Silence filled the house hold. Not a single word was said as Gabbriel finished her story. She wasn't looking at anyone, her head was buried into Gajeel's shoulder and the older twin had his arm wrapped tightly around her. Wendy was curled up into her side, sitting in Levy's lap and wrapping her arms around Gabbey's torso. Levy, herself, had her head on Gabbey's shoulder and was holding her hand tightly.
"Prince Jellal, or Mystogan as you all called him, found me. Nursed me back to health and into a some-what stable mindset. Of course, we had to rebreak all my bones and set them right. But, he kept me company. Prince Jellal guided me back to Phantom Lord, told Master Jose what happened, and left me in Gajeel's care." Gabbey murmured softly before falling silent.
"Phantom Lord fell into the Dark Guild category not long after," Gajeel decided to finish it, cupping Gabbriel's head. "Akemi was like a daughter to Master Jose, her father killed himself two days later, which set him off the edge. Phantom Lord fell and eventually, its members fell with it."
"And now. . ." Lucy trailed off quietly.
"And now, Serpent is trying to raise Zeref, yet again." Gabbey abruptly stood up. "But they can't, not until they get the stone from me."
"Where is the stone?" Erza asked.
"I told you, I'm the only one that knows where the stone is, and that's how its staying." Gabbey retorted sharply, her arms crossed to hold herself together.
"They sent an assassin after you, I'm pretty sure they don't think you're the only one who knows where the stone is." Gray argued.
"Then its their fault for having sent an assassin that couldn't even do her own job." Gabbey replied.
"Regardless if you are sharing the details of the stones' location," Erza interrupted, stopping a small fight from happening between Gray and Gabbey. "We still need to tell Master what has happened tonight."
"Lets try to get a little bit more sleep," Levy suggested. "Master won't be up this early anyways, we might as well catch the sleep we missed."
"I'm okay with that," Gajeel grunted, going back to his little section of sheets and blankets. He lead Gabbriel with him, having the younger twin closer than ever as they laid back down to get some more sleep. Levy was quick to claim the spot on the other side of Gabbey, and Wendy threw herself on top of Gabbey, apologizing quickly when she landed rather harshly on Gabbey's stomach.
"It's fine," Gabbey murmured, moving Wendy to where she was curled up between Levy and herself. Wendy was out like a light, Levy soon to follow, and Gajeel wrapped his arms around the three girls protectively, falling asleep not to long after.
But Gabbey stayed up for a little bit longer.
Her mind was still running, not stopping too long on one thought. Happy's voice brought her out of her mind.
"Natsu, what's wrong?"
Gabbey smoothed her breathing out, making it seem like she was asleep as she listened in. What, she was curious! Natsu is either happy or wanting-to-fight angry, no in between.
". . .Igneel told me a little bit about mates," Natsu said lowly, but Gabbey didn't have to strain her hearing to hear. "About how they're your other half, how when you find your mate, it's like your whole world revolves around them. . .How, whenever they're gone, nothing is ever the same. . ."
"Natsu. . ."
"I may have hated Gabbriel at one point, Happy, but I would have never wished that upon her. Never."
"Something we can actually agree on, flame-brain," Gray's low voice commented.
Nothing was said after that, leaving the room in a painful silence that almost sent her insane.
Gabbriel fell into a fitful sleep that early morning, the words of Natsu's and Gray's floating around her head.
🌹🌹🌹
Gajeel woke up the next morning slowly. The light was shining brightly through the window and he could hear the people outside chatter like always. It took a moment to remember that he was in the living room, with other people surrounding him.
As if Natsu's snoring wasn't a loud enough clue.
His red eyes ran over everyone in the room, his heart thumping a bit more when he saw Levy curled into his side, before noting something odd.
Gabbriel was next to him.
She's probably in her room. Gajeel reasoned in his mind, slowly untangling himself from Levy's form and trying not to wake Wendy next to her. His heart pounded in his chest before he let out a deep breath he didn't know he was holding. The two girls were still asleep.
His studded eyebrows furrowed in confusion when he saw Gabbey's door wide open. Creeping over the sleeping bodies, he checked her room.
No one was there.
The next place to look would be the bathroom, she could be taking a shower, but the water wasn't running and the door wasn't cracked.
Where could Gabbey be?
"She's gone."
Gajeel's head snapped over to the small kitchen they had, only to see Daella's sandy color fur sitting on the counter tops. A small white paper was in her paws.
"Whattya mean?" Gajeel grumbled through his morning voice, walking closer. Daella's pink eyes didn't move from the spot she was staring a hole into, her gaze seemingly dull and lifeless.
"She's gone." Daella repeated, this time holding out the paper with shaky hands. Gajeel took the sheet of paper, red eyes scanning over the cursive writing that he knew was his twin. It wasn't a long written note, just two sentences.
There's something I must do.
~Gabbriel R.
"Wake the others up," Gajeel demanded the Exceed, slamming the paper down on the counter Daella wasn't sitting on. "I'll see if she's still in town or something."
Not waiting for another word, Gajeel dashed out the front door, in hopes of finding his twin before she was really gone.
🌹🌹🌹
Gabbriel really didn't fall asleep for long. An hour or two, at the least, before she decided on what to do.
Stay and let the guild - that has no relations with the current problem - get hurt or go and take down Serpents herself.
And really, she didn't even make a choice when she walked out of her shared apartment with Gajeel. She walked Magnolia, watching as the early risers got ready for the day and open their shops up. She visited with a friend, who gave her the best advise she could receive, before finally choosing.
Gabbriel Redfox was going to take down Serpents if it was the very last thing she did.
In order to do that, though, Gabbey had to say one last goodbye.
And that's where she was heading to now.
The fields of grass were a bit taller and the trees were starting to change color. The dark green leaves that covered the sky were now starting to turn into a lighter green. Some were even yellow. The time for a new season was approaching, but it was at a snails speed.
Flowers were still in bloom, and ever so often Gabbriel picked a flower that brushed past her fingers. Soon, she had a small handful of different wildflowers. Just in time, as well. When she arranged the wildflowers into a certain pattern, she arrived at the clearing.
It was just as she remembered it, a few months back. Grass grew taller, flowers grew everywhere else, and Akemi's grave was still in perfect shape.
She would really have to thank the old lady mage that put the protection charm around her loves' grave.
When the tip of her boots touched the edge of Akemi's grave, Gabbriel stopped, dropping to her knees and just stared at the grave. Her red eyes went over every detail from the words carved into the headstone, to the growing grass over her empty grave.
Well, not-so-empty.
"I figured I might as well see you, one last time," Gabbey spoke into the air, gently setting the flowers down on the grave. "This will probably be the last time I get to see you. Hopefully not, but you know how life is."
The wind blew around her, as if Akemi was actually answering.
"I know, I can already hear you saying it," Gabbriel scoffed, making her voice just a tad bit higher. "'Don't be so stupid, Gabbriel! You should have just waited for Fairy tail to help you!' Yeah, well, it's not their problem."
A sigh escaped her lips, a small garden shovel appearing in her hands before she started to dig. "This is my problem. I'll take care of it."
Once she was deep enough into the ground, as her shovel hit something hard, Gabbey threw the shovel away and pulled up a small chest. The chest was an oak wood with golden vine designs etched into it. With a wave of her hand, the golden vines started to move away and let Gabbey open the chest.
It only opened for her now.
Inside was exactly what she was trying to keep hidden, and her body relaxed at the sight of it untouched.
The Infinity Elixir Stone.
"You've done a good job protecting this, hun," Gabbey said gently, lightly touching the stone to make sure it was real. "I just need you to protect a little bit longer. At least until I get rid of everyone in that damn guild."
Reassuring herself that the stone was fine, it was here, she closed the chest and the golden vines locked itself around it. Gently, she put the chest into the hole and covered it with the dirt she dug up. Just to be safe she placed the flowered over the upturned dirt, blocking the spot she dug in.
"If everything goes the way its suppose to, I'll bring Gajeel and Juvia by. But if not. . ." Gabbriel paused. She's never really thought about death since Prince Jellal helped her after that day. It seemed so long ago, but it was something that Gabbriel prided herself on; making it another year without an urge to end it.
". . .I'll be seeing you where ever our souls go soon."
🌹🌹🌹
Gajeel had searched the entire city with no luck in finding his sister. It has been two hours since he started his search and he lost her scent around the Magnolia park. Even with the help of the fairies, they didn't find her.
So, they regrouped back at the guild hall and went to tell the guild master.
Although Master Makarov's face was set in a calm look, his eyes showed his worry. Whether for Gabbriel herself or the fact that Serpents were going to be on the rise, Gajeel didn't know.
"You couldn't find her scent anywhere?" Makarov asked slowly, bowing his head in thought.
"No. It disappeared around Magnolia Park," Wendy replied, her eyes watering slightly. Natsu and Gajeel nodded in agreement, they couldn't find her scent past the huge tree. "I-I'm sorry Master! We lost Gabbriel!"
"It's not your fault," Makarov reassured as Lucy placed a calming hand on the younger girls' shoulder. "Gabbriel simply knows how to keep people off her trail."
"Wait," Erza turned towards Gajeel. The older twin looked visibly distressed, but did his best to keep his cool. "Don't you have some kind of bond with Gabbey?"
"Yes, but it does us no good. We can only feel each others emotions and the pushes and pulls on the bond. We can't actually talk outside of the small codes we made." Gajeel explained. Levy furrowed her eyebrows, deep in thought.
"Would you be able to track her through the bond? Like, does it get stronger the closer you two are?"
"No, the only time it gets stronger is when we feel an extreme amount of an emotion."
"So, we're back at square one." Lucy sighed.
"I say we just go to the city Gabbriel mentioned and see if we can fight anyone!" Natsu declared, eyes blazing with fire.
". . .That wasn't the dumbest thing Natsu's ever said," Gray admitted, ignoring the look the pinkette was giving him. "Serpent was set up at some city, weren't they?"
"Caister City, if I remember correctly."
"Caister City, you say?" Makarov hummed. "I haven't heard that name in years. . ."
"Yes, Master. Do you know where Caister City is?"
"No," He deadpanned. "No one knows where Caister City is, unless you lived their yourself. There were no train stations that went through the city, you had to make it there on foot. Even then, people got lost in the forest that surrounded it."
"Juvia noticed you said you haven't heard that name in year. . ." Juvia finally spoke up, tilting her head. "Juvia did not know it went by any other name."
"I'm sure you heard about the destructive attack that happened just a few years ago, yes?" Makarov started with a knowing look. "They said what looked like a dragon killed and destroyed everything in its path. Henceforth, the dead city became known as the Dragon Demon's Den."
"Dragon Demon's Den?" Carla echoed, her eyes hard with confusion. Daella was close by, her eyes distant and PantherLily tried to comfort her the best he could. Happy was trying to get Daella to get some fish.
"They said its cries of anger and pain could have been heard for miles," Makarov added. "For days it wailed before it finally became quiet. No one went back, in fear of facing its wrath."
"But, you know that isn't true, Gramps." Natsu said.
"Of course I do. It's not everyday the beast itself walks into your guild, much less joins it."
Gajeel opened his mouth to retort, to snap something back about how his sister was not a beast, but the guild doors opened and two figures caught his attention.
It was a lady and a child, both with black hair, but one with aqua colored eyes and one with forest green eyes. The faces floated around in his head, he knew he has seen them somewhere. . .
"Lil? Yui?" He finally recognized them, the names falling from his mouth as the two made their way over.
"Gajeel, it's good to see you," Lil smiled politely, her hand clutching a white envelope he just noticed. Yui, on the other hand, ran forward and clung onto his legs with a hug.
"Gajeel!" Yui cheered, her head coming up to his waist. She was barely to his thigh last time they saw each other. . . "You're here! Why haven't you visited?!"
"I've been busy," Gajeel replied, patting Yui's head awkwardly. "What are you two doing here. . .?"
Lil's smile went strained, clearly having bad news, as she held out the white envelope. "I have a letter. . .From Gabbriel."
"You've seen Gabbey?!" Levy exclaimed, walking closer to the older woman. Lil nodded, watching as Gajeel took the envelope and tore it open, reading the letter inside.
"She came by early this morning," Lil responded. "We talked for a while before she left. She told me to give you this letter. I've been busy most of this morning, so I didn't have time until now to come by."
"Gabbey came by and gave me hugs! She also drew with me and let me help cook breakfast!" Yui grinned, clearly proud of herself.
"I bet your breakfast was good." Wendy complimented, her eyes still teary.
"The best!"
"Dammit!" Gajeel cursed, crumbing the note in his grasp. His teeth gritted together as he dropped the letter, turned towards an empty wall, and punched a hole in the wall.
"Whoa!" Yui gasped. "He's strong!"
"Juvia thinks the letter isn't good. . ." Juvia murmured, going over to Gajeel and placing a hand on his shoulder. Lucy picked up the note, carefully straightening the paper out before speed reading it. Her shoulders slumped more as she continued on.
"Well?" Natsu snapped. "What does it say?"
"Sorry," Lucy cleared her throat. "'To whomever is reading this - most likely Lucy, Levy, or Gajeel - I have given this letter to Lil because I have gone to finish what I started. Lil and Yui were the only people that didn't know what was going on, and let me leave without much of a fuss. This is the best thing for me to do. To fight Serpent by myself.
But I know the odds, I am most likely not coming back. I would just like to say; thank you. You taught me what a family could really be, blood or not. That some people are worth dying for. And to Gajeel, Juvia, Wendy, and Levy - I love you. This is for the good of the guild. Sincerely, Gabbriel Redfox.'"
Although the other guild members were acting like their happy self, not aware of what had happened only a few hours earlier or even right now, the group that gathered around their guild master was quiet.
They let the words sink in, really trying to understand the words that were written.
"Now we have to go after her!" Natsu roared, punching his palm.
"We don't know where she's going, Natsu!" Lucy retorted, holding onto the letter tighter. Makarov hummed to himself, rubbing his chin thoughtfully before looking up at Lil. She looked distraught.
"Lil, would you mind recalling what Gabbriel did and said at your house?"
"Oh! Of course," Lil closed her eyes. "It was pretty early in the morning. . .The sun had barely risen at all, but I've been up for a while. . ."
🌹A few hours earlier🌹
It wasn't a quiet sunrise, that much Lil noticed. It was like as soon as the first sign of light hit Magnolia, the streets were instantly filled with noise.
It almost reminded her of home.
But, Magnolia was such a better place. Yui actually had friends here, and Lil was actually starting to get closer to another man. He was a Fairy tail mage himself, with a son that was a little bit older than Yui herself.
They were finally moving on.
Lil's mind drifted to the twins in Fairy tail, wondering how they were. Last time she saw Gajeel or Gabbriel, they had stopped by to give Yui her birthday present.
Yui become a hundred percent more cool since she knew two mages in Fairy tail.
With a sigh Lil stepped out of her bedroom, her hands fiddling with her ponytail as she walked to the kitchen. Maybe Yui would enjoy some waffles today. . .
A knock at her front door made her pause, eyebrows furrowing. "I didn't think anyone would be coming by today. . ." She murmured, walking to the door. Lil opened the door, her eyes lighting up at the sight of Gabbriel stand on her doorstep. "Gabbriel! My, it's been a bit. . ."
"Sorry," Gabbey rubbed the back of her neck, gaze darting around. "I know its early, but I needed someone to talk to. . ."
It was then that Lil realized Gabbey looked absolutely exhausted. Bags were under her eyes, which were also slightly red, and her shoulders were slumped. This was a different side of Gabbriel that Lil never saw before.
Something was wrong.
"Of course. Come in, come in," Lil urged, opening the door wider and letting the mage slip through. Closing the door gently behind her, Lil turned. "I was just about to make some waffles, I can make you some if you want."
"Maybe later," Gabbey answered, sinking into the couch. Her red eyes were glazed over, clearly she was in her head. Lil just didn't know if that was a good thing or not.
"Well, what can I help you with?" Lil asked, taking a seat next to the younger woman. Gabbey chewed her lip, trying to put words together that Lil would understand. Would she understand? Lil wasn't a wizard. . .
"I. . .I got myself into some trouble," Gabbey started off slowly. "And now my guildmates want to help me. But I don't want them to. It's my problem, not theirs. They have nothing to do with this."
"Do you care for them?" Lil asked slowly, putting her hand under her chin.
"What?"
"Do you care for them?"
"I-I mean, I guess. Some of them are assholes, but I can stand a few of them." Gabbey admitted.
"And, do they care for you?"
"I'm not too sure. Maybe two or three of them, besides Gajeel."
"If it's anything like I've heard people talk about, Fairy tail is like one giant family. And family helps each other out, no matter what." Lil replied. "I'm sure you've already had a handful of adventures within your time with Fairy tail, and I'm sure you've helped your guildmates out. It might be time for them to help you out."
"What if I don't want their help?"
"I'm sure either way, you're going to get their help." Lil smiled. "The best thing to do is to go back with them, and plan everything out. You might not see them as family, but I'm sure they see you as family."
Gabbriel's face fell flat as she thought some more. Lil waited patiently, her hand resting on Gabbey's shoulder as she squeezed it comfortably. Finally, Gabbey spoke in a small tone.
"I've never had a mother to go to things about. . .It was always Metalicana or Gajeel, before it was just Gajeel. . .But they're boys. They don't understand most of the stuff I need to talk about. . ."
"I'm glad you decided to come talk to me then," Lil said.
"Thank you, for giving me another set of eyes to look on this situation. Do you have a paper and something to write with? I'll tell my guildmates the plan on paper, if you would deliver it for me. I have to run a few errands."
"I will definitely deliver the plan to them," Lil agreed, getting up to gather the things Gabbey asked for.
"Thank you, again. I'll help you cook breakfast as well."
"You're too kind!"
After Gabbriel wrote her letter, she helped Lil make waffles and bacon, the smell that soon woke Yui up. When they all ate their food, while Lil ran out real quick, Gabbey and Yui stayed home and played.
The three of them spent the early morning together, unbeknownst to Lil and Yui it would most likely be that last time they ever saw Gabbriel Redfox.