𝙏𝙃𝙐𝙉𝘿𝙀𝙍 // 𝙧𝙤𝙜𝙪𝙚 𝙭 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧

𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙨𝙚

That night, in the apartment you had been renting out for almost a year, you jolted up in bed.

You had been stirred from your peaceful sleep by a powerful uneasiness that drenched you in a cold sweat and made your chest clench. Uncaring of Kuschel sleeping sound beside you, you threw back the cover and sprinted to the bathroom, where you knelt down in front of the bowl and vomited.

Kuschel came plodding in, rubbing one of her eyes sleepily with her paw.
"[Y/N]? Are you okay?" she murmured drowsily.

You clutched the seat of the toilet, breathing laboured and heavy.
"Kusch... Kuschel," you panted harshly, "we... we have to go."

Your Exceed hummed in a tired and bemused manner.
"Go? Go... where?" she asked.

"To... to Natsu, and Lucy," you explained, voice croaking as you sat back on your haunches.

"Really?!" the thought of returning to your old friends fully awoke Kuschel and her green eyes lit up, but then her ears fell.

"Kusch?" you questioned.
"What... what about Sting and Rogue? And Yukino, and Minerva and Frosch and Lector? Our friends?" she asked.

You shuffled your way over to her, still on your knees, and patted her head.
"We don't need to worry 'bout them — we're not leaving them forever. I just... I have a bad feeling. Something's gonna happen to Natsu and Lucy," you said, a determined undertone to your voice.

You stood up and walked back to the bedroom, flicking the light on as Kuschel plodded alongside you. You began to dress out of your pyjamas and into your day clothes, despite it being what you reckoned as the early hours of the morning.

"How're we going to tell Sting and Rogue we're going?" your Exceed asked. You hesitated, pursing your lips.
"We won't," you answered after a pause, "if we tell them... they'll insist they come with us, and I don't wanna put them through any grief."

"Oh..." Kuschel frowned, "so... I can't say goodbye to Frosch and Lector?"
You chuckled, "don't be silly, Kusch. I'm sure we'll be back here, safe and sound, in less than a day!"

She nodded.
"Okay!" she said. You picked up an empty bag from a drawer in your room.
"I need to get some things from the guildhall... come on," you said, before grabbing your keys and turning on your heel out of the building.

Kuschel flew alongside you, your footsteps on the cobbled streets the only sound among the darkness of the streets as you ran your way to the guildhall. It was just a short distance from your home, thank Mavis.

You made it and silently pushed the door open — you figured that some people might still be here, not to mention the housing system the guildhall had for those who couldn't find suitable homes within the city itself.

You snuck in, internally cringing at the sound your shoes made on the floor.
"[Y/N]?" a familiar, feminine voice sounded. You whipped around.

"Yukino..." you said quietly.
"What are you doing here at these hours?" she was dressed in a pair of light blue pyjamas, a night mask resting on her forehead which she had obviously been wearing beforehand.

"I needed to get some of my things," you explained shortly.
"We're going on an adventure!" Kuschel added helpfully.

Yukino's brow furrowed in almost discomfiture, and she took a step closer.
"What does Kuschel mean?" she asked you. You sighed, looking away.
"I'm going after Natsu and Lucy," you confessed.

Yukino's hand rose to her mouth, shaking. Her brown eyes were wide.
"[Y/N]..." she whispered. You were bemused as to why she seemed so devastated that you were going after your friends, and then you remembered. You were supposed to die.