𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙜: 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙗𝙮 𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙬𝙖𝙜𝙣𝙚𝙧
❛ ... ❜
◊
Rose meandered out of the store, a bag of groceries swinging in hand as she made her way onto the brightly lit sidewalk, whistling a random tune.
It had been just over a week since she had revealed to the guild her secret, and she hadn't ever felt so free.
"Rose!"
The phoenix slayer looked around herself but noticed nothing, until another cry of her name came. She glanced down and recognised the pink frog onesie-clad figure of the small green Exceed Frosch, otherwise known as Fro.
"Fro!" She greeted, placing her bag on the ground and kneeling to pet the feline's head in greeting. "It's good to see you, but what are you doing all the way in Magnolia? Are Rogue or Lector with you?"
Frosch's eyes began to fill with tears as he suddenly began to bawl, fountains of tears pouring from his eyes.
"No, no!" the girl began to panic, "Please don't cry!"
She awkwardly leant forward and pulled the quivering Exceed into a hug, hoping desperately it would be enough to calm him down. After a few moments of petting his head and cradling him, the Exceed's tears finally stopped as he explained his situation.
"Hm," the girl mused, "so you're lost, huh?"
The Exceed nodded, his head drooping as his back hunched in a display of defeat. "I want to get back to Sabretooth by myself... I always end up lost, but I need to learn how to get back home all on my own."
The dark-haired girl nodded, her garnet red eyes twinkling thoughtfully. "I see," she agreed with a nod. "But you must be hungry. You can't walk all that way on an empty stomach, now can you?"
Frosch tilted his head, whiskers quivering as he hesitantly shook his head. "I am a bit hungry..." he murmured, blinking at the girl with doleful eyes.
"Don't worry!" a small smile turned the corners of the girl's lips up, as she glanced at the sky for a moment, calculating the time. "It's just before noon. My house is just a little way away, so you can come over for some lunch and I'll set you up with a map to the guild. Sound good?"
The green-furred Exceed paused, considering what the girl had suggested. "We're friends, right?" he questioned hesitantly.
A look of confusion crossed over the girl's face, her eyebrows pressing together as she pondered what could have caused the feline to ask the sudden question. "Of course, we are Fro. Good friends."
The expression of doubt cleared away from the Exceed's expression as a happy one took its place. "Alright! I want to go to Rose's home!"
The girl got up from her knees, dusting her skirt off. "Well that's that!" she smiled whilst retrieving the bag from the ground. Her other hand found itself occupied by the small green Exceeds paw as they walked together down the pathway and out of sight.
◊
Rogue peered around the corner at the retreating figures of the two, his sharp red eyes narrowing as he turned back to his companions.
"Rose is actually really nice..." Yukino smiled, having witnessed the tender moment with reverential eyes. "I only got to speak with her a little bit, during the fight with the dragon's, but she seemed like a good person."
The two dragon slayers were silent momentarily before they both agreed in an unusually quiet manner.
"Let us follow. We must support Frosch every step of the way!" Rogue yelled passionately.
◊
Rose lead the small Exceed towards the door that marked the entrance of her home, releasing the cat's paw momentarily as she retrieved the key needed to unlock the door, slipping it in and twisting slightly.
The garnet-eyed girl was rewarded with a 'click' as the door unlocked and swung open soundlessly (the result of her spending many hours carefully oiling its joints).
"This is my home!" Rose announced, stepping to the side before ducking into an exaggerated bow. "You may enter, Your Highness," she said, voice deepening as a result of her efforts to imitate a male servant.
The dark-haired girl expressed her satisfaction with a grin which revealed her straight, pearly white teeth as peals of laughter erupted from the exceed, who attempted to mimic royalty by strutting into the house.
"Thank you for inviting me," Frosch thanked as the girl lead the small feline deeper into her home.
Rose turned to smile at her guest, a calming air surrounding her. "You're welcome anytime, Fro."
Frosch gazed up at the girl with a happy look in his eyes, as she gestured to the comfortable couch in front of the lacrima screen. "Make yourself at home," she advised, before beginning to climb the stairs. "I'll just go change into something more comfortable."
◊
Rogue clambered over the fence and landed on his feet, cursing Rose's fence for being so high.
"I'm coming down!"
Sting dropped from the top and landed in the arms of the irritated shadow dragon slayer, who promptly dropped him to the ground. Yukino followed, gently placed on the ground by Lector.
"Hey," the silver-haired girl murmured cautiously. "Doesn't this count as trespassing?"
Rogue scowled, instead moving to take up a viewing position through the large arched windows which framed the phoenix slayer's kitchen and living area. Frosch was observing a series of trinkets carefully positioned on a shelf.
"I'm just making sure my best friend is alright," he defended.
"Suuuure." Sting scoffed.
Rogue shushed him when he recognised the dark-haired phoenix slayer re-emerging from the top floor. Thanks to his magically enhanced hearing, he was able to make out what she was saying.
◊
Rose skipped down the stairs, now wearing comfortable indoor clothing. "Alright!" she called to Frosch, tugging an apron out of the side cupboard. She carefully laced it up, before striking a pose. "I'll whip up something for us to eat now!"
Frosch rushed over and leapt onto the bar stool, prepared to help the phoenix slayer with whatever she requested. "Can Fro help?"
"Sure. Can you pour these chocolate chips into the bowl?" the girl asked as she placed a bowl and packet of opened chocolate chips in front of the cat.
Frosch nodded and immediately began to do as she requested, making sure no piece bounced out of the glass bowl.
Meanwhile, the phoenix slayer prepared the ingredients and began to cook them, lighting the stove and placing the frying pan on top. Whilst the ingredients cooked, she prepared a dough, instructing Frosch on the steps which were required.
Within less than fifteen minutes, their lunch was completed and chocolate chip cookies were baking in the oven.
Rose rested the completed product - fried noodles- on the bench, and sat down after untying and placing away her apron, watching as Frosch took the first bite. There was a moment of silence before he reacted.
"So good!" the green-furred Exceed squealed, shoving another forkful heaped with the noodles into his mouth.
The phoenix slayer's chest puffed out with pride. "I've had years to practice," she boasted, eyes glimmering at the chance to show off.
◊
Rogue and his companions watched the two happily chatting together, stomachs grumbling. At one point, he could have sworn Rose looked at him, but he couldn't be sure.
"Man, I'm hungry." Groaned Sting.
"Yeah, we've been running around all day." agreed Lector. There was a growl of agreement from the stomachs of all four Sabretooth members.
◊
"Hey, Rose!" Frosch called to the girl, who was washing the dishes.
"What's wrong?" she inquired, beginning to dry and put away the plates.
"What is this from?" Frosch gestured to a small dagger with a long scratch on the side, which had carefully been placed on the top corner of the shelf.
Rose set down the washcloth and moved to pick the dagger up from the shelf, sitting down on the couch and gesturing for the Exceed to do the same. She turned the weapon in her hands, tracing the long scratch down its side with a wistful smile.
"This was from a long time ago... when I was in a dark guild."
"You were in a dark guild?!" Frosch exclaimed incredulously.
The phoenix slayer chuckled, passing the dagger to Frosch. "Believe it or not, I wasn't exactly the nicest person before. Sort of like Gajeel, I suppose."
"Okay... what was this for?" the feline asked, referring to the dagger.
"Hm... I think it was about ten years ago, when the dark guild I was in and another dark guild had a war."
Before the mood could turn any darker, she concluded her story.
"I beat up some of their members before I came across a strong mage, who used Requip magic like Erza. He was so terrifying, I thought I was going to die, even though I'm immortal... I ended up running away before he could catch me. I'm still scared of Requip users."
◊
"Rose? In a dark guild? Holy c**p, now I have heard everything!" Sting exclaimed loudly.
"Woah... that would have been scary," Yukino shivered.
Their eyes were wide with surprise and disbelief as they eyed the phoenix slayer who was now laughing cheerily at the story she had just confessed to.
"A dark guild?" Lector wondered out loud. "I'm surprised. She might not be as nice as she acts..."
◊
Rose smiled, passing the map to Frosch. "Here you go! You remember the route I showed you, right?"
Frosch nodded with a happy smile. "Yeah!"
The phoenix slayer paused, before retrieving a small bag. "These are special pills which help with motion sickness for Sting and Rogue," she explained. "They work pretty well for Natsu, so they'll probably find them useful. When you get back,"
The girl gently placed a brown paper bag into the cat's paws. "And when you come across those idiots, give them these."
◊
Rogue, Sting, Yukino and Lector had been surprised when Frosch made it to the guild before night, but they were even more surprised when they realised the exceed had brought something from Rose for them.
"These are...?" Sting questioned, blinking curiously at a glass bottle of eggshell blue pills.
"Rose said they were good for motion sickness," Frosch said, "and she also said to give you these!"
Frosch pressed a paper bag that felt warm to Rogue's hand, a bright smile on the Exceed's face.
"Oh..."
Rogue opened the bag, thanking Frosch as he eyed the contents of the bag.
"Cookies?" he sniffed one of the treats, before cautiously placing one inside his mouth, hesitantly, as if it was poisonous. He was prepared to spit it out in case the phoenix slayer had dumped a bottle of poison into it.
"Th.... They're actually okay..." He mumbled, reaching into the bag to take another to give Frosch.
Rogue's hand brushed against something that felt like paper, and he immediately latched onto it and tugged it out of the bag. "What could this be..." he mused as he scanned the messy note which had been scribbled on the page.
Here are some cookies Frosch and I made for everyone.
Make sure you share (or else... just kidding! :3.... or am I? Guess you'll never know!)
Ps. You guys are awful at stalking, I could hear your stomachs growling from the other side of the house.
Stay safe! :)
-Rose