A Fairy Once More

Chapter Five

We spent more time away from the guild then in it for next several months. In that time we slowly began to get used to being in the past, though there were still moments we broke down and had to find space to put ourselves back together.

Happy had even questioned us on it a few times.

Gajeel still hadn't come to Fairy Tail, but he had left a note explaining that he'd show back up after the attack from Phantom Lord as he had a few things to do in the meantime.

Laxus had been requested on a special S-class job so had also been gone.

Meaning the Thunder Legion had also not stuck around.

Even without them being around we were still confronted by the other guild members we had seen as family. Learning to deal with our memories of their deaths and the currently alive versions of them was still a work in progress.

But we were working on it.

Some days it seemed easier than others, most of the time part of me just felt numb and like I was slogging through a dream. It was truly a good thing that I wasn't facing this alone.

Because I just knew if I had been, I'd have already collapsed.

"I just remembered Cobra," mused Natsu as he joined me in the bathroom, not even hesitating to strip and join me in the large bathtub. "He'd be a good member to have with us before things go to shit during the Grand Magic Games."

Right, because it had been after we had first thought we'd closed the gates that the demons appeared to rip it back open. From there things hadn't gone well for us.

Or for the whole world even.

This time we planned to do more than shut the gates with the celestial keys.

But we'd need as many dragon slayers as possible to accomplish that.

"He'd help if we had Kinana," I stated with a light sigh while thinking of the girl Gramps had found right before we had left for Tenrou Island. "She was his mate, meaning he'd do anything to keep her safe against any threat."

A fact he kept to even when being torn apart by Zeref's demons.

His death had been one of the bloodier ones that I had been forced to witness.

Not that any of the deaths had been pretty.

Death was ugly in any form.

"She wasn't his mate," refuted Natsu causing me to lean fully against him while tilting my head back so I could see his face. "Kinana was his family, like a baby sister to him."

Now, that I hadn't seen coming considering how he reacted around her.

"Oh," I breathed out with true surprise. "But I thought he had talked about the woman he loved right before that fight..."

Was I remembering things wrongly?

"He was in love with Lucy," answered Natsu with a faint sorrow filled smile. "It's why, even though he joined our guild, he would always try to fight me."

Well, I really hadn't seen that coming.

"We can use the fact that we had to do the council's job to gain custody of him," I stated while changing the subject since I knew that anything to do with Lucy wasn't a light topic. "I was already thinking of doing something similar to get Jellal."

Jellal being powerful in his own right.

Though that reminded me of another fact...

"We can't let Mystogan stay in Edolas," breathed out Natsu seeming to read my mind considering I had already been thinking the same. "He hadn't wanted to stay but did so for Edolas as a whole and not believing there was a way he could return with us."

Which could be changed just by him wearing clothes from the celestial world and having magic embedded into his skin. Which I could do if I shared my magic with him.

Mainly since I doubted that any of the dragon slayers would bite him.

 Especially considering what that'd mean.

"That reminds me," I continued even while twining my hands with Natsu's that rested on my stomach. "We will likely have to tell Gramps the truth along with a few others."

Mainly since I had taken note of the looks Gramps was giving us along with that of Mira.

That could possibly due to the fact Laxus had avoided her before leaving on that job.

Around this time, they already had feelings for one another, not that they'd get together though since around this time Laxus was too busy planning to go against the guild.

"I already figured we'd have to," breathed out Natsu while leaning his head back against the rim of the tub while tightening his hold on my wast and hands. "We'll at least need to wait until Laxus returns as he was our guild master before it fell."

Meaning we still looked to him for orders as our leader.

Even if we were back in the past, to us our guild master would always be Laxus.

Something that had been easy to hide so far with the other being gone.

And with us taking so many jobs as well.

"Are you two going to be in there forever?" called out Happy from outside the bathroom making us share a look before getting out of the tub. "Natsu, we're supposed to go fishing!"

Right, because they did do that pretty often in the past.

"I know," called out Natsu as he dried off and grabbed his clothes to yank on. "I didn't forget, buddy. I promise."

From the huffing coming from the other room, it seemed Happy didn't believe him.

"Oi, Emiko!" yelled Cana from the front door making me hurry to finish dressing while running a towel through my hair. "You here?!"

"One moment," I yelled back, part of me still found it hard to raise my voice.

From there nothing else was said as Natsu and Happy left through the bedroom window while I went to let Cana into the apartment. But it did remind me of my plans to move in with Natsu.

We already had plans to renovate and expand his house to be comfortable for all of us.

Mainly as I knew Gajeel would move in without hesitation.

Laxus had his own house but would likely also stay with us more than there since his house held a lot of memories with the Thunder Legion. Memories I just knew he hadn't faced yet.

Turns out Cana had come to kidnap me for a job.

"Sorry," I offered with a tight smile as she scolded me for being gone so much with Natsu and forgetting all about her, not that I had forgotten her. "It's just we decided to become a team."

From the look on her face, it seems she hadn't seen that one coming at all.