Fairy Ta-
"He did what!?"
The entire guild flinched when Erza yelled after hearing what happened. It seems Happy stole an S-Class quest from the second floor after the chaos from the night of Laxus' intrusion. Natsu, more than likely, took Lucy with him to help the islanders of the cursed Galuna Island and to break said curse.
"Looks like Natsu finally broke something that was not someone else's property." Y/n walked into the guild during the noon.
Y/n had ditched his drenched outfit and changed into something far less formal but just as functional--after all, why make something you can't use? A shirt with a spread collar and rolled-up sleeves that were unbuttoned as the flaps pointed at the male, all covered by a waist-length jacket. His hands were covered by fingerless gloves that extended and disappeared beneath the sleeves. Slim pants covered his legs and kept the shirt inside of it tucked in as the part just below the knees were obscured by thigh-high boots tightened with laces and had flaps pointing downward.
It seems his feeling from last night was, unfortunately, right. "What are our retrieval methods for Natsu and Lucy?"
"We asked Laxus to go after 'em but he refused." Elfman said as he crossed his arms.
"Gray offered his assistance and left but he hasn't come back yet. Even after the sun has been born again." Laki, a purple-haired girl with glasses, informed Y/n and Erza. By her odd phrase, she meant a day has passed. Sometimes she refers to different activities or things as odd phrases, like how eating becomes 'feeding your stomach'.
Y/n placed a hand on his chin as he thought it through. With Hargeon being the only town near the island and with a mode of transportation to get there along with Erza's rage as a factor, it was highly unlikely he willingly went with the others.
"Then that only leaves one option: Acquiring a vessel and heading to Galuna Island in order to retrieve them."
"You're quite right, Y/n. Which is why you'll be accompanying me."
Y/n began to walk out of the guild. "Someone has to play damage control when any of you are involved."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
The guild tensed as Erza glared at Y/n as he stopped and turned his head, looking at her. He remained calm with no hint of fear on his face. She couldn't do much to scare the male, he was all too used to her glares.
"Nothing much, just I do not wish for Master Makarov to view so many complaints about Fairy Tail's conduct. Now, if we depart post haste we should reach Hargeon by nightfall."
Erza nodded and let the comment go as Y/n waited for her to reach him before they set off together.
Mirajane clasped her hands together and giggled. "Looks like the King and Queen of Fairy Tail are partnered up again."
"Let's hope it doesn't end up like last time..." Levy remained cautious as her mind went back to the last time those two worked together on something.
--
A black flag with a tatter in the middle was flying in the wind of night as a large ship was sailing through the ocean. The ship creaked and knocked out pirates groaned as the captain, a stout man with a cutlass on his left side and purple hair that was nearly grey, turned his head to face the people behind him.
"Uh, why d'you wanna go to Galuna Island? D'ah! It's scary!" He let out.
"Just shut up and steer!" Erza demanded as the captain fearfully complied.
The crew of pirates began to come to, painfully getting back up to the quarter-deck.
"If you drop us off somewhere you can have the boat! Please, I'm begging ya', lady!" The captain pleaded. "I heard that island is cursed and anyone who sets foot on its soil turns into a demon!"
"We shall take that chance." Y/n didn't believe the curse on said island.
"But why do ya' have to go there!?"
"Because when rules are broken the guilty must be punished!"
"And when it comes to punishment, we are the best distributors."
"That is all we can tell you." Erza finished.
The pirates seemed captivated by the duo's mission if the hearts in their eyes had anything to say about that.
"They're so cool!"
"That girl's so hot!"
"We don't like rule breakers either!"
"We'll help you catch them if you want!"
"Sure." Erza didn't seem to mind some extra helping hands. "Now let's hurry."
"Aye-aye Sir!"
"I wanna join the team too! I'll brave that scary island for y'all! Let's hit a few scallywags! Raise the sails and set course for the cursed island of Galuna!"
After some time, Y/n was leaning on the railing and staring out at the island in the distance, the moon shining brightly on the tropical piece of sand and trees floating in the ocean. The fact that such an unassuming little island had an evil great enough to warrant an S-Class Wizard to help them in their troubles. But Y/n knew better than anyone that looks can be deceiving.
"Acho!" Y/n sneezed into the nook of his left elbow.
"Getting sick?" Erza asked as she stood nearby.
He shook his head. "Probably a touch-and-go situation, I shall be fine in a day's time. But we have another issue on hand."
"And what's that?"
"I will not be returning to Fairy Tail with you." Before Erza could respond, he continued. "When you find the others, you may return to Fairy Tail while I attempt to solve the islanders' situation. It would be Lower of me to abandon them when I can help them."
"Those idiotic ideals once again." Y/n's teeth clenched as his left hand gripped the railing. "I'd wager that's how you got sick in the first place."
Y/n took in a deep breath and held it in for a little bit before letting it go. "Two things. One, I am also an S-Class Wizard so you have no say in whether I can stay or not." He pushed off the railing and began to walk away.
"Two: Make fun of my ideals all you want, just ensure I am not present when you do." Y/n said coldly as he disappeared elsewhere.
Erza kept looking at the island before turning to where Y/n was. She leaned on the railing and busied her mind.
The two shared a... Complicated relationship. Sometimes they act like old friends who know everything about each other, other times, when certain topics like Y/n's Higher or Lower talk come around, it can be like they're acquaintances that begrudgingly work in mutual interest. Many know it started when the two first paired up but the exact reason eludes everyone in the guild but the Requip and Silk Mage.
The real question: Will this rift tear into something even greater?
---
"No! How'd this happen to me?! I never lose!" A pink-haired woman cried out as she was being taken to the ground by a familiar blonde Wizard.
"Oh yeah? Well ya' just did! To a Wizard from Fairy Tail!" Lucy declared her victory over the Marionette Wizard as the sun rose in the background.
As a result of her defeat, the Marionette Wizard's rock creation crumbled to the ground due to its master's lack of magic. Sand flew from the stones falling onto the ground.
As the Wizard was falling she had more to say. "Although the burning flame of my light has been extinguished far too soon, my love for you will blaze on externally, Cold Emperor."
"You're not gonna die so let's turn down the drama, 'kay?"
"Angelica... Avenge your master's death." She uttered her last command before passing out, not dying as she kept saying.
"Huh?"
An absurdly large blue rat wearing a black corset with pink frilly edges and a white lace headband similar to a maid jumped from the forest and towards Lucy's direction. She was rapidly descending to the Celestial Wizard, ready to crush her puny body.
"But I thought the rat was one of her puppets!" Lucy screamed and flailed her arms around as she fell to the ground, the rat still screaming its battle cry. "I can't move my legs for some reason!"
Just as the rat was about to crush Lucy, a scarlet-haired savoir arrived and slashed the rat, sending it flying and landing next to her master.
Lucy was overjoyed by the Requip Wizard's intervention that she managed to stand up. The redhead turned to Lucy. "Erza!" She exclaimed, nearly forgetting why she was there in the first place.
But Erza's glare was all Lucy needed to remind herself why she was here. 'I forgot... She's mad at us 'cause we broke Guild rules and took an S-Class request without permission...' Even the voice in her head was weak and squeaky as she felt the disappointment from Erza drill into her from her glare.
"Lucy... I assume you know why I am here. You do, don't you?"
"To take us back..? Promise you won't hurt me?"
Promise you won't hurt me?
Promise you won't hurt me?
Promise you won't hurt me?
Promise you won't hurt me?
Promise you won't hurt me?
Lucy's plead echoed and distorted as it kept repeating, mirroring the absolute futility of asking for mercy from someone as pragmatic as Erza. Though, a masked man watching from afar seemed to be the only one enjoying the despair occurring.
"Hey, I've been looking all over for you! I'm glad you're okay. I was wor- Ummm!" The moment Happy saw Lucy and Erza he attempted to fly away as far and as fast as he could.
But nothing could escape Erza. Not even a flying cat.
"Now where is Natsu?" Erza asked, more like demanded, her captive.
"Listen. I'm sorry we came here without permission, but some really awful thing have been happening on this island! There's this guy and his minions who are trying to revive a frozen demon! And the island's villagers are suffering because of this magic spell their using! They've turned into monsters!" Lucy's voice was filed with concern for these innocent people getting caught up in the villain's heinous plans.
Erza stared down at Lucy with hallowed eyes as she continued to plead her case. "We just thought that if we worked together we might be able to help them..." She ended with a small whimper.
"None of that is my concern."
One last try. "Please, Erza! Let us finish this job! We can't leave things this way!"
Erza drew her sword and pointed it dangerously close to Lucy, making her gasp and jump back. Lucy was seeing first hand what Sorcery's Weekly didn't cover in their articles about Erza.
"I don't think you understand! The three of you have betrayed Master Makarov! You'll be lucky if you leave with your lives."
'Okay, now I'm scared!'
With the situation getting more intense, and with how scared Happy was, he had one question bothering him that he couldn't help but ask.
"Hey, w-where's Y/n? Isn't he with you?" Happy's question made Erza angrily groan as she recalled what happened when they docked.
"That's not of your concern. Now, get moving."
The two began to lead Erza back to the village. But, as for our tailor, let's go and check on him.
---
"Come on, man, let me down already! I feel like my head's gonna explode!" Natsu screamed as his wrapped up body stopped spinning.
"Calm down, I have not spun you that fast." Y/n squatted to reach Natsu's eye level as his head was a few feet off the ground. "This is fast."
Just as Natsu began to plead, Y/n waved his finger in a circle and the silk wrappig Natsu began to spin fast enough that his voice sounded somewhat distorted. Once Y/n separated from Erza to find out the cause of the problems Natsu and the others were trying to solve, he found said Dragon Slayer sleeping in the wilderness. Deciding punishment was in order for Natsu's rule breakage, Y/n wrapped silk ribbons around Natsu and hung him upside down, waking him up not too long after.
He's been doing this for a few minutes.
"That should suffice." The ribbons hanging Natsu up retracted and let the male fall to the ground. "Now, explain to me that large light I-"
Y/n cut himself off as he saw Natsu unloading his lunch into the nearby shrubbery. Motion sickness strikes again.
---
"So, some Wizards are attempting to free a Demon from its frozen imprisonment and, as a side effect are causing the villagers to turn into Demons themselves temporarily. This is much more dangerous than I thought."
"Yeah. Now you know why we can't go back. And there's nothing you can do gonna's make me leave!" Natsu had a defiant look on his face as he balled up his fists.
The two stared down each other before Y/n lowered his head. A few moments of contemplation passed within the tailor's mind. But that wasn't necessary at all.
"Good..." The response surprised Natsu as Y/n brought his head up, smirking slightly. "I would not want to fight with some Lower. Now, guide us towards the temple and let us kick some evil hide!"
Natsu returned the smirk with a confident smile as he quickly ran to the temple, prompting Y/n to quickly catch up with the sun almost shining over the trees as they ran.
"Do not forget, Natsu, you and your actions will still be punished when we return." Natsu grumbled something in response. "What did you say, Natsu?"
"Ah! Nothing, sir!"
Fin~