N/NN: The first chapter of The New Fairy Tail in the new year is here!...that is surprisingly satisfying to say. Anyway, hope you all enjoy!

*Disclaimer: neither duodragoon nor I own/have any affiliation with Fairy Tail; all rights go to Hiro Mashima. Seriously, we just do this for fun*


The New Fairy Tail

The Key of Infinity Arc: Epilogue

Chapter 9: Dreams Are Wishes Your Heart Makes!


*Several Days Later*

There are two castles in the middle of the city. One is home to the Royal family and the other is the home of the Magic Council. We enter the castle and see a long, elegant hallway filled with portraits of past head councilmen. In this huge hallway is a girl of short stature, adorned by her long white trench coat, which reaches all the way to the top of her knees. She is also wearing thigh high stockings and combat boots, and her well-kept black hair flows at a length just below her shoulders. Her hazel eyes are hidden behind a pair of red framed glasses.

She is walking angrily down the hall with a newspaper in hand. She walks into a room with a group of people sitting around a table. She slams the newspaper on the table and yells, "Have you read this!? This is outrageous! We have to do something!" A stern, tall man looks down at her, "I see nothing wrong here: they are a guild, it was a task, they did it." This man is the Wizard Saint Jura Neekis; formerly a member of Lamia Scale, he now sits as one of the high seats on the council.

"And without too much damage, nyan," a lady in a robe with different cats all over it points out. This woman has long brown hair, cat ears on the top of her head, and marks on her checks that look like whiskers. Her name is Millianna, and she is head of the beast division of the council. The girl responds, "Bu-but who authorized this mission, and why was it only this guild who mysteriously got it?" A man at the end of the table spoke up, "I filed the necessary paper work needed to make this an actual quest, and I see no problem in it." This man has a long, crimson double-breasted coat on. He has long green hair that covers his right eye and two lighting shaped points on top of his head. This is Freed Justine, a retired member of Fairy Tail and the Magic Council's expert tactician.

"As for the distribution…that was my bad. I had a wild party and lost the rest." The next man to speak sat right across from Freed. He wore brown pants and blue gauntlets that covered his arms and shoulders. He had a concerning amount of alcohol gourds around him and was still drinking. This man was Bacchus Groh a former member of Quattro Cerberus, now the leader of training the Magic Council's forces. "There you have it. Everything was done to the best of our ability and within the guidelines," the woman at the head of the table spoke.

Her cloak was far more elegant than the rest; she wore it as a cape and under you can see a dazzling armor with Magic Council crests in gold over the silver of the armor. Her hair long and flowing, the color: scarlet. At the head of the table sat Erza Scarlet, former master and strongest female wizard in Fairy Tail, but now... The girl then grumbles, "Ah I see…thank you, head councilwoman." Erza smiles, "You should be happy that your brother made the front page... Again. If that is all, then off you go."

As she begins to walk off, "Oh, and Roxina Redfox…" She turns and sees the face that has put fear into legendary wizards, like Gray Fullbuster and Natsu Dragneel. Erza continues, "Next time you wanna come barging in questioning us do us a favor and don't. Or else demotion from the lieutenant will be the least of your worries. Are we clear?" She quickly nods and hurries out of the room in fear. "That girl has the brains of her mother and the temper of her father, that could get her very far," says the man on the left side of Erza.

He is a well-built man of medium height with white glasses and is wearing a lab coat. His hair is forest green, darker than Freed's, and has been reading a book this whole time. He is known as Jezern and is the head of magical advancement (basically head scientist). The last person in the room who sits across from Jezern chuckles and says, "Yes, the nerve of that girl, but she does have a point. I'm going to have a hard time explaining this to the media." This woman wears an elegant and flashy silk robe, and is probably showing a little too much skin. She has flowing golden hair and dazzling crystal blue eyes. Her make up is done, flawlessly (as she would say). Her name is Rura and she is the head of media relations. Erza nods, "Agreed, but we have bigger problems..." We flash over to the newspaper and the headline reads 'Fairy Soul Strikes Again! Fairy Tail's Strongest Team Destroys Dark Guild.'

*The Next Day in Magnolia*

Everyone is active and running about, place to place, shop to shop. People are hanging up decorations and everyone is in a festive mood. Our group of heroes are just now arriving back in Magnolia. They are clueless as to what is happening as they make their way to the guild.

*Flash into the Guild Before the Group Gets There*

No one is in the guild except for 3 people: Mirajane, Lucy, and another man. They are all sitting at the bar having a drink. The man is wearing a diviner purple suit, he has spiked yellow hair, and a lightning bolt scar across his right eye. This is Laxus Dreyar a former member of Fairy Tail, now in his retirement, he opened a casino on the other side of Magnolia.

"Man…times sure have changed," Laxus says while looking into his glass. "Yeah, hard to believe it. I still remember my first day coming here; it wasn't anywhere near this big," Lucy says looking around the empty guild, "What do you think Mira?" Lucy turns to find her passed out face down on the bar. 'Seems she's had too much to drink,' Lucy says to herself. Laxus stands up then says, "Welp, I better be off. Gotta make sure everything is ready for the event tonight."

Laxus walks out of the guild; as he begins walking down the street, our heroes are coming from the opposite direction. Akiko notices him passing by, "Hey wasn't that Laxus? He rarely comes to this side of town. Wonder if he was visiting his kid?" They all walk into the guild and are surprised to find the guild empty, except for Mirajane and Lucy. Akiko breaks the silence, "Mom what's going on? Where is everyone?" Lucy turns with a smile, but we all know how protective mothers can be...

"JUST where have you guys been? We have all been worried sick! No calls! Or even a message! Nothing! Where do you get off!? Ugh, and you guys almost missed the ball! And..." Lucy keeps going on, but Akiko turns to Hikari and asks, "What day is it?" Hikari looks at the calendar, "Oh my Mavis…it's May 3." The whole group looks shocked, "WHAT!?" Everyone goes into a panicked mode (except Duo). Distressed, Jarvan says, "J-dog needs to get a trim and a new leash." Lucio screams, "I needed to pick up my suit two days ago! Gah, I hope they still have it!" Those two run at the door simultaneously, get stuck in the doorway, curse at each other, get unstuck, and bulldoze down the street.

Akiko and Hikari are running around frantically yelling out random things about make-up, hair, and things of the sort. Lucy grabs them by their collars and points them towards the door then says, "Go get your shit together." As soon as she releases them they rocket out the door. Silvia is staring at the ground with a concerned look on her face. Duo and Lucy look at each other and immediately engage in Rock Paper Scissors, which Lucy loses. Lucy makes her way over to Silvia, but when she gets close Silvia lets out a guild shaking squeal and runs out of the guild.

Duo and Lucy look at each other questioningly, but decided not to worry about it. Lucy notices Duo not panicking and decides to ask, "What's up with you? Why are you so calm?" Duo shrugs, "You know my mom, she got my stuff months ago." Lucy laughs, "That does sound like her. Well then…" Duo stops her, "But…there is one thing I'd like you to help me with..." She looks at him and sees the look on his face; he seems a little embarrassed (though she does not seem to notice this).

*The Streets of Magnolia*

From a sky view, we see a huge dust cloud flowing behind a running figure. As we zoom in, we see Silvia rushing down the street, "No, no, no, no I have so much to do!" She rushes past a suit shop where both Jarvan and Lucio are yelling at a man, who seems to care little about their predicament. A few shops later, Silvia runs past a spa; inside we see Akiko and Hikari getting the full body treatment.

Silvia runs into several stores asking what they had left, but was left with the same answer for all, "Sorry we're all out." She searches for three hours but finds nothing. Both sad and exhausted she finds a nearby bench to sit on. She sits there, as the seconds pass, on the verge of tears when she hears a voice, "There you are. I've been looking all over for you." She would know that voice anywhere. She looks up expecting to see the crazy haired Iron Dragon Slayer, but is instead shocked when she looks up.

"You...you cut it. Why?" Instead of the long flowing mane that used to surround Duo, he now has it shortened to just above his shoulders. He was still wearing a bandanna which made him look mostly the same, but different at the same time. He points to his head, "Oh, this? I felt it was time for a change." Curious, Silvia asks, "What caused this?"

Duo gains an uncomfortable expression on his face as he flashes back to when Excel grabbed him and Akiko by their hair. Snapping out of the flash back he says, "N-nothing in particular! Just wanted a change." Silvia nods knowing that is not the case, but decides to not press the issue. Duo quickly changes the subject, "So, what have you been doing?"

Remembering what she was doing Silvia turns back to almost crying, "Silvia was trying to shop, but all of the stores are sold out. Now Silvia can't go to the event tonight." "That's why I have been looking for you," Duo replies. She looks up at him, "Hmn? What do you-" "Your mom sent your stuff to my parents shop while we were gone. My mom has everything waiting for you, now come on before we're late," Duo says with a soft smile, holding his hand out for her to grab. She wipes away her tears and grabs it, and they rush off down the street.

*Later That Night*

We see a huge flock of fancily dressed people all going into this amazing twenty story building. It is, in a word, beautiful, with a crimson paint job and golden trimming. In the courtyard outside is a golden statue of the third/sixth/eighth guild master of Fairy Tail, Makarov Dreyar, holding a young Laxus Dreyar's hand. The sign on the front reads 'Fairy Tail Grand'. Inside is a dark marble floor, golden pillars, and cream colored walls. To the left is a bar with tons of people (mostly men), who were getting drunk and being very merry. Straight forward are stairs which leads to the actual casino. To the right is the ball room where most of the people are heading.

Near the entrance is a punch bowl and standing around said bowl is four familiar figures. The first person we see is Jarvan. He is wearing a green suit that has leaf designs on it and no sleeves [A/N: of course], he bellows, "ALRIGHT! It's time for J-dog to get crunk!" "Quiet down you blithering idiot, we're here representing Fairy Tail so behave," Lucio says standing next to him. He is wearing a sparkling purple suit, though he seems to be annoyed and uncomfortable. Akiko chuckles, "Oh chill out sparkle pants; it's a ball have some fun." Akiko is wearing a scarlet dress that is slender on top (and probably showing too much cleavage) and poofy at the bottom, with mini lightning bolts on the bottom part of her dress. Akiko has most of her hair in a bun (somehow), except for two bangs which are hanging down in front of her face.

"What is the point of this crap anyway," Hikari huffs angrily. She is wearing a white dress, has her hair in two long pigtails, and has a lot of make up on. "Well it's obviously to try and look as adorable as you; come here," with stars in her eyes, Akiko tries to hug Hikari, but Hikari begins dodging her. Jarvan and Lucio look at each other. Lucio whispers, "Guess we know who dressed her." Jarvan grumbles, "She don't need all that makeup." Suddenly, a new voice joins the conversation, "Actually this is an event hosted by Fairy Tail for the people of Magnolia. We cause so much damage and create so much turmoil while doing missions it becomes really costly, so we throw events like this to boost tourism and such to keep the market booming and income flowing." The group turns and are amazed by what they see.

Silvia is wearing a long, flowing blue dress that looks like waves. She is also wearing white gloves and a black scarf around her arm, but this is not the surprising part: they are looking at her hair. Her once long and flowing blue hair is now just above her shoulders and spiky on the ends. Akiko finds her voice first, "Why?" Then, an all too recognizable voice speaks up from behind Silvia, "I guess I'm the one to blame for this one." Out steps Duo, wearing an all-white suit with a red tie. He had his freshly cut hair slicked back with only the ends being spiky.

The group looked even more surprised by this new looking Duo, which pissed him off, "What? A guy can't get a haircut around here!?" Lucio asks, "But why, I thought you liked your hair?" Duo looks away for a moment, "I did, but it was time for a change..." Akiko has a questioning look on her face, then they make eye contact for a split second; almost instantly she remembers Excel grabbing them by the hair. She immediately starts petting her bangs, "Lay off guys, it's not that big of a deal. The real big deal here is Silvia. She looks like an actual princess! Sooooo adorable!" Jarvan, Lucio, and Hikari look at each other wanting to know more, but when they were about to ask the lights dim. All the chatter patters out and a spot light shines on the entrance.

A loud voice announces, "Introducing your hosts for the evening: the owner of this fine establishment Laxus Dreyar, and the master of the partnering guild Mirajane Strauss." On cue, they both walk into the room, Laxus wearing a traditional all black suit and Mirajane wearing a fancy version of her usual dress that has a big Fairy Tail logo on the bottom part. Mirajane greets everyone, "Hello and welcome! We are grateful that you are spending your night with us. We throw this grand ball for all of you; when we started this, we weren't even sure it would work, but now we have so many people from all over joining us. I hope you enjoy your time here. Now let the festivities begin!" Light magic goes off that looks just like fireworks and the music picks up. People start dancing, and Lucio sees this as an opportunity. He turns to Akiko, but he sees her and Hikari rushing off.

Jarvan pats him on the back, "Come on buddy, it's a party! LET THE DOGS LOOSE!" A disappointed Lucio nods, "Alright then," he flips his hair, "Who wants to dance?" Suddenly a huge group of girls surrounds Lucio, separating the two. Jarvan shrugs and heads to the dance floor by himself. On this dance floor, there is a small circle and in the middle is Silvia and Duo, who are dancing together. Silvia looks like she is having the time of her life, while Duo is...well, he's there. That says enough. A tap on Duo's shoulder gains his attention, and he turns to see Gajeel and Levy all dressed up, "This lady would like a dance, Junior." Duo smirks and says, "I would be glad to, but only if you take over my dance." They nod and switch. Everyone lets out a simultaneous "Aww" at this sweet sight.

By the desserts, we see Akiko and Hikari. Akiko is stacking heavy amounts of sweets while Hikari is being picky. Hikari stops and looks at Akiko, "You know you're gonna have to tell him eventually, right?" Akiko stops and looks over, she sees Lucio dancing with a girl who has hearts in her eyes. Akiko grins, "I know I'll tell him tomorrow; he's having fun right now." Akiko looks over and sees Mirajane, Laxus, and Lucy all talking to some "official looking" men. She nudges Hikari, "What do you think that's about?" Hikari pulls out her glasses and looks, "Those look like officials from the Alvarez Empire…wonder why they're here?" Akiko shrugs, "Those guys have it under control; if they need us, they'll tell us. Come on! Let's enjoy ourselves!" They both turn back to the table and start picking out more sweets. From the ceiling, we can see everyone enjoying themselves.

*Meanwhile in Glesior (a newer town founded at the base of Mt. Hakobe) there stands a guild named the Ice Devils. Let's head inside*

We see a woman in a long blue dress walking down a hallway holding a big stew pot. She opens a door and walks into a throne room. In the new light, we can see her more clearly. She has long flowing blue hair, a hat, and on her hip, is a ghost doll. This is Juvia Lockser, a former top member of Fairy Tail, now she is the assistant to the Ice Devil's guild master. With a smile on her face she yells, "Dinner time!" At the end of the room, we see a man sitting on an ice throne.

He is wearing black and grey pants, black boots, and a black jacket with silver designs on it. He is wearing it opened with no shirt on underneath, and on his right pectoral is a Devil tattoo. He has shaggy blue hair and a five o'clock shadow. This man is Gray Fullbuster, another former member of Fairy Tail, but now he is the master/founder of the Ice Devils guild. Juvia happily walks over to Gray and notices he is reading something. "What do you have there," she asks as she hands him a bowl of stew. "Just today's paper; it appears that second-rate guild has made the front page again," he answers.

Juvia walks around to look over his shoulder so she can see. "Really now? Seems they took out an entire dark guild, impressive... Well for them anyway," she says chuckling. Smiling, Gray says, "This says this makes them the new strongest team in Fiore. What a joke! Only the strongest guild can have the strongest team, and last time I checked we were number one." He stands up and tosses the paper, "Let's pay a visit to the number two guild in Fiore, shall we?" We pan up and see several figures lounging around in another area of the guild. All their eyes flash red at the news.


N/N: Ahhh, it feels good to wrap up the first arc of this story. Did you like it? Love it? Hate it? Let us know in a review, any feedback is helpful (believe it or not). Anyhow…

Until next time FanFiction, this is

duodragoon & SkyFlameDragon

Signing off