Fairy Tail - Eyes of Ice

Chapter 30 - Edolas Pt. 6

All but one of the Exceeds flew off in a great herd in the sky: Panther Lily, apparently one of the Exceeds who once stood alongside the King and Knightwalker, but had in actuality been pretty close with Mystogan, or as he was now known: Prince Jellal.

Gajeel, quite nimbly, adopted Lily as his cat and wanted to have Lily prepared to throw down with Happy and Carla at any moment. Kai didn't have much faith in either of the two other Exceeds, if only because Lily carried a sword with him.

Throughout the hugs and cheers and cries, one other person stood out in the crowd: Lisanna. Mirajane and Elfman swarmed her, in complete disbelief that it was really her. Kai couldn't believe it either, but as the girl explained, her death hadn't been exactly that: she'd been sucked into one of the Anima and replaced the once-dead Lisanna of Edolas. She found a home there. However, she was technically native to Earth-land, and was thus brought over with the rest of the innately magical beings.

It was probably the biggest impromptu celebration that Kardia Cathedral had had in a while, filled with laughter, crying, and most people questioning just what the hell had happened while those directly involved with the Edolas escapade did their best to keep everyone afloat with the information.

The big focus of the party was, naturally, Lisanna, while Happy, Carla, Wendy, and Gajeel were given major props for the roles they'd played.

Kai approached Wendy privately when she had a moment to breathe. She stiffened up but Kai just waved her off.

"Wanted to congratulate you," Kai said.

"You too!"

"No, Wendy," Kai said and sat next to her on the park bench they were near. The entire square was filled with shouting and overall joy. "You did truly remarkable things back there. Brave things."

"I was just trying to be like everyone else in the guild."

"And you proved why, even though you're new, you're still one of the best of us. We wouldn't have made it out of there alive without you."

"Or you!"

Kai shook his head. "I'm happy that you're a Dragon Slayer, Wendy. I know it's daunting and the power can be scary, but if we didn't have you or Carla I doubt things would have gone the way they were supposed to."

"I'm just happy we managed to get everyone back."

"We did cut it a bit close there, but, honestly, it's what Fairy Tail does. Pulls victory from the jaws of defeat."

Wendy giggled at that. "You make it sound like a good thing."

"Keeps us all on our toes."

Someone else called to her and Wendy waved at them, then sighed. "Today has just been so exhausting."

"Tell me about it," Kai said and eyed Erza, who stood among the crowd of once-lacrima people. "I'm ready for a nice break."

Kai at last sat down on his mattress, laying his sword aside. Iggy was still out with the guild and, noticeably, had been short with Kai. Something was upsetting her, just as something bothered him: Iggy hadn't stayed behind as one of the Exceeds when the Anima first absorbed Magnolia. She'd vanished.

He eased back against the wall. Moonlight filled the room and cast shadows along the far corners. Kai leaned his head back and strummed his fingers together.

Iggy looked just like an Exceed. She acted like one: she had wings—not as glowing—like Happy, walked on two feet like Happy...but her tail was a bit fluffier, like a real cat. Kai pursed his lips. They'd have to talk eventually. Was she ashamed of something?