feral | sting eucliffe

XLIX | CAP

Episode 49: Comfort and Paperwork!

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"A HEADMASTER?" Erza blinked, staring at the lacrima. Sting nodded from the other side of the communication lacrima, Lector perched on his shoulder. Oddly, his cat-like instincts had kicked in and he was busy either swatting at Sting's hair or entertaining himself by pawing his piercing back and forth between his maroon paws.

He muttered, "Yeah, a headmaster. That's all I could get her to say, though. So, we'll deal with what we have. I already have some guildmates looking into whatever that thing was, but I'm pretty sure it was in a different language since I don't understand shit. Rufus is on a mission with Orga so I can't ask him to translate it. Can you ask Levy to?"

Erza nodded, compliant. "Of course. I'll call you back as soon as I get the information." Sting waved once before the call ended. His office door swung open, Rogue standing at the entrance of it as Frosch sat on his shoulder, her paws holding onto a large piece of cotton candy. "Your girlfriend is a cat again." He muttered.

Ever since the incident, she'd been keen on staying as a small creature. Not to mention, she was heavily on edge, much like the other members of the Kyuuseishu. Galena, however, hadn't had her own reaction, but after Sonya overheard about it from Lucy, she'd kept a watchful eye on her little sister. Sting blinked, "Alright. I'm leaving early," He stood up as Rogue watched him.

Running a hand through his spiky blond locks, he looked over at his best friend. "Do you think you can convince Minerva that I finished this?" He gestured to the pile of paperwork that was mainly unsigned bills about the damage in the guildhall. Rogue tilted his head, "I surely can, but I'm putting my ass on the line by doing this for you; I hope you know that."

Sting waved him off, "Yeah, yeah. Lector, can you spend time with them for a while?" The maroon exceed nodded with a bright grin, flying over to Frosch as the two picked apart the lump of cotton candy in her paws. The blond paused, looking over at Rogue. "By the way, we aren't even dating yet. I haven't asked her and we haven't gone on a date."

Rogue snorted, "Really? I thought you'd be having sex in a hotel room by now."

Sting rolled his eyes, snickering before heading outside and into the guildhall. Certainly enough, his 'girlfriend' was in her cat form, shivering on the table. A sigh left his lips, feeling bad for her as he scooped her up and strode out of the guildhall. A surprised yelp escaped her mouth, but after realizing it was Sting, she clutched to him tighter, her claws tugging on his shirt.

After about ten minutes of walking, he arrived at the apartment that he shared with Rogue. Opening the door and closing it behind him, he set her down on the bed and looked at her, running a hand through her fur. "Hey, it's okay." He mumbled, repeating the words constantly until she felt comfortable enough to turn back into a human.

She was on her knees, hands curled into fists as she placed them on her lap as her head hung down. Tears trailed from her eyes to her lap, dropping onto the cloth as she cried silently. "I-I don't understand," Y/n sobbed as he pulled her in for a hug, letting her head fall onto his shoulder as she clutched at him desperately as if he would leave her.

"I can't sleep without dreaming these things and my nightmares st-stopped years ago, b-but now it's all coming back," She choked on her own words briefly, closing her eyes. "A-And now they're h-haunting me again. I-I don't understand w-why." Sting's heart tightened. He hated seeing her like this.

She looked so incredibly weak and Sting wanted nothing more than to rip the perpetrator's head off. He held her tighter as her words turned into louder cries, the girl having an absolute breakdown over the haunting memories. It's obvious that many things happened there and although her explanation had been vague, it was clear that she had developed PTSD from the events.

Most likely, the others had too. He rubbed her back, the girl's tears staining his clothing. Y/n spoke up again, her voice still slightly cracked. "W-Why can't I j-just be happy for o-once?" Sting grew even more furious at those words, knowing that it wasn't her fault, and yet she was blaming herself for the circumstances that she grew up in and was forced to live in for so long.

"You can be and I've promised to be with you every step of the way and I mean it. You'll be happy and I swear to God if you aren't, then I'm not Sabertooth's guild master." He swore with a boyish smile. She looked up at him, tears still falling down her face. Cupping his cheeks, a small giggle left her lips. "Thank you," The girl pressed her lips against his.

A smile shaped his lips as he pulled her closer, deepening the kiss slightly. She was dragged onto his lap, her legs looping around his waist as his hands rested on the small of her back. As the kiss grew heated, a knock on the door resounded. Rogue was on the other side of it, their exceeds trailing behind him. "Sting? Minerva might've found—"

He was cut off by an angry yell, "—STING EUCLIFFE, GET YOUR ASS BACK TO THE GUILD RIGHT NOW!" Sting shuddered, fear in his eyes at Minerva's possible punishments. Y/n looked back at the door briefly before looking to her right. She unlocked the window placed on the left of the bed, swinging it open before beckoning him to follow.

She jumped out first and he ended up landing on her h/c fur, her form now a wolf as she sped off down the road. People avoided them as she swerved, claws scratching at the ground occasionally as she made sharp turns to avoid magic cars and pedestrians. "If dating you has this as a bonus, count me in." He smirked, chuckling.

Y/n became flustered, barking as she sped off, Minerva's yells growing fainter.