from Raven Tail's chosen fighter, a red headed woman with waist length braids tied together behind her back, red eyes, and keeping with the pattern, wearing a revealing red dress. Flare tilted her head and shoulders to the side with a deranged grin, anxiously tugging on her hair behind her back.
"A reminder of how this works," the pumpkin headed host said, "the winner earns ten points for her team while the loser gets none, kabo!"
"And if we tie?" drawled Cana, eyeing up her opponent's demented smile.
"A tile will be called if the match takes longer than thirty minutes or both adversaries are simultaneously knocked out. In which case both teams will be awarded five points, kabo," he answered. "As the sole judge, I can step in at any time and end the match."
"That's not cool," Gray said lowly.
"Why not?" Wendy asked. "If it's for the safety of the fighters—"
The Ice-Make wizard cut her off. "There's no guarantee that he won't call a match in favor of the team he wants to win." The blunette deflated at the thought of the committee member abusing his power to choose the winner.
She perked up almost immediately though as Mato called for the battle to start. "You got this Cana! Show her who's boss!"
Gildart's daughter went on the offensive first. "Card Volley!" she cried, palming a small stack of her magic cards and spreading them with her thumb.
She flung the cards at Flare. The red head's hair came unbound and separated into several sections which deflected Cana's attack with deft slaps. The cards careened off course, hitting the dirt behind and to the side of Flare, and exploded forcefully.
There was a charged silence as they waited for the dust to settle.
"Even the innocent looking ones like destroying things," bemoaned Yajima and Natsu snorted. Innocent was not a word used to describe the woman that could drink the master under the table since she was eleven.
When the dust did settle it revealed that neither woman had moved from her starting position. Flare's hair swayed behind her, much longer now that it was freed.
"Hair Magic, huh?" mused Cana. "This might be harder than I predicted."
Flare cackled in return, red locks dancing about. "I'm going to clip your wings, little fairy!" Two strands of her hair plunged into the ground. Cana immediately jumped away, expecting them to reemerge beneath her.
That was the reaction the Raven Tail mage was expecting. "I've got you now, fairy!" she exclaimed, hair shoot up and wrapping around Cana's ankles. Using her second of surprise, Flare lifted the card mage, spun her about so quick that she nearly lost her bag, and flung her.
Cana hit the ground hard, rolled once, twice, than dug her heels and left hand into the dirt, leaving behind a trio of skid marks. Her right hand dug into her satchel. This time she withdrew two different kinds of cards. There were a few that the same type she had initially launched at Flare, and the second type bore a flame design.
She flung them in the other wizard's direction. The explosive cards hovered in a curved line before her. A burst of flames appeared and shot across the distance between Cana and her opponent, quickly followed by that attack from Cana's second set of cards, which changed into fire covered bullets mid-flight.
Both attacks were blocked by a wall of shimmering hair. "You're pitiful fire can't touch me, baby fairy," she said scornfully. Then she grinned manically, red eyes shining and widening, making her look even more insane. "Let me show you what true flames feel like."
Flare then proceeded to use her hair as multiple flame coated whips. Cana did her best to dodge, but the woman had enough hair to make a wardrobe for Gray and an outstanding amount of control over it. When Flare paused her assault, Cana's midriff and back bore several crisscrossing shiny burns.
"Do you see now, little fairy? Do you feel the burn?" she taunted. "I'm better than you. You should take your punishment like a big girl."
Flare's hair lit up again. The brunette threw down a single card depicting a flowing fountain. She activated it with a touch of her fingers calling out, "Prayer's Fountain," and then leaping out of the way when several beams of water came out.
Flare was knocked down by the pressure. She stared wide eyed when the jets of water died out, not giving a thought to the massive puddle of water she now sat in nor the fact that the dirt had turned to mud and she was wearing quite a bit of it. She blinked the liquid out of her eyes, shaky hands grasped at her wet hair and twisted, trying to wring the excess water out.
"My beautiful hair!" she shrieked once she realized the futility of her actions. "You'll pay for that, fairy!"
Natsu found himself impressed by the sudden wave of heat as Flare relit her hair. Anger, and any negative emotion most likely, seemed to make her flames stronger. Cana's best hope at this point was to tough it out and survive the battle. If dumping a river of water on her head didn't stop her from setting it on fire, nothing would.
Unfortunately for her, Flare took exception to the fact that Cana had liberally doused her with water. From there, the first devolved into a one sided beat down. One that Raven Tail drew out without any interference from Mato, making it more a prolonged torture than an actually fight.
"What an amazing match!" Lola shouted as he readjusted his crooked wig. "Poor Cana just didn't match up to Flare's brilliance. That's ten more points for Raven Tail, putting their total at a respectable 16 points, and no points for Fairy Tail's B Team."
Mirajane and oddly Gajeel helped Cana to the infirmary, the latter sharing a disgruntled look with Alexei when he returned to the balcony.
The pinkette watched the next match with disinterest. It was between Mermaid Heel and Quatro Cerberus, two guilds that weren't contenders on his list of possibly in league with Zeref suspects.
And it was a hilariously unbalanced match. Nobarly, a man with an elongated, pointed nose and even longer blue bandana, didn't even have a chance to use his magic. His opponent, one Kagura Mikazuchi, was a swords specialist. She struck him down without unsheathing her sword, slashing at him so fast that even Natsu's eyes couldn't keep up.
Mermaid Heel cheered their comrade's victory and the addition of ten points to their score as Mato declared the next battle to be between Sting and Lyon.
Despite himself, Natsu was grudgingly curious. Both Sting and his partner had claimed to have killed the dragon that taught them Dragon Slayer Magic. From Igneel's stories on the history of the Dragon Civil War and his own firsthand experience with Acnologia, he knew that was no easy feat. Seven years later he could admit that he took the quick and dirty route by forcibly overloading and exploding his magical core. If that triumph was turned into song, it was only because Fiore thought the Dragon King would never be slain. Could he have killed Acnologia another way? Possibly. But Natsu hadn't seen any strategy where he was guaranteed to be the one standing at the end of the fight and so choose to go with the one method that guaranteed Acnologia wouldn't be.
Lyon took the initiative, unleashing a swarm of ice eagles on a deadly arc towards the blond haired teen. Sting obliterated them with his roar, dashing forward to engage the ice wizard in hand to hand combat.
As a Dragon Slayer, Sting was remarkably stronger than the average person and he was considerably fast. His right hand was covered by a sphere of white light and his punches were a blurred barrage, steadily forcing Lyon to give up ground. Sting ended the fist fight with a kick to the gut that sent Lyon sprawling.
The white haired man regained his feet, making an ice dragon that towered overhead. With a thrust of his arm, the dragon arced down. Sting looked more amused than anything at Lyon's choice of creation. He leapt on the back of the ice dragon.
"White Dragon's Holy Breath!" he shouted, releasing a powerful burst of light from his mouth, and the dragon befell the same fate as the eagles. Sting pinned his opponent with a disdainful look. "Come now, I was hoping for a challenge."
"I would be careful what you wish for," Lyon replied. In quick succession he generated an army of ice animals. Natsu briefly pondered the wizard's fascination with them, thinking it unusual that he and Gray studied under the same teacher but developed to vastly different styles of magic. It might work in Lyon's favor if he took a page out of Gray's book and created a bazooka instead. Sting dispatched wave after wave of tigers, bears, and wolves with ease.
The Sabertooth mage joined the open palms of his hands together, pressing all his fingers into contact with the opposite hand. He separated his palms while keeping his fingertips connected. A bright light white generating in the hollow space between his hands.
"Holy Ray!" he yelled, separating his hands and extending them horizontally at his sides. The light built into a large sphere from which numerable white rays were fired on a curved trajectory. Lyon was bombarded by beam after beam of light in rapid succession.
Lyon slammed into the stadium wall, covered in abrasions. He took two shaky steps away from the wall, hands coming together, one fisted and pressed against the other's palm, in preparation of a counterattack, only for his feet to fall out from under him.
His knees hit the dirt with a thud and his upper body just fell forward. After a long moment in which no one moved, Mato called the match in Sting's favor.
"And once more Sabertooth demonstrates their indomitable strength and tenacity. Fiore's number one guild ends the day with an impressive twenty points!"
"And for today's final battle," Mato once more took center stage to announce the last pair to duke it out, "we have Blue Pegasus's Eve Tearm versus Gray of Fairy Tail's Team A, kabo!"
The Ice-Make wizard didn't bother to hide his smirk once his name was called. "Bad luck for you, man. I'm immune to your Snow Magic."
"We'll see about that. White Out!" announced Eve, extending his arm and summoning forth a light blue magic circle, which had the immediate effect of creating a snowstorm and burying Domus Flau's arena in several feet of soft, white, fluffy snow.
Gray adopted a relaxed posed, knees slightly bent, hands in pocket and not even looking at Eve. The purple coat from their team outfits and his beige shirt were nowhere to be seen. "My turn. Ice Make: Ice Cannon!"
Bazooka cannon in hand, the dark haired wizard fired an ice cannonball at Eve, who let a Snow Clone take the blow for him. Gray followed up by creating two blades of ice, one jutting out from his right elbow and the other growing over his left forearm.
"Seven Slice Dance!" He spun in a circle three times, slashing at Eve seven times like the name of his attack. Five individual strikes and a final dual strike. The ice blades broke once he landed on one knee.
Eve fell on the flat of his back. The blonde seemed oddly cheerful for having come in dead last in both events. "It really was a bad match up."
End of Day One
Sabertooth: 20 pts
Raven Tail: 16 pts
Mermaid Heel: 13 pts
Fairy Tail A: 11 pts
Fairy Tail B: 8 pts
Quatro Cerberus: 4 pts
Lamia Scale: 2 pts
Blue Pegasus: 0 pts
The three wizards composing Crime Sorcière slipped into the Honey Bone Inn, Fairy Tail's temporary base, while the guild was celebrating. Any excuse to party was welcomed with open arms, so even though they weren't in first place, fourth and fifth were good.
In the lavish suite Makarov had been provided as the guild's master sat eight wizards. Makarov, Natsu, Erza, Laxus, Gajeel, Jellal, Meldy, and Ultear. It was an odd assortment of wizards, and the pinkette couldn't figure out Laxus's and Gajeel's presence.
"This is the first time Raven Tail's participated in the Games," Makarov opened.
"Ivan wants something," Gajeel shrugged. "He hasn't said what, but he's gunning for sparky over there." He jabbed a thumb at Laxus who deigned to roll his eyes.
"I'm prepared to fight my old man," he said gruffly.
"Don't treat this so lightly, Laxus," his grandfather warned. "Ivan formed his guild with Fairy Tail in mind, inviting mages that specialize in what he's calling anti-Fairy Tail magic to join. And he's no slouch himself. Ivan's illusions will not be easy to overcome."
"Your son's guild was a dark guild."
"Is," Makarov, Laxus and Gajeel corrected Ultear in chorus.
"Is," she repeated. "Could he be working for Zeref?"
"I haven't felt Zeref's magic," Natsu added.
"But that doesn't prove that Raven Tail isn't working with him," Erza finished.
Jellal folded his hands underneath his chin. "I haven't sensed the strange magic yet either. So we have nothing." His analysis was met with grim silence.
Meldy laid a hand on his shoulder. "There's still time. We'll catch him," she vowed softly.
The amalgamation of wizards plotted for another two hours, deciphering every guild's intentions and questioning the curveball that Erza and Natsu threw at them by mentioning the carved mural the Re-Quip mage had discovered in the preliminary.
Neither Jellal nor Makarov could provide a feasible explanation as to why the etchings were a part of the Games, but both feared what it could mean. Zeref's involvement in the war, limited as it was to telling Acnologia the ritual to change him from man to beast, was known only to the dragons.
The secret war council, as Natsu had taken to calling it, was dismissed while the party was still in high swing so that Crime Sorcière could leave undetected. Not in the celebratory mood, the Dragon Slayer retreated to the room he shared with his mate.
Sleep evaded him. Every time he closed his eyes he saw the crude depictions of humans slaying dragons, enemies and allies alike, and Zeref's disappointed face, a solitary tear sliding down the side of his face. They were no closer to discovering the source of Jellal's mystery magic and Natsu feared that they wouldn't learn the truth until it was too late.
Too late for what, he didn't want to know.
Erza pressed herself flush against him, cutting off his train of thought. Automatically, his left arm went to her back and guided her closer.
"I can practically hear those wheels turning."
He sighed. "Sorry, Erza."
She rose up on her elbow, propping her head on the palm of her hand. The other reached out to lace fingers with his. "I know you're frustrated. This isn't a situation you can solve by smashing a few buildings and beating the bad guy until he can't walk."
Her try at humor earned her a strained smile.
"It doesn't matter if we don't beat Zeref this week." Natsu opened his mouth to argue that the whole issue was the Black Wizard needed to be defeated sooner rather than later, but Erza rested one finger against his lips, signaling that she wasn't done and that he needed to listen and not just hear.
"It doesn't matter if we don't beat Zeref this week," she repeated. "We can do it next year or twenty years from now. He's already proven that he'll keep coming back to you, so you'll always have another chance."
Natsu smiled warmly at her. "First, don't ever say it like that again. You make him sound like a lovesick fool." The red head laughed lightly. "How do you always know what to say?"
"I don't," answered Erza. "I stumble through life day by day, just the same as you. But that's why I know you don't need to give yourself an ulcer worrying about 'what ifs.' Zeref and Raven Tail will still be there in the morning, so there's no point in losing sleep over the matter."
The pinkette heard the admonishment for the order that it was; a demand from his mate that he stop keeping her from his sleep and cuddle with her.
"I love you," he murmured.
"Love you, too. Now shut up and go to bed."
"Yes, dear."