[ July 4th X791]
When news came to her of Sting and Rogue losing to Natsu and Gajeel, all she could hear was the deafening noise of silence ringing in her ears.
"Apparently he was pretty badly injured." Wendy finished, assessing the blondes state in front of her and giving her another round of healing.
Her ears perked up at her final words but then a wave of contempt washed over her. Then she quickly understood that she honestly couldn't care less anymore. She'd spoken her truth to him and expressed how she felt towards Sting. She couldn't love him as long as he loved his guild. Until he realized his surroundings there was no getting through to him- he wouldn't change. She didn't even know if she could bear to consider herself his friend anymore.
It would be too hard for the both of them. As much as she knew she cared for the dragon slayer, her beliefs came first. Her principles of family and love were beyond anything else and being with him broke those principles.
Presley sat obediently on the chair nearest to her dragon slayer, playing with her caramel colored tail as she sat and waited for something to happen.
"Thanks for checking up on me Wendy," Ariana began, acknowledging her words with a brief nod. "If you don't mind I think I need some space." her voice was meek, hardly louder than a whisper and if not for her enhanced hearing she might not have even heard it.
"It's no problem!" the bluenette replied cheerfully, clearly sensing a disturbance in her mental state and quickly complying to her request. "Also," Wendy chimed before leaving, her hand in the door handle to Ariana's room. "I won't tell anyone if you need to go out and clear your head. You're fine enough to maybe walk the streets." Wendy told her and smiled when she saw the blondes expression light up.
"Are you serious?" Both Ariana and Presley looked excited now. The blonde really needed some air and the arena, despite its massive size, was starting to feel stuffy to her. She desperately needed to go one a walk or something. Then, a devious smile formed on her face. "You think I'm feeling good enough for a few drinks?"
Wendy nearly deadpanned at her words and a worried expression was clearly shown. "Um, maybe not too many. Please don't overdo it." she told her guildmate. She empathized with Ariana and hated seeing her practically trapped in a hospital bed.
"You have my word." Ariana replied and gave her a thumbs up, one that Wendy hesitantly returned before promptly leaving her room.
Ariana quickly turned to Presley with a grin, one her exceed was waiting for.
"Thank God! You know how boring it is here." Presley said, hoping off the chair she was seating on and starting going over to the small backpack that Erza brought for Ariana, stocked with a few changes of clothes and home made sweets to satisfy any hunger. "Your tank top and shorts aren't here, probably getting fixed or something."Presley told her when she searched through the bag. The caramel cat pulled out a pale yellow long sleeve top, one with a high neckline and lettuce hem. She paired it with a tight blue denim skirt and casual white slippers that seemed to be her size.
"These must be Lucy's clothes or something..." Ariana said when she put the outfit on, feeling a striking resemblance to what her friend would often wear.
"Whatever, you still look great." Presley complimented anyways and guided her dragon slayer to the door. "Take it easy though." she reminded her when she watched Ariana stumble slightly with every other step.
Her bruises were still very much there, but nothing that Wendy's magic didn't ease. Most of her cuts were healed and the biggest matter was the pain she felt in her abdomen. It was faint but there, stinging whenever something contacted it. It made her wonder if going outside was a good idea, but when had that ever stopped her.
♛♛♛
It wasn't too long a walk from the arena to the local bar. Only about ten or fifteen minutes and Ariana barely felt a thing. No pain from her legs or stomach as she walked, despite how intensely her exceed watched her. Their deal was with any fall or major stumble that she had, Presley was going to take her right back to her hospital room.
The two had even gotten into a heated argument when Presley wanted to fly her to the nearby bar, but Ariana would not allow it. She argued that she needed the small exercise and mobility of walking and her being flown here wouldn't help her at all.
Whatever made her dragon slayer happy, and Presley complied to her wishes, flying by her side and keeping her wide brown eyes on her.
It was a simple bar, though one that was packed full due to the popular Grand Magic Games that were being held so close to it. It was small and held a capacity of maybe 30 people, and a sign on the door read that it was a mages only bar.
Ariana relied on the fact that all the guilds and their members returned to their respective areas for now, preparing for the big day ahead of them- the final day and the final battle was soon approaching them. She hoped that she wouldn't see anyone from the guilds she was competing against; them seeing her after knowing her condition and they would be sure to snitch on her. Right now, Ariana was relying on Wendy to keep her position a secret.
"Guild?" she was asked at the door, a large burly bouncer occupying the front entrance.
Jeez, they're really going full out of this mages only thing. She though to herself, but lifted her shirt anyways.
She pulled her yellow shirt upwards, revealing the insignia that was tattooed on her middle/upper rib cage, circling under her breast. The man nodded in compliance and stood aside, taking her alliance to her guild as an acceptable entrance fee.
She entered the room and heard the doors slam behind her.
Ariana was used to going out to an bar with her guildmates- being here by herself was making her feel out of her element. Right not especially she was missing Cana, her usual drinking buddy and one of the only girls (besides Erza) that she could have a really good time with.
A few eyes were on her. Maybe people there were out with their own groups and held no interest for a lonely mage. Presley leaned closer to her partner and landed quietly on her shoulder.
Ariana walked casually over to an open stool, ordering a drink for herself and a soda for her exceed. When she was served the drink and finally starting to feel comfortable, Presley took the opportunity to fly herself into the stool next to her and used her tail to turn Ariana's face towards her.
"So you must know I heard your conversation with Eucliffe earlier." she confessed and her chocolate brown eyes gleaming with concern.
Ariana huffed and swallowed up her drink.
"Not interesting in talking about is Pres." she answered simply.
"If not me then who?" it was a quick response and one that Ariana knew was true. Out of all her comrades, Presley was the only one who knew about her connection to Sting (or at least those she knew of- she knew maybe Erza or someone as observant as Makarov might've noticed as well). Nonetheless, right now it was Presley or no one.
Though, she'd already gone over all the details in her head by herself and she came up with an answer, one that she wasn't going to change her mind about.
"Right now I think I've decided I have to move on. I can't be with someone like him as long as he affiliates himself with that shitty guild." she told her exceed who nodded in understanding.
"You're right about that. Sabertooth is a guild of assholes." she agreed and with those words, tried to lighten the mood. She was successful when she heard a small giggle come out of Ariana's mouth.
"Damn right."
And then they both drank in silence, letting the atmosphere overtake them. Ariana needed this; she needed the time and space away from that dreaded arena. She allowed her thoughts to wander and of course, they wandered right over to Sting. She wondered about him. She wondered what he would be like if he was apart of maybe Fairy Tail instead. What he would be like, how he would act and what their relationship would be.
Maybe that version of him was someone she could be with.
But it wasn't him and there was no version of him like that. She couldn't change the past now and all she could do was wonder about it.
Just then, a blinding flash of light met the window of the bar and it almost sounded like the air was fizzling when the light washed over them.
"What the fuck is that?" the consensus of voices in the bars shouted, all the mages inside shielding their eyes from the light.
Ariana and Presley included. The two both squeezed their eyes shut, but that still didn't stop the burning light from reaching their eyes. It was when Ariana raised an arm to her eyes to shield herself that the wave of light brushed against her skin.
It felt familiar almost.
As the feeling rose to the surface, a deafening explosion rang through the streets. The loud bang reaching all the ears of everyone in a probably 15 kilometer radius, the same most likely to be said about the light. "What is going on!" Ariana shouted, with her eyes closed and her hands pressed against her eardrums.
And then it hit her.
That light was the result of magic. Sting's magic of course.
♛♛♛
Both Sting and Rogue were standing side by side, a few feet ahead from everyone else in their guild. Though, they stood in the overwhelming presence of their domineering guild master, who sat in arrogance on his throne like seat
He stared at them but the two only looked away from his white eyes.
"Sting, Rogue" he began and paused, his voice strong and deep. "Just what the hell was that?" he bellowed, referring to their most recent loss.
Sting barely heard the words he spoke. The blonde knew that they were words of hate and ones that belittled both him and his partner dragon slayer. His ears only perked up when Rogue began to talk, speaking only to explain why they lost.
His answer was simple- it was because Natsu and Gajeel were too strong.
Of course, that was not a satisfactory answer to their guild master. He stood up now, slamming his feet in front of them and his fists balled tightly. Jiemma spoke again, this time as he stared down at them. "Are those the words of wizards from Sabertooth, the strongest guild?" his question went unanswered as Sting and Rogue kept their mouths shut.
"Who told you that you could go out there and look like pathetic fools?" his rage was growing. "Who told you that you could go out there and fail? You sullied the name of the strongest guild." his final words were filled with anger.
He released his magic power now, a purple aura that surrounded him and released a shock wave of energy strong enough to send the twin slayers flying backwards.
Sting was sent rolling on the ground while Rogue was slammed against the wall, leaving a large indent. Both Frosch and Lector went running towards their dragon slayers, calling out to them as they did so.
Jiemma continued to beat them, throwing them against each surface of the guild hall as he hurled out insults against them.
His final insult against them was his command to wipe off the crests that marked the Sabertooth guild on them.
Sting could barely move as he tried to lift himself up off the ground. This was the same humiliation that he watched Yukino endure, the same pain he brushed off. Now that it was happening to him he couldn't bare the thought of having to remove his own guild mark. This guild was supposed to be his home, his family. The people in it that he'd called his friends and the people he shared the most time with.
He'd finally realized what it was that Ariana was saying to him.
This place was no guild. This place may have been strong but the people within it were nothing more than pawns to their guild master, moving them as he pleased.
How did he not realize it sooner. How could he have been so blind and stupid to what was going on around him.
And when Lector spoke up to defend him, it was like time stopped. Sting's breath hitched in his throat and his navy eyes widened as his red colored exceed stood in his honor. "But Sting and Rogue tried their best!" they were simple words but enough to show how much Lector cared for his best friend. "This time Sting lost but I'm still proud of him, and I think that people can grow stronger from experiencing loss. Sting learned a lot from this battle so I think you should-".
But they were spoken in vain.
"Who are you?" the words left their masters mouth with such disgust and disdain for the furry creature in front of him that Sting's face twisted in anger.
Lector's eyebrows furrowed in both confusion and worry, as he lifted up his small blue vest to reveal a light red Saberbooth insignia branding his skin. "C'mon Master! I have the crest right here proving I'm a Sabertooth member."
Jiemma's purple aura of magic surrounded him again, releasing his power to scare Lector into stumbling and falling on his paws. "Why would the likes of a cat be bearing the proud crest of a Sabertooth guild member?" he questioned and glared at the exceed from the corner of his eye where he stood. "Begone!" And with those words he shot a blast of magical power where Lector stood, essentially evaporating him as he flew in the air from the impact.
"Sting..." was all Lector could cry as he disappeared, his voice becoming fainter as he spoke his friends name.
Pure shock was shown on Sting's face. His mouth was agape and his eyes were wide. What the fuck just happened. His exceed was obliterated, his best friend killed by the hands of his guild master. What kind of master would perform such actions on his own guild members, to the people he helped cultivate and grow as a group.
Sting's jaw clenched tight and he balled his fists, slamming them into the floor.
"Lector!" he cried, his voice so raw with emotion that his voice rang loud in everyone's ear and even echoed among the entire guild hall. Tears dripped from his eyes and spilled on the floor, the blonde continuing to scream Lector's name.
The words that Jiemma spoke afterwards were nothing but ringing in the blonde's ears.
All he could do was cry. He let out one last shout of his exceeds name, one pure with desperation as he let the tears stroll down his face. Sting hesitantly stood now, covering his face with his hands and his legs bent, almost ready to launch.
"Keep it down, Sting." was all his master commanded.
Now, rage filled his sadness. "What did you just do?" he questioned his master, not caring hide the anger in his tone. "What the fuck did you just do!" he repeated this time with a loud cry. His hands were still gripping at his face, but his eyes were filled with a completely different emotion this time. Pure and utter rage for the man that stood in front of him.
His body was overwhelmed with emotion and his mind filled with feelings of anger and hatred he'd never felt before.
And then, it was like his body moved on its own. He launched himself forwards with such incredible speed that the rest of his guild members behind him couldn't even track his movements. All they saw afterwards was his discharge of immense magic power, and large light beam escaping from the palms of his hands and right into the abdomen of their guild master.
A prominent hole where his body should've been, but instead filled with the light magic emitting from Sting's hands. A strangled gasp was heard from Jiemma before he dropped to the ground.
Before Sting could realize the gravity of what he'd just done, Minerva was already congratulating him on becoming guild master. He'd been the one to take out the previous one in charge so now he was the current master of Sabertooth. His shock was clear from the expression on his face and the rest of the members behind him were still not over what had just happened.
He had just wanted Lector back; the rest of her words became a blur to him and he stared blankly at the ground where his exceed once stood.
Minerva sighed, realizing that he wasn't even paying attention to her.
"Thankfully, I managed to save Lector just before Jiemma got a hold of him." she told him, and at those words he began to scramble at her feet. He begged and pleaded with her to bring Lector back, to which she promptly denied.
His head was spinning now. He could see her mouth moving but no words reached him. Only her last sentence made his ears perk up.
"If you want Lector back, prove that our guild is still number one. If we win tomorrows event, I'll happily return your precious cat to you." he finished and strutted away, leaving Sting to be comforted by Rogue and Frosch.
♛♛♛
It seemed that Ariana had arrived too late. The light had dissipated and the dust had settled around Sabertooth. From the height that Presley was flying her at, the blonde noticed a gaping hole in the side of their guild hall, rubble falling and their building on the verge of collapsing.
So this is clearly where the explosion came from. Now all she had to do was find Sting.
Though, much to her surprise, she didn't have to look far. With her enhanced nose she smelled him just below her, storming down the Crocus streets by himself. He looked like he was frustration and in a clear panicked state.
"Drop me here." Ariana commanded Presley.
"In your dreams." her exceed retorted. It was almost a 50 foot drop. Ariana was crazy to think that she could land that in her condition. Much to Ariana's disliking, Presley flew her down close to the sidewalk and let her feet touch the ground before her caramel exceed even thought of letting her go.
"What happened? Are you okay?" was all she could ask.
She would still care for him as friend as much as she could and Ariana could obviously see that something was wrong with him right now. Sting was still walking a few feet in front of her but she could pick up the scent of... salt? She quickly pieced together that Sting was crying.
"Leave me alone." he replied to her quietly and kept walking. If he didn't have time for Rogue to comfort him Ariana certainly wasn't someone he wanted either. She made it clear to him that she wanted nothing to do with him, and what she was doing here now was beyond him. The light dragon slayer only kept walking.
Ariana followed closely behind him, practically limping now to keep up with how fast he was going.
"Just tell me what's wrong, or at least explain that light I just saw." she pleaded with him now. Sting realized that she must've seen his magic power and was why she came rushing over to their guild hall. Still, it was none of her business.
He kept walking.
"Stop acting like a little kid." she huffed at him and kept following, Presley not too far behind her either. "I know what I said earlier but-".
When she abruptly stopped talking was when Sting turned around. He was met with Ariana passed out cold and her body levitating above the ground with her exceed keeping her afloat. Now was when he started walking towards her and examined her unconscious state.
"I told her dumb ass to let me carry her" Sting could hear her exceed start complaining. "But no! She was being too stubborn." she finished with an exasperated cry.
The blonde could see that her exceed was struggling to keep flying and he eyed her caramel colored cat. "Let me take her." he said, his anger subsiding and his reasoning forming again. He wasn't about to let her get dropped from 50 feet because her exceed passed out from exhaustion.
Presley eyed the man that stood in front of her. "You know stupid, she still likes you but that guild of yours is standing in her way. She's at least trying to be your friend since she loves you." her cat explained bluntly. Sting flinched at the mention of his guild and he balled his fists at the thought. He finally understood what it was that Ariana was saying to him. He realized what it meant for her to love him but watch his guild drag him down.
"I know," he said and gave a genuine smile when he looked down at her face. The face he'd come to love. "So let me carry her." he offered once more. He needed the walk to take his mind off of what just happened.
Presley huffed in compliance and dropped Ariana into his awaiting arms.
Sting carried her, wrapping his strong arms under the bend of her knee and the back of his neck to keep her close to him. He walked with her body laying bridal style in his grip, Presley sitting casually on her slayers chest, only staring up at Sting with narrowed eyes.
"Don't you try anything." she warned him, but he stayed silent, with his eyes focused on Ariana in front of him.
He cherished the warm feeling of her around him as he walked her back to her hospital room.
♛♛♛
LOLLLLLL BACK YALL. one week into quarantine and im writing this fanfic again. im legit bored out of my fucking mind so ill honest to god probably end up finishing this thing for real.
im shocked about the amount of notifications i still get on this book and rlly if it wasnt for those i wouldnt have updated. i rlly do feel so bad, its been like two years.... and i honestly forgot what all happened in this book so i had reread my own shit to remember all this stuff. if this chap doesnt rlly add up to the story sorry abt that but im trying to write it how i feel would improve it.
i read a surprising lack of presley in this book so this chap has a little more of her. i love cats especially orangy/caramel ones sooo :)
i hope ppl are actually still reading this and im so srry forthe lack of updates! in this like 2 week quarantine time i promise ill try to finish!