metal heart | ft

10 | old friends

In the dead of the summer, you couldn't really tell if it was just really late or really early, a dark figure moved their way through the dense forest. It was almost graceful how they veered and twisted through the bush, a tell-tale sign that they had certainly had done this, no, been here before.

The figure continued to move through the under bush, before stopping for a moment. Pausing, the figure looked up through the thick trees, glimpsing at the faint moon that hung in the sky. It had been a long day of travel, but they were nearly there. Continuing their pace, they soon reached a clearing with charred patches on the ground. Spotting a familiar engraving on a tree nearby, the figure knew they were in the right spot. Looking directly across the clearing the dark cave mouth, they confidently crossed the grass, ducking into the cave.

As silent as possible, with the clank of their feet that is, the figure walked deeper into the cave, as it began to tunnel downwards. Suddenly, a faint light appeared at the end of the tunnel. As the figure approached the light, they found three people sitting around a crackling fire. One male, two females. The two women were currently ganging up on the blue-haired male, who simply stared at the fire, exasperated.

"I see you two never change." The figure spoke, announcing their presence to their friends.

The three's heads whipped over, slightly on guard, though at the sight of the figure, all tension was dropped. The taller woman, a curvaceous ravenette, clicked her tongue at the newcomer.

"Seriously Su, must you try to sneak up on us every time?" The woman asked.

"Only as long as it stays fun, Ultear. Jellal, move over, I've been walking for a long time." Su said, walking over to the aforementioned male.

This was Crime Sorciere, Su's oldest friends. Sure, she had only known them for just over four years now, but they were still arguably the most important people in her life, even more than Kinana (not that she would tell the bartender that). They had saved when she was on the brink of death, and accepted her as one of their own despite her splitting off from them three years ago to join Fairy Tail. Jellal had been crucial in her magic proficiency, as she had been self-taught from a book up until that point, and she saw him as her uptight older brother in a way. Ultear, despite how much she denied it, was like a mother to Su (Meredy backed her up on this one, being the other recipient of the Time Mage's motherly affection) and helped her in so many ways. And then there was Meredy who was like her younger sister. Meredy was two years younger than Su, which was a new experience for Su, having been used to being the youngest in most settings. Though, when she first met the Independent Mages Meredy did not act like the younger one, joining Ultear in fussing over Su's health and wellbeing. Still, she wouldn't change them for a heartbeat.

A small amount of tension lingered in the air before Meredy spoke up, "So, are the rumours true?"

"I assume you're asking about Tenrou?" Su asked, as she ditched her cloak in favour of using it as a blanket across her lap.

"Yeah." Meredy asked.

Su gave a small smile, knowing that her three friends had been waiting for this for seven long years. She hadn't, as she had never met any of Team Tenrou until recently, only wishing for them to come home for the sake of others.

"They're home, and alive." Su answered, causing the three fugitive's to let out sigh of relief. "I suppose I should fill you guys in on what happened seven years ago."

"You mean when Acnologia attacked the island?" Ultear asked, "Was there more to the story?"

"Yeah. Our First Master Mavis used one of the Three Great Fairy Magics, called Fairy Sphere to protect Team Tenrou from Acnologia. No, I don't know how, seeing as apparently she's been dead for like a century, though maybe it has to do with the fact that she's buried on Tenrou Island. Anyways, Fairy Sphere made Tenrou Island vanish from existence until the spell wore off. They've all been essentially asleep for seven years." Su explained, watching her friend's shocked and surprised reactions. "None of them have aged in the past seven years, nor were they aware of how much time passed. To them, it was as if they fell asleep and woke up seven years later. Their bodies haven't healed or changed either, they are still recovering from the injuries from seven years ago. Some of them aren't taking it very well, though that mostly has to do with what they missed out on. Erza nearly started a brawl when she realized she missed Bisca and Alzack's wedding AND the birth of Asuka. Hopeless romantic stuff, I guess."