A Family Crisis (Book 2 to My Scarlet Rose)

Chapter 2 - Learning Magic

"Found anything on the old man yet?" Laxus asked as he walked into Erza's office. Yes, Erza had an office now. She was the Master after all. Laxus and Erza had been trying to find Makarov since the guild was reformed. After Fairy Tail disbanded, he had disappeared. No one saw him or knew where he was. It was like he had fell off the face of the Earth. Erza had began this search during her first pregnancy. You know Erza, even pregnant she still works herself tirelessly! She told Laxus about the mission after he came back to the guild and of course he was on board.

"No. Nothing." Erza said, frowning. It's been eleven years. Where could Makarov have run off to? Was he dead? Erza instantly shook her head at the thought. She refused to believe that Makarov was dead. "Ok." Laxus mumbled and left the room. He had never been much of a talker, but he talked even less now. All day, every day, he either was training or looking for his grandfather. That's all he did. That's all he wanted to do. That's all he cared about.

Erza was going through some paperwork when she heard a light knock on the door. Her head shot up and she walked toward the door, opening it. "Mommy?" Little Riko was at the door, staring up at her mother. Erza kneeled down so she could be at her daughter's height. "What is it, Riko?" She ran her hand through the ten year old's hair.

"When do I learn magic?" She gave a small smile and her eyes were filled with hope. No, Riko and Takeshi had not learned magic yet. Erza was busy, but she knew she would have to teach them magic at some point in their life. Why not now?

"You really want to learn magic?" Erza asked and Riko nodded in response. "Being a wizard requires a strong will and heart, intense training, and discipline. Let's go!"

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Erza and Jellal took both of their kids to the guild's library. "So what kind of magic do you two want to use?" Jellal asked. It wasn't like the kids could use their parents' exact magic. However, they could use similar magic. After a while of thinking, Jellal gave the two kids some books, with pictures of course, of different types of magic. This way if they saw something they liked, Erza or Jellal could teach it to them.

Riko and Takeshi flipped through the pages, looking at all the pictures and occasionally some words. The words that they could read. Riko stared at a particular page for a couple of minutes then started smiling. "Mommy, I want this one!" She said, pointing to the page. Erza walked over and sat down next to her, leaning over to see the page.

Erza smiled once she saw the page. Requip Magic. Just like Erza. Except this wasn't The Knight or The Gunner. No, the magic Riko wanted to learn was called Requip: The Archer. Erza pictured her little girl all grown up as a powerful mage, wielding her various bows and arrows. She would be a warrior just like her mother. "Requip, eh? You're going to be a powerful mage someday, you know that?" Erza said in a soft voice. The girl smiled and nodded, "Yeah! Just like you, Mommy!"

Takeshi, on the other hand, didn't know what he wanted. He wanted something cool. Something powerful. Something . . . manly! Light Magic didn't seem good enough. Sword Magic either. He thought about Take-Over, but he hasn't seen anything on that magic yet. "Having a tough time?" Jellal asked, scooting closer to the boy. He nodded and accepted his father's help. "Look for Take-Over!" Takeshi exclaimed. Mirajane already had the power of demons, Elfman had the power of beasts, Lisanna had the power of animals, and even Jenny had the power of machines. There had to be another form of Take-Over!

"What about this one?" Jellal asked, showing his son the page. The boy's eyes lit up and a large smile spread across his face. The picture looked extremely cool and powerful to the eight year old. "Yeah! I want this one!" He was excited to learn this magic. It was a form of Take-Over that was rare since the creature was now extinct. Takeshi will be learning Take-Over: Dragon Soul. It wouldn't be easy. The only dragon souls left come from the Dragon Slayers. And there are only seven. Five in which are currently at the guild. The other two, he would have to travel for.

Jellal smiled as he watched his son burst with excitement. He would've preferred his son learning something that was similar to his magic, but this made him happy and that was all that mattered. Besides, he could always have another son if time, or Erza, allowed it.

"Let's start training."