feral | sting eucliffe

XXXI | ANS

Episode 31: A New Surprise!

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"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" Chase shouted an alarmed look on his face as the guild shook. The others, however, continued to celebrate. They held up their steins, shouting a name that the Kyuuseishu didn't recognize at all. The ground beneath them continued to act unstable, scaring the living shit out of them.

Akane had already made a barrier out of instinct, Chase's chains were stuck on each side of the wall, Nikos's snakes were refusing to come out (which was weird since they were usually around), and Y/n was a small cat, clinging onto Chase's clothing like her life depended on it. "Gildarts is home!" Another guild member cheered, confusing them further.

Lucy noticed their slightly panicked state, skipping over. "No need to worry. Gildarts is just a mage of the guild and since he's so dangerously powerful, they always have to change the town's layout when he arrives." She tilted her head with a calming smile. Chase blinked wildly, choking on his spit. "They change a whole town for a single wizard?!"

Natsu appeared, standing tall on one of the tables as all of them calmed down. A fire was sparking on his left hand as he grinned, holding it up. "Damn right they do! Gildarts may be super powerful, but I'm totally going to beat him someday!" Lucy sheepishly smiled, brows furrowing as a sigh left her lips. "Yeah, you do that, Natsu."

She seemed to be recalling something. Maybe when Gildarts came to the guild last time? Y/n shook the thoughts out of her head. The h/c kitty hopped from her older brother's shoulders to Lucy's with a small meow, tail flicking as she waited for the doors to open. A gust of wind blew them open, revealing just how much they changed the town.

An entire pathway had been made, the buildings of the town raised higher than usual. Everyone seemed intrigued by his return except Cana, a barrel in between her crossed legs and her arms. Y/n hopped onto the table, turning into a human as she glanced over at the unfazed alcoholic. "You don't seem as excited as everyone else. Why is that?"

She let out a heavy sigh, taking a sip from her barrel. "Because that geezer is my deadbeat dad," The brunette said with no hesitation, a wail emitting from a person near the doors. It appeared to be none other than Gildarts. He had ginger hair which was wavy, scraping against his shoulders. He also had a slightly unkempt beard, giving him more of a manly look than he actually was.

Gildarts was being dramatic, putting his metal arm up against his forehead. Bending backward slightly, he faked a cry. "How could you do this to me, my darling daughter? The apple of my eye? The reason for my—" Cana shrieked, tossing her beer barrel at him with an unprecedented amount of force. "—GET A GRIP, YOU OLD GEEZER!"

It thwacked against his head, making Y/n wince at the sound it made and the impact. Gildarts recovered from it quickly, pulling Cana into a forced hug and saying all kinds of things.

"Aw, my little sweetie pie!"

"GET OFF, YOU FREAK!"

"I love you so, so much! I missed you! Did you miss Dad?"

"Like I'd ever call you that, you pervert!"

"Cana, no need to be so mean! Just because you're my daughter, I'll forgive you for that."

"I DIDN'T ASK FOR YOUR FORGIVENESS!"

The entire guild hall returned to normal, the daddy-daughter duo continuing their argument. Y/n—still sitting crossed legged on the table—blinked and turned to face Titania. "Why was Gildarts gone for so long? I mean, none of you mentioned him while we were here." Erza smiled, leaning up against the table as she watched her guild mates interact.

"Gildarts is an S-Class wizard, but much stronger than me. He's known as our 'Ace', actually. However, he mainly goes on decade missions or even century quests." She replied nonchalantly. It seemed that the man had truly done so. His tousled hair and slightly grizzled look seemed to put that to the test, along with the lack of an actual human arm on one side.

Y/n's eyes lightened up. Maybe she could ask him about that mission that she'd read about? Surely he'd heard of it since he was out for longer and was probably familiar with the stakes of most quests. The scary part was the fact that he might reprimand her for having a S-Class quest in the first place. Erza seemed to notice her thoughtful look, "Something on your mind, Y/n?"

She shook her head, her e/c eyes meeting inquisitive brown ones. "No, don't worry. I was just wondering what decade and century quests were like." She replied. It seemed like a feasible enough lie for the time being. Gildarts seemed to have overheard, briefly letting go of Cana as he sauntered over to the table. "Life-threatening, kid. I don't recommend going on them." He advised.

His usually joking tone took on a serious one. She blinked, nodding slowly. He seemed to take these things seriously. Maybe it was better not to tell him? Then again, he could possibly be her only reliable source as of right now. Gildarts's next statement snapped her out of her trance, "Now that I think about it, I've never seen you before."

Erza tilted her head with a smile, armor shuffling as she did so. "We took in a vigilante group back in Stella. They've only been here for a week or so, but they've settled in nicely." His interest seemed to be peaked as he blinked at her, resting a hand on his chin. "Huh. . . what magic do you practice, kid?" Y/n twiddled with her fingers. "Convene and beast magic."

Chase swung in behind her, landing swiftly on the table as his combat boots planted onto the wood. "Fire and prisoner magic," He replied, including himself in the conversation. Nikos made his way over as well, smoother than Chase as he sat in the seat across from Erza, facing Chase and Y/n's backs. "Serpentine magic," His black snake slithered around his finger.

Akane sighed, putting her purple fingers up as the barrier blasted away Chase and Y/n, her silent way of telling them it was rude to sit on a table. "Barrier magic, teleportation, and lightning." She looked towards Gildarts, a cocky glint in her eyes. Gildarts pulled back, humming under his breath as he stared at the kids. "All some kind of lost magic," He mumbled.

A grin shaped his lips, "I like these kids."