It didn't feel like the world was crashing down upon her.
It didn't feel like her heart was split into two.
The only thing she felt was shock just like when she got hit by the Thunder Palace. It spreads through her body like tendrils before gradually fading away. It settles.
She actually waited for the distress and her mind to blank, for her heart to stop, anything that was relatively similar to what she read in those romance novels. Nothing.
But then again, fiction can sometimes be exaggerated.
With the ice tray in her hands, she casually flew up as if she hadn't heard a thing. The first thing she noticed was how quick Gray turned his head and put on a neutral expression. Lyon let out a quiet vexed huff before quickly smiling at Karissa and scooting closer to grab a plate.
"Here you go." Karissa patiently held out the tray for them and listened to their thanks. "Gray can you hold mines for a sec."
"Sure."
Once he took hers, she nonchalantly tossed the tray over her shoulder. The two other ice mages watched the tray disappear below followed by a shattering sound. They sweat dropped.
"What if Max came out? You would have knocked him out." Gray smirked in amusement while she simply shrugged and took hers before taking back her spot next to him.
"He would have survived." She snickered and went began eating her beloved vanilla cake.
The sweetness of the cake didn't feel as enjoyable as usual. His words that were an obvious indirect rejection to her feelings almost ruined the taste. It was like eating crackers when you were depressed.
There was no need to dramatically cry and sob into a pillow nor the need to avoid him like the plague.
It was fine.
But...
... Yeah. It stings.
―
The next day, she was on her way to the train station. She was dressed in loose black checkered long sleeve that had a high black collar that slightly drooped forward with white drawstrings. The end of her sleeves matched her collar. Her bottom was tight fitted marine blue pants. She wore black leather slip on shoes. Across her body was a light blue book bag that hid a book that desperately needed to be returned to a library, the book that had information about Unison Raids.
She already had a good grasp on the contents and already made sure to take notes on it in her room. All the contents were basically copy and pasted at home so there was no need to keep it with her.
Her destination was the library but she first wanted to make a stop at Hargeon. Why? She wanted to check out the bakery that sold her favourite cream cheese bagel with salmon. Verifying whether or not that place was still standing was crucial for her survival. Okay. Not really. But she'd like to know if they moved or something because that bagel was damn good.
Also, she took this trip as an opportunity to put a bit of distance between her and Gray after what she heard. She figured that spending more time with him now would just sting more. That was her rational approach. This was the idea she thought of when she returned home and got in her bed that day.
Nothing would change. There was no need to. If she decided to be foolish and avoid him, then she'd be proving that their friendship was worth so little. However, putting some distance was perhaps necessary.
She'd just have to do it in a way that didn't feel like she was avoiding him like a plague.
"Karissa!"
As she dug into her back pocket for her wallet, she heard Happy's voice call her name. When she turned, she found him with his partner and Lucy. They looked dressed and packed. Ready to go on a job, maybe?
"Yo."
"Going on a job?" Natsu wondered.
"Nah, just going to return a book to a library after I make a stop somewhere. You?"
"We're going with Lucy to see her dad."
Lucy put a hand on her hip and gave him a suspicious look. "Yeah? You never said why you wanted to, though."
As if she struck a nerve, both the Salamander and the Exceed began crying.
"Your dad has ways to earn fish-catching opportunities!" Happy cried. "I mean, profit-making opportunities! We need to take this chance now!"
"Why so urgent?" Karissa quirked an eyebrow as she stood next to the blonde whose face still didn't change. "Go snag a job from the request board."
"You don't get it!" Natsu grabbed her by the shoulders. "When Happy and I got home, our money box was gone! That's our food money!"
"Oh, no." Lucy grimaced.
"Ah!" Karissa dropped her fist in her hand. "So, you're broke as fuck."
As if the truth struck him hard in the gut, he whimpered and cried even harder.
As Natsu released her to panic with Happy, Karissa put a hand under her chin thoughtfully. "You two do live away from civilization, aka Magnolia, so I wouldn't be surprised if some homeless person found their way to your house for shelter and found your money box."
Immediately, Natsu's tears evaporated from the heat his mouth produced when he angrily spat fire. "Damn homeless person! That was our food money!"
"My fish money!"
The two women stared at them for a few seconds before turning around and continuing their walk to the train station.
"Maybe they'll try to mooch off your father since he's a businessman."
"I really hope they don't do something like that." Lucy muttered, placing a hand on her face as if to dread the possibility.
"Don't talk like as if I'm not here!" Natsu snapped as he and Happy caught up to them. When he slowed down and walked directly behind them, Karissa spun around her heel to look at him, walking backwards. Lucy looked to the side to see what she was up to.
"Since you're flat broke, I guess I'll help you get started." Karissa held out her wallet and looked down at it. The moment she opened it, they froze. Natsu and Happy might as well have been blinded by the amount she kept stored in there. The sight of so much bills had them gaping, jaws practically slamming into the earth and reaching deep into its core. Even Lucy was shocked at the amount she kept.
"Shouldn't you store some away in a safe place?!" Lucy suggested. "What if you lost your wallet?!"
"I rarely lose my wallet. Number of times counted is actually on one hand, and I bought this wallet when I was probably nine. Says a lot, right—?"
"Forget about that!" Natsu interjected and looked at the black haired mage with enlarged eyes. "H-How much are you giving us...?"
"Just enough to get you started." She repeated, pulling out two dozen of bills. "An estimate of a week and a half's worth. That way you can take it easy, no stress, and it'll help since our jobs aren't exactly paying right now so—" Karissa was cut off when Natsu and Happy literally barreled into her, landing on the hard ground.
"WHAT THE HELL?!"
"KARISSA! THANK YOU!"
Lucy stood watching awkwardly. As onlookers passed by, Lucy just sheepishly nodded a little to assure them everything was fine.
Natsu was practically rubbing his cheek against her with Happy.
"I always thought you were stingy!" Happy wailed.
"You were always one of the best ones at the guild!" Natsu admitted.
Karissa just patted their heads awkwardly, face apathetic from the display she and her friends were presenting. "I'm not gonna let my friends starve when I have money to spare. Now, come on, get off."
Once they recollected themselves, Natsu pulled her back up on her feet and tucked away the money she gave them.
"By the way, stripper was looking for you this morning." Natsu propped his bag on his back properly with a jolt. "Said he wanted to go on a job or something."
"Oh yeah?" Karissa looked a bit apologetic. "Sorry, Gray." She said as if he was nearby, her hands in a prayer motion as if to express her sincere apologies. But she was quick to drop her arms and continue walking with Lucy. "I'm sure he can find a partner since I'm busy."
Yeah, I won't just drop stuff to go hang with him or take jobs.
What I'm currently doing is a priority over him in that moment.
He'll understand.
―
Karissa flipped the magazine absentmindedly.
She had forgotten her headphones at home like an idiot so she didn't have anything on her to keep her busy. When she realized that, she picked up some magazine, that wasn't Sorcerer Weekly, at Magnolia station before boarding. She didn't feel like sleeping and missing her stop since it wasn't too far from Magnolia.
Fucking gossip, gossip, gossip, more gossip.
Oh look, a prime minister was found treason of pillaging money from a company. What an idiot.
Apathetically, she continued flipping the pages.
The magazine she picked up didn't solely focus on Fiore. The other countries of Ishgar were focused and discussed. This magazine didn't focus solely on Ishgar either. It had articles about the continent as a whole.
The flipping of pages stopped.
She stopped when her eyes landed on a young man of dark brown eyes and white hair wearing a suit that was plastered on the page. He was quite handsome. She recognized this man. He was a noble of one of the well known families of Aurora. She sometimes saw his face in the magazines her sister would collect at home.
'SYLVAIN NIGHTWELL REGARDING AURORA'S FOUNDING DAY'
Huh... Nightwell... Aurora.
Fiore was part of the peninsula known as Ishgar which was part of the smaller half of the continent of Eskerhill. Even though Ishgar was quite large, Aurora was even more. The majority of the vast land of Eskerhill was the Kingdom of Aurora which was connected to Ishgar through Pergrande Kingdom. It is known that it's very hard to obtain citizenship in Aurora, impossible even, which is why most people would suggest heading west when wanting to pursue magic. Going to Aurora had too many obstacles that involved paperwork that practically took two years to fill and process. Sure, people could go to Aurora as visitors but that would often involve carrying a travel permit handed by Aurora itself. Again. Paperwork.
It's not like in Ishgar where you can simply just waltz into a country no problem. Important figures, magic council representatives, businessmen and travel permitted individuals could travel with ease into the country. This made Aurora sort of appear as a locked off country.
Those who visited this kingdom always had good things to say. Their experience always had positives that outweighed any negatives.
The Kingdom of Aurora was seen as a vast realm with a large military power which guaranteed the safety of such a vast land. Also, the Kingdom was extremely advanced in technology and was culturally intact, especially in the Crown City, Vigilia, the seat of power of the region. Visiting Vigilia was almost like visiting a place of wonder with how advance they were. She saw pictures of Vigilia before. The metropolis was stacked with skyscrapers, it was separated from mainland by bridges and water. Their nature was lush and breathtaking in many places. It was nothing like in Fiore or Ishgar in general. With how it prospers, Aurora is practically an alien kingdom to the rest of the world.
Karissa read the words near his picture.
"The year X790 marks the 590th year of the Kingdom of Aurora's founding. We celebrate this year and give our prayers and respects to the First King and the Founders. Under the reign of King Cordis, we continue to live in prosperity and look forward to the future he guides us toward."
-Sylvain of House Nightwell speaks in regards to Aurora's Founding Day.
...
...
...
"Now, that's a face I haven't seen in a long time!"
She had lined up when she found the bakery and patiently waited for her turn. When her turn came, the man she recognized as the father of the family that runs the bakery looked absolutely flabbergasted at her ageless appearance and then laughed heartily when he ushered her closer to the counter to take a good look at her. She couldn't help but feel sheepish at how he gleefully called over his wife to have her take a look as well.
The Landerville family was one she her own family was acquainted with. When she was young, she and her siblings would often stop by Hargeon since it was one of Fiore's beautiful old towns. There were many shops that sold nice things. Hargeon's prosperity came more so from its traditional ways such as fishing, restaurants, souvenir shops. This old town's magic population was a mere ten percent so, it sort of made sense to rely on non-magic methods for monetary gain. But anyway, the Sinclost family would often grab food from the Landerville bakery. Seeing their familiar faces eventually opened up conversations for them to get better acquainted them at a young age, especially since the husband and wife were surprised to see such young mages.
Noelia, Mrs Landerville, cupped her face in astonishment. "You really look like you haven't aged a bit."
This warmth emanating from her hands and the tender smile reminded Karissa that Noelia was a mother. This made Karissa smile a little as she bashfully looked away from Noelia and she briefly explained the cause of her youth.
"Oh, but I see you have a little scar."
"Don't remind me." Karissa grumbled. "I don't like seeing something different on my face."
Maybe I'll ask Wendy to remove it after all.
Arthur, Mr Landerville, who was preparing the order she usually wanted, glanced over to them from behind the counter. "I heard Grimoire Heart appeared on that island of yours, quite an uninvited guest, if I daresay. "
"You have no idea." Karissa huffed. Noelia slipped her hands off her face and smiled warmly at Karissa. "We're just glad you're okay. When we heard Tenrou Island resurfaced, we were both relieved to know that you are your friends were alive."
The news of Tenrou Island was gradually travelling across Fiore.
"All that's left is for us to catch up with the times."
Noelia laughed softly at this.
Arthur set down a perfectly wrapped cream cheese bagel with salmon on the counter. A beaming smile on his features as he leaned on his arm on the counter. "One free cream cheese bagel with salmon for Miss Karissa who returned from the land of the dead."
"It's on the house!" Noelia cheerfully added.
She blinked. "Free? What, no. I have money. Here."
Arthur lightly slapped her hands away from her wallet. "Forget it, young lady! This is a gesture of homecoming from Arthur and Noelia that you will wholeheartedly accept!"
"... Are you sure...?" Karissa looked around to check if anyone else was around. No one. So far, she was the only current customer.
"Our business is doing just fine that I can give you four of these for free!"
"One will do." Karissa hastily took her bagel. "Thank you." She lowered her head since she didn't know quite how to react.
She felt a big hand ruffle her hair.
"Don't worry about it, kid."
―
After chatting a bit with the Landervilles, she took her leave once as customer came in. She didn't want to hold them up.
As Karissa adjusted her bag that was now on her shoulder rather than across her body, a sudden shove forward had her stumbling to the side. The wrapped bagel in her hand thankfully didn't fall, giving her enough time to look at who so rudely ran into her. It was a man of blonde hair wearing all black. He paused and looked at his feet. Her wallet was there. He looked at her and didn't make a move to give it back. He looked like he was examining her for moment.
Karissa deadpanned when she realized what was happening.
The blonde haired man snatched her wallet off the ground and bolted off.
"Yeeeeeah?" Karissa straightened up and watched him run.
Noelia came out of the bakery worriedly. "He took off with your wallet!"
Karissa just waved her hand dismissively. "Nah, it's fine. I got this." She nonchalantly dropped her bagel in her bag and firmly shut it. With a pat on the surface of her bag, she looked at Noelia and nodded.
With that, she bolted off after him.
Every step she took was accompanied with a push of wind that helped her cover more distance, bringing her closer to the thief.
He looked back and found her watching him with apathetic eyes.
The thief sputtered in shock when he saw how quickly she covered the distance between them, prompting him to take a turn in an alleyway, knocking over boxes and other miscellaneous objects to block her path. Karissa only jumped up and used the wind to carry her over all the other objects. Her landing was practically graceful with how easy it was.
Once he stepped back into the light of the sun, Karissa shifted her position and rammed her shoulder into his back, causing him to stumble just as he caused her to. The next thing he knew, her bag, that carried the library book, was slammed into his cheek, throwing him down to the ground on his front. Before he could move, she dropped her knee onto his back, effectively knocking the wind out of him.
As he gasped for air, Karissa slowly got back up on her feet and plucked out her wallet that his grip loosed around. Her eyes blinked. She looked into her bag to check on her bagel. Good. It didn't hit his face.
"Hehe."
Karissa looked to the side and found a pink creature with black patterns on its back poking the thief's face (he was still taking in shuddering breaths) with a little stick. Its little pink tail swished behind it.
What the... pink?
And it just giggled just now, didn't it?
Cautiously, Karissa took a few steps around the body to check the front of this pink creature. Her hands her holding her wallet and her bag strap across her body tightly, as if she was approaching a dangerous creature. To her surprise, the pink was merely a costume for a creature that was green. It had large black eyes and a silly smile on its face.
It looked at her.
She stiffened.
It lifted its little hand that was not poking the thief.
"Hello!"
"... Hi."
Okay. It talks.
"Damn it, stop it, already!" The thief yelled and made a move to grab the little creature who just turned to look at him. Karissa took a step forward and kicked his hand away while the creature let out a little startled sound.
"Alright, that's enough out of you." Karissa chopped him on the side of his neck, rendering him unconscious.
"He's asleep." The creature piped up.
"Uh... yeah."
Karissa thoughtfully looked down at the creature. It was about the same size as Happy so... she was assuming it to be an Exceed on the spot. But she couldn't exactly confirm it.
Shyly, she gently crouched down to its level and held up her hands. "I hope you don't mind... I just wanna see something..." The creature blinked with a smile and asked her what she was doing. She gently lifted the hood and peeked underneath, and sure enough, there were cat ears.
The Exceed Village is nowhere near here...
But I'll ask anyway...
"Do you live here?"
The green Exceed shook its head and lifted its hand proudly. "Frosch lives with Rogue!"
"Frosch? That's your name?"
"Uh-huh."
"So, where's Rogue?"
Frosch shrugged. "Frosch looked away for one second and he was gone."
Karissa couldn't help a small laugh. Rogue must have looked away for one second and Frosch wandered off on his own.
"So, you're lost?"
Frosch's spirits dampened a little, nodding his head softly. "Mhm."
Karissa felt her heart squeeze a little. Why was Frosch so cute? The heck?
"Um, I'll help you find Rogue. I mean, if you want...?"
Frosch's eyes lit up when she asked him that. "Nice lady! Thank you!"
"But first," she turned her gaze on the thief. "We need to bring this wallet thief to the police."
"Fro thinks so, too!"
―
...
...
...
Hargeon's police were quick to take him into custody. Apparently, he was a wanted thief around Fiore these days. She actually found that hard to believe with how normal he looked. Perhaps that was his strength? To blend in with the crowd?
Frosch was sitting on her head while she ate her bagel. This way, there would be another pair of eyes looking around if hers couldn't reach a certain height.
The search didn't drag out. There was barely any searching at all. The search lasted as long as it took to finish her food. She shared a light conversation with the Exceed until a boyish voice yelled out Frosch's name frantically. This caused her to stop and look behind her. Running up behind her was three individuals. Two were human while one was another Exceed.
The Exceed was maroon and it had a blue little jacket. Beside the cat was a tall blonde spiky haired guy. He wore a blue vest with had no sleeves and had gray fur trimmings. He wore blue and white sleeve gloves that had. Underneath was a tight top that revealed his abdominal muscles. His pants were light gray and brown which were held up by black suspenders. His boots were dark blue. The other one, the one who looked more alarmed, had messy black hair that covered his right eye. He wore a black cape with gold edges that stretched down to his feet. A white ribbon tied the cape around his neck. Under his cape, he wore a gray shirt with brown cuffs, a waist guard with distinctives patterns and armored boots.
"Rogue!" Frosch exclaimed on her head.
Dread filled her being when she felt the little Exceed kick off her head to throw himself at Rogue... who was still quite far away. In a jittery way, she hastily caught Frosch before he landed flat on the ground and broke his bones. It seemed like Rogue, the black haired one, was also quite startled by his sudden jump since he sped up when Frosch landed in her hands.
"Frosch, I've been looking everywhere for you!"
"Sorry!"
Karissa held out the Exceed to Rogue with an apathetic face, suddenly a bit shy by the approach of two human strangers. "I found him earlier and he said he was lost."
Rogue's visible eye shifted towards her and he paused, as if to analyze her words and seek truth in them. He didn't find any deceit in her eyes.
"You have my thanks."
"Nice lady stopped a thief that Frosch was poking!"
"Thief?" Rogue picked up Frosch from her hands to hold him.
By now, the other person had caught up, his hands in his pockets. "Must be the guy the police said they put into their custody." Karissa's eyes landed on the white mark on the blonde's left shoulder who kept talking. "We must have just missed them when we dropped by."
I don't recognize that mark...
Is it a guild insignia?
"You looking at my guild mark?"
Karissa blinked and looked at the blonde's sapphire eyes. He was smirking a little as if he was proud of the fact that she was ogling at it. Her dark brown eyes blinked twice and then quickly averted timidly, embarrassed that she was caught staring by a stranger. "Sorry... I didn't mean to..."
The maroon Exceed smirked haughtily. "I know what you're thinking! It's okay to be overwhelmed, after all, you're standing in front of the two best Dragon Slayers in all of Fiore: The Twin Dragon Slayers of Sabertooth, Sting-kun and Rogue-kun!" The Exceed pointed his paws at each person on cue of their names being revealed.
Sabertooth?
I don't think I've ever heard that guild name before...
And Dragon Slayers? Hm, cool.
The lack of awe from the young woman made the maroon cat tilt his head in confusion.
Sting tipped his head when there was no reaction whatsoever. "You don't know who we are, do you?"
Sheepishly, Karissa pressed her lips together in a tight line and shook her head gently. "I don't know Sabertooth..."
"How can you not know? Sabertooth is the best guild in Fiore!"
Sting chuckled at the maroon Exceed loud disbelief. "It's alright, Lector."
Uhh... I think I'd rather avoid some attention by revealing I'm one of the people who 'came back from the dead'.
"I'm... uh, Robin Sharfwilde, an aspiring journalist from Aurora..." she forced a quick smile. "I don't know much about Fiore, so I decided to come here and learn about Fiore through my own experience."
"The Kingdom of Aurora." Rogue repeated thoughtfully. "You're a long way from home."
"Yeah..." Karissa timidly nodded. At least she was confident that her nervousness was genuine.
"Ah," Lector sighed with a smile when he was enlightened, shaking his head. "Makes sense now. Well, allow me to give you a crash course on Sabertooth! Wait do you know what a Dragon Slayer is?"
"Of course."
Sabertooth was the current number one guild in Fiore. They had gone from a lesser guild that wasn't known to the one they knew today when the Guild Master changed, bringing along a new shift for Sabertooth. The recruitment of five mages allowed for their strength to dramatically increase.
Karissa took quick glances at Sting and Rogue and then looked back at Lector. Her hands gently lifted to point at the two guys, silently asking for affirmation. Lector nodded proudly.
"So, you two are part of the core of Sabertooth that brought it up..." Karissa muttered thoughtfully, speaking not as Robin, but as Karissa, the person who was genuinely curious about the current kingdom. She looked at Sting at gave him a little smile to be polite, switching back to Robin. "That's an amazing feat." She looked down at her wrapper from her bagel, pretending to find little interest in it before looking back up. "But you said you rose up to number one? How does Fiore determine the strongest guild?"
"Grand Magic Games!" Frosch piped up cheerfully.
Karissa tipped her head. "What's that?"
"Just an annual competition to determine the strongest guild in Fiore." Sting expanded for Frosch, grinning. "Bunch of magical events, including interesting fights." His eyes seem to glow a little at the mention of fights, a topic that certainly interested him. "If you want to see Sabertooth in action, that's what you need to watch."
"Yes, yes!" Lector interjected. "You can see Sting-kun fight! I'm sure a bunch of people in Aurora would like to hear about him!"
"Come now, Lector." Sting chuckled softly at his partner's attempt to boost his fame. "It's fine."
Grand Magic Games, huh? That's a new thing then. So obviously, because Fairy Tail lost its core members... Sabertooth was able to take number one?
Karissa sported a genuine curious look, furrowed brow and everything. "Hold on, you said a new master took over in Sabertooth and recruited you two and three other people before rising to the top..." she summarized carefully. "Then... was there another guild that was number one? Or is this Grand Magic Games been always choosing a number one guild annually? Sorry, I'm a bit lost on that..."
Sting's face turned slightly nonchalant as he looked past her to stare at the seas. "Number one was Fairy Tail until its best members went MIA. The Grand Magic Games wasn't created until a while after they disappeared. Those left behind in Fairy Tail participated but, well," Sting shrugged. "It was a pathetic sight to say the least. They couldn't hold a candle to their missing members. So obviously, their rank plummeted."
Lector huffed in agreement. "It was pretty sad to watch."
"Fro think so, too!"
Not choosing to partake in the talk about Fairy Tail, Rogue remained silent. His red eyes glanced over to Karissa and noted how she looked apathetic as Sting recounted the performances of Fairy Tail which eventually earned them a permanent clown title.
He wasn't being rude or arrogant about it, he was just telling it as it was.
And hearing about how the world makes fun of the people who held onto hope for us for so long...
It makes me wanna stuff their mouths with hand size ice cubes and taping it shut, freezing their tongues numb so they can utter another word.
"I see." Karissa nodded her head once as if to show that she understood. "But for Sabertooth to take the number one spot is still impressive, especially with how five members contributed to it." Shifting the topic back to Sabertooth felt like a good choice.
"Yeah, now you're getting it!" Lector said happily. He was glad a whole stranger from a different country was getting the big picture. "Seriously, you should watch the Grand Magic Games to get a better idea!"
"Grand Magic Games is a fun festival!" Frosch added.
Karissa faked a smile that she was sure looked a bit twitchy on her left. "Maybe I'll watch. We don't have anything like that back home. I sure want to see you guys in action."
Not really though.
This brought excitement for Sting. He grinned and took out his hands out his pockets to lift his hands a bit as he tipped his head to give her a smirk. "You'll have a great time watching the show."
Eventually, the Sabertooth members decided it was best they return back to their guild since they finished their job and was hoping to finally head home. When Lector learned she was headed to the train station, he suggested they all walk together, a ploy for Lector to keep bragging about Sabertooth and its Twin Dragon Slayers. Sting also boasted about his superiority about being a Dragon Slayer while Rogue served as the person to confirm Sting's words when he was sought to. Karissa couldn't help but be intrigued about this whole 'Third Generation' Dragon Slayer, but she didn't ask.
She was half-acting when she was in awe. The other half was simply just bored of it all already.
Seriously... Five members was all it took for Sabertooth to rise? There was no point in lying in saying that she wasn't amazed.
...
...
...
In her separate train, Karissa snickered at her own performance. Lector seemed to have fully bought her ignorant self and spilled all the information she was seeking from them. It was fun to pretend to be someone else.
She saw no evil in her little act so no harm done.
Having almost no published photographs of herself certainly must have helped her little act. Most of the pictures taken by her were either to fill gossip pages or in Fairy Tail related events like the Fantasia Parade. Still, even having her appear in photos in the latter was still rare. The only proper photographs of her were found in the guild, the Souvernir Shop, and her own home.
None of them looked like they recognized her, proving that her limited photographs circulating around Fiore was truth.
Karissa crossed her legs and leaned back in her seat.
"Sting, Rogue... The Twin Dragon Slayers of Sabertooth..."
...
...
...
Seated in the train, Lector noticed Sting propping his chin up as he leaned towards the window, an obvious grin on his face. Rogue and Frosch sat across from them.
"You seem happy, Sting-kun."
The blonde haired Dragon Slayer smirked and lightly shrugged his shoulders when Lector remarked his demeanor. "It's not everyday we encounter someone who has no idea about who I am or Sabertooth. It's kinda refreshing." He shifted his head to look at his buddy. "Robin will watch the Grand Magic Games. I can prove my strength as a Dragon Slayer all over again. You don't always get the chance to do that nowadays."
"Ahh, I see." Lector nodded in agreement. Sting's strength was known all over Fiore so it must have gotten a little boring. "Must be pretty exciting then."
"You bet."
"Frosch wants to see nice lady again." Frosch said, his little legs bouncing against the seat.
"Maybe we'll see her there in Crocus." Lector told his friend, a grin on his face. "A journalist should get that front row view, after all."
"Fro thinks so, too!"
Rogue peered outside the window of the train. The trains had yet to move so hers was still next to theirs. Coincidentally, she was seated somewhere that was within their sights. He glanced over to Sting and found him also peering at her with eyes of tame curiosity and excitement. The quieter Dragon Slayer directed his gaze back at Karissa. He saw her brush her hair behind her ear as she looked around the cabin she was in.
An aspiring journalist.
Wouldn't an aspiring journalist be writing down things they want to write about? He wasn't an expert in the field, but perhaps that would have been a wiser thing to do... unless they had a good memory?
Also...
Something about her strikes me as familiar...
―
...
...
...
The trip to the library was more or less pleasant. The librarian was certainly a big ray of sunshine (sarcasm). She said that because its been more than a year, she had to pay twice the amount for every extra year she delayed the return. She almost paid the unreasonable amount since she disliked having conflict with others. However, the manager passed by and she asked them how much she had to pay, making the librarian stiffen. When she learned how much she had to pay (which was the regular fee plus the fee for being a year late), she gave the librarian the most deadpan look and held out the money. But instead of letting her take it, she straight up the coins and bills at her face with a flick of her hand, making her shriek. The manager, who was informed about what happened, didn't say anything and just walked off after she did so. Under no circumstances would Karissa have done that to someone, but she felt like she needed some type of satisfaction for wasting her most precious currency: her goddamn time.
The only way to chase away the rest of her sour mood was to buy herself an iced drink. At least, that's what she intended to do... until she spotted a french vanilla on the menu. Simply looking at it made her recall the lovely smell from Gray's cup. In the line, she basically had a crisis in her mind...
She bought one.
And damn, it was so good that she took baby sips just to preserve it for as long as she could.
It was only when she made it to Magnolia did she finally finish it. With a satisfied little smile, she bounced out the train with her bag. She had a good drink and was finally home.
"Karissa!"
At the sound of Gray's voice, she jolted and quickly pitched the empty cup into the trash, hiding the evidence. After she proudly declared that she would no succumb to her urge, there was no way she was going to get caught red handed.
She turned around and found him walking towards her. He was wearing a white long jacket with a shoulder bag on his side. Seeing him in such attire had her curious.
Oh no, wait. Natsu did say that Gray wanted to go on a job... He must have gone by himself.
"You were on the train, too?" Gray asked when he got within better earshot.
"Yeah. You went on a job?"
He rolled his shoulders back to shake off the sleep he got on the train. "Yep. Not all jobs are as paying as seven years ago, so I might as well start a little."
"I heard from Natsu," She started turning to walk to the exit of the station, he followed and fell into step with her. "That you were looking for me. I was already on my way to the station though, sorry."
He shoved his hands in his pockets and shook his head lightly. "Nah, don't worry about it. Like I said, the jobs aren't as paying so it's better to take some jobs on your own. If the reward was high paying, then maybe it's good to go as a team."
This made her chuckle a bit. "Yet you were asking for me to tag along."
"What can I say? We work well together." He shrugged. Hearing him say this with confidence made her feel proud to be a good partner for him. She knew they worked well together but simply hearing him affirm it out loud was enough to make her feel happy. "I only realized I should go alone after your brother mentioned you were already leaving town." then he frowned a little when he recalled something. "Juvia volunteered to join me."
"No surprise there."
"Even though I told her why I wanted to go alone, she still insisted and pleaded that I let her join. She was saying I could keep all the reward." Gray sighed, recalling how he had to pry off her hands from his arm.
This had Karissa frowning a little. Might as well be decor.
"Seeing you here alone means that you brushed her off like always."
Gray didn't have to respond. Instead, he changed the subject and asked her where she came from since she wasn't on a job. When she revealed she returned the book after taking notes, he teased her about copyright which pulled a chortle from her.
"By the way, you're leaving a trail behind."
"Trail? What are you— whoa!"
She stopped and watched him run back the way the came, clad in his underwear and socks, with a little smile. With how used it he was, he was throwing his clothes back on with record speed while telling her not to walk off like she would sometimes. He came jogging to her while clumsily zipping up his pants, face burning with embarrassment.
"Thanks for telling me." He muttered, cursing his habit for the nth time. Karissa smirked at him and started walking again with him beside her.
That sting in her heart from remembering what he said lessened as if just enjoying time with him was a natural balm. But that just doesn't make sense. Why would the cause of hurt also sprinkle some relief?
The answer was easy.
Logic is fine and all... but sometimes the heart asks for something else. Just like a child who has tasted candy once is reluctant to give it up.
But I just hope these feelings will fade away soon no matter how sweet they are.
―
Two days passed after encountering those Sabertooth members.
She was currently playing Old Maid with Max, Romeo Warren at the guild hall. A few minutes ago, she was sitting with Natsu, Lucy and Erza until Gray and Max walked in together. Max was the one who proposed playing the game and Karissa was eager to play. Her favourite card game was Old Maid, after all. Gray took her spot at her table as she took a seat across from Max at another.
Karissa dropped a pair of Aces on the table. "Done."
"Damn it!" Warren whined.
"It's just me and you, man." Max sighed, turning in his chair to hold up his two cards, one of them being the joker. Warren squinted his eyes while fidgeting with the last card.
"Any bets, Romeo?" Karissa leaned over to the boy next to her, face almost apathetic.
The young boy sniggered. "Max. Warren doesn't have the best luck."
"Oi"
This final battle between Warren and Max was becoming too funny. The joker kept moving back and forth between them, leaving the two at a stalemate. It was getting so ridiculous that Karissa and Romeo had to start muffling their giggles since they couldn't stop laughing. Some of their other guildmates were peering over and also started laughing at the sight of the two looking absolutely drained from the mental gymnastics and facial studying. There was no relief whatsoever.
But in the end, Max was the one who finally took the three of clubs from him, causing Warren to groan and slump in his chair.
"My god," Max shook his head when he dropped his cards on the pile. "That was too much."
Warren dropped the accursed joker on the pile and started gathering the cards together. As Karissa watched him do so, she casually leaned her cheek in her palm when she leaned to the side on the table. The encounter with Sabertooth suddenly came to her.
"Hey, so I heard about Sabertooth two days ago." Karissa suddenly spoke. The three mages at her table looked at her in surprise. They were probably not expecting her to learn about it so quickly, especially since it was never mentioned at the Fairy Tail guild hall. "Is it true five members and a new master was all it took for them to dramatically rise up?"
Romeo nodded once, he brought up his legs up on the chair and sat criss cross. "Yep. Pretty crazy, right?"
"I actually met Sting and Rogue at Hargeon. I pretended to be some journalist from Aurora since I didn't want any attention."
"What for?" Warren fixed the cards and shuffled them.
"They realized I didn't know about the guild so I had to come up with something."
Max crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat. "So, Karissa used her abilities in deceit and lies to suck out information on them, that it?" Karissa proudly nodded her head with a smirk. The sand mage let out a chortle at that, feeling nostalgic. "What'd you think of them?"
"Well, one of them was boasting about their strength, especially about that Sting guy. He made it seem like they were famous—"
"That's because they are." Warren deadpanned.
"Can't say much about Rogue since he was quiet. But Sting walks around showing off his shoulders and abdo muscles. He's attractive and strong, I guess. He carries himself as 'cool' as well." She spoke in a matter-of-fact manner, her face looking apathetic with a tint of boredom. "If that isn't a traditional recipe for fame amongst girls, then I don't know what is. Girls can really boost a dude's popularity, I mean, take a look at that... what's it called? Uh, that boyfriend list thing in Sorcerer Weekly."
"Attractive, huh?" Max repeated, an eyebrow quirked at her.
"Don't tell me you fell for his charms too?" Warren spoke sarcastically since she mentioned he was attractive.
"I just stated a fact."
Romeo waved his hand dismissively. "There's no way Karissa would just fall in love with Sting out of nowhere. She's too logical for that."
Delighted by what she took as a compliment, Karissa nodded.
Warren started passing out the cards for a new game of Old Maid.
"Still," Karissa took her cards and leaned back in her seat, a mischievous grin on her lips. "Stringing the dude along with my little act was fun as hell. You can bet I'm doing that again if I ever see him again." She faked a smile she put on for Sting. "I sure want to see you guys in action." She feigned a cocky expression. "You'll have a great time watching the show." Her face deadpanned when she snickered. "Pfft."
"What's so fun in pretending?" Romeo inquired.
"I dunno. I guess it's just amusing to make him think I'm interested when I really just don't care."
Her old business partner gave her a look. "Good thing you aren't stringing along a dude who likes you. That would have been way too evil for you."
"I'd never do that." Karissa rolled her eyes.
―
Life really said: you ain't writing anything because the next two months gonna be tough. Oh and catch this writer's block too.
Aurora is not in Fairy Tail. When you check the map and information, it just states that Ishgar is a large peninsula linked to a mainland that is unknown. In this story, that unknown mainland is Aurora. There is also no name for the continent (so far) that Ishgar belongs to so... Eskerhill it is.
Yes. I drew the whole continent.
Also, I am shitting to get the next few chapters right instead of just updating fast. I keep rewriting the drafts for the next few ones and I'm like T_T c'mon please just fit them together, make some damn sense, don't rush, and please don't fuck it up.