VERiTY (Fairy Tail Fanfic)

29. [The Lovers]

AN: I think people are going to ask, but the title references a tarot card and its meaning, not literally romance, so no, this is not some foreshadowing of a future relationship. The story is familial love only! >n< but if you do ship any characters together in or because of my story, go ahead! ❤ no romance will happen in the story except for the canonical ones, and that's still in the future. 

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Cana sighed as Laxus smashed a hole in the tree, again.

Grunting something indiscernible under his breath, he marched off in the next direction, stepping harshly enough on the soil to leave the grass smushed and the soil uneven.

Laxus was irritated. That much was obvious.

Earlier in the town, someone had asked him if he was participating in the S-class Advancement Tournament-- it was all the hype in the region, after all.

Laxus was almost incredibly polite when he told them he didn't make the cut this year. The trouble came when the gossiping auntie teased him about falling short.

(Because "even Makarov's grandson can fall short of something, huh? I guess there's a first time for everyone," they had said.)

(Cana had interrupted them immediately. "Laxus, let's go," she hadn't spared anyone else a glance, simply took the boy by the elbow and dragged him out before a response could be formed in his head.)

Though Eir knew Laxus longest, Cana knew him best at the moment. And Cana knew that Laxus only ever went on a job with her when he was upset.

If there was anything that was going to put him over the edge... this might be it.

"Biribiri, stop that," she spoke up. "You're going to chase the beasts away from you."

"Stop calling me that!" Laxus' reaction was an explosion of anger, driven forth by all his accumulated frustration thus far. "And we don't need the little ones! Eca Wolves only come to strong opponents, so I'm trying to draw them in!"

Cana rolled her eyes-- then trained a glare on him.

"Strong?" she taunted, "you're acting like a brat just because you didn't get chosen for S-class. That's not strong and if I can tell, I bet the animals can, too."

That was evidently the wrong thing to say, because the tree root under his foot burst in a spark of golden discharge. It caught fire for the briefest of a second, its edges still shining in coal-like illuminance before Laxus drove his boot through it.

"Don't test me, Cana."

That tone was a threat.

Cana suspected that being S-class had little to do with it. Laxus was happier than anyone when Eir was nominated-- he was envious, but he was willing to accept it with a grain of salt because he was proud of Eir as a big brother, as who he was.

And yet.

And yet, all people saw of the situation was that Makarov's grandson had fallen short of the bar-- what a major upset, huh? Makarov's grandson isn't in the tournament bracket.

It's always Makarov's grandson and never Laxus Dreyar.

(And that pissed Cana off too.)

Maybe-- just maybe, Cana needed to let off some steam too.