AHHH!! Once again, after much delay, I finished my chapter!! :D I'm officially on Summer break now!!! \^o^/ Though, after Wifey's chapter, mine may come a bit slower again because I'm leaving for England in 9 days!!! *intense shrieking*
Now, on to the chapter! ^_^
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KEY:
Russian
Chinese
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Gajeel could feel his mother grow tenser beside him as Lily, Jellal, and Erza explained what was going on. At the mention of Etherios trying to kill them all, the small woman was on her feet.
"No way in Hell am I gonna let some cocky bastard lay a finger on my Gajeel," she roared, earning a startled look from everyone—except Metalicanna, who was softly chuckling. "Let me 'ave a go at him, an' he'll think twice abo' comin' for any one of ya!"
"Alright, Pixie, calm down," Metalicanna soothed, pulling her back onto the sofa next to him, "I'm sure you'll get your chance."
"We are taking precautions to ensure none of your children face any danger," Lily said.
"But they already have," Levy's father, Ramal, said with a frown. "Look at the state they're all in; they're beat up."
"Papa, we're alright," Levy said.
"But you might not have been," he huffed, obviously worried about his daughter. Gajeel got the "over-protective father" vibes from him, and wondered if that's where Baghira had picked it up.
"In Lily's defense," Wendy piped up, though still incredibly quiet, "we all decided to go against his advice not to."
"And look how hurt you got," Aunt Grandine sighed, pulling Wendy against her side in a tight hug. "You all are too young to be fighting this kind of battle."
"I agree," Lily said, "and that is why they won't be. I intend to procure a safehouse and—"
"No way in hell am I sitting this one out," Gajeel said, getting to his feet. "After everything this bastard has done, I owe him a pounding."
Erza laughed as Lily sighed loudly, rubbing his palm over his face in defeat. "The adults may choose to fight, but Wendy I cannot allow to be part of this. And no one," he looked around the room, his tone final, "is getting anywhere near this battle until you've been properly briefed and have trained for it. I have lost good men and women to Etherios and his followers—men and women who trained for years to hone their gifts and use them in battle."
They agreed, much to all of their parents' vote against any of them fighting.
"Alright," Erza spoke up, "enough 'o this war talk for now. I believe everything could use some rest and to freshen up."
"And I'll have a meal waiting for you all when you wake up," Cornelia smile, already on her way to the kitchen.
"Oui! And I will help," Celine, Juvia's mother, said, following Cornelia. Michelle went with them, barely able to get out of Lucy's grasp but insisting she was rested enough to help them.
Gajeel gladly used one of the free showers as soon as he got upstairs. There was still some of that black goo in his hair, and the smell of it was starting to make him sick. Damn, that took me completely by surprise back there. Lily was right about one thing: we definitely need to train if we plan on going up against Etherios.
Once he was clean, he laid in one of the double beds next to Natsu, who was already snoring loudly. After nearly thirty minutes of staring up at the ceiling, he gave up and made his way back downstairs. He had slept for a while on the plane, so he figured he'd be alright until that night when they all went to bed.
