Fairy Tail; The Sequel

Chapter Fifteen ; Whole Again

    Rain hadn't felt this happy in a long, long time. With Varian by her side, and her new guild mates surrounding her, she felt strong. Powerful. Undefeatable, even, but she knew this wouldn't last too long. She knew this was just the beginning of a long, hard battle.

"The sooner we get to Edolas, the better," Erza said, a small smile still playing across her lips.

"Okay," Varian replied, breathing in deeply. His stomach was beginning to churn uncomfortably and he had the sudden urge to back down. His hands were beginning to shake. Varian quickly hid them behind his back. Why was he doing this, again?

"I'm still against this, but you can do it if you think you can handle it." Rain gave the man a small smile. She turned to the scarlet-haired mage. "So, how does this work? Does everyone appear in different places or together?"

The requip mage acknowledged her question with satisfaction. "Last time, we were all turned into lacrima so we don't really know. Wendy, Natsu, Carla, and Happy all entered and ended up together. There's a fifty-fifty chance for both."

    "Wait... If the portal starts to work as soon as it's summoned, won't Varian get sucked in too? If he gets Magic Deficiency Syndrome and everyone gets split up..." Rain covered her mouth and closed her eyes, fighting the nausea. The world seemed to spin beneath her feet. 

    Varian took her hand confidently. "There are risks for everything, Rain. And some risks...they're worth taking." He remembered why he was doing this; not just for Rain, or his new friends, but for all of Earthland. They had no idea what the brothers were up to, for all they knew, they could be planning to destroy Earthland. Their one and only home.

"I'm ready," the silver-haired man said, releasing Rain's hand gently. He turned around, slowly, meeting everyone's gaze, making sure they were ready too. Natsu grinned back at the man, while Wendy smiled happily. Gray and Erza both nodded in agreement. "Let's get going. Everyone is probably waiting for us."

The group began to walk back to the muddy path. "Wah-" Lucy whined. "I don't wanna walk in the mud!" she complained, wrinkling her nose with disgust.

Rain laughed softly. "I don't think you can avoid that." She laughed pointing out that it was raining heavily. Smiling, she began to run around in the rain. "Ah! I love this!" She closed her eyes and tilted her head back, allowing the droplets to run down her face, cool and soothing. It made her feel alive.

Varian and Erza chuckled at her childlike behavior, while Natsu snickered at her. "She really loves the rain, huh?" Erza laughed.

"Yup, her name suits her."

    "Hey! I can still hear you!" Rain shouted, standing still with her hand on her hips.

    "What? We aren't saying anything bad!" Varian teased.

    The dark-haired girl rolled her eyes. "Obviously. How could you?" She flipped her soaked hair. "You love me," she said dramatically, before bursting out with laughter.

    Varian walked up behind her and wrapped his hands around her waist. He leaned in close to her ear and whispered, "Of course I do."

    A light, pink blush dusted Rain's cheeks. "H-Hey!" she shouted, prying Varian's arms off of herself.

The blue-eyed man laughed, letting her go. The rest of the group watched with subtle amusement. "Come on, let's get going." Varian smirked, dragging her into the mud.

The trek back was far easier despite the rain. Natsu and Gray had the time of their life, splashing around in the mud, throwing even dirtier insults at each other. Lucy talked animatedly about books she thought Wendy should read now that she was getting older. Meanwhile, Rain and Erza walked together in a comforting silence.