JULY 2
DAY 2
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Starting the day by eating sunny sides with rice and some cold orange juice was great. It would give her the energy she needed until the second day was over (she could also get some snacks from the pantry if needed though). And since Makarov said it was fine not to wear their attire from the first day for the second, they all just wore attires that they liked. On top of a maroon t-shirt, she was wearing an asymmetrical hoodie, the right side was gray with her lower arm being black and the cuff being blue. The left side's colours were reversed with her right except for the black part. Instead of a zipper, four white buttons kept her hoodie closed starting from below her left breast and reaching down to the middle. She wore black fitted pants and dark blue shoes with light blue laces and white soles.
With that, she was ready for the second day, ready to give it her all.
But now, she didn't know whether or not she should laugh in disappointment or just scream in embarrassment.
As they were told, they started the day with a contest.
Natsu, who was very eager to participate, volunteered to play the game despite their protests.
"See..." Karissa covered her face with one hand. "This is why I wanted them to tell us the rules before we selected a member... because, good god..."
The game was called Chariot.
Chariots would be moving through a famous old neighbourhood of Crocus. And they all had to race across it to reach the finishing line. Moving chariots. Moving. Those chariots were freaking moving. The moment team A laid eyes on the course, they just turned into stone.
Natsu was looking sick while 'running' at a snail's pace.
Surprisingly, Natsu wasn't the only one sick on the chariots. Gajeel, who also participated, most likely because the Salamander was, ended up looking like a teetering clown on it. In addition, the Dragon Slayer she was familiar with from Sabertooth, Sting Eucliffe, was also just tripping and 'running' like an intoxicated person. Team A was still behind Team B in this race.
"Okay, is it safe to assume that all Dragon Slayers feel sick on vehicles?" Lucy spoke, watching Natsu struggle to take a step forward.
"Let's try putting Wendy on a train next time, and see how she fares." Karissa suggested.
All of a sudden, Bacchus wrecked the rest of the chariots ahead. From where he stomped his foot, it destroyed the entire thing. He leaped over the ones that were tilted or flipped over. By doing so, he would make it even harder for the competitors to get across since they couldn't fall out of the race. It didn't take long for him to speed across and cross the finish line.
"Huh..." Karissa tilted her head curiously. He has major destructive power in one foot alone. And he broke the entire chariot. Can I think that he could be capable of destroying the ground just like when Van gets angry? And if the power in his limbs is strong like that, does one direct hit from his hand cause a lot of damage? Is his magic just super strength?
Soon, only Sting, Gajeel and Natsu were left.
The youngest Sinclost leaned against the stone rail and clasped her hands together. Come on, Natsu. Any point is good points. You can do it. You too, Gajeel. Keep pushing.
And they wouldn't give up.
They kept pressing forward while Sting lagged behind, making him question their determination to win, their reason for participating in the Games as it was out of character for them. In response to that question, everyone had different answers. Some had greed for money, some wished for their guild to regain their fame, and some wanted to remind the world of who they forgot... but Natsu easily admitted a common reason for their participation, giving an impassioned speech to the world watching.
For the seven years they suffered during their absence and stood their ground to protect their guild, he repay them for their kindness by winning for them and showing everyone that the Fairy Tail guild never gave up.
And now, people were aware that Fairy Tail was not here to play around and be laughed at.
They were here to win.
Karissa stared flatly at the lacrima screen that showed Sting's disbelief, but then she immediately looked back at Natsu and Gajeel, who she couldn't help but smile at.
"Yo... I feel like I'm gonna start crying if Natsu opens his mouth again." Karissa laughed at herself. Lucy giggled lightly at her words. She wouldn't blame her if she did.
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Raven Tail – 26
Sabertooth – 20
Lamia Scale – 20
Blue Pegasus – 17
Quatro Cerberus – 12
Mermaid Heel – 9
Fairy Tail B – 2
Fairy Tail A – 2
―
"Now for the moment you've all waited for, the battles! And we have a bunch of tough matches for you! The first match features the new guild that currently tops the rankings, Raven Tail!"
Kurohebi from Raven Tail was participating. He may look muscular, but he still looked lanky from the way he carried himself. He was pale, he had messy black hair that stuck up in different directions, black lipstick, and black eyes that were slanted and much like a snake's pupil.
"Versus... Lamia Scale's Clavis Sinclost!"
Clavis stood there with a calm look. He wore a long black jacket with no sleeves on top of a white long sleeve shirt and blue stripes. His brown shorts ended above his knees. He also wore high cut black boots with blue soles.
Jason, a reporter from Sorcerer Weekly, was screaming with excitement upon hearing his name. Chapati looked over to Yajima and Jason when he finished announcing the names.
"Clavis used to participate under the name of Clarus, why is it that he suddenly assumed the name Clavis Sinclost? The name belonging to Domilia and Zack Sinclost from recent history?"
Karissa clapped quietly while leaning forward on the stone. "Here we go~"
Jason was quick to give an answer, despite Yajima opening his mouth, cutting him off. "Apparently, he recently discovered he was a Sinclost sometime after Tenrou Island disappeared! That means there were four Sinclosts carrying the name Sinclost! That's soo cooool!"
Pandora gave the reported a scowl when he fist pumped rapidly in his seat. "The hell do you mean by carrying? Am I seriously going to hear this crap again?!"
Laxus dropped a hand on her head. "Calm down."
"Let the first battle... begin!"
The sound of a gong resounded throughout the entire stadium. Clavis didn't even blink when the gong went off nor when Kurohebi disappeared. He remained still when there was no sign of Kurohebi. It was also when he heard the slightest shift in the sand did he sidestep away. His eyes landed on the snake-eyed mage who tried to attack him with sand magic. Clavis kept his eyes on him without saying a word, stepping back a few before stopping to stare.
Jura smiled confidently when Clavis remained cool in the face of Kurohebi's attacks. He never once used his magic. He only moved around and jumped away from the magic that he soon realized was a mimicking magic. Different properties of magic came at him.
Clavis' dark brown eyes narrowed. That's two minutes.
When he landed on one foot, he darted towards Kurohebi.
"Ooh! Clavis begins his counterattack!"
Karissa saw how her brother leaped around and tried to catch Kurohebi with one of his hits. But he kept missing. Every time he missed, it only broke the ground. It was like Bacchus when he destroyed those chariots.
It was literally getting messy down there.
Is... he trying to do something?
"With all this rubble... it reminds me of Van." Gray sweat dropped. "At least this one looks less frightening."
"Karissa," Erza looked at the female ice mage who was watching him carefully. She only shifted her head towards her enough to let her know she was listening. "What magic does Clavis practice?"
"Huh...? Oh, uh, gravity."
Erza observed the way his hits weighed heavy against the ground.
Toby growled when they couldn't hit each other. "Ahhhrg! Quite moving around, Raven Tail dude! And Clavis, stop trying to hit him and hit him!" He barked loudly, causing Yuka to flinch at the loudness. He gave his guildmate a look for his wording.
Clavis backed away from another attack. "Come on, you'll have to fall faster to catch me."
Kurohebi tipped his head. "Fall?"
"Oh, sorry. I meant move." Clavis swung his leg.
"Don't be stupid, Clavis is doing just fine." Yuka told Toby before he could bark something else.
"Yes. He knows what he's doing." With his arms crossed, Lyon smirked when Clavis continued to break the ground in an attempt to hit Raven Tail. This strategy was fine. If he managed to hit Raven Tail, then the match could end very quickly... If not, Raven Tail was going to hope Clavis got him before he moved on to his next move.
Kurohebi swiftly dodged the attack, making Clavis' fist barely brush past his face. Clavis was shocked by how nimble this guy was. Even at the last minute, he was able to dodge a close range attack? Their eyes met for a split second. The Sinclost's eyes widened when he saw the wicked smirk before spinning around his heel and launching a spell at him, it was sand again.
"Sand Rebellion!"
Clavis let out a cry as he suffered from the hit that sent him crashing into the sand a few feet away. The sand that was kicked up undoubtedly created a giant cloud of smoke that hid him from the crowd, leaving every hanging in suspense. But the smoke left behind began to dissipate a few seconds after, showing the results of the match to everyone.
Raven Tail's Kurohebi stood tall while Lamia Scale's Clavis laid on the ground unmoving.
Confused, Pandora blinked. That's it? That's all it took? Really? Okay. She was feeling greatly disappointed... Why couldn't he put up a better fight? It looked almost one-sided for Raven Tail. Van narrowed his eyes at his brother's form on the floor. When he glanced at the lacrima vision displayed, he was noticing something off about his body.
"Down! Clavis is down! The winner is—"
Chapati stopped talking when Clavis started casually sitting up while brushing off the sand from his cheek. Then he got up on his feet and started patting the back of his pants. He was acting like he merely tripped. Kurohebi looked over his shoulder when he saw him straighten up and give him a little smirk.
"Oh wait, never mind."
"I hit you." The Mimic Mage stated without a shred of doubt. But as he kept looking at Clavis, he was noticing that there wasn't even a scratch on him. Why? What's happening?
Clavis tipped his head and rolled his shoulders back. "Hm, I didn't let you hit me. Just a little acting on my part." He told him before he lifted his foot and started digging a small hole in the ground like a child who had nothing else to do. "Gravity pushed away your attack enough for only the shockwave to knock me away. That's relatively harmless." He lowered his head to shadow his face from the crowd.
He didn't like Raven Tail.
Fairy Tail wasn't his guild, but he could feel the frustration they felt after witnessing Gray Fullbuster's defeat in Hidden. As if the name and the complaints from their side about them being a dark guild wasn't ringing warning bells in his head. He could tell that Raven Tail wasn't going to be good company. He knew they weren't good people.
Fairy Tail wouldn't even mind him fighting on their behalf too. He could hear Makarov cheering for him, obviously, because he didn't want Raven Tail to win. And so, it wouldn't be so bad to let them taste the self he hides.
Alright, Makarov... I'll give you a defeat you want to see.
Clavis stopped digging into the sand and casually walked over to a big piece of rubble that he caused during his previous attacks. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and looked at Kurohebi with eyes that glinted.
"Let's do this for real."
He lifted his foot.
And dropped it in the rubble which ultimately destroyed it.
It also created a loud echoing sound in the stadium.
His foot broke the ground even more.
Kurohebi stood in place warily as Clavis stomped on the ground three more times, further destroying the spot he stood in. At this rate, he was going to make a crater of filled with rubble. What was he trying to do by breaking the ground? Was he trying to remove any grip he could get while standing? People in the audience started covering their ears from the noise. Chapati was also complaining. Laxus, Gajeel, Rogue, and Sting felt like they were almost going to get deaf if he increased his strength. He kept going with the stomps until he obviously destroyed his radius.
Kurohebi finally decided to attack him by mimicking the powerful punches he tried to land on him. But Clavis avoided him by backflipping away with his hands still hidden away. Their eyes met again when he was upside down.
This time it was Clavis' turn to smirk wickedly.
DOOM!
Clavis' landing created another loud sound, and this time the ground broke under his power, making it look like that spot he just stomped on after ten stomps.
"Mimicking me now?"
Kurohebi launched a giant beam of water at him.
Clavis' lifted his head with narrowed eyes.
The water slowed down when it came within a certain radius before flying back towards Kurohebi. No. It wasn't flying. It was falling in his direction. But it didn't seem to hit anything. Clavis blinked when he saw that his opponent vanished from his spot, prompting him to take a few steps back out of his crater.
Let's see...
Where did you go?
Clavis glanced back a bit with narrowed eyes when he felt a presence closing in on him from behind. A flaming hand was coming for his neck. The arm swung in his direction in an attempt to set him ablaze. But much like Clavis' attack, it didn't make contact. And the gravity mage was gone as well, leaving his opponent momentarily stunned in confusion.
"Clavis has disappeared?! Oh no, wait...!"
Kurohebi finally realized where Clavis was.
"Mimicking magic, huh? Interesting. Does that include the individual's skill as well?"
Pandora, Van, and Karissa all looked up simultaneously. They were finally beginning to see their brother's strength, the power their mother left behind for him. Meanwhile, Jura could only look at Clavis proudly through the lacrima vision that zoomed in on him. He was so far away that the zooming almost reached the limit. Clavis Sinclost was so high up in the air that he almost hovered above the statues of the stadium, leaving the audience in awe.
"If so, that's impressive." His voice echoed through the lacrima vision. "But I'm sure it can't. Because you're not me. You cannot mimic the skills and the experience that makes our magic strong." He stood in the air with his hands in his pockets as he smiled down confidently at Kurohebi who could only watch him from below.
"This match is over." Clavis straightened his legs and almost appeared on an invisible platform. But then he suddenly brought his knees up, causing the piece of the ground he was standing on to suddenly rumble and shoot up into the sky and stop right under his boots. He tore out a huge piece of rubble.
"What the heck?!" Gray exclaimed.
"He tore out that huge piece of the ground...!" Lucy watched him straighten his legs again. He literally snapped the huge piece into two before he spun around and kicked both pieces down. Kurohebi could only dodge the pieces with much difficulty as they shook the ground he stood on.
Clavis only smirked at his futile attempts to run. From his point of view, he looked like nothing more than a rat seeking shelter. But that rat would find none of that here because he was surrounded by traps. The short haired mage suddenly lifted a hand that glowed purple light. Karissa's eyes widened when she saw the debris he created earlier suddenly twitch at the same time before rising in the air.
"So, that's why he made that mess...!" Karissa saw all of them reach his level in the sky, creating shadows everywhere.
He was creating debris to use as projectiles!
Clavis grinned and threw down his hand, signaling the cue for his attack. A shower of rocks and sand came down so fast due to the increased mass he imposed on them, mercilessly pelting his opponent with rubble. Chapati and Jason were basically going crazy with the commentary now.
This was Clavis Sinclost's power: gravity. He could manipulate the gravity of any object or individual he gets in contact with, himself included. In essence, he could change the direction and force of gravity. It was a perfect ability depending on how one used it. It could be perfect for offensive and defensive purposes. For offense, he could use the ground he stood on as a weapon to perform such attacks. As for defense, he could easily stop attacks from reaching him and simply deflect them back by changing the gravity.
The third Sinclost couldn't see anything due to the smoke clouding the entire arena. With a shrug, he increased his gravity and dropped down fast. The moment his feet touched the ground, it broke the ground and created a shockwave that blew away all the smoke, instantly revealing Kurohebi struggling to get out of the rubble while looking all battered. Yep. There was no way he came out of that unscathed.
"Huh... you're still moving." Clavis muttered before crouching down and picking up a small rock from the section of the ground he just broke. "Sleep."
He decreased the gravity of this tiny little rock when he flicked it.
It hit Kurohebi square in the forehead.
This was another form of offense. By decreasing the mass of an object, he could easily make it move at high speed, resulting in the impact becoming akin to a boulder hitting his targets.
"Kurohebi is down! The winner is Clavis from Lamia Scale!"
Makarov, who was pleased with the results, cheered loudly for Clavis' victory alongside other members.
Mavis who had been watching the match very closely felt very impressed by Clavis' use of gravity. He was right about one thing: skill and experience play a factor in making one's magic powerful. And Clavis knew how to use his magic and keep track of the battlefield.
In other words, it almost made him seem like a genius in her eyes.
Clavis looked up to his twin sister and shot her a smile that shelved away his previous demeanor, so that no one could see.
Karissa let out a laugh through her nose and smiled back.
Damn.
―
Lamia Scale – 30
Sabertooth – 20
Raven Tail – 26
Blue Pegasus – 17
Quatro Cerberus – 12
Mermaid Heel – 9
Fairy Tail B – 2
Fairy Tail A – 2
―
After the destruction Clavis caused, it was decided that the Games would go on a recreation of thirty minutes, the time needed to rebuild the arena with magic, leaving the teams to their own devices and the audience to wait in the stands. Fairy Tail A was back in their waiting room snacking on some food with the previous battle still fresh in their minds.
"That fight was really something." Lucy sighed with an apple in hand.
"Yes, I agree. Clavis is quite skilled at using his magic." Erza admitted, giving reason for Lucy to nod her head furiously.
Gray leaned his head back on the wall, making his hair flatten against it when he looked up at the ceiling. "And if he's anything like Karissa here, he's trouble." She pointed his thumb at Karissa who sat next to him on the bench while eating a cheese stick, she was peeling it and eating the strands. "He can last longer in a fight because of his magic power." She noticed how everyone was looking at her thoughtfully. If they were lucky enough, they wouldn't have to resort to fighting Clavis because they knew it was going to be difficult.
Clavis could fly. It would be so easy to get out of Lucy and Erza's range.
Clavis could increase the weight of an object. It would be easy for him to add weight to Erza's armour and render her unable to fight him.
Clavis could destroy objects with a tiny rock. It would be so easy to destroy one of Gray's ice.
That left Karissa and Natsu as potential fighters against him.
"You think you can win against your brother?" Erza asked her as she nibbled her cheese string. She was asking not because she's was wondering if she could hurt her family. No. She knew Karissa was fully capable of setting aside her personal feelings. She was asking because it might highly result in the two fighting each other.
But that was a good question, and one she might actually entertain if it wasn't the Grand Magic Games. Here, if you were too gung-ho and reckless, you might just end up like Natsu on the chariot. She wanted to be careful. If she could earn easy victories to boost her team's ranking on the board, then she'd take an easy match any day.
A fight against her twin brother might be very risky.
"No idea."
―
It was finally time to resume the event now that the ground was fixed. They must have used some type of magic to repair it within a short amount of time. A wise choice since it would take the rest of the days of this event to finally fix it.
Karissa stood in between Erza and Gray and leaned her elbows on the stone rail, and Lucy stood next to Gray's other side with a look of anticipation. Natsu was still absent since he was recovering in the infirmary after the chariot game, leaving only the four visible to the crowd.
"Sorry for the wait ladies and gentlemen! But rest assured, we are now continuing the battles!"
Erza placed her hands on the stone wall when she saw the crowd soar with excitement. "I wonder who it's going to be this time."
"I really hope it's not Natsu." Lucy mumbled loud enough for Gray to hear.
"If it is, we beat him up till he wakes up. Simple." Gray said flatly. He would get first serve in waking up that fire idiot, followed by Erza and Karissa most likely. They couldn't just ask for a switch after all.
"If they do..." Karissa lifted her hand to rest her chin in her hand before leaning her head to press it against Gray's arm. "I'll believe someone has it out for us to lose."
"A Raven Tail rat in the staff." Gray spat with a scowl.
And now, for the second match for the day... it's going to be.... Bacchus from Quatro Cerberus facing Karissa Sinclost from Fairy Tail A!"
Karissa stiffened and her eyes widened.
"Another Sinclost." Yajima remarked.
Immediately, lacrima visions zoomed in on the two competitors, catching her in her moment of surprise. Everyone saw the way her head perked up from leaning on Gray while Bacchus threw his hands up and cheered loudly, making his team echo his cheer.
Sting was leaning on the stone rail until they zoomed in on her face. His blue eyes were wide with surprise. Now, this caught his full attention, causing him to straighten up a little. It makes sense now why he couldn't know who Karissa was. There were barely any photos of her went it came to Fairy Tail news. And to think that she was a Sinclost...
"Oh shit." Karissa straightened up when she realized it wasn't a mistake. Her face was up there!
"That's soooo cool! Karissa Sinclost is going to be fighting too! I am sooo freaking honoured to see this match in person! The versatile mage from Fairy Tail! The fourth child of Domilia and Zack! Karissa Sinclost!"
Geez, can you calm down a little?!
"From what I remember, Karissa disliked being in the spotlight which is why some people are not familiar with her face." Yajima explained to Chapati when the crowd whispered about her face.
"Is that so?" Chapati spoke with amusement in his voice. "Well, she can't avoid it now!"
Erza smiled and placed a hand on her shoulder encouragingly. "I have faith you'll bring us victory." The scarlet haired mage was aware of Karissa's abilities. Her experience, rationality, her ability and her power had Erza feeling very confident in their victory. And with yesterday's losses, there's no way they'd take another loss.
Lucy fisted her hands and nodded with a confident look. "You got this!" For now, she would ignore what she learned last night about Bacchus being on the same level as Erza. Karissa was selected as an S-Class candidate. So that means the Master recognized that she was skilled enough to be the same rank as Laxus, Pandora, and Erza. That alone brought her much faith.
Gray smirked when Karissa took one step away from the stone rail to leave. He put a hand on her head and forced her to look at him. "Good luck and bring it home." Of course, he didn't doubt her at all. He didn't doubt her abilities as a mage. He knew he would only be proven correct in his faith when she won this match for them.
That tousle on her hair made her smile bashfully.
"Got it." Karissa clasped his hand atop her hand for a second. He let his hand slip off her head and pass through the strands of her hair as she turned and bolted away to reach the stairs that would lead her to the arena.
As she sped through the corridor to reach the stairs, she placed a hand on her heart to remind herself to calm down and just focus on the fight, to forget about everyone else. It was okay to be nervous under the eyes of thousands, dozen thousands with the lacrima vision displaying the match everywhere...
Karissa blinked with her hand on her heart as she went down the stairs and jumped off when there were three steps left.
Everyone is watching, huh?
What did Natsu want to show the world?
Yes, Fairy Tail never gave up.
Excitedly, Karissa slowed down her pace when she reached the place that would lead her outside. She was grinning mischievously when something came to mind.
Yeah... okay, show the world...
I got a great idea.
With reinforced confidence, she placed her hand in front of her mouth to hide her smile just as she stepped into the light.
And let's not forget about Cana.
"There he is! Kick his ass, Karissa!"
Karissa sweat dropped at her childhood friend who was being restrained by Macao in the stands. With a shake of her head, she dropped it and pressed her hand against her mouth. To the audience, she may have appeared sick with the way she hid her mouth like that and shadowed her eyes underneath her bangs.
"Shall I win an undisputable victory?"
―
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...
"Good luck, Fairy Tail!"
Bacchus had arrived first by simply jumping over the stone rail and waited patiently on the floor with a gourd of sake near him. He peeked at his opponent when she stepped closer to him. She was pushing the left side of her hair behind her head while looking a little anxious. Yeah. He remembered this girl. The Fairy Tail mage that looked up at him that night, appearing small in face of his presence before ignoring to get to Cana's side.
Even though the gong sounded, he still stayed on the floor while she stood there, fidgeting in spot.
"Karissa Sinclost, hm?" Bacchus smirked. "A mighty name."
Karissa just blinked before nodding. "Uh, yeah."
He let out a laugh as he lolled his head a bit, extremely interested in the current situation. He looked at her again with a grin. "It's not every day you get to fight a living legacy in front of the world. How about this? We'll make a bet for this fight."
"A bet? What for?"
"To make things interesting of course. Gotta have fun."
Karissa looked around hesitantly. Great. Just what was this man planning on betting? He wasn't even looking at Karissa Sinclost. He was looking at Karissa of Sinclost. It didn't really matter to her whether or not he looked at her. She was never a fan of too much attention. But she was not her mother nor was she her father. That was something he needed to properly see.
"What do you wanna bet then?"
Satisfied with her response, he grinned twistedly at her. "You and your sister are quite pretty." He lifted a hand and pointed towards Fairy Tail B. "Your sister's got a nice body." Then he pointed at her. "And you're not bad yourself. But you're the quiet type... that's even more interesting because it's always the quiet ones that are freaky at night."
...
...
...
WHAT?
"If I win, I get to spend the night with both of you."
His voice echoed thanks to the lacrima, letting everyone hear his debauched condition.
"It won't be so bad." He reassured. "I'll show you girls a great time. Might be really wild!"
Fucking YUCK.
WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU? HOW ABOUT I RIP IT OFF?
Despite feeling completely grossed out, Karissa maintained a straight face. But what she really wanted to do was get away from this guy after freezing his eyes. But this cool face could not be said for four individuals watching the match. Van Sinclost was absolutely pissed off at Bacchus' condition like any older brother would be, making his guildmates step away from him and his menacing aura. Laxus Dreyar's eyes darkened and his team could almost feel the aura radiating off him. Pandora forgot about her own emotions and sweat dropped when she glanced back to look at him. Clavis smiled but he couldn't hide the vein popping out. Despite his attempt to hide his displeasure, Jura and Lyon saw through his façade, prompting the first to place a hand on his shoulder. As for Gray, his face twitched as he grew pissed off on behalf of Karissa. The thought of another man just laying a finger on her like just made him want to do something dark.
Yeah. No mercy later.
"Um..." Karissa pretended to play timid. "I don't know what kind of bet I wanna make... But I'll think of something."
I'll take my sweet time thinking of something during the fight.
Bacchus smirked. "I don't mind."
He was sure of his victory anyway.
He wasn't even fighting an S-Class mage!
Then, Karissa dropped her façade crouched down, suddenly unleashing a giant cloud of ice dust, diamond dust, which practically enveloped the entire stadium. Bacchus took this as his cue to get up, cracking his knuckles with eyes that surveyed the area when it slowly became clearer. Karissa now stood a few feet away from him with twin ice swords in her hands.
The battle now officially began.
Karissa pitched a sword at him.
Bacchus swiftly dodged the blade and zoomed towards her.
She threw the other one like a boomerang.
The S-Class mage just slid to his knees and avoided the blade with it nearly touching the tip of his nose. Then he noticed the previous blade coming at him from behind. She was controlling the sword's trajectory. With a grin, Bacchus flipped and dodged the two blades that tried to close it on him before slamming the back of his palm into them when they came together. The ice just shattered and fell harmlessly.
Karissa took a few steps back now that Bacchus was closer. She quickly created those clock hands and directed them towards him at full speed, but he just flipped over them again before shattering them. Seeing as he was still in the air, she quickly swung her arm down to create the frigid thorns that rapidly raced towards him. Bacchus eyed the spikes that came at him. With a laugh, he slammed his palms down on the floor, creating a shockwave that broke away the ice just before it could reach him. That created a dent in the ground as well.
"Long-range type, huh?" Bacchus raced towards her, causing her to quickly back away and dodge a kick aimed at her gut. She was in mid air after dodging and she quickly casted another spell. Ice Cleaver. Ice at his feet poke out at a 45-degree angle. It was going to slam him in between the ice.
"That's not going to work!" Bacchus just thrusted his palms outwards and broke the ice in halves.
"Oh dear! It looks like Karissa's ice is breaking apart so easily! And Bacchus isn't even breaking a sweat!"
Thousand Spears.
Bacchus' eyes widened in surprise when a number of spears suddenly flew his way. That was impressive. What Chapati just said also applied to Karissa, she wasn't breaking a sweat. In fact, she didn't look too worried about her attacks getting nullified. Is it because she felt safe at this distance? In that case...
Bacchus suddenly rushed at her, nimbly avoiding all the spears by slipping in between the gaps. Seeing him coming closer, she quickly crouched down while showing her side to him as she placed her palm on the ground. A rectangular wall of ice rose to protect herself from Bacchus' incoming attack. His grin grew wider when he knew that it would only be futile. And he was correct. Because the ice shattered as soon as he slammed his palm into it.
Karissa was in the middle of getting up he nearly barreled into her when slammed his palms into the center of her being, throwing her far away when she was struck. Her body rolled a few times against the sand.
"Bacchus Groh has landed the first attack!"
"Something's not right." Lyon's eyes narrowed suspiciously when he saw what just happened.
He was finding it odd. Was Bacchus really that strong? He had fought Karissa before on Galuna Island, and there was no way her ice was this easy to break. They were very sturdy just like his creations.
Karissa pushed herself up on her knees and glanced back at Bacchus. She continued to look apathetic and unbothered.
Sting leaned his cheek inside his palm. He didn't feel impressed at all. Was this really the might of Sinclost? It wasn't much to write about no matter how much Jason tried to hype it up. This was turning out to be a real letdown.
Lucy was frowning. She couldn't understand what was happening. How was Karissa's ice getting destroyed so easily?
"Tch. This doesn't make sense." Gray stuffed his hands in his pockets just as Karissa stood back up on her feet. She was really having trouble like this, right off the bat? "Her attacks aren't connecting at all. What's up with the way he's fighting?"
Karissa and Gray's molding magic was strong. They were both quick in making their ice for battle, but the former was faster. If he was faster, then Karissa's had the most sturdiest ice thanks to her magic power reinforcing the strength of it. So, why was it so easy to break it?
Erza crossed her arms as Karissa used another ice spell to attack Bacchus. She used Frozen Star Assault and aimed at his feet to blow up the ground he stood on. "His magic is pretty orthodox. It's a type in which he gathers power into the palms of his hands. But his secret is that he built up his body with martial training so he can his magic at its maximum level. He uses a martial art called Pigua Quan. As you can see from his odd stance, it's a martial art that involves palm strikes. Another frightening aspect is that he's taken this martial art and changed it to suit him personally. He's blended it to make a style called Drunken Pigua Quan."
"Drunken?" Gray inquired. "You mean like on liquor?"
"Yes." Erza shifted her weight on one leg as the battle continued before her eyes. "Yes. It's impossible to predict where the Drunken Hawk will strike. And he's raised the power of his ultimate attack to devastating effect."
Karissa created an ice dome to trap him inside.
His palm broke a hole through it.
Her hand shifted and made a motion to clench the air to seal it close.
But he ended up shattering the dome in a barrage of palm strikes.
"That isn't our only problem. He hasn't drunk a drop of the liquor in that bottle." Erza nudged her chin towards the gourd sitting in the sand.
Gray clicked his tongue as he watched Bacchus slam her into the sand with a hit from behind. "That means he hasn't even gotten serious yet..."
Lucy stared worriedly at the fight. "And if he can break her ice so easily...!"
"That's right. If he's as strong as he appears to be... she won't be able to attack him at all."
"Haaah!" Bacchus landed a flurry of palm strikes into the center of her being. He was hitting her upwards, raising her up in the air. Just as Karissa tried to defend herself, he raised both palms and slammed it into her side while she was in midair, slamming her into the ground once more.
"Come on, Karissa!" Makarov bellowed. "You can do it! Fight! Fight! Fight!"
"Kick his ass!" Max screamed for his friend.
This was going to be an easy win for Bacchus.
As soon as she tried to attack him when she got up on one knee, Bacchus struck her in the face, sending her flying away. Her body bounced once against the sand before going still for a second. But even so, she still got back up.
Van was leaning on the stone rail of his side with a frown. Why wasn't she using her wind?
Come on... stop messing around Karissa.
Pandora had her arms folded on the stone rail with a concerned look. Her bangs shadowed her eyes a bit as she kept her gaze fixated on her little sister. The match was completely one-sided. Karissa would never allow a fight to remain one-sided for too long. She should have been switching her strategy by now. What's happening?
Come on...! I know you can do better than that!
You're stronger than that!
Even if they're stronger than you... fight back harder!
With a trident in hand, she started swinging at Bacchus rapidly, showing everyone her proficiency at close range with weapons. Bacchus snorted when he dodged the tip by leaning completely backwards. But he wasn't ready for Karissa to flip it and slam the other end into his knees. Ouch. He felt that one!
"Karissa has finally landed a hit on Bacchus! Can she continue doing it?! Are the tables finally turning?!"
With a strike of his palm, he destroyed the trident and aimed at her face. Karissa ducked down and created another ice weapon, a sword this time, the ones that looked oriental with those fancy hilts.
She jumped back when she saw his palm coming her way, landing with a cloud of smoke appearing behind her from sliding against the sands. She readied herself and zoomed back towards him with her blade. As soon as Bacchus rushed to strike her as well, she shoved the tip of her sword into the ground and forced herself to swing around it by using her weight and momentum, narrowly missing Bacchus who looked shocked at her quick thinking.
She was behind him now.
"That move was sooo cool just now!"
Ice Make: Schmitar.
A new blade appeared in her free hand. It was a blade that was more or less wide and which curved towards the back of the blade. Her target was his legs. She would reduce his speed and finally turn the tables on him and bring victory to her gui—
Karissa's eyes widened when Bacchus rapidly turned around and slammed both of his palms into her stomach. Her eyes saw his grin, the last thing she would see before her eyes rolled up in her head.
What happened next shocked everyone in the stadium and those who were watching the Grand Magic Games via lacrima vision.
The ice mage stumbled backwards and sank to her knees.
And the upper half of her body fell at Bacchus' feet.
Horrified gasps were echoing all over the stadium. Even Chapati and Jason were at a loss for words. Van was just frozen in horror when he saw her broken in half. Pandora and Cana shouted out her name along with other members of their guild that were previously cheering.
Did murder seriously just happen?
Lyon was about to leap over the rail until he saw something. Gray was the same. He tore his eyes away from the corpse when he noticed something moving in his peripheral vision. One of the lacrima vision screens displayed that projected the scene from different angles started to yank its focus away from the crime scene. Whatever was recording the scene pointed at the sky for a second.
And then Karissa's face appeared on the screen.
"What the fu..." Gray deadpanned.
With the most apathetic face, she started making peace signs to get the crowd's attention. It was only when her face started displaying on every screen did the truth finally reveal itself. Bacchus instantly looked down and was just in time to see her body burst into ice dust.
Lyon dragged a hand across his face with a loud groan. Should he scream or should he just hit her later?
"A-A clone...?!"
"She created a clone?! That's sooo cooo! But when did she do it?!"
"From the very beginning." Karissa spoke to the lacrima just as she walked towards the edge of what she stood on. She was standing on one of the big statues around the stadium, the female one. She was atop its staff. "When I made all of that ice dust that covered the stadium."
Then I just flew away so fast that no one saw me.
As the chatters and gasps echoed throughout the stadium, Karissa repressed the urge to smirk. Instead, she concentrated on creating an ice slide that would bring her down to the arena. She hopped on it and slid down on her back. Her way down was actually near Lamia Scale's team, giving her the opportunity to stick her tongue out at Lyon when he gave her a reprimanding stare. She didn't notice the way Sting was watching her from across the stadium. She could hear people in the audience exclaim in awe when they realize what happened. She noted that some were realizing something crucial.
"That's quite impressive..." Yajima realized, a hand on his chin. "Karissa created an ice clone capable of making numerous attacks, as well as enduring blows from Bacchus' attacks... That's beyond a simple ice clone."
So... just how strong was she as the real deal?
Jason cheered loudly for Karissa.
As Laxus watched her go down the ice slide with no care at all about the scare she caused, he couldn't help but remember the first time she made that ice clone. She first came up with ice clones to mess with him. It started with her stealing his headphones and listening to them without his permission. The one time he caught her, he yanked it off her head so roughly that her body just tilted and shatter when it landed on the floor. Of course, the ice didn't become apparent just yet, giving him full reason to panic when others stared at it. But when the ice was much more apparent, he could hear her snickering behind a wooden beam. Needless to say, he gave her a good punishment for scaring him like that... which consisted of him sitting on her for three hours when she was hungry.
"I'm going to smack her." Pandora declared bluntly.
Juvia watched her unbutton her hoodie and let it fly open with the wind.
...
...
...
"GELUM!" Lucy screamed out loud just as the floor disappeared beneath her feet. Lucy frantically looked around and found herself trapped in a water sphere.
"Non, non, non! You need to be quiet mademoiselle! We cannot attract attention!" Sol put a finger up to his lips. "Il faut être silencieux!"
"It seems like she tried calling for help from a comrade." Juvia focused her magic on the water trapping Lucy, "If so, we must make haste."
Lucy popped her head out of the water and gasped for air. "Wh-What is this?!"
"Juvia's Water Lock cannot be broken." Juvia lifted her hand and forced Lucy to remain inside the water. However, the water broke just before Lucy could pass out since Juvia lost focus on her magic when she felt something kick her body aside. Juvia dropped her umbrella as she fell to the ground.
"Oh dear, Juvia-sama!" Sol looked to the side and found a girl with black hair just before a fist landed on his face. He slumped against the wall.
"It was Juvia's mistake for not turning her body in water fast enough..." Juvia admitted as she gathered her bearings and sat up. She found a girl helping up Lucy to her feet.
The clone pushed Lucy back and turned around to face the two Phantom Lord members. The blonde wizard headed the silent instructions and started running away while fiddling with her keys. "Our cible is getting away!"
Juvia attacked the clone with water but it did not even flinch as it grazed its cheek. The rain woman's eyes flickered at that detail.
The girl slammed her hands down and created an enormous ice glacier that damaged the buildings around them.
Lucy flinched with her key in hand when she felt the ground shake from the ice attack. She stumbled and looked back and gasped.
The ice glacier was twice as tall as the buildings and it pointed towards the sky.
Karissa's ice clone whipped its head around when it felt that Lucy was still there. The blonde wizard eeped in surprise when she felt the clone's eyes staring at her sharply. It was practically asking her why the hell she was still there.
"Okay, okay! I'm going!"
The clone suddenly stumbled when it felt something slash across its body. It stumbled and looked back to find Juvia with her hand extended to the side.
"This girl is nothing but a clone left behind by the original." Juvia stated.
Sol hummed in surprise and examined the clone that was beginning to crack. He adjusted his monocle and looked up at the ice. "A mere clone replicating such an attack... Well, it is très impressionant."
...
...
...
From the time Juvia encountered her clone and now, it was obvious to the rain woman that she improved her clone to fool everyone. She also successfully fooled everyone by appearing apathetic and quiet unless spoken to just before the fight began, making her clone more believable.
But now she knew why a clone was able to replicate powerful attacks and stay sturdy for so long.
Gray sighed with light exasperation. Erza closed her eyes and smiled, amused. Lucy sighed with a hand on her chest. "I feel like hitting her now." Lucy hissed. She seriously thought a horrible accident happened!
"Well, well, you gave me quite the scare." Bacchus chuckled, kicking the ice pieces from her clone when Karissa immediately started walking towards him after the momentum helped her stand upright. She had her hands in her pockets when she looked at him with her head tilted. "A clone was able to keep up with me and shoot those spells? You're stronger than what you let on."
Karissa stopped in front of him and gave him a curious look. "You can be the judge of that soon enough. As for me, I've had enough time to watch you while thinking of my side of the bet."
"Hahaha!" Bacchus threw his head back and laughed. Oh yeah. This was definitely getting good now. He swiped off the gourd from the sand and immediately started drinking. He knew that it was going to get serious now. And he wasn't going to get caught with his pants down! "You're an interesting character, Karissa Sinclost! I'm starting to think you're two-faced! You're definitely a freaky type!"
And you would be correct to some degree.
Karissa smiled mischievously as she lifted a hand that started emitting the cold. "Really now?" She used it to rub the back of her neck, laughing sheepishly. "I don't think I can win."
Bacchus flung away his gourd and lunged at her. "Yeah! Because I'm going to win this easy! You have no chance!"
He wasn't expecting her to close the distance so fast. How did she do that? Bacchus grunted when she grabbed his head and flipped over him. His face was a mix of surprise and confusion. She froze the back of his armour plate to create handles as she landed behind him after yanking him backwards. The lacrima finally caught an irritated face instead of an apathetic one. "Are you underestimating me?!" She had enough of his dumb attitude thinking she was an easy win! "Don't!" Karissa pitched him to the ground with strength people didn't think her smaller body packed.
The only reason she could move fast and throw him with ease is because of her wind magic that she didn't make obvious to everyone.
She was keeping it a secret.
Bacchus landed on his back with a grunt. Seeing her move, he quickly destroyed the ice on his back that was restricting his movements. She created an ice halberd and started thrusting the air in his direction before he was able to probably regain his footing. He grinned and slammed his palm towards the ice thinking it would shatter. But it didn't. It just pushed it down. His eyes grew large. Why? Why was the ice was too dense to break?! Without missing a beat, Karissa lifted the ice weapon and held it above her head before aiming at his foot. His foot yanked away. The weapon pierced the ground and she leaped to the side with the help of her discreet wind, making her jump higher. She created an ice chain that wrapped around Bacchus' neck.
"What the?! ACK—!"
She yanked him towards her with her feet now covered in ice soles.
Bacchus' eyes widened when he couldn't take it off.
The heel of her foot came down on his head, forcing him to bow down crookedly.
"It seems the tables have really finally turned, hasn't it, Yajima-san?!"
"Yes. This is Karissa Sinclost, the versatile mage."
But that didn't stop Bacchus from seeking victory. He kept moving.
"Ice Make: Coffin!"
A huge coffin of thick layer of ice rose up from where he stood, throwing off his balance just before a cover sealed him inside. With how dense the ice was, Bacchus had trouble getting out. It was actually hurting his bare palms when he used maximum force to get out. When he finally broke the cover, he poked his head out and looked for her.
He paused.
"Ice Make: Rime Cannon."
She was pointing it right at him.
"A cannon?!" Bacchus exclaimed in shock.
It fired.
"Oof!" Karissa's body stumbled back from the recoil while Bacchus jumped out of the coffin in a panicky haste. The projectile from her cannon all but obliterated the coffin, creating a brief shower of shining crystals under the sunlight.
This is bad! Bacchus gathered his bearings and fixed her with a serious look. She simply let the cannon drop behind her and shatter into pieces. I have to finish this now!
After shaking off his shock, Bacchus focused magic power into his feet this time to give himself a huge burst of speed. He was going to end this now! He was going to win!
Karissa bowed her head a little after slamming her cold fist in her palm. She couldn't help but grin in anticipation.
"Ice Make.... Tsunami."
It happened so fast.
Instantly, ice shot forward the second she pointed her palms to the ground. It rippled across the arena at full speed while growing taller. Bacchus quickly swung with more power, but it couldn't break through the denser parts, allowing the ice to completely engulf him with no chance to escape. It also froze a wide radius from where she stood. The ice continued to rise until a spike-like ice structure pointed out of the stadium. It was big enough to block Raven Tail, Fairy Tail B, and Sabertooth's view of the arena. It was this close to touching Sting's nose. The audience under the ice's immense shadow let out frightened gasps as they stared up at the intimidating structure.
People outside of the stadium, those who were calmly walking around the streets of Crocus, heard the loud rumble coming from the ice. People were pointing up at the stadium in shock. Sting, Clavis, Hibiki, Beth, Rocker, Flare, and Juvia stared at the ice, all speechless.
It was dead silence as aside from Chapati and Jason's cry of shock. The cold air was too clear to not notice Karissa. The lacrima visions moved around to show the hidden audience a clearer image of Karissa who stood there with a serious look and her right hand slowly lowering down. She was covered in a small amount of frost from her ice magic.
"This girl..." Gray huffed with a smile. Did he just find another reason to adore her?
"Haa..." Karissa breathed out white air.
"What the fuck?!" Gajeel gaped. He punched away a piece of ice that almost poked him. "Is she trying to kill us?! That nearly poked my eye! Hey!" Gajeel roared. "Chill, would ya?!"
"Chill, he says." Pandora snorted. "Nice pun."
"It wasn't meant to be one!"
The lacrima vision showed Karissa slowly making her way towards the edge of the ice towards her. Bacchus was frozen inside in complete shock. He was tilted back on one foot with his arms outstretched from the ice. She hid her mouth behind her knuckles when she smiled, pleased with her dominance.
"Welcome to my arena."
She was able to unfreeze his head to allow him to speak and hear. Upon freeing that part of his body, he let out a gasp and just stared at her with wide eyes. Bacchus was aware that the Sinclost name had enough credit to be proven strong... but facing one of them in a fight was different from what he expected. And it wasn't just a one-shot victory... He wasn't fooled for too long. She could have used that move within the distance they had before round two began, but she didn't. She chose to give him a small taste before ultimately winning an undisputable victory.
And now, she was looking at him apathetically just like her clone while he shivered from the biting cold.
Seeing as Bacchus could no longer move, he surrendered by default, giving her ten points to her team.
"The winner of this battle is Karissa Sinclost of Fairy Tail A! AN UNDISPUTABLE VICTORY!"
The crowd erupted in cheers for her, but it could not rival the excitement and screams coming from her cheering guild. Some were laughing at the typicalness of the fight.
"Of course, she'd play games." Lucy couldn't help but laugh. This was definitely a Karissa type battle. "But that face earlier... she looked really annoyed."
"After what Bacchus said to her, it's not surprising." Erza referred to the bet. Karissa did not appreciate things like that, so of course she got a little payback. She could sense some repressed anger in that head grab.
"Psh, dude deserved it." Gray straightened up and placed his hands on the rail. He watched lean close to Bacchus so that their ears were right next to each other. His face on the lacrima vision all but stiffened, paling a bit as well, and remained that way even after she casually stuffed her hands in her pockets, backing off with a pep in her step. "Dude talked about her family and basically made a nasty assumption about her. Two things that scored him high points on her shit list."
Forgetting something crucial, Karissa lifted one finger. "Oh yeah! My bet. For the games, you guys are gonna be called Quatro Chihuahua... and you'll buy Cana all the drinks she wants during the Grand Magic Games."
"WHAT?!" Quatro Cerberus screamed.
"OUT OF MY POCKET?!" Bacchus freaked.
Boy, I didn't stutter.
"Yep." She smiled with the blankest face.
"YEAAAAAAH!" Cana shouted with a cheer. "I LOVE YOU, KARISSA! I'LL GIVE YOU A KISS LATER!"
"That's right! An undisputable victory for Fairy Tail! GOOD JOB, KARISSA! LET THEM ALL KNOW WE AREN'T A FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH!" Makarov.
"THAT'S MY LITTLE SISTER!" Pandora.
"Would all of you relax?" Going back to her usual calm self, Karissa sweat dropped at the brunette jumping with joy at the prospect of free drinks. Her father would probably object to it, but he wasn't here right now. What he doesn't know won't hurt him.
Lucy grinned and poked Gray on the arm. "Make that three."
Soon, Karissa walked off with a pep in her step, caring very little about the ice she left looming on the audience. If she was lucky, she frightened those who mocked Gray and Lucy on the first day. They'll think twice about laughing at her friends.
Sting's eyes remained on Karissa's retreating form. Was this what he expected? From Fairy Tail, yes. But from her without her family name? No. This was a pleasant surprise. As if he wasn't intrigued by her before as Robin, a journalist curious about him, he was now impressed and even more intrigued in Karissa, the mage from Fairy Tail who retreated away from media but stood out like a radiant ice flower under the sun.
...
...
...
"Laxus Dreyar would kill you for laying a hand on Pandora, and he would stomp you for touching me. But Gray Fullbuster would probably freeze your dick and let it fall off if you made him angry enough."
...
...
...
"OOF!"
Karissa wasn't ready for Erza to roughly pull her to her chest for a one-arm hug. Lucy grinned brightly, congratulating her victory while Gray recounted with a laugh the face Bacchus made when she grabbed his head.
"That was awesome!"
"Yes, you did very well, Karissa."
"You should have seen the look on his face! It was priceless!"
Seeing her friends' smiles only made her lax in Erza's hold. She was sure that if she were in front of her other guildmates who were left behind, they would be smiling like this. Smiling like as if their seven years of humiliation were finally beginning to get overwritten.
―
The next match was Pandora Sinclost against Jenny Realight. Considering how they were both models for Sorcerer Weekly, Jenny offered to have a showdown with something that involved other than fighting. This was mostly out of fear of being destroyed by the S-Class mage, but she was too prideful to show her fear to the other woman.
The black haired mage had her arms crossed when Jenny confidently proposed her suggestion.
"The fuck? No."
Jenny turned into stone.
"This is a battle. A battle means to throw hands. And that's what I'm going to do."
"NOO! Come on, Pandora! Please!"
"NAH."
Needless to say, she didn't stand a chance against an S-Class mage who sometimes moved around at the speed of light and attacked her from a distance with beams of it. She was barely hanging on with her Battle Suit.
Pandora... was thrashing her with a sadistic grin.
"... Goddamn." Gajeel sweat dropped when Jenny screamed in fright as she dodged another attack. "She looks like... a whole crazy witch." He said, referring to the face Pandora wore that was displayed on the lacrima vision.
Cana took a sip from her bottle. "Funny. That's exactly what we called her when we were kids, a witch. Erza was a monster, Mirajane was a demon, and Pandora was the evil witch."
Soon, Pandora floated in the air which started to tingle with her spell.
"O severing radiance... shine upon the shadowy land!"
Jenny whimpered under the giant beam of light that was accompanied by several rings of light.
"Ritual of Devastation!"
"AAHHHHHHHHH!"
Their match was a one-sided stomp.
Other than the last match between Sabertooth and Mermaid Hell, the second day was mostly a reminder to everyone of the Sinclost name and the guild they were associated with.
―
Lamia Scale – 30
Sabertooth – 20
Raven Tail – 26
Blue Pegasus – 17
Mermaid Heel – 19
Fairy Tail A – 12
Fairy Tail B – 12
Quatro Cerberus – 12
―
Once the second day was over, everyone was leaving the stadium altogether. Lamia Scale, Blue Pegasus, and Fairy Tail were walking together by pure coincidence. Jenny, who probably suffered from PTSD during her fight, was quick to bolt away upon seeing Pandora's face. Lyon and Gray were still arguing over Lyon's one-sided bet while Juvia fawned over Gray's 'protectiveness' over her. The masters of the guilds were at the front discussing topics no one knew about since they were all talking together.
Van grinned and placed a hand on both of his younger siblings' heads to ruffle them affectionately.
"Good job, out there you two!"
"My hair..."
"Oh... thank you."
Karissa looked displeased with her hair being messed up while Clavis looked bashful by the gesture. Van was the only Sinclost who didn't participate. After all, he just wanted to let his sisters shine in his place. Clavis jumped in surprise when his twin was yanked away and pulled into someone else. He saw a long haired woman in a bikini top pretty a big fat kiss on Karissa's cheek, who groaned and tried pushing her away.
"Cana!"
"Have I ever told you that I love you so much?!"
"YES! And to the entire world!"
"Ugh, get a room." Gajeel pretended to hurl at the two, making Cana wave her and dismissively at him. The Iron Dragon Slayer then set his sights on the older twin with a curious gaze. The twin didn't know how to feel about his red eyes looking at him like that.
"So, he's her twin?"
"Hi..."
"Heeeey! Sinclosts!"
Hearing the familiar energetic voice, those around the addressed individuals stopped, except for Clavis. Due to not being quite used to the name, he kept walking until Lyon stopped him. He stumbled a bit when he looked behind them. One obvious figure was waving at them through the crowd. It was Jason from Sorcerer Weekly, and he was emitting that very obvious eccentric vibe.
Being a long time fan of Fairy Tail despite the years, he was quick to request an interview with all siblings.
"Oh, hey." Pandora put a hand on her hip. "You were one of the commentators today, right?"
"Jason." Van identified with a smile.
Jason grinned and nodded while adjusting the bag he carried. "You got it! I had the great honour of being a guest for the second day of the Grand Magic Games! I got to see many mages in action, especially the Sinclost family, which by the way did absolutely amazing as always! I just wish I could have seen Van participate as well! That would have been so cool to see all four in one day, and I also—"
Gajeel scowled at the ramblings that looked like he wasn't going to cease. Gray smiled a bit and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly as he saw others look almost exasperated with his nonstop comments. Natsu just deadpanned with Lucy as Jason started mimicking some of Clavis, Pandora, and Karissa's moves.
Thankfully, they had enough patience to let him go off.
"But anyway, I digressed, what I really want to talk to you about was possibly interviewing you guys for Sorcerer Weekly! Now the flame of your name has been relit, our readers would highly be interested in reading stuff and reminding themselves of who you guys are!"
Karissa started buttoning up the hoodie she left open this whole time. "I don't mind."
"Am I really allowed to be there?" Clavis wondered. He still felt like a stranger, not yet good enough to be included in their name for a magazine interview.
"Of course. You're our brother, aren't you?" Van gave him a look with a quirked brow. "Unless you lied?"
"No, no! I can show you the place I found!"
"Relax. I'm kidding."
"You should go." Lyon nodded his head with a smile.
Pandora smiled amicably at Jason. "Sure, we don't mind. When do you want to do it?"
The reported pointed his thumb back at the stadium. "We could use a room in the stadium! The sooner the better!"
At some point the Guild Masters had turned around to see the reporter shaking Pandora's hand vigorously. Makarov tipped his head curiously and voiced his wonder to Laxus who was watching from afar.
"The guy wants to interview the little family." Laxus replied, eying the way Pandora laughed sheepishly when Jason kept shaking her hand. He then noticed Makarov running over to the older sister with a grin. The little old man called Pandora's name, prompting her to turn around and face him. Seeing him wave her down, she lowered herself and borrowed her ear.
He was telling her to remind Jason that Fairy Tail was not a force to be reckoned with and that everyone would see them retain their crown.
"Really, Master?" Pandora looked at him with a typical look.
"People need to be reminded that we're not here to mess around." Makarov added before patting her arm and walking off with a satisfied smile. After all, he could see some people in the audience still unconvinced of their power and determination to win.
Pandora and Van went on ahead, leading the way for their younger siblings. Clavis said a few words to his team before running after them, leaving Karissa behind with her own team.
"I'll be back later! I'll go straight to the inn!"
Gray put a hand in his pocket and used the other one to shoo her off. "Just go already. They're leaving you behind."
"We'll see you later." Lucy told her when she started walking backwards despite knowing that they were in a crowded area. "And watch where you're going!"
"Yeah, yeah!"
Karissa spun around just in time to nimbly avoid a civilian. Her footsteps were light and her hair swayed with each quick movement she took to catch up with them. However, just as she maneuvered around two people, she wasn't expecting someone to be right behind the person she went around. Like, they were almost glued to them? Where's the breathing space?
Her brain immediately slammed on the brakes, forcing her foot to stomp down and take the reins to freeze all bodily movements. This startled the person because they stiffened and leaned back to avoid getting run into.
Sting Eucliffe.
Their eyes met and mirrored each other's surprise.
Oops!
"You..." Sting started. He was meeting the real her face to face. "You were really part of Fairy Tail—"
"Karissa!" That was Van. "Don't tell me I gotta hold your hand in a crowd?! Get over here!"
"Sorry." Karissa muttered a quick apology before running past Sting. "And yeah, maybe you do!"
The White Dragon Slayer looked over his shoulder to watch her form. He could only catch a glimpse of her black hair flowing behind her and disappearing around a group of people, removing her from his sight. He narrowed his blue eyes for a second before looking forward. He needed to hurry up and head back to where his guild was staying.
Much like him, someone else was watching her. Her and her family, specifically.
A group of black birds with tails.
―
Did I write another 10k+ word chapter in four days? Yeah...
Clavis said: Imma knock you out with a tiny pebble
Karissa said: Imma potentially land Bacchus in jail
Pandora woke up and chose violence
That basically sums up the fights lol.
I was going to post this on monday... but I'm like... nah, it's my birthday and I just wanna chill. So yeah. Might or might not have a new chapter next month!