Chapter 12
Forced Or True?
Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or its characters, only my own OC's, Energy Magic, and Ideas
.:+:.
Corbynn blinked, his eyes landing on the girl that approached him from among the crowd of excited onlookers- he only faintly aware of the sound of Salamander and the Ice Mage getting their asses kicked by Moon and Uno.
He had done as Frea wished, mingling and introducing himself to everyone, learning names, though he still kept glancing back and forth toward the hall despite himself.
The girl coming toward him now smiled softly, her long hair a navy blue color pulled into pigtails, her hazel eyes glinting. She was as tall as he was, and looked just about as old as he did (though maybe that was inaccurate, but it didn't seem any of the Tenrou team had aged at all even in seven years).
He turned her way as he noticed her, blinking slightly as she smiled at him.
"Hello." She smiled, "I don't think we've had the chance to meet, you came in with Frea, didn't you?"
"Hey." He murmured, nodding a little. "Yeah, that was me, name's Corbynn."
"I'm Wendy, it's nice to meet you." The bluenette smiled brightly, he offered a small one back, a break from his usually stoic expression.
"You're the Sky Dragon Slayer, right?" He asked, she blinked, looking a bit flustered he knew.
"O-oh! Yes, I didn't think anyone would mention me." She tapped her fingers together,
"Why not? You're a Dragon Slayer- and powerful one from what Frea and Chase have said." He murmured, Wendy blinked at that, blushing slightly. "Even as young as you are, what I've heard the other long-time Members say is impressive." She blushed a bit more,
"... Oh... I'm not that impressive..." She murmured modestly, he had to keep himself from chuckling, finding her reaction quite amusing. ".. You're a member of the Guild right?" Wendy asked, changing the subject now aw he nodded to her.
"For a few years now." He smiled slightly, she blinked in slight surprise.
"You must have joined up really young then, you're the same age as me... And it's been a long time." Wendy murmured,
"I'm the youngest one in the Guild, technically." He replied, "Though most people around here don't tend to notice age or anything.... Hehe, I actually doubt any of the old guys even know how old I am." He added in, with a flick of his head toward Wakaba and Macao. Wendy smiled slightly, looking amused.
"What brought you to the Guild?" Wendy asked, Corbynn blinked.
".. same reason Solana and Aisha joined, Moon, Iki and Uno too." He replied, she tilted her head a little. ".... we joined 'cause Frea and Chase were working to disband a... An allied group of three Major Dark Guilds, called the Flash Beast Triad." Wendy's eyes widened, looking a little wary. "We each had our own reasons for wanting them gone, I think everyone in Fiore does... but we've stuck with the Guild for more than just the Triad." Corbynn smiled, just faintly as Wendy did too, though she thought she saw something like sadness make its way into him for a small moment.
"And you?" He asked, snapping Wendy's thoughts away from that as she smiled in return.
"Ah, my old Guild kind of... disbanded, I guess. Carla and I didn't have anywhere to go, and we had been working with Natsu and the others beforehand, so they invited us to join." Wendy replied brightly, though there was a small flash of sadness in her heart at the thought of it- she didn't let it show though. Corbynn nodded slightly, tucking his hands in his jacket pockets.
"Sorry they disbanded." He murmured lightly, Wendy blinked, nodding a little.
"Thanks." She smiled, "... if you don't mind my asking, but... you're a Mage, right?" She murmured,
"Yep." He smiled lightly, "Be a little hard to be in a Wizards Guild if I wasn't a Wizard, hehe~" Wendy blushed slightly, looking flustered.
"A-ah, right..." She smiled weakly, Corbynn shook his head slightly.
"I'm just teasing, Wendy." He assured lightly, "You're asking what sort of Magic I use, right?" Wendy smiled sheepishly, nodding a little.
"Yeah. If you want to tell me, anyway." She replied, Corbynn shrugged slightly.
"Don't see why not." He smirked slightly, "I use Force Magic."
"I've never heard of that."
"Mmmm, well its not all that common of a Magic as far as I know." He replied easily, "Force Magic involves creating and manipulating kinetic energy and force. I can manipulate air pressure and force, to send it out at people and break things. It's not... Well, you can't really see my Magic, but it's pretty flexible, and useful." He shrugged slightly, "It's less enthusing to watch compared to your Magic probably." He chuckled lightly.
"Oh no, that sounds amazing!" Wendy beamed, Corbynn blinked, smiling slightly at the reaction. "You must be a great Mage with that sort of Magic!"
"I do alright." Crobynn shrugged, "Honestly I only got this far with my sister teaching me Magic in the first place. And Frea's help training since then." Wendy's eyes gleamed slightly, looking surprised.
"Frea's Training you..?!" She breathed, he nodded.
"Yep."
"That... that's amazing!" Wendy breathed, "I mean, Frea's so strong, she must be a great Teacher! You're probably learning so much from her!"
"She does well enough." Corbynn sighed, sweatdropping slightly. "She's got her good days... someday's not so much. But she does her best, and I'm not incompetent, so I guess it's working." He rubbed the back of his neck nervously, "To be honest in the category of 'teaching' Chase would probably be the better pick, he's more... ah, easy to get along with."
Wendy chuckled, looking amused as he blinked. "Sorry, I... I think I know what you mean. Frea can be a bit stubborn, from what I remember." Wendy explained,
"Oooh, yeah." He smirked,
"... hmm, so you and Frea are close?" Wendy asked softly, he blinked, sweatdropping slightly. Wendy's head tilted slightly at the reaction, blinking curiously.
"... yeah, I guess we kinda are." He mumbled, biting the inside of his cheek in slight nervousness. His eyes dropped a moment,
He'd never really thought about it, in all honesty... because she'd been there. All the time, without end since the day he had met her. They'd never been apart from one another a week or two, she was always there, always watching, always listening and always.... annoyingly sometimes, how often she was around and hovering, but it was- it was maybe a little comforting, though maybe he never thought about it.
But the idea of a world without that stony, stubborn, annoying Energy Dragon Slayer was not a pleasant one. He wasn't sure where he would be had she not showed up in that underground prison, had she not set him and Chess free, had she not strung them along to join this Guild and to fight against the Triad.... had she not been there, after Chess had....
He swallowed slightly, an ache flaring up in his heart without warning though it wasn't anything he wasn't used to.
Stony and stubborn and hard to get along with, yes. She was annoying at times and had a way of being overbearing and even a little insensitive, as well as unnerving when her anger got out of hand.
... but that Energy Dragon Slayer was incredibly kind and caring and loyal under what face she had put up. That stony and off-handed and cold exterior that he knew most people flinched backward at, was a face and a wall she had set up for one reason only, forced to set up between herself and everyone else- and he didn't blame her for it. But in all reality she wasn't so different, not deep down... she just wasn't willing to let anyone see it.
But he knew, he'd seen it. Felt it. And he wasn't sure where he'd be without that, or that part of her.
"...... she's the only family I've got left, actually." He murmured softly, ".... so yeah, we're pretty close." He smiled, just barely as Wendy blinked at him, the question and the surprise flashing across her face.
He clapped his hands together lightly in front of him, smiling brightly as Wendy jumped slightly.
"Now, how about we see what the rest of you guys are like?" Corbynn smiled, "And maybe we can see that famed Sky Dragon Slaying Magic I've heard so much about, yeah?" Wendy looked slightly stunned, blinking once or twice and completely unsure where that sudden slightly somber look had gone, to be replaced with such a calm, bright smile from the boy. Or why it seemed he changed the subject so quickly, especially when it had sounded like-
Wendy stiffened slightly, sweatdropping a little as she felt her heart flutter.
"...... she's the only family I've got left, actually."
He... he hadn't actually mentioned that his sister was still... in the Guild......
Oh n-no.... does that mean she's....?
Wendy swallowed, forcing herself to think of something else and nodded stiffly toward him, her smile a little strained but she did her best. If he wanted to leave it alone she wasn't going to press, she had no right to.
"Yeah, I'm sure everyone else would love to get to know you!" Wendy smiled brightly, "Carla too!" She blinked, glancing away and around the crowd at the sudden realization she hadn't seen her Exceed Partner in awhile. "Oh, where did she go...?"
Corbynn chuckled under his breath, his eyes trailing from Wendy toward the surrounding people.
".. mmmm.. is that her over there with Moon?" He asked lightly, stepping up beside the bluenette as her gestured toward said she-cat chatting away with another Exceed of pure white. Wendy blinked, nodding with a small smile.
"Yes." She replied, "They look like they're having a good time!"
"Must be, if she managed to pull Moon away from brawling." Corbynn replied, Wendy blinked.
"Oh that's right.... is... are Natsu, Gray and Gajeel still fighting..?" She leaned his way absentmindedly, trying to peer around the people in front of her and bumping into his shoulder. Wendy jumped, pulling back instantly and blushing furiously, "S-sorry! I wasn't trying to run into you!" She apologized quickly,
"No worries." He replied easily,
She is super shy and nervous, huh? Hehe~ There's been no one in the Guild like that, it's refreshing.
He tilted his head in the Exceed's direction, smiling still.
"Let's go chat with them a little, huh?"
"Sure!"
.:+:.
"Come OOOOONNN!!"
"Mmmm...... you're persistent as ever, ain't ya, Flame-Brain?" Frea hummed quietly, her cheek in her hand and eyes closed- utterly and entirely unbothered by how close Natsu was leaning in nor how persistently he was (complaining) asking her to fight with him. Her finger trailed lightly around the edge of the the mug set atop the table before her, the hall loud and filled with people and laughing, arguing and conversation and buzzing more brightly than it ever had even before the Tenrou Team had disappeared.
Natsu had slammed his hands down on the table top hard enough to make her drink, and everyone else's sitting around her to jump- though Frea's finger on to top kept it from moving too much.
"Why are you avoiding me, huh?!" He smirked, "A little brawl never hurt anyone!" Frea's lips twitched upward at the edge for a split second. "Come on! You used to love fighting with me! It'll be fun!"
"As amusing as it sounds, Natsu." Frea smirked, tapping him lightly on the forehead. "I really don't think it's a good idea, I'm not even supposed to be using serious Magic right now, let alone using it on you." Her eyes opened, her gaze resting on him and smirking still, oblivious the the look of question running along everyone's faces at the words. "But since I know you ain't gonna let it go, fine. I'll let you try and come at me, maybe knocking you around a bit will get all the energy out- and we focus on other things." Frea stood up easily, her hand falling away from Natsu as she scooped her cup up, her head tilting back as she emptied in one long take.
She sighed, smiling still as she glanced backward, her eyes landing on Iki. "I'm gonna need something a bit stronger than tea, I think." Iki smiled slightly, nodding with a sigh.
"Ah, if you say so..." He mumbled, snapping his fingers as the cup left her hand and fell in his. Frea smirked to herself, tilting her head in Natsu's direction, who looked absolutely and utterly thrilled at finally getting his wish.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Corbynn's voice broke the clamor inside the hall, looking stony and serious as he placed himself right in front of Frea, who blinked.
"Giving Salamander his wish, weren't you listening?" She replied easily,
"You aren't supposed to be using Magic, let alone getting in fights." He snapped back coldly.
"Relax kiddo, I'm not gonna overdo it, promise." Frea smirked, Corbynn growled lowly, a vein ticking on his forehead as he shot her a dirty look, and then Natsu in turn.
"Why don't I just knock him through a few trees instead?" He grumbled lowly, Natsu blinked,
"You can try!" He smiled,
"Cause that wouldn't prove anything," Frea murmured, she and Corbynn alike ignoring the pinkette. "Flame-Brain's never seen you in action, he's got nothing to try and prove against you. He want's a fight with me cause he wants to see how strong I've gotten- isn't that right, Natsu?" Natsu smirked,
"Hell yeah!" Frea tilted her head in the pinkette's direction with a coy smile, though her eyes remained fixed on the ever scowling Corbynn.
"You are a stubborn ass." Corbynn growled,
"Yeah, but you love that about me." Frea smirked, her hand rubbing the top of his head and messing up his hair. Corbynn smacked her hand away lightly, looking immensely disgruntled, Frea hardly seemed to mind the reaction though.
"Well, if Flame-Brain's gonna have a go with you, I might as well." Gray smiled, looking excited as Frea tilted her head in his direction.
"Ah, you might wanna... not... do that." Chase mumbled, stepping up beside the Ice Mage with a small, nervous smile. Gray quirked an eyebrow, "Ah.. maybe just let Natsu have a shot before jumping in head first, ok?"
"When we're done, what do you say to a few rounds of drinks?" Frea smiled, oblivious to Gray and Chase's comments.
"I'm in!" Cana grinned, followed by several other murmurs of approval and raised glasses.
"Same here~!" Solana smiled, hooking her arm around Aisha who sighed,
"... I think Natsu's the one who's gonna need a few drinks.." Aisha mumbled quietly, Solana chuckled under her breath.
"Oh he's gonna be sore."
"Great, let's get started, eh Flame-Brain?" Frea smiled, her finger twirling in air before her as silver spiraled around Natsu, a wave of pressure igniting on the air and making it feel hard to breathe with even just the simple spell. "Anybody else wanting to join is welcome to, otherwise- do your best, Natsu."
Natsu blinked,glancing around quickly and sweatdropping to find that he and Frea were outside the Building, standing in the grassy clearing in the front with the night sky overhead filled with stars and a waning moon. Frea stood across from him, looking to have not a care in the world and her arms crossed over her chest, silver eyes glinting in dim as the Guild filtered outside of the building.
"Huh?" He breathed, "Woah! When did you learn to do that, Frea?!"
"'Bout a year or two ago." Frea replied lightly, chuckling under her breath. "Don't be so easily impressed Flame-Brain, that ain't nothing compared to all the other stuff I've picked up."
"And just what has our dear Frea picked up?" Gildarts asked lowly from where he was standing beside Master Makarov, the both of them having moved to stand in the doorway and watching the ensuing brawl as the rest of the Guild had- all the more interested and tense as Frea seemed willing to finally jump in. Master blinked, nodding stiffly at Gildarts' words though he didn't glance upward toward the other man.
"All right! Now I'm all Fired Up!!" He smirked, slamming a flaming fist into his palm. Frea nodded slightly, her eyes falling closed.
"Were you going all out with Iki and Moon before?" She asked easily, Natsu blinked. "You're gonna wanna throw your best at me Natsu, if you even wanna make a dent." She let out a low breath, her eyes glinting dangerously in a challenge for a moment. "You got one minute, throw your best shot at me, Fire-Boy."
"One minute it is." Uno smiled, waving her paw in front of her as the numbers appeared in air made of gold light. She snapped her fingers and the numbers of '1:00' started counting down. Iki and Moon beside her chuckled slightly.
"Hehe, you want my best Frea?!" He smiled, "You got it!! Let's see you contend with me and my all new, Lightning-Flame Dragon Mode!!"
There was a collective murmur that rose among the people watching, eyes wide and jaws dropping as Natsu's figure became engulfed in brilliant orange, electricity sparking off the flame and mingling a gold and orange that blazed spectacularly with the blue and indigo of the night around them.
"W-Woah!! What is that?!"
"Lightning and Fire all at once?!"
"Where'd he learn that?!"
Frea blinked slowly, her silver gaze flashing with orange and gold alike as her expression remained utterly emotionless, the air dancing and sparking, swirling with so much color and so much Energy all at once- and he was a burning beacon among all the muddied, incessant color.
Her head tilted to the left slightly, her eyes dropping to the ground and not moving even an inch- nor hardly paying attention as Natsu jumped forward.
... how interesting... this is your Magic, Lightning-Boy....... and you let Natsu have some of it, hmm....?
She let out a small breath, her eyes closing.
... it's a wonder you didn't poison him, letting him eat that much of your Magic....
"Lightning Flame Dragon's Iron Fist!!"
Natsu swung down, Magic full blast and grinning all the while as he launched himself at Frea, his fist rushing forward toward her as she remained still and unmovable. Natsu grinned,
"Hehe~! Got you now, Frea!!!"
Natsu's fists swung forward, only to meet empty air.
The Tenrou Team went deathly still, eyes wide and jaws dropping, the breath catching in their throat and sweatdropping, eyes snapping back and forth as they rushed to try and make sense of the fact that..
"She... I didn't even see her move?!"
"W-What the..!?"
Natsu stiffened, his eyes snapping sideways as he landed on his feet, trying to regain his bearings again.
Frea was right behind him, smiling slightly with her arms crossed over her chest, not seeming to have moved a muscle even though she seemed to have teleported from being in front of him to directly behind him.
"30 seconds, Natsu." Frea murmured, smiling slightly still as he whirled around toward her.
Natsu's fists clenched on either side of him, one erupting in blazing electricity and the other in flame as his Magic potency increased tenfold in seconds.
"Crimson Lotus;" Natsu growled, his Magic whipping back the grass and sending tumults of wind rushing out in every which way to batter the onlookers and the side of the building.
"Holy crap, he's goin' all out!" Gray growled under his breath, recognizing the same level of power Natsu had erected to battle with Hades.
"What an idiot, he's gonna tear everything up at this rate." Lucy grumbled,
"O-oh! I hope he doesn't hurt her with all that Magic!" Wendy stammered under her breath,
"He won't." Corbynn's low, slightly flinty answer beside Wendy had her head snapping around toward him- along with several other Tenrou Members nearby. Neither Wendy nor anyone else managed his icy blue eyes though, his attention was fixed on the fight and nothing else, his expression unreadable.
"Exploding Lightning Blade!!"
The crowd covered their eyes and squinted against the sudden glare, riveted to their spots and breathless at what sheer power Natsu was throwing forward all at once- even Seven Years behind it was still a level of power most people hadn't seen from him before.
Frea moved this time, or at least- in a way people and Natsu could catch sight of her action. She lift her hands, her fists catching his in her palms and entirely unperturbed by the fire and the lightning dancing all around them. Natsu's movement stalled in seconds, his Magic in her hands disappearing the minute they made contact. The flames shifted, spinning up around her and twirling as if it was her own Magic and not his-lightning danced in and out of the fire and circled her arms as closely as snakes would, not harming her in the slightest and only seeming to increase what stifling Magical Pressure was flowing off of her in waves.
"W-what... my Magic...?!" He stammered breathlessly,
"Good try, Natsu." Frea smiled, though something about it was... unsettling. "Minute's up though."
Frea spun tightly on one foot, her hands holding tightly to his and she whipped around, tossing him clear across the area hard enough to send him knocking through a line of trees on the opposite end, her Magic flashing silver, gold and red-a few more trees falling with a heavy thud and cut straight through in a sheer, sharp gust of wind.
"Holy..... freaking....."
There was a collective shocked murmur that passed among the onlookers, disbelief and shock sparking off the Tenrou Team as a whole.
That fight was over in a minute. One single minute.
Master remained rigid, his eyes narrowed to slits and gaze resting on Frea intently, his mind whirling and thoughts attempting to click together what show of Magic he had just seen- what little of it, and what change it signified in that girl he was starting to recognize less and less the more he saw of her.
Frea came to a half-halt, her eyes resting on the line of destruction on the trees and the slumped form of Natsu at the end, knocked senseless entirely. Her hands fell on her hips, sighing to herself as she shook her head slightly.
"...Hmm.... Interesting but not quite close." She murmured to herself, her hand moving from her hip to twirl her finger in air, silver spiraling around her hand and shining dimly in the dark where Natsu was- before the pinkette appeared before her feet, Frea bent to one knee and lightly tapped his shoulder, a spark of silver and gold shining from her touch for but a second.
Natsu jumped, sitting up and sitting cross legged with a slightly dazed look, his eyes landing back on Frea who had yet to stand back up again. Her arms crossed over her knee, smiling ever so faintly at him as he blinked.
"Get rid of all that energy, Natsu?" She asked quietly. He sweatdropped a little, his eyes narrowing at her and looking uneasy and tense.
".... what happened to you, Frea?" He murmured lowly, earning a blink from her. ".... you're... crazy strong...... you're different...... you aren't..... you." Frea's smile faded for a minute, her eyes flashing as he kept his eyes on her. ".... you're nothing like how I remember you, at all."
".... things change." Frea replied quietly, "I already told you, I'm not the same as when you left. You have to remember it has been seven years. That's a long time, and alot's happened." He grimaced slightly, looking unsure at the answer.
Natsu stiffened, his eyes widening slightly as Frea's smile returned, bright and carefree and he shivered at it- because it looked almost fake. Forced, even.
"Come on Pinky, let's go have some drinks, huh?"
.:+:.
"How many has she had?" Solana chuckled lightly, her emerald gaze flicking toward the steely, stony faced Corbynn beside her, his eyes never leaving that Energy Dragon Slayer and still seething that she had jumped in to fight Natsu in the first place. Solana's wrist flicked in said Dragon Slayer's direction, Frea smiling toothily as she tipped her head back, downing another drink and letting out a long sigh of sheer relief.
".... That makes 11." Corbynn growled lowly, his eyes watching Frea set the cup down on the table and another appear before her at the behest of Iki snapping his fingers from the bar.
Solana blinked, sweatdropping slightly in surprise, before she sighed. "Ah.... she's grown a higher tolerance for alcohol this last year, but 11 ale's is a bit much... hehe...."
"... first she runs off on her own, then she starts a fight, and now she's drinking...." Corbynn grumbled under his breath, tone flinty and face pulled into that of a scowl. "... all while Overdoing it to the point she had to ask me if the people who showed up here were bloody real..."
"... Laerre dei heinn?"
His fingers holding his arms tightened a little, that scowl growing just a bit deeper. Solana blinked, her green gaze settled on him quietly for a few long moments. Her eyes traced along the taught, rigid line that his shoulders made, the way his fingers gripped together and his person grew more tense by the minute as he fell into his own head and thoughts- those icy eyes ever locked to Frea still smiling and drinking away.
"... you're worried." Solana murmured softly, Corbynn stiffened at the words, his eyes snapping toward her and looking nervous as she tilted her head at him. "... I noticed the bandages before, but it's the smell of the blood that's been more noticeable." Her head flicked in Frea's direction, Corbynn sweatdropped. ".... she's hurt pretty good, yeah?"
".... yes." He grumbled, ".... not that she'd admit it, but she got hit pretty hard." Solana nodded slightly,
"... so she really did overdo it, huh?" Solana murmured quietly, ".... guess I'm not surprised." Corbynn grumbled under his breath, jaw clenching at the words- because honestly? He wasn't surprised at what she'd done either.
"Hehe~!" Frea chuckled, her silver gaze flashing around the table and the collection of people crowded about her. "Since there won't be anymore brawling, how about some stories, eh?"
"Hell yeah." Gray smirked, leaning in. "I bet you've been in a bunch of trouble, huh?"
"OOooh, you've got no idea, Popsicle." Frea smirked, she set her cup down on the table, her elbows resting on the surface as she linked her fingers together. There was a faint, yet noticeable dust of a drunken blush across her cheeks, though her words weren't swirling to indicate just how much the drinking was hitting her.
"Where to start!" She smirked, "Hmmm..... first year then! Ever heard of the Demon of Zeref; Amlod?" This earned blinks of surprise and question from many of the Tenrou Members sitting around her- Erza and Levy perked at the name however.
"I read reports from the Magic Council about that!" Levy piped in, her eyes gleaming. "It was a Demon of Zeref that used Nullification Magic, and had moved into the cliffs and forest near where Cait Shelter used to be, isn't it?"
"D-Demon...?" Wendy stammered,
"I heard of this Demon as well, before we left for the Exams." Erza added quietly, "I had heard tale that the Magic Council attempted to destroy it using Etherion." This caused heads to turn and eyes to widen. "And it failed to make a dent against Amlod's Nullification Magic."
"Etherion didn't do anything?!"
"W-Wha?!"
"You're kidding!"
"Right you are!" Frea smiled, nodding to both Levy and Erza. "And guess who defeated it all on her lonesome?" She grinned toothily, her fangs flashing in the smile as her head tilted, oblivious (or maybe unable to see) what incredulous and shocked looks passed along those listening in.
"... wait... you don't...?" Gray mumbled,
"... yer kiddin', right Silver...?" Gajeel stammered,
"... you?!" Natsu and several others stammered nearly breathlessly.
"You got it!" Frea grinned, jaw's dropped all around and strangled gasps sounded, though Frea hardly paused. Her fingers unhooked from around her cup as she twirled her fingers on both hands in air, silver springing up as small figures of a human and some.... creature, materialized out of her Magic, glinting brightly in the hall, and a wave of pressure falling over everyone inside, making the air heavy.
"Hehe, it was super hard. I had to perfect a whole new skill on the spot just to combat with it!" She smiled, her fingers moving as the figures began to move across the table, depicting the fight as people glanced feverishly between them and Frea. "Nullification Magic is super tricky, I had to come up with a way to even just use Magic against it~"
"It's called Absolute Magic Control," People all around blinked at the name, the silver figures on the table now locked in an intense battle, Frea laughed lightly under her breath. "Course, when I defeated Amlod, I overdid it a little. It made quite the show, the Council was none too happy about how many people in the country saw it too~"
There was a sudden wash of light that poured down over the two figures like a fountain from the sky, engulfing the figures entirely, until only the human figure was left.
"They labeled it a 'Magic Anomaly', so the citizens in the country wouldn't freak out or anything." Frea went on easily, snapping her fingers as the figure disappeared in a whirl, before being replaced by a whole slew of different figures. "And after that, next on the list is our first battle with Phoenix Tear, and getting started with the Flash Beast Triad!"
Frea went on, recounting the battles and the highlights of the fights she deigned to recount (of course, barring those that ended badly, or brought on things she didn't wish to touch). All the while she flicked her fingers, her Magic recounting battles and grinning all the while- and drinking more too. The Tenrou Team around her listened and watched in stunned, shocked statures, shocked words and arguments thrown out at the tales, hands slamming down on the table and disbelief thrown about- Frea never seemed bothered. She was too high on the alcohol to really care, she told all the good parts, the exciting bits, the adventure- all while carefully skipping over everything else. Everything hard, every heartbreak, every wound, every hurt... she knew exactly what she was saying and telling, and was careful only to recount the bare minimum.
The stories went on late into the night, the drinking too, and the rabble and noise. For the first time in a long time that solemn, silent figure of that shabby building on the hill was filled with laughter and shouting and conversation and mirth it had never seen before.
And even with the drinking, and the extended use of her Magic, and her utter disregard for her health, or how far she was stretching it... Corbynn kept an eye on her, and saw what he hadn't in a very long time too. He kept an eye on her even as Wendy settled in beside him, and conversation sprouted between the both of them with ease, chatting away on all manner of things even as the night drew on.
For the first time in too long a time, some small, faint semblance of that once cheerful and bright Frea shown through... she was happy, genuinely happy, and it was because those people had come back.
So even annoyed, and agitated.... she was happy, and he couldn't be angry with her for that.
.:+:.
Enjoy everyone~!
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