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Porlyusica was not sure what to make of her, Leona was sure of that. But she was still a professional, first and foremost and she dragged Leona inside. She insisted on having Leona change her clothes since her own were soaked through. In due time, Leona wore some older clothes of Porlyusica, (they smelled faintly of the woman, but had a more stale scent to them) and she had her hair wrapped in a towel. She sat at the table in the kitchen, tea was brewed nearby and her hands were in a bowl of lukewarm water and soap. Across from her, Porlyusica focused on Leona’s hands and cleaning the wounds there. She never commented on the fact that Leona’s hands were shaking in the healer’s gentle, yet firm, grasp; the lightning mage was somehow even more grateful for this woman.
Neither of them spoke, not even when Porlyusica applied some ointment to her hands. Not even when she wrapped bandages around them carefully and just right. Not even when Porlyusica got up and poured them tea. Not even when they both took their first sips.
It was Leona, naturally, always curious, always more extroverted than the mother and son duo in the family that broke the silence “I want to see my husband and son.”
The older woman across from her sighed. Dark red eyes glinted in the soft light of the kitchen and Leona caught them immediately. Sica looked sad. “It’s been a long time, Leona. I am not even sure if you are real. And I just treated you.”
“I...I feel real.” Leona faltered. She blinked a bit and looked down at the tea. Sica still had her favorite mug here. Even after all these years. It made her chest feel light, yet full. “I went back to my...to my home first. There’s a new family living there now.” She didn’t bother to wipe the tears that escaped.
Across from her, the healer sighed once more. “You have a lot to catch up on, Leona. It’s been almost thirty years.”
Leona pinched her nose. “Just lay it on me. Did Ivan remarry? Is Laxus married? How is Gildarts doing? Isley? Jio?”
“Let’s...start slowly.” Porlyusica said and Leona looked up. She looked a bit scared. “From the beginning.”
“My death.” Leona nodded. She smiled a bit. “My death being the beginning how appropriate.”
Porlyusica frowned. “Your humor leaves something to be desired.”
Well, yes. Leona supposed. That was true. “Well, what is the date today anyway? I know the year.”
“December 31st.” Sica answered. “I found it strange it rained at all. But, I can now guess it’s not a natural storm at all.”
Leona felt a bit guilty at that. Just a bit.
At the end of the long woven tale, Leona knew a lot. Her brilliant, amazing husband had found a way to cure their son, even if it was risky and came with the price of dragon slaying magic. Lightning, of course. A year later, he was excommunicated after Makarov had had him duplicate the experiment and it failed. Then, her brilliant, amazing husband lost custody of their child and Laxus was handed off to Makarov and had little contact with Ivan. Laxus had little contact with Porlyusica, even. None from Isley (Sica wasn’t even sure where Isley and Jio were). Only had sporadic contact from Gildarts, who, after Leona’s death, seemed to take long S-class quests by himself with little regard for himself and it seemed like the world’s longest suicide. Rob was kidnapped on a quest and died. Fairy Tail had recruited children . Laxus was an S-class mage and in X784 had tried to take over the guild. The guild, before that, had an outright war with Phantom Lord. Laxus was excommunicated. Then he came back. But that was after the X784 S-Class trials where they were all assumed dead for seven years. (It meant Laxus was not as old as she thought he was. Ironically, they were about the same age physically.) Gildarts had his daughter’s identity revealed to him and he finally stopped his suicide run.
(The girl — Leona realized now — Cana. Cana . She knew she recognized her. She looked like Cornelia, who Leona met once or twice.)
Fairy Tail involved itself in wars, in fights bigger than ever. Makarov dragged them into an international dispute and — did he even have the jurisdiction? — he almost died but he didn’t and now the world was picking itself up back together. And now. Well.
Ivan was busy, too. He created Raven Tail to take down his father. He participated in the X791 games and fought their son. Well. Laxus fought his father’s team and won. (“With a well aimed punch.”) He was bitter, depressed and isolated from everyone because of Makarov of course he went off the deep end! He had virtually no one.
Leona didn’t cry during this horrible story about the lives of her family. She didn’t feel as if she deserved to. She left them. She left them to ruin. If only she had listened to Ivan instead of placated Makarov on that day, maybe none of it would have happened. Something must have shown on her face because warm, yet firm, hands cupped her own and Leona looked up and met Sica’s eyes.
“It’s not your fault, Leona. No one would blame you. You died.” Sica told her and Leona nodded. That was the logical point, after all.
“But.” Leona swallowed. “I’m not dead. Not anymore.” She yanked her hands out of Sica’s grasp and she stood. She took the towel out of her hair began to pace around the kitchen. “I’m not dead anymore, Sica. Why? Why now? Why couldn’t this have happened two decades ago?! If I was there — If I was there, I could have stopped some of it. Any of it!” Her last sentence was yelled, choked out from her by anger, by her grief and lightning struck just as it did before. Not on the house, but in the sky outside.
It seemed her magic was still answering to her. But lightning in the sky, it couldn’t. It couldn’t answer her questions of why. It was unfair of her to ask them to Porlyusica. Who had seen so much more, suffering and loss. How had she felt when Rob left and never came back? Ivan always assumed that one day, perhaps, Rob and his mother would get together but that never happened. Cut short by the fringes of time, death and slavery, apparently. How had Ivan felt? To lose his father figure? How unfair was this to Porlyusica, to get her back but Rob was still dead?
Leona closed her eyes and put her wrists to her eyes. “I’m sorry, Sica. I shouldn’t...I shouldn’t yell like that.” She opened her eyes again and her hands fell to her side and she peered out at the storm outside. Rain in December. Lightning in December. Dead coming back to life.
What an unnatural mess.
“You don’t have to apologize, Leona. It was...a stressful story. And these are stressful times.” Leona heard the chair grind against the floor and the soft footsteps of her mother-in-law. In the reflection of the mirror, she could see Sica behind her. Once more, Leona was granted the warmth of another person when Sica reached forward and grasped her arm. “You should eat something, Leona. You’ve only drank tea thus far.”
Leona shook her head. “I’m not hungry.”
There was a sigh and in the mirror, Sica’s eyes met Leona’s. “I’m your healer for the moment so if I say eat something, you should.”
Leona hated that tone. Sica and Ivan had the same speech patterns at time and Leona recognized this one as, I know I am right and so do you. She sighed again and nodded. She would never not listen to that tone again.
Her sandwich was eaten and it was well into the next morning. Leona was proud of herself that she managed to eat at this time. The storm still brewed overhead. Sica had gone to bed a few hours before, something about sleeping off a headache and how she was not so young to pull all nighters much anymore. She showed Leona the opened guest room, as if Leona forgot about it, but Leona instead made her perch in the sitting room at the front of the house.
She looked at the forest through the window, at the rain she brought down, at the storm in the sky. It was not a bright winter morning. It was dark, with the sun trying to peek through.
Leona didn’t feel like herself, not really. No amount of poking, at pinching, pulling or pacing made her feel like herself. And yet, she knew she was real. That this was real. She knew what was happening even if she didn’t know why. Even if everything she had learned made her want to scream and shout.
Let the rain be my tears, let the thunder and lightning be my anger. A transcript from an old epic about two brothers. They loved each other but one loved power more and in that time, he betrayed his younger brother. The younger brother wrote the foundation of storm magic that the older brother stole. Soon, they both killed the other in battle.
Battle. Bitter betrayal.
Hm.
Leona stood. She walked quietly and rummaged through the kitchen for a pad of paper and a pen. She wrote down a quick note for Sica and checked on her clothes. They were dry, now.
She quickly undressed right in the middle of Sica’s home and put on her clothes. The yellow jacket made her feel like herself once more. But she felt so far away and lightning needed a good anchor. Lacking that was what led to her death.
She walked outside the small home and into the forest. The crackling thunder and lightning, the rain on her skin. In her chest, in her magical core, she could feel it sizzling. Her anger, her grief, her fear all became the tether to her newfound mortal life. It was what she needed for the moment. Later, she could find peace, love and hope.
In a flash, she was gone. She lightning and she traveled fast and she had a destination in mind and her magic sizzled around her as she waded through the storm. No. As she waded through her storm.
Cana was enjoying the quiet morning in the guild. Well, as quiet as Fairy Tail could be. The storm outside that started randomly last night still raged on. The regulars were still here though, gathered in the guild. Well, not all of them. Only one member of Team Natsu was here and that was Lucy. Macao, Wakaba and Romeo were all here, the two adults talking while Romeo diligently played with Asuka. Bisca and Azlack watched the pair with soft smiles on their faces. Makarov was on the upper level in his wheelchair, talking quietly to Evergreen, who seemed not so happy with being the only member of her team present, but tolerated it enough that Cana was sure Makarov didn’t see her annoyance.
Cana smiled to herself. She felt happy, for some weird reason. It started when she met that drunk woman (And wasn’t it a strange thing that Cana was not the drunk one? For the first time in a long time.) but there was a lightness to the exchange that carried on over to the next day.
It was that feeling that had her sit with Gildarts earlier to share a breakfast. It was a small breakfast which consisted of freshly baked banana bread that Lisanna made for people and she saved some specifically for Cana and Gildarts because Lisanna, as always, was the best. Mira had already given some to Lucy and two were giving lovesick looks at one another, again.
It was quiet between them, which was nice. It meant they long passed the need to fill the silence between them with awkward words and Making Up For Lost Time. Cana preferred this immensely over That.
The Guild doors opened and with it, some rain and the sound of the thunder and Cana looked up from her coffee to see Laxus enter the building. She smiled and waved at him and was no longer so surprised when he returned it. He seemed tired though. He looked over at his grandfather and Evergreen and made a face for a second before his eyes were back to Cana.
“Laxus!” Gildarts was more...exuberant with his greeting. But, it did force the twenty six year old grump to walk over to them. Cana snorted — he was definitely at the moment abandoning his friend. (But they were friends again now, right?) “I figured you’d be more excited in this weather! A thunderstorm in December, isn’t that second Solstice Day to you?”
Laxus leveled Gildarts with such a dry look, Cana laughed and almost choked on her coffee. “No.”
Gildarts pouted. “So mean! You know,” he looked at Cana and wiggled his eyebrows, “when Laxus was a kid we used to call him Little Laxus .”
Now this was delightful. She no longer felt jealous at how close Laxus and Gildarts were (a catalyst, once, so long ago) so now she could reap the benefits this gave her. “Oh really?” She looked over at Laxus, who looked like he was plotting a murder. If he wasn’t blushing, it would be scary.
“Shut up old man.” Laxus grumbled and predictably, Gildarts laughed. At Cana, Laxus raised an eyebrow, “How are you awake this early? It’s not two in the afternoon.”
Cana stuck her tongue out. “ I actually feel refreshed today!” She smiled at him and his face softened just enough to make her stomach twist. “And I’ll have you know, I ran into a drunk lady last night and I was sober! And you know…” Cana looked down again and smiled softly at her coffee. “For some reason meeting her gave me this...good feeling.”
Gildarts raised his eyebrows before he wiggled them once again, “Really? She must have been special then.” Cana rolled her eyes at the innuendo. How did he get with so many women? He was obnoxious.
“Not like that!” Cana crossed her arms. “I can’t explain it well. But she was sort of crazy, dirt covered her and she didn’t care about the rain.”
“Sounds crazy to me.” Laxus said. He even sat down at the table, right at the end next to Cana. “I wish I could feel your good feeling...it’s just this storm.”
Cana and Gildarts both shared a look. It was Gildarts who asked, “What about it, Laxus?”
Laxus had begun to tap his fingers on the wood of the table. He placed his chin under his hand and sighed. “It feels...unnatural. It just started suddenly, didn’t it? And it’s January . Why rain and thunder and lightning?”
“Do you think it’s a mage?” Cana asked, her smile fell just a bit.
Laxus shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe? I’ll have to investigate it a bit. Magical lightning and natural lightning taste different. Natural is more sour.”
“Wait. Lightning tastes...sour?” Cana asked and Laxus nodded. At that, Cana laughed and elbowed his side. “No wonder you like lemons so much!”
For his part, Laxus let her elbow him and just rolled his eyes. “I liked them before...this.” He gestured vaguely to his scar and shrugged and leaned back, his arms crossed now. He never liked to talk about it and Cana noticed the way he looked at Gildarts before looking back at her. “But yes. Ask Wendy what air tastes like, I’m sure she can tell you about it.”
Cana shrugged. “Eh, I’d rather just bother you.”
Gildarts spoke up suddenly, “If it is a mage, we should try and investigate now. It could be some prelude to an attack made to look natural.”
Laxus looked doubtful. “Natural? A thunderstorm in January doesn’t seem natural to me.”
Cana opened her mouth to give her own theory when suddenly, Laxus stood and looked to the door. In the flash of a second, the guild doors were slammed open and Cana watched as it seemed a ball of lightning moved. She reached for her pouch as she stood, but the lightning was faster — faster than even Laxus was when he used lightning for travel. The lightning made a beeline to the second landing and there it stopped and there was a woman there.
Cana recognized the jacket at least. “Floros!?”
“What did you say?!” Gildarts’ voice cracked, but Cana just watched in stunned silence.
Makarov’s eyes were wide too but before he could open his mouth, Floros swung her arm right back and with lightning crawling up her arm she punched the Guild Master. Lightning cackled as her fist made contact and Makarov was sent flying off his wheelchair and into the wall behind him. Cana was so shocked she didn’t move. No one did.
“You killed me!” Floros yelled and she kicked away the wheelchair and stalked towards Makarov, who was on the floor. Cana should be moving now, but the woman's words. The way her voice sounded, it. Well, it shocked her. “And as if that wasn’t enough you took my family away! Broke them apart! You took my life, my husband and my son away from me !” She screamed. Her voice cracked and she picked Makarov up by the scruff of his neck. “I don’t give a fuck if you’re in a wheelchair Makarov Dreyar. You’re still a threat to my family as long as you live!”
Cana looked to Gildarts — he was the strongest one here right now — but he was frozen, his jaw dropped open and...were those tears?! Cana wanted to question it, but there was still action going on.
Makarov’s hand extended and he threw a punch of his own with an enlarged hand and Floros was thrown to the railing at the second floor. Cana still couldn’t see her face, but she was not deterred and the woman slammed her foot on the ground and lightning struck within the guild and hit Makarov.
Finally, it seemed Evergreen, the closest one out of all of them, got out of her shock. “Not that I don’t think you have valid reasons for attacking Master Makarov from the sound of it,” Cana almost laughed, “but there are other people here.”
“I don’t care.” Floros said and she stood straight. “If you don’t want to get hit, then leave.”
Evergreen shrugged and she jumped down.
“Evergreen!” Someone — Romeo, Cana thought — yelled but Evergreen just shrugged.
The sound of Romeo’s voice seemed to make Floros pause, though. And that pause was all Makarov needed to send fire magic at Floros. She moved out of the way and threw more lightning at Makarov and judging by the yell, it hit.
Finally, Gildarts got to moving. He leaped over tables and ran up the stairs and he yelled a name, one Cana never heard before. “Leona!”
Laxus made a noise at that, but Cana was confused. Leona? She said her name was Floros?
“Get away Gildarts!” Floros —Leona?—yelled. Her voice cracked again. “I have to do this!”
Cana watched as her father grabbed the woman, he didn’t seem to take note of the lightning around her. But for some reason, his touch made the lightning go away. It was like she didn’t want to hurt him. The strongest mage here.
“Leona—if you want revenge, take it out on me. I—I don’t understand how you’re here, if someone summoned you or if you’re just another historia.” Gildarts said.
Leona turned and Cana could see her side profile now. She looked shaken. “You? Why would I take revenge out on you, Gildarts?” Leona shook her head and she turned her head to glare at Makarov again. “He’s the one who sent me to my death. Even though his own son argued against it! ” She yelled again. “Ivan told you! But you’re so arrogant, so uncaring no—your own narcissism made you negligent and I’m the one who paid the price! Me and my family!” Lightning struck within the guild again, but it didn’t hit anyone this time. Cana could see from here how tight her father was holding this woman’s arms. “I DIED BECAUSE OF YOU !”
Cana felt her own jaw drop at that statement. Ivan Dreyar? This woman and Ivan Dreyar were connected? It explained why Gildarts knew her. She looked over to Laxus, who was pale and his hands...they were shaking.
It all added up to Cana suddenly, finally. Horror crept up her spin as she looked back at Leona Floros, Laxus’s mother, whose magic power sizzled in the air, only stopped by Cana’s father, who was openly crying at the moment. Without a thought, Cana reached for Laxus’ shaking hand and she saw that Evergreen held his other. The two shared a look and seemed to come to an agreement at the same time.
Evergreen let go and she flew over to the second landing and Cana pulled Laxus. “Come on, Laxus, follow me.”
“Wait, but Cana, I—” Laxus began to say but a glare from her shut him up and she pulled him away. Meanwhile, Evergreen went up to try and diffuse the situation.
Cana had no idea where she was going once they were outside. Strangely, it was no longer storming. Or maybe, it made sense. Leona Floros brought the storm, after all. Cana kept her hand tight around Laxus’ and if she used her thumb to brush her knuckles as a way to comfort him, then well, so be it. He’s done the same for her a few times now. Friendship meant give and take.
Cana was leading them through the Magnolia Forest seemingly automatically. But even if her back was somewhat turned to Laxus she could still feel some of the tension bleeding out from him. Their gait slowed as the path became even more familiar as they walked. And soon, they were walking side by side, their hands still tight on one another. They were both silent as they walked and, just like before with Gildarts, it was a comfortable silence. No words needed to be said at the moment. Cana didn't even know what to say.
Their destination was in sight soon enough anyway and the indomitable Porlyusica Styrne stood in front of her house, her arms loosely held by her side and even from here, Cana could see how tired the woman looked. Firm, yet gentle.
Leona had no idea who this glasses wearing, green clothed with wings mage was, but her voice was strong and seemed to cut through the double breakdown of Leona and Gildarts. “Why don’t we leave for now, hm?”
Leona blinked and she looked around. Makarov was on the floor, still alive and he seemed...spooked by her, yet he was angry. She could tell by the cold look in his eyes. She glared right back. But what stopped her truly, was not just the younger mages there (or the child she heard in the background...a child ) but the broken expression on Gildarts’ face. The one that said please, take it out on me, I deserve it, please . The longest suicide thwarted only by seemingly finding a meaning to live only to be shattered by Leona’s mere presence.
She closed her eyes and nodded slowly. She managed to swallow the bile in her throat.
She kept her eyes closed and she held tightly onto Gildarts' grip. The young woman led them through the guild and no one attacked them or said anything. She wasn’t even sure where this girl was taking them, but she let it happen. She just let Gildarts lead her through the town she once called home. The anger seemed to bleed out of her, just by the presence of a familiar, kind face and she hated how she acted, but she didn’t regret it. Not really. The crunch of Makarov’s face, the stunned look he had when she punched him, oh well. It did satisfy her to do that. Even if he was in a wheelchair and it may make her look bad in some cases, but he had it coming. He was still a person, anyway, a person who led her to her death and let her be washed away. A person who ruined . Her . Family .
(Sica said he didn’t even go to her funeral.)
“Freed and Bixlow are on a quest right now, so. We have the house to ourselves.” The girl spoke for the first time and Leona opened her eyes. They were inside a house. She lead them to a sitting room and indicated the couch and Leona and Gildarts all but collapsed onto it, still holding on tightly to each other. If they could, they’d probably melt into each other and become some blob creature.
“Leona...how? How are you...here? Alive?” Gildarts asked her.
She shrugged as best as she could and kept her eyes on her feet. “I don’t...know. I just. Woke up.”
“You—in your grave?” Gildarts asked and she nodded. She indicated the now red spotted wrappings on her hands and Gildarts let out a shaky sob. He was always sensitive. It made her heart hurt.
“This happened last night, right? When the storm started?” the girl asked and—really, Leona felt rude now. She didn’t know this girl’s name and Leona was in her home.
Leona nodded. “I...I used my magic to loosen the dirt while I punched my out of my coffin. And it just...never stopped.” She sighed and looked at the girl finally. “I’m...my name is Leona Floros-Dreyar. What’s yours?”
“Evergreen.” The girl said and her voice cracked. “I’m sorry but did you say—”
“She’s Laxus’ mother.” Gildarts interrupted. “The one I let die on a quest when Laxus was four.”
“You didn’t let me die, Gildarts.” Leona told him. She squeezed his arm with her’s and leaned her head on his shoulder. “It wasn’t your fault. I was killed on a quest we shouldn’t have been on together. One that— he pushed us to go on for the publicity and glory.” Tears fell from her eyes again and she hated crying. “I never blamed you. I didn’t even have time to blame you before I died—but when I woke up and remembered everything, I was worried for you. And Ivan. And especially Laxus, but never blame. Never.”
Gildarts shook his head, though. “But my magic—it made the ground unstable.”
“Gildarts!” Leona pulled away and she wiggled herself free of his grip so she could place her hands on his face and force him to look at her. He was crying now, that same broken expression. “Listen to me. It was my death, okay? And you. You are not to blame.”
“I promised Ivan I’d be careful, that we both would come back.” Gildarts’ chocked out and Leona. She couldn’t think of that right now. The schism that separated two best friends for so many years. For almost thirty. She had to focus on Gildarts.
“I promised him that, too, dummy.” Leona placed her forehead on Gildarts’. “We both shouldn’t make promises we can’t keep. It was never supposed to occur in the first place and you know this.”
Gildarts sobbed and she joined him and his arms wrapped around her. She barely noticed it before, but she felt it now. The metal arm of his. She wrapped her arms around his neck and squeezed him back.
(Later, she would be mortified that this exchange bore one witness: Evergreen. Who, for her credit, just watched and calculated while this happened.)
“I’m sorry you died, Leona.” Gildarts said finally.
“I’m sorry I left you all.” Leona said back, her voice just above a whisper.
“It wasn’t your fault you died.” Gildarts insisted and she laughed, but it came out as a sob. How the turns have tabled.
“It wasn’t our fault, no.”
As a believer in the divine in her life, she was comfortable with the action of death. Just, not how she died and who she was leaving behind. Cana was only six years old and it seemed unkind to leave her in the world and Gildarts...he didn’t know. He proved himself to be somewhat unreliable in their marriage and she didn’t know how he’d react to a child. How he would face impending and sudden Fatherhood. Maybe it was wrong to doubt him, but she held some silver of self preservation that Gildarts never had.
It wasn’t until Cornelia found out what the day was by the local healer who treated her hand wounds that Cornelia truly began to panic.
(In all, she had taken coming back from death rather well, actually!)
But still. It had been twenty two years of being dead. Cana would be nearing thirty. Thirty! Her little girl was almost thirty!
“Ma’am?” the young healer asked. “Are you alright?”
“I believe I am having a panic attack.” Cornelia managed to say. Calmly, at that. “May I have some ice, please?”
The young healer nodded and was gone and back in an instant. Cornelia pressed the ice to her chest and tried to control her breathing even as she felt the bile climb up her throat. The healer walked her though breathing, but really, Cornelia didn’t need that. What she needed was her daughter, safe and sound somehow. She needed Cana to be alright. She didn’t even care for answers and hows for the moment. She just. She needed....her daughter. To know she made it too. If she did, then living again wouldn't be so bad. If she didn't. Well. Cornelia didn't want to consider it.
Not really.