Update update! Next chapter is a long one, this one, not so much. Love you guys🫶
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Everyone had left the room, only leaving you, Sting, Rogue, and Frosch. Rufus had tried to escort you out of the room with him, but you refused him. For one, you were upset with him for blocking your way. Second, you knew how Sting felt about him. Sting was already in pieces, you didn't want to give him another reason to shatter more. When everyone was gone, Team Sabertooth and the rest of the guild, all you could do was watch Sting as he cried.
You walked over to him, and kneeled down in front of him. His head was in his hands, still crying loudly. You placed your hands around his wrists gently, to which he pulled away from you. After he did that, you wrapped your arms around the upper half of his body, just letting him cry. This time, he didn't move. He continued to cry, allowing himself to feel weak. Rogue watched this encounter between the two of you with wide eyes. He understood the grief Sting felt for Lector, but at the same time, he couldn't believe that he broke down in such a way in front of you. Rogue thought that maybe this would allow you to see a different side of Sting, one where he actually cared for his friends. One where he didn't have to pretend to be strong in front of you.
"We'll get Lector back, okay?" You told him, but he just continued to cry. However, he did wrap his arms around you, hugging you back tightly. He wouldn't say a word, but you didn't need him to. In this moment, you just wanted to be there for him.
**
It was July 6th, the fifth and final day of the Grand Magic Games.
"Now, let's get things started and bring out the competitors!" Mato, the pumpkin head announced.
They announce the teams in increasing order. They first started with Quatro Puppy, then Blue Pegasus, and then Lamia Scale. From those guilds, they focused on speaking about Bacchus, Ichiya and Lyon, Jura and Cheria.
"Lamia Scale isn't the only guild in third place! They're in very good company with Mermaid Heel!"
They talked about Kagura, and how calm and fearless she always looked. And also proceeded to say how they hoped to see her unveil her sword. They knew she was powerful, but they couldn't help but wonder how much more power she would be with her sword unsheathed.
"And let's hear it for our second place team! Sabertooth!" The crowd went wild. "Give it up for the mighty Sabertooth! Could this be an end of an era!?"
Minerva was out in front, Sting and Rogue behind her, Rufus and Orga behind them. "Those are some serious looks they got on today." Chapati noticed.
"Maybe they realized that there's a lot on the line." Yajima stated.
"I won't let you down, little buddy. I'm not losing." Sting said to himself, speaking out as if Lector was there. "For more than one reason."
"And now let's introduce our first place team! A historic comeback after falling off seven years ago! Fairy Tail!"
The crowd cheered for Fairy Tail, but then Chapati seemed confused. "And what's this!? Fairy Tail is keeping us on our toes by replacing the guy who signal handedly defeated the Dragon Slayers of Sabertooth!"
"With Juvia!?" Lyon yelled, his face flushing.
"Natsu is out of the competition?" Rogue asked, just checking to see if he had heard right.
"That's alright with me. That's the best news I've heard all day." Sting smiled a bit.
"I suppose you're right."
"And the last day of the games will feature a survival game!"
"Strap in everyone! Because we have a special arena for this game! The whole city of Crocus!" Pumpkin head announced.
"Each team will elect a leader, but no one on opposing teams will know who the leader is! Defeating the leader is worth five points, that means it is theoretical that a team could win 45 points. Every guild has a shot at winning the title!"
"Now, let's rumble!"
Members would take the field, coming up with strategies and then putting them into play. However, the only team that appeared to have not understood the assignment was Fairy Tail.
"Huh?! What's this!? Fairy Tail's members are not moving, as if they are in a trance!"
The battles went on, and Fairy Tail still didn't move. Eventually, Yuka and Toby from Lamia Scale would run into a very drunk Bacchus. "Two against one, huh? Well, that seems hardly fair. But it's stuff like that that really gets my soul stirring!" All of his words were slurred. "Time to go beddy bye!"
Before Bacchus could get an attack in, Sting came from no where and attacked Bacchus, who happened to be the leader of Quatro Puppy, earning him five points.
"That means we're in the lead again, just as it should be." Minerva said calmly.
Toby and Yuka were upset that Sting had stole their opportunity to earn some points, so they decided to attack Sting. However, before they could even move, Kagura had gotten both Yuka and Toby. Everyone was excited to see a one on one with Sting and Kagura, but Sting was gone before she could even turn around.
Finally, Team Fairy Tail moved from their starting point, everyone going their separate ways. The crowd went crazy seeing them spring into action.
"Night of falling stars!" Rufus would cast his spell, his plan to take all of them out. Luckily, Fairy Tail avoided them.
"Like we'd fall for the same trick twice!" Gray yelled into the air.
Laxus, however, took the spell head on, absorbing its power. "Hey, this feels kinda nice!"
Erza would run and round a corner, running into Jenny from Blue Pegasus. It was an easy win for Erza, there was no doubt. Gajeel had also ran into Blue Pegasus, the three pretty boys who constantly flirted and were at Ichiya's call.
Gajeel defeated Ren and Eve, as Hibiki tried to get away. Unfortunately for him, he ran right into Gray. Another win for Fairy Tail.
Jura defeated Ichiya, gaining five points. Cheria fought Risley, and won a point for Lamia Scale. With that, it was a three way tie for first. Fairy Tail, Sabertooth, Lamia Scale.
Gray ventured into the library, and found Rufus reading in the open. "First Master told me that you'd be here."
First Master? What did Master Mavis have to do with this?
"How interesting. You had practically vanished from my memory. Perhaps you'd care to remind me who you are?"
"You're gonna have a hard time forgetting me after this, cause I'm the guy who's gonna knock you out!"
Like you had expected, there were rivalries since the first day with Fairy Tail and Sabertooth. His was just one of them.
"Alright you mask wearing freak! Let's rock! Ice make: freeze rancher!" Multiple shards of ice aimed at Rufus, but he dodged.
"Memorized."
"Ice Impact!"
Again, Rufus dodged.
"Memorized."
"What the hell do you keep mumbling about?"
"Memory is my weapon."
"Huh?"
"I can commit any spell I see to memory. And I can make entirely new spells that are based on them. And luckily for me, I've been in the same guild as someone you used to be close with for a while, who you happened to share some knowledge with. After all, those were your spells she used in her fight with Kagura, no?"
"The hell!?"
"I've memorized your ice before meeting you, and Orga's black lightning. For example, I can combine the two. Memory Make: Sword of Frozen Black Lightning!" The attack didn't land on Gray, but right after, Rufus seemed to have summoned mini tornadoes.
"Ice Make: Shield!"
"I see. Memorized."
Gray's shield broke, and got sucked into one of the tornadoes, books flying all around with him. The tornado then suddenly disappeared, Gray hitting the ground hard.
"What's the matter? You were planning to knock me out, weren't you?" Rufus then picked up about five books, and completely memorized them all. Most of them being related to Witchcraft and the Dark Arts.
"We're not here to read, we're here to fight!"
"What a great turn of events! I'm glad you haven't wilted like a flower in the cold. It's thrilling. All these songs of magic passed down for eons are playing a symphony inside my mind. But the melody will be of my own composing. The dis-written memories juxtaposed in ways never before dreamed of. Taking fragments from here and there to create something new... the spells I can now create! Are you virgins of ancient magic?" Rufus smirked, evil in his eyes.
Rufus used his ancient magic in collaboration with Gray's ice magic. No matter what happened, and how strong minded Gray was, he couldn't land an attack on Rufus. Even after Gray freezing a majority of the library, Rufus still remained on top. Rufus harnessed the force of gravity to pin Gray down to the library floor.
"Alright, I'm done playing around!" Gray got up under the weight of gravity.
"You shouldn't be able to move right now!" Rufus was shocked, maybe somewhat nervous too.
"Don't tell me what to do! Maker Magic is all about freedom. My Master Ur taught me that a long time ago! What's more, I have my own memory! I remember all the battles I've won using the methods I've learned from her! I remember everything I've gained from them, everything I've felt from them!"
"You're quite the glutton for pain, aren't you?"
"Nope, I've definitely had my fill of that. I gotta admit, memory magic is some pretty impressive stuff. But it turns out that my memory has a huge amount of power on its own."
"That's an amusing thought. So tell me, what exactly have you memorized?"
"Things that someone like you could never understand. All the pain I've ever felt. The frustration of defeat. The pure joy of winning, everything. Trust me, all that stuffs been beaten into me my entire life. It's a feeling I share with my friends. I remember every single battle I've had to fight, and that's what gives me my power! I'm going to wipe that smirk off your face for good! With the power of my memory!" Gray ripped his shirt off, and many of the girls in the audience screamed, including Juvia who was competing.
"I should have guessed you'd say that. So painfully predictable. And so pedestrian. We all know that the weakest dog barks the most, and you're no exception."
"The last thing I need is your approval, because I don't give a shit about what you think!"
"To memorize is to learn every detail. Emotions obscure true knowledge. And since your memories only contain feelings, I bet you haven't learned anything."
"The flaws in your memory are gonna be what brings you down in the end."
"What." Rufus growled.
"You already forgot what this emblem on my chest means." Gray said, referring to his Fairy Tail mark. "It means that we'll never lose to the same guy more than once."
"Oh? Do you have some feeble minded strategy after all?"
"Ice Make..."
"I've memorized it."
"Unlimited Magic!"
"But that's impossible! How could he create so much at once!?"
"Did you get all that!?"
"My memory... it can't keep up with it!"
"How tragic. It's a shame you can only cast magic using ice." Rufus said, encased in a block of ice. "I've memorized powerful flame spells that can destroy it all."
"Nice try, but I've felt hotter flames than yours! Now, feel my Ice Bringer!"
With that, Rufus fell to Gray and showed everyone how powerful emotions can be. Gray posed for the camera, wearing Rufus' hat. If only Sabertooth had listened to you when you suggested it.
"Fairy Tail is now in first place with 50 points! All five members remain! Sabertooth is in second with 49! And Fairy Tail only received one point for defeating Rufus, which means that the team leader is still out there! Lamia Scale is also in second place, with one leader and two regular members. In fourth place is Mermaid Heel, where their leader and one normal member remain."
After a while of no action, the screens finally switched to Juvia and Cheria. Cheria was the first to attack with her black wind. Juvia seemed well prepared. "You're the girl that Lyon's in love with, right!?" Cheria yelled out, and Juvia flushed.
"Yes, but the feelings aren't mutual!"
"Oh yeah!? Then get lost!"
Juvia and Cheria started to battle, but the screens quickly switched over to Erza, and then Chapati yelled into the mic, causing some feedback. "Cams on Kagura! Cams on Kagura!!"
The immediately got into a sword fight, Erza looking confused as if Kagura was not what she was expecting. The sword fighting was frantic and furious, created sparks due to the metal clashing together. The crowd was eating up, like it was spoon fed to them.
"Get her, Erza! For me!" You yelled out, knowing she couldn't hear you, but hoping that maybe she would consider fighting for you, along with fighting for the rest of Fairy Tail.
Erza and Kagura were face to face, their swords even struggling to hold the other back. But, before the real battle could break out, a magic ball of black and green formed in the middle of them. Hands that were covered by white gloves emerged from this ball, pushing the girls away from each other.
Minerva.
She threw them both to the ground, giving a little laugh. "If you don't mind, I'd love to join you."