Akira's P. O. V:
"Well, I guess that's everything," I say, gazing around Rogue's bedroom after finishing packing my bags for the last time. We'd all decided to go back to Fairy Tail, and had just had our Sabertooth marks removed. Everyone was sad to learn that we were going back to Fairy Tail, but they were also understanding.
I refused to leave the guild hall earlier without hugging Minerva, so she'd sighed and rolled her eyes before letting me hug her. I even gave her a Communication Crystal so we could keep in touch as well, and the same to Yukino.
Rogue steps over to me as he says, "I'm really going to miss you, Angel. It's been great having you here."
I smile at him as I reply, "Same. I'm going to miss waking up to you every morning. But, you can be sure I'll still come to visit!" Rogue smiles and wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me against his chest. He brushes aside my long bangs, gazing at both my eyes when my left is usually hidden by my bangs. He lovingly caresses my cheek, and I lean into his touch.
I flutter my eyes closed as Rogue starts leaning in. Then, I feel his soft lips on mine. I kiss him back, the kiss deep and passionate, and fire courses through my veins, making my toes curl. Our lips dance together as we kiss, and my knees would've buckled had it not been for my mate holding me up.
We break the kiss and I hug the Cheney, resting my head on his chest, as he returns the embrace. We remain like that for a few minutes, allowing ourselves a moment or two longer alone before I go home. After awhile, I pull back from Rogue and say, reluctance in my voice, "I'd better get going. Our train leaves in a few minutes."
Rogue nods and plants a kiss on my forehead before I grab my bag, slinging my guitar case over my shoulder. Frosch looks up at me sadly as he asks, "Do you really have to leave, Aki-chan? Fro will miss you!" He clings to my leg, not wanting to let go.
I smile softly down at him as I bend down and pick Frosch up. "I'll miss you so very much, too, Frosch, but I'm going home now, Frosch, now that my teammates are back and are planning to revive Fairy Tail. But, as I said before, I'll definitely come visit! And you and Rogue can visit us in Magnolia anytime you want!"
I give the green Exceed a closed eye smile. Frosch grins widely at that as he nods his head and chimes, "Fro thinks so, too!"
I hug him tightly, before I look back at Frosch and say firmly, "Just promise me that you'll stay close to Rogue-kun, and that you don't run off like that again, okay?"
Frosch nods his head as he says, "Fro thinks so, too!"
I set Frosch down and Momo and Loki day their goodbyes. Momo hugs Frosch as she says, "I'm gonna miss you lots, Frosch! Take care of yourself!"
"Fro will miss you two, too!"
Loki sighs as he says, "I will miss you, too, Frosch." Loki gives Frosch a small smile.
I blink my eyes in surprise. I think that's the first time I've heard Loki call Frosch by his actual name. Awe, he's beginning to open up to him!
I pick up my bag as Momo and Loki do the same, and taking Rogue's hand in mine, we make our way to the train station. Grandpa, Nanami, Vivienne, Sting and Lector were already there by the time we arrived. Nanami pulls back from kissing Sting as we approach.
"You ready to go, sis?" She asks, as Sting glances at me.
I nod as I reply, "Yeah. It's time to go home." I stand next to Grandpa as I face Sting, giving him a grateful smile. "Thank you for everything you've done for us this past year, Sting-kun!"
He smiles back as he replies, "Dont mention it! It was great having you guys here! Sabertooth has been even better with you and Nanami-chan around!" Nanami grins at him. "You guys can visit anytime you want!"
"Thanks, Sting-kun!" Nanami says appreciatively.
"I'm going to miss you a lot, Lector-kun!" Vivienne says.
"I'll miss you, too, Vi-chan! Take care!" Lector tells her, smiling. The grey and white Exceed hugs Lector, before he gives her a kiss on the cheek, making Vivienne giggle.
"We'll see ya later, Lector!" Momo says, grinning at him, and Lector nods. Loki just smiles at the maroon coloured Exceed.
"Last call for Magnolia Station!" The conductor announces over the loudspeaker.
"Time to go, girls, Loki," Grandpa says, his bag in hand. He starts heading for the train car and we follow. I pause just before getting on the train to give my mate a last smile. He returns it as he waves his hand in goodbye. I wave back before joining my family in a booth, taking up the window seat.
Then the car doors close and the train takes for for Magnolia.
For home.
~~~
No more than twenty minutes later, our train stops at Magnolia Station, where we get off and make our way into town.
"It feels so good to be back home!" I say cheerily, stretching my arms above my head.
Nanami nods in agreement as she says, "It sure does!"
"Indeed," Grandpa adds, smiling.
We walk through the bustling streets, towards the Fairy Tail guild hall. As we near it, a pretty brunette woman with her long hair loose around her shoulders, most of it tied in a bun atop her head, wearing a blue and white bikini top with brown Capri that has a green and orange apron skirt thrown over, and an alcohol bottle in hand, approaches us, a smirk tugging on her lips.
"Hey, Aki-chan! Nanami, Samui, Momo, Loki and Vivienne! Glad you decided to return!" Cana Alberona greets us as she throws an arm around my shoulders, smirking down at me.
"Hi, Cana-chan! Of course we came back! Why wouldn't we? Magnolia is our home!" I reply, grinning at her.
"Hey, Cana-chan!" Nanami greets.
"We were just wondering if you were ever coming back, when Erza told us you haven't made your decision yet. It looks like I win the bet!" Cana says. "Come on, everyone's waiting! Well, except Lucy, Natsu, Wendy, Happy and Charlele; they haven't gotten here yet."
"They haven't?" I inquire, tilting my head. Cana shakes her head in confirmation. She then begins to lead me to the guild hall, the others following behind. We reach the guild hall in a couple of minutes where we find everyone, minus Lucy, Natsu, Wendy and their Exceeds there.
I immediately race over to Erza and throw myself at her in a hug, which she returns. "Hey, Erza-chan!" I greet, pulling back.
"Aki-chan! I had a feeling you'd come back, but I'm really glad you're here," Erza says, smiling.
"Did you guys really think we wouldn't come back?" Grandpa asks with a raised eyebrow, as he walks over to his friends, Macao and Wakaba.
Macao chuckles as he clutches Grandpa's forearm and replies, "Well... maybe. A lot of us thought Aki-chan and Nana-chan would want to stay back with their boyfriends."
Wakaba grins cheekily as he says, "Yup! I thought so, too, though I'd thought you, at least, would come back."
"But of course we would come back!"
"Is that Aki-chan and Nana-chan?! Wow!" Romeo says as he gazes at us in awe. I send him a cheeky wink to which he blushes. He's grown a bit over the past year, and his dark blue hair has gotten spikier.
With a cheeky grin on her face, Cana dragged my sister to the side, and from the blush dusting Nanami's cheeks, I could only guess that the Card Magic user is asking her about her and Sting, and what they've done the past year.
I turn back to Erza and ask her with a grin, "So, how was training with Jellal?"
"It was good."
"Oh? Just good? Did you two kiss yet?" I ask curiously. Her face immediately turns the same shade as her hair.
"N-No! We did not!" Did the Erza Scarlet just blush at that question?! Who knew she could be so flustered about things like this!
"Come on, Erza-chan! Tell me!" I say, nudging her playfully.
"We didn't do anything like that, Aki-chan! What about you and Rogue? Did you two do that yet?" Erza asks me, smirking cheekily. My face turns just as red as her hair this time, and I wave my hands back and forth.
"N-No! We didn't! Honest! I mean, we did sleep together a lot of the time but we didn't do that!"
Erza chuckles as she says, "It's alright, Aki-chan! I'm just teasing you." I deadpan at the redhead. I continue chatting with Erza while we wait for the last of us to return.
At some point, Juvia came over and glomped me, crying about how happy she was to see me again. Cana dragged me away to ask me questions about what is was like living with Rogue for most of the year. My face had put Erza's hair colour to shame but I was too shy to answer any of the questions.
It's not like it was any of Cana's business what Roguey and I did.
Cana went to fetch Lucy and her group, and when she returns with them moments later, the celestial spirit mage stares at us in shock, her chocolatey brown eyes wide.
We surprised Natsu's group but I think they were more surprised to see me and my family there. After welcoming them back, we celebrate for awhile. Natsu, Lucy and Happy chat with me and Nanami.
"Aki-chan! Nana-chan! You came back?!" Lucy asks, surprised.
I giggle as Nanami replies, "Yup! We sure did!"
"As much as I'd love to continue living with Rogue-kun, I knew it was time to come home. After all, Magnolia is our home! Although, Sabertooth has been our home for the past year," I say.
Lucy says, "For a minute there, I was sure you'd choose to stay in Sabertooth."
Natsu grins as he says, "Well, it's great to have you back, Aki-chan, Nana-chan!"
I raise an eyebrow as I place a hand on my hip and say knowingly, "You're just saying that because we're the only ones who can heal you of your motion sickness when Wendy-chan's Troia spell doesn't work, are you?"
A large sweat drop forms on the back of his head as a sheepish expression crosses Natsu's face. "Uh... no?" I arch my eyebrow a bit more, not believing him as he made his answer sound like more of a question. "Okay!! Maybe that's why I was worried you wouldn't come back, but you guys are the only ones who can heal me!!" Natsu grips my shoulders as he anime cries, making me sweat drop this time as Nanami heaves a sigh.
"Honestly, Natsu, what would you have done had we chose to stay in Sabertooth? Hm?" The bluenette questions.
Natsu just stares dumbly at her, blinking his tan coloured eyes a few times. Nanami face palms. Natsu turns to me as he asks hopefully, his eyes shining, "But, tell me Aki-chan, you guys aren't really gonna leave us, are you?!!"
"Of course not! We are Fairy Tail wizards, too!"
"You guys are the greatest!" The pinkette cries as he wraps his arms around me and hugs me tightly. I sweat drop again as I pat his arm reassuringly.
"Okay, calm down Natsu-kun. We don't have any intention of leaving Fairy Tail anytime soon, so you can relax," I assure him.
Natsu nods his head in agreement and pulls away from me. We then realise we were short a few members, and set to work getting the guild hall rebuilt, which is what the others have been doing. And so we're hoping to get everything ready in 5 days.
Later, we went home and went to bed. I slept in a bit the following morning, and after doing my usual routine, I discover that Grandpa has already left for the guild hall. I have on a pink tank top with matching coloured shorts and a sleeveless pink hoodie over it, a pair of pink combat boots that go up to my knees and have a heel, with my hair in a ponytail.
I head into the kitchen and make breakfast. Then, Nanami, Momo, Vivienne, Loki and I eat before we start making our way to the guild hall. Nanami wears a short sleeved blue top with a white skirt and white strappy heels, her hair loose around her shoulders.
As we walk toward the guild hall, the sun shining brightly overhead, a male's voice calls out from behind us, "Aki-chan! Nana-chan!" We turn to find Haru, Mamoru, Winter, Karma, Zuko and Ember walking toward us. It was Haru who'd called.
"You guys!! What are you doing here?!" I ask in surprise, grinning at them as they stop before us.
Mamoru responds, "Well, wed heard ab our Fairy Tail's revival, and figured we'd come help rebuild the guild hall. Hope you don't mind."
I say, "We could use your help. Thanks, guys!"
We catch up as we resume walking to the guild hall, where we find everyone else already hard at work. Winter went to help Gray nail boards to a part of the wall, Ember went to help Cana, and Mamoru, Zuko And Karma helped move wooden boards, with the redhead using his Telekinesis Magic to make things easier. Meanwhile, Nanami and I help Grandpa with another section of the wall.
I use my Amethyst Magic to create a gentle breeze that blows through the guild hall, since it's rather hot this morning. I hear a few of our guild mates talking about, Gray, Juvia, Nanami, Sting, Rogue and I.
"Did you know about them?! I heard they shacked up this year!" Jet says from behind a pillar.
Droy adds, a popsicle in his mouth, "Well, what I heard is that they all tied the knot."
"And that they had babies—a lot of babies!" Laki says.
"Ouch!" Grandpa cries out when he accidentally hammers his left thumb with the hammer instead of the nail.
"Are you okay, Grandpa?" I ask in concern, blushing at Jet and Droy's mumblings.
"Y-Yes. I'm fine, my dear," Grandpa replies with a tight smile. I raise an eyebrow at his throbbing red thumb. He turns his head and scowls at Jet and Droy, causing them to flinch and back away, scared looks on their faces. Grandpa then turns his scowl onto Laki who sweat drops and gives him a sheepish look.
My face is such a dark shade of red by now that it'll put Erza's hair colour to shame. While I do one day hope to make my own family with Rogue-kun, absolutely none of that is true!
I notice that Nanami's face is also just as red as mine is.
I was getting more and more irritated as Macao says in shock, "I know! What's even more shocking to me is that Lucy is his mistress! And I have to wonder how Samui feels about having great-grandchildren...?"
"No way!!" Romeo exclaims in disbelief.
Wakaba adds curiously, "And that fling with Erza!"
Gray exclaims in a flustered voice, "Would you stop with all those crazy stories?!!" He adds as a gloomy aura swirls around him, a disgusted look on the ice wizard's face, "Besides, I'd describe it as less than a 'shacking up' situation and more of a haunting!"
"And, anyway," I say, my face now flushed as I put my hands on my hips and glare at Macao, "Roguey and I did live together but we absolutely did not get married nor did I get pregnant! So, you'd better keep those dirty rumours to yourself, old man, do you understand?"
Nanami mutters, her facial colour beginning to return to normal, "Yeah, and it's the same with me and Sting-kun."
Macao mumbles, "O... kay..."
"Hey, Aki-chan!" I turn to find Asuka behind me, holding out the crystal I made for her seven years ago.
"Hello Asuka-chan," I greet, smiling back at her as I squat in front of her.
"I still have that crystal you made me! It still doesn't have a crack in it! Look!" She shows me the crystal, completely without a scratch, and I smile at her.
"I'm glad to hear it, Asuka-chan," I reply, thinking back to the Avatar mission. If I had gone on it, I most likely would've been killed, then the crystal I made Asuka would've definitely cracked. My eyes flicker over to the pinkette who was chatting to Lisanna. He senses he's being stared at and meets my gaze.
I send Natsu a closed eye smile, and when I reopen them, I see Natsu grinning back at me. I look back at Asuka and cup my hands. When I open them again, a miniature crystal horse rears and whinnies in my palms.
Asuka gasps happily and puts her crystal away, before chasing after the miniature crystal horse as I send it galloping around her. Every time Asuka would come close to catching it, the horse would gallop off again. Asuka laughs joyously as she chases after it.
I straighten and turn back to find Grandpa and Nanami smiling at me. "What?" I ask.
"Oh, nothing," Nanami replies.
"You really are good with kids, aren't you, Aki-chan?" Grandpa murmurs.
"Really? Asuka-chan and I are just really close, is all," I say, shrugging lightly. My thoughts wander back to Rogue and how he reacts whenever he worries about Frosch, and to what Laki said. I think Rogue would make a wonderful father, especially considering how he is whenever Frosch is involved.
"Okay, what am I going to put down for this last part?" Levy muses aloud, gaining my attention. I walk over and stand before her, gazing down at the paper on the desk.
Mira says in agreement, "That is a tough one."
Wendy asks, "Why is it hard?"
"Because we all need to make a decision about who our seventh guild master will be."
A shocked look crosses the bluenette's face as she says, "You're right! Wow, that is tough!"
Macao says, "Is it, though? I have the experience!"
"NOBODY WANTS THAT, DAD!" Romeo yells with a flustered look.
"Think old Gildarts will have another shot?" Wakaba asks.
"We need a guild master!! Not some deadbeat dad who comes and goes whenever the hell he pleases!!" Cana exclaims in a flustered tone.
Momo states, "It's a temporary measure until our sixth master returns, so anybody should suffice."
Lily adds, "Well, almost anybody."
"Maybe, but I'm not sure we're even the same guild we used to be," Cana mumbles. We look when we hear a ruckus going on and see that Natsu's entered a fight with Elfman. The pinkette charges at the male Strauss and kicks at him, but Elfman blocks it with his forearm. Natsu kicks again, only to receive the same result. My and Cana's eye twitch at that. "WE NEED SOMEBODY WHO CAN KEEP THISE KNUCKLHEADS IN LINE, SO SOMETHING LIKE THIS DOESN'T HAPPEN!!"
I laugh sheepishly as I murmur, "You're right, Cana-chan." Momo gives me a pointed look, her arms crossed over her chest. "What?"
"Well, I was just thinking that whenever a fight breaks out in our guild hall, and if you step in, then you can easily stop the fight. No one, not even Natsu and Gray, would ever dare hit you when you try to to stop the from fighting. Plus, everyone listens to you!"
"I doubt that," I say.
"She's right though," Cana says.
I deadpan as I mutter, "So, what, am I a tool, now?" I watch as Natsu and Elfman throw punches and kicks at each other.
"We didn't say that," Cana says. "Just that, you're the only person here who can stop these guys from fighting without using little to no violence yourself."
I sweat drop when Natsu knocks Elfman into Gray. "Well, that's not good," I mumble, as Gray throws himself into the fight.
"YEAH!! LET'S GET THIS BALL ROLLING!" Jet yells as he and Droy enter the fray.
"LET'S SHAKE IT UP!!" Droy adds.
"Sounds like a good idea to me!" Cana says as she, Laki and my sister race toward the fight.
Laki agrees, "I'm up for a good rumble!!"
Nanami adds, grinning, "You can count me in, too!!" Even our friends from Sakura Village have joined the fight.
The girls throw themselves on the males who are too busy fighting each other to notice them, while I hang back with a deadpan expression. While I sometimes used to get involved in brawls like this, I just wasn't feeling it today.
Loke suddenly appears and punches Alzac in the side of the head, shocking Lucy.
"Loke?!! I didn't summon you!!"
"You're under arrest! All of ya!!" Gajeel screams as he joins in on the fight.
"Oh, yeah!!" Happy cheers as Lucy has a sheepish expression on her face.
"Crap, that stings!" Elfman sobs, wiping at his nose. "You stupid jerks!" But I notice that he's also smiling.
Suddenly, a stray alcohol bottle goes flying and hits Mira on the side of the head, causing the white haired beauty to face plant. My eyes jerk wide as Wendy screams in horror.
Lucy cries out, "Oh, no, Mira!!" My bangs shadow my eyes as Lucy glares at the members fighting, and snaps, "See what you've done?!!"
I didn't even blink my eyes when I feel a dangerous aura from right behind me, as Erza orders, her voice filled with rage, "Get back to work!!"
I step aside and turn to see the scarlet haired beauty glaring deathly at my stunned guild mates. They're so stunned that their bodies have turned ghost white, and some of them were gaping. Well, except for Nanami and Karma.
They all say in unison, "Yes, ma' am!!"
Nanami giggles as she returns to helping Grandpa, "That was a lot of fun!"
Grandpa raises an eyebrow at her as he asks, "You're not scared of Erza?"
Nanami deadpans at him as she retorts, "Erza is just as scary as nee-chan, Grandpa. You don't know scary unless you've met a really P. Oed Akira." Nanami shudders at the thought while Grandpa sweat drops.
"That was so terrifying!" Ember exclaims, her purple eyes wide as she goes back to helping Cana.
"You can say that again!" Natsu says, having heard her.
Karma laughs as he says, "Well, I like this girl! She'd make a great guild master!"
Natsu deadpans at him as he mutters, "'Course you'd say something like that, Karma."
I face Erza and pat her in the shoulder as I say, smiling, "Congratulations, Erza-chan! You've just earned yourself the title of seventh guild master!"
Erza blinks at me in shock as she asks, "Me?! Why not you, Aki-chan?"
I wave my hands back and forth as I reply, "I'm not ready for that yet, even though I love the idea of being the new guild master of Fairy Tail, I just think you're better for it."
"But! You're a Wizard Saint! And everyone in the guild respects and listens to you—"
"It's just a fancy title given to me by the Magic Council. And, I know that, but I believe you'd make an even better guild master than me, Erza," I cut her off, though I sound sincere about it. I squeeze her shoulder assuringly as I add, "You're the seventh guild master now, not me. So, congrats, Erza-chan."
She blushes in embarrassment.
I turn to Levy who smiles as I nod and say, "There you have it, Levy-chan! Our new guild master."
Levy says happily as she writes on the paper, "Our seventh guild master will be... Erza Scarlet!"
We all break out into cheers.
Erza stammers in embarrassment, waving her hands back and forth, a blush on her cheeks, "Wait! Slow down, please...! Naming me as guild master... I'm flattered you guys, but—"
"You are the most suited for the task," A male voice cuts in, causing all of us to turn.
"Whoa! It's that guy!" Natsu exclaims, eyes wide.
"Yeah, that guy..." Lucy says in confusion.
"He seems familiar," Wendy murmurs, ginger to her chin.
Cana states, "He does. I know he was in the guild, but still... something's different. And I can't remember his name."
"Hi, Mest!" I call cheerily, waving.
"You know him, Akira?" Erza asks me. I nod, smiling secretly.
"I've been waiting for this moment," The dark haired man says, his face serious. "I knew it would come, and we'd be together again. Master Makarov is in trouble, and you're the only ones who can help him. At least I hope that's true."
Mest approaches me and asks, "I don't suppose you've showed her that yet?"
I blink my eyes a couple of times before I understood what he was talking about, and I shake my head. "I didn't get the chance to."
"What are you two talking about?" Erza asks, interrupting us.
"There's something you need to see," Mest tells her, as I nod my head in agreement.
~~~
"I had no idea that all of this was under the guild hall," Erza says as Mest and I lead her down the stairs to the basement of the Fairy Tail guild. Mest had asked me to come with him to show Erza the basement after I'd told him I hadn't yet, since I'm the only other person who knows about it, apart from Mest himself and Master and Gildarts.
Mest replies, "Yes. That's completely by design, of course."
"Tell me Doran—err, I mean, Mest, rather..." Erza begins, trailing off.
"Mest is my real identity," He states. "Your memory is likely still hazy. That would be my fault."
"Why didn't you and Akira let anybody else come with us?" Erza asks. "That'll definitely ruffle Natsu's feathers."
Mest explains, "This is a sacred and restricted place we've come to. In fact, only guild masters are supposed to know about it. These are strange times. That's why I'm here."
Erza raises an eyebrow as she looks to me questioningly, and asks, "Then why are you here, Akira?"
I smile at her sheepishly as I reply, "I actually found out about this place whenever I'd activate my Amber Earth Sense spell in the guild hall. It wasn't until after Wendy-chan joined the guild seven years ago that Momo-chan and I found this place." I sweat drop as I add, "Master caught us red handed and was furious at us, of course, and I thought he'd excommunicate us from the guild, but he didn't. He did make us promise to not tell a living soul about it, though."
"You're both very lucky, then," Erza says to which I give her another sheepish smile. We now stand before the doors to the secret chamber, and Mest pushes them open. Bright light spills out, illuminating the room.
Erza gasps, "What is that?"
I say, "Fairy Tail's ultimate secret: the Lumen Histoire."
"Master Mavis?!" Erza breathes in shock.
We suddenly hear a ruckus from behind us, and turn just as something comes tumbling down the stairs in a heap. But we couldn't see anything. I activate my Amber Earth Sense spell and heave an exasperated sigh as my teammates' vibrations reach my senses.
"Loki. Release the invisibility spell. Now," I command. In a second, Natsu, Lucy, Gray and Nanami appear, on the floor, with Wendy, Momo, Loki, Vivienne, Happy and Charlele stop them.
"Ow!" Natsu groans before noticing us. "Hey, there!"
"What are you doing?" Erza demands to know as I plant my hands firmly on my hips and glare at my teammates with annoyance.
Mest says in exasperation, "Seriously?! I literally just said that only guild masters were allowed. It's very important that we maintain its sanctity."
"Whatever! We're part of the guild, too!" Natsu exclaims, as they get to their feet.
"What is this, anyway?" Gray asks.
"That's our first master, isn't it?" Nanami asks, gazing at the naked girl in the crystal.
"She's butt naked!!" Natsu exclaims, his eyes popping in their sockets.
"Yeah! So give her some privacy, you creep!" Lucy snaps as she covers Natsu's eyes with her hands.
Happy asks, "Is that the first master's body in there? Is she still alive?"
Vivienne says in confusion, "What I don't get is, why is she in that crystal?"
Erza turns to Mest and I and demands, "What's going on here, Mest, Akira? Explain."
I respond, "We can't claim we understand it, either. All we can say is, that it's something extraordinarily important." Mest nods his head in agreement.
"FORGET ABOUT HER RIGHT NOW! WHERE IS GRAMPS?!!" Natsu yells.
"'Forget about her,'" Lucy says with a deadpan expression. We all gasp when something clicks in our minds.
I place my hand to my head as images flash through it.
"That's weird. It's like, I can see something," Wendy says in confusion.
Erza demands, "What is this?"
"You're seeing my memories," Mest answers, his left hand on the side of his face. "Beginning ten years ago."
The mission Master Makarov gave Mest was to work undercover for the Magic Council. He'd wanted information on the Western Continent. After Mest worked for the Magic Council for a few months, he'd erased his own memory, as being apart of the guild, which devastated Master. Mest had gone on a mission undercover as a Fairy Tail member a month before the Tenrou Island incident to get information, although he was unaware that he was already a member. Mest started to remember that he was a Fairy Tail member, and had suffered greatly when Tenrou Island disappeared for those 7 long years. About a year ago, Mest gave Master the information he was apparently looking for, and afterwards, ended up disbanding the guild. The reason the Alvarez Empire invaded Ishgar was to obtain the Lumen Histoire, but they were stopped because of the Magic Council. Master had gone to the Alvarez Kingdom in the hope of distracting them, since they had more guilds than Ishgar did. Master had disbanded Fairy Tail to protect his family.
Natsu demands to know once the flashbacks ended, "Okay! So, Gramps went over to deal with this empire... or whatever, and he never came back?!"
I breathe in shock, "Master disbanded the guild because he knew it was the only way to protect us."
Gray demands, "One whole year, and not a word from him?"
His face grim, Mest says, "Nothing."
"Why didn't you try to stop him?" Loki asks.
Charlele tells him, "You do know that Makarov is impossibly hard headed? What could Mest have done?"
Lucy asks Nanami, "Do you think he's okay?"
"I don't know what to think..." Nanami murmurs, trailing off.
Mest says, "Hopefully he's doing negotiations. But they could've imprisoned him. Or worse..."
"My heart tells me he's alive," Erza says firmly, as we look worried. "So, what'd you do?"
"I started following Makarov's plan," Says Mest. He briefly glances at me as he adds, "And I got to work on reforming the Magic Council. With some help from Warrod, I assembled the new council. This one, including the Wizard Saints as core members."
Lucy says thoughtfully, "We were talking about this back at Lamia Scale. They were looking for him, but Lyon said that they were concerned."
Mest says, "Warrod does know how grave the situation is, but we're not so sure about the others. Regardless, the entire council agrees that Alvarez poses a threat to all of us. They were able to establish a line of defence, and it seems to have deterred any invasion or attack so far."
Gray says, "That tells me Gramps managed to buy us some time, just like he said, you know?! So why the hell isn't he back yet?"
Mest answers, "I can't say for sure." He glances back at the first master. "Word travels slowly. He may not know the new council exists, or perhaps, they're keeping him there."
Natsu says, "You realise, we gotta go save him, don't ya?!"
Mest replies, "I know. I did as he said up till now. I got the council back up and running. But I'm in Fairy Tail, so it's time I start to break the rules a little."
"Now that we have the guild back together, no one's gonna stand in our way!" Happy cheers. "Am I right?!"
"We'll bring him back home!" Charlele agrees.
"Hell yeah!!" Momo exclaims, fist pumping the air.
"You can count me in!" Vivienne says, smiling, her arms crossed.
"Me, as well," Loki adds, smirking.
Erza holds her left arm outward as she orders, stopping the rest of us from agreeing, "Hold on—remember what Master told him?" She lowers her arm back to her side. "This is an unbeatable enemy. We can't act on impulse."
"Erza!" Gray breathes in surprise.
"WE'VE GOTTEN WAY STRONGER OVER THE LAST YEAR!" Natsu shouts in frustration. "DO YOU REALLY THINK THESE JERKS CAN BEAT US?!"
Erza turns toward the pinkette as she says calmly, "Master risked his life and legacy to save ours. He sacrificed everything. We must honour his gift. We'll do that by rebuilding the guild hall, taking jobs again, and restoring Fairy Tail to its former glory. We're finally reunited. We need to enjoy this moment of happiness together. As the new master, these are my top priorities." Erza begins walking toward the girl in the crystal, stopping a couple of feet away.
"We're not going?!" Wendy asks.
"Really? Come on! Gray complains.
"However, my feelings as a fellow member are different," Erza adds. "We have no other choice but to bring Makarov home, and quickly! Which means... that only those in this room will join the mission." Natsu and Gray grin as Erza adds, "A small team works best. We'll infiltrate Alvarez, rescue our Master and make our escape. This will not be an all-out war. Hear me? We need focus! That means, we won't be starting any unnecessary fights."
Erza gets right in Natsu's face with a pointed look in hers, as she asks, "Am I clear?"
"Y-Yeah...! Sure!" Natsu answers nervously, sweating profusely. He punches his fists together as Natsu grins and says, "Let's do it, you guys! Gramps is counting on us!!"