-Before Carla's Departure-
"Wait, what did Wendy say?" Carla asked.
"She said they're gonna write a letter and she wants you to deliver it to Makarov." Jellal whispered.
"Can you do that?" Happy asked worriedly. "It's such a long journey..."
"I can." Carla said firmly. "I have to. Master Makarov must know what's going on."
"I'll bring the letter to you tonight, and help you escape. I heard Dimaria say she's not bothering with you two anymore because she's 'not gonna waste her time with cats', so I don't think you'll be missed. Except of course, by your friends." Jellal added.
Carla nodded. "Okay. Tonight then."
He handed her and Happy each a protein bar. "I found these in the kitchen. Hopefully, it'll keep you full." He left.
Happy handed his to Carla. "Here."
She looked at him curiously. "Why are you giving it to me? You need it."
"I don't want you to get hungry on your journey." He smiled lovingly at her.
She blushed. "Happy, that's very kind, but I can't take this."
"Please. I want you too." He pleaded.
"Okay." She accepted it gratefully.
"You'll stay safe, right? I don't want anything bad to happen to you."
"I'll try my best. I hope I don't have to do a ton of flying, though." She chuckled. "I'm not sure I can handle that."
"I believe in you."
"Thank you. That means a lot."
He hugged her tightly. "I'll miss you, Carla."
A tear escaped and flowed down her cheek. "I'll miss you too, Happy."
-A Few Hours Later-
"Are you ready?" Jellal asked as he handed her the letter.
She fastened it into her little bag. "As ready as I'll ever be."
"It's night, right?" Happy asked. Jellal nodded. "Good luck, Carla. Please stay safe and know that we're rooting for you."
She smiled. "Thank you, Happy."
"Come on. We don't have much time." Jellal said hastily. He unlocked the cell.
Carla hugged Happy. "Happy, if I don't make it back," she gulped, "know that I love you." She kissed him lightly on the lips.
He sniffed. "I love you too, Carla."
She smiled at him bravely as she and Jellal left. The minute they turned away, she let the tears flow.
"You okay?" Jellal asked softly.
She nodded. "Just sad."
"Do you need anything?"
"No, but thank you. For everything. We never could've done this without your help, Jellal."
"It's no problem at all. I would gladly do it all again." He cracked a smile. He led her to a window. "You can't fly because people will see, but you're small enough to scurry around without being noticed." He looked down at her. "Good luck, Carla. Remember, Fairy Tail is counting on you."
She smirked. "No pressure at all. Goodbye, Jellal. Don't let Happy be too sad."
He nodded. "Goodbye."
Carla carefully made her way down the wall and ran as fast as she could into the shadows. She headed towards the docks silently. I need to stow away on a boat...but which one? It has to go to Caracole, then I'll stow away again and head to Ishgar. Then, I can fly back home.
She stared at the docks. "Hm, lots of fishing boats."
"Sir, where should I put this crate?" Carla ducked into the shadows as she heard a voice.
"Put it on the Empire. That ship is heading to Caracole Island tomorrow to sell our fish." A gruff man said. "We'll make a fortune!"
"You did catch quite a bit."
"Yeah. Hurry up! It's late and I'm tired."
"Guess I know what ship I'll be on." Carla smirked to herself. She waited for the two to leave before scurrying onto the ship. "Damn! They locked the door." She took a rock and broke the window. "Not my finest moment..." She sighed before finding a spot to hide. She decided the refrigerated section would be too cold and ended up hiding behind a bookshelf. It was a tight fit, but Carla managed. She got situated and took out the letter. She read through it and nodded approvingly. She secured it in her bag before falling asleep.
-A Few Days Later-
"We're almost there!" A loud voice woke Carla up. She remembered she was on the boat as it rocked slightly.
She strained to look at the water. They were a couple miles from Caracole Island. Geez, how long did I sleep for? It must of been a couple of days! I do feel a lot better, though. She checked to make sure everything was still with her. Everything was. Her stomach grumbled, so she ate the protein bar Happy gave her.
Suddenly, a woman walked into the room. Carla held her breath and hid as best as she could. The woman was surveying the water with a frown.
"Men!" She shouted. "Faster! We're gonna be late."
Is that the captain? Carla wondered. She gasped as the ship suddenly jerked forward, flying through the water. She held on for dear life as the ship zoomed towards the island. Within a few minutes, they were docked.
After everyone left, Carla cautiously made her way out. She transformed into her human form, figuring it looked more normal in the day. She walked around the town, looking for a boat heading to Ishgar.
"Hey!" Someone called to her.
Carla turned around. "Hi?" A girl with pink hair and a cloak beckoned her to follow her. "Do I know you?"
"Yeah." The girl ripped off her cloak as they entered a clothing store.
"Meredy!" Carla smiled brightly. "I didn't know you were on Caracole Island!"
"I live here." She explained. "Jellal asked me to help you back to Ishgar."
"Thank God! I had no idea what to do."
Meredy grinned. "I can close my shop for a few days and bring you back to Ishgar. One of my friends owns a boat. I'm sure he wouldn't mind taking us. As long as I pay him enough." She added.
"I really appreciate this." Carla said. "But you don't have to. I don't want you guys to have to get involved in the war."
"Well, all of us Ishgar guilds have to stick together right?" Meredy tightened her ponytail. "And anyways, I heard you have a very important letter for Makarov that needs to be delivered ASAP. So let's go." She told her employees to take over while she was gone, before linking arms with Carla. "Do you need anything before we go?"
Carla's stomach grumbled. "Um, no?"
Meredy giggled. "Your stomach says otherwise. Come on, I'll buy you a star mango."
The stand is already rebuilt?! Carla shook her head. "I can't let you. You're already doing so much for us!"
Meredy waved her hand. "Nah, I want to!"
"How can I pay you back?"
Meredy looked at her seriously. "Try to stop the invasion."
Carla gulped. "I'm rather worried we won't be able to."
"Don't worry. We'll all try to help."
Carla frowned. "I think it's Fairy Tail's job to stop the invasion, but it'd be nice if you could spread the news of the war to the other guilds. I'm sure Master Makarov will come up with a plan to protect Ishgar."
She nodded as she handed Carla a star mango. "I'll do that. By the way," she lowered her voice, "we have other wizards who have infiltrated the empire. It's not just Jellal in there."
Carla gasped as she ate. "That's wonderful!"
"Yeah, so we'll know everything and be prepared for the invasion." Meredy smirked. She led her to a small dock. "Hey, Henry."
He grinned. "Hey, Meredy. What can I do for you?"
"Can you take my friend and I to Ishgar?"
He looked at Carla. "You new around here?"
"Uh, yeah. I'm from Ishgar, and came here to see Meredy." Carla said hastily.
Henry smiled. "I'd be happy to take you two back."
Meredy handed him some money. "Thanks."
"Any time. You ready now?" The two girls nodded. "Let's go, then."
Carla gasped at the boat as they boarded. It was huge and very clean. "Wow, your boat is beautiful!"
He grinned. "Thanks, I try to take care of her. Hope is the most precious thing I own."
"Why'd you name your boat that?" Carla asked.
Henry frowned. "When I was young, my family was killed in a war, including my big sister, Hope. I named the boat after her, to remind me of my kind, brave older sister, who sacrificed herself to save me."
"I'm very sorry for your loss." Carla said gently.
"Thanks." He wiped a tear from his eye. "Well, let's head to Ishgar. I have plenty of food and water, so don't worry." He left.
Carla turned to Meredy. "I feel so bad for him."
Meredy nodded. "I'm glad I met him. He's one of the kindest and sweetest people I've ever known." The boat started moving. "Are you ready to face the guild?"
Carla bit her lip. "We kind of lied to them, so no. I'm nervous."
"They'll forgive you."
"I hope you're right..."
"So what do you do?" Henry asked Carla and Meredy approached him.
"Oh, I'm a-a wizard..." Carla stuttered.
"Oh, that's neat. I wanted to be a wizard when I was a kid." He chuckled. "Little Henry had some big dreams. Now I'm the captain of this boat and the owner of the fish market."
"You own a fish market?" Carla immediately thought of Happy's love of fish.
"Best on the island." Meredy chimed in as she elbowed Henry.
He laughed. "The only one on the island."
"I just can't believe you have to smell fish all day." Meredy made a face. "Yuck!"
"At least I don't own a boring clothing store." He fired back.
Carla watch in amusement as the two teased each other like siblings. I wonder if Meredy reminds him of his sister...
"So how long have you and Meredy known each other?" Carla asked, braking up the argument.
They exchanged glances. He made a face. "I'm not sure. Maybe a couple months?"
"Wow and you guys are already great friends!" Carla noted.
"Yeah, the minute I met her I knew that she was a weirdo destined to be my friend." He said dramatically.
"I'm not weird!" Meredy stuck out her tongue. "You are!"
"No you are!"
Carla sighed and looked at the horizon as they bickered again.
-Days Later at Hargeon-
"Thank you so much for the ride!" Carla waved at Henry and Meredy.
"Bye Carla! Get the letter to Makarov and be careful!" Meredy shouted.
"See you around, kid." Henry grinned as he and Meredy departed.
"Thank God I'm away from those two! They must drive other people crazy with their constant fighting!" Carla mumbled to herself. She took off into the air, happy to fly for the first time in a while. "Time to go home. I hope Happy's okay, and Wendy. And the others. I miss them so much..." She thought about her friends the entire time before coming to Magnolia.
Her heart raced as she approached the guild. "This is it..." She uncertainly entered the room.
"Carla!" Lily exclaimed as he ran toward her. Gajeel and Levy joined.
"Where were you guys?" Mirajane asked in alarm. "You've been gone for weeks!"
Carla gasped. "It's been that long?"
"Where's Wendy?" Gajeel demanded. "She's always with you."
She tearfully looked down. "Wendy and the others are in prison."
"Where?" Mirajane asked worriedly.
"In Alakitasia..."
"WHAT?!" They shouted.
"LuLu is with Zeref?!" Levy yelled.
"Why were you in Alakitasia?!" Mirajane demanded.
"What happened?" Gajeel asked.
"Are they okay?" Lily added.
Carla started crying. "I don't know!" She shouted, overwhelmed. "I can't answer all of these questions! I have to see Master right now!"
Mirajane sighed. "He's in his office. He's rather worried about you guys. We all were. You could've at least told us the truth."
Carla hung her head. "I know. That was a pretty terrible thing to do that to you guys. I'm sorry."
"It's okay, but you have to tell us everything." Mirajane ordered. Carla nodded as they entered Makarov's office. "Master, Carla needs to see you."
"Where have you been?!" He exclaimed as he eyed Carla. "Do you know how worried we were?! We thought all of you were dead!" Mirajane closed the door as she left, giving Carla a small smile.
"We were in Alakitasia." Carla handed him the letter. "This is from the others. It pretty much explains everything."
He read through it before sighing and staring out the window. The minutes of silence were agonizing. "Well, I'm very disappointed that you weren't honest about your intentions. But, I'm also pleased that you guys went through all of that for Natsu. Even if it was something rather foolish!" He rubbed his temples. "This is quite a lot of information. We need to prepare for war and alert the other guilds of Zeref's intentions."
"I can help with that." Carla volunteered.
"No, I need you here. You must have some knowledge about the Alvarez Empire, and that would be valuable right now. I'll send out a group of 10 wizards to warn the guilds. We might also need to assemble a rescue team for Team Natsu."
"Are we going to be punished?" She asked nervously.
He looked at the scars on her. "I'd say you've been punished enough. Who did this to you?"
She grimaced. "One of Zeref's shields, Dimaria, the Warrior Queen."
Makarov nodded before stopping. "Wait, shields? It seems you have a lot to tell me." He stood. "Let's go. We must inform the rest of the guild immediately."
Th guild was in shock as Makarov explained the dire situation. Most of them panicked until he started an inspirational speech about trust in each other and the power of the guild. He assigned Cana, Levy, Gajeel, Juvia, Laxus, Elfman, Bisca, Macao, Lily, and Lisanna to spread the news across Ishgar.
Carla spent the next few hours planning and strategizing with Makarov, Mest, Mavis, Mirajane, and Warren. Her brain was constantly picked for information. Every time she told them a new thing, they were in shock. It was late evening before they stopped and decided to go to bed. There still wasn't a solid plan.
Carla sighed and sat by the water, taking in the fresh air and beauty of Magnolia. "Home sweet home." She stretched her arms and took some much needed alone time. She smiled at her accomplishment. She had safely delivered the information.
Carla looked across the ocean, as if she could see her best friend, waiting for confirmation. "They got it, Wendy. They got it."