Chapter Text
"Part of love is to protect, with life and limb, with everything that you have, even your soul."
Erza woke-up to a strange, foreign world. The ball of energy swirling inside her was even stranger. She knew how magic was supposed to feel like. Whatever she possessed now...was stronger. It would have been a comforting discovering, that one.
If not for the fact that hers, wasn't. Unlike the citizens of Fiore, here everyone had chakra. One couldn't exist without it and she was starting to understand why. Much like in the case of magic, every chakra was unique. Sure, there was a grey area. Different emotions caused one's chakra to react in a certain way.
By the age of four, Erza thought she had all of them memorized. And the small swirl of energy inside her that had seemed so useless at the beginning?
It grew. It was still growing, expanding...
She was in awe, to put it simply. Fairy Sphere saved her. Not in the way she had expected but, complaining about it would be fruitless. Had it also saved the others? Erza hoped so. She prayed. And cried. Sometimes both. She vowed to find them. Her nakama...must be alive.
They must.
She had been an orphan, fostered by Fairy Tail. To have so many relatives now, to have a clan, to have a blood family, was surreal. There were just so many people dotting on her. Erza wasn't used to it; being taken care of. The Uzumaki were lively people in more ways than one. Everywhere she looked, she spotted red hair. Blue eyes. Violet eyes. Laughter had a permanent home here. It was hard to be sad or even angry. Not when everyone's good mood was so contagious.
If asked, every child's response was the same. "I want to be a ninja when I grow-up!" and off they went, throwing blunt kunai and practicing what would have looked like martial arts if not for their lack of grace.
And speed.
And proper sense of balance.
Erza herself had been proficient in a few styles though she didn't use them often. A sigh escaped her next. She missed sword-fighting. Her armors. And she definitely missed strawberry cake, but even more than that...
The Queen missed her fairies.
...
Her mother, Asami Uzumaki, was pregnant. She took those news in stride and vowed to make sure the baby would be safely delivered. It must have been quite the sight, a toddler following around her kaa-san not because she was a clingy child but to act as guard between her and any external forces. Erza didn't stay much with the other children during that time; too focused on being there. If anyone thought of her as odd, they dare not voice it.
Her tou-sama was not be trifled with.
"Akane-chan, go play with the others. You don't have to stay with me, dear." Asami tried convincing her, to no avail whatsoever.
Dying hadn't weakened Erza's will of steel. If anything, it was more durable than ever.
"Yes, I do." she argued and bit the inside of her cheek as not to elaborate. Four-year-olds weren't supposed to be eloquent or knowledgeable about pregnancies. "I want to." she added, a stubborn tilt to her lips.
Asami's stunningly violet eyes softened and bent low to kiss her forehead. Nothing could beat the kind of warmth that a mother's affection provided.
"Such a caring child." she murmured against the former mage's temple before letting out a sigh. "I'm touched but don't lie to me and say you aren't bored, Akane."
Erza opened her mouth only to close it. Lying was below her. But what could she say? Granted, childish games weren't very interesting. However, unlike the games from Earthland...those had practical purposes. Tag was for speed, hide and seek was for outside-the-box thinking; stealth, too. 'Ninja', the most popular one by far, was also the most complex.
There were no rules, either. Just organized chaos that she had yet to wrap her mind around. If older children were to be trusted, anything was fair game. 'Ninja make use of everything at their disposal.'
Her silence told Asami everything she needed to know.
"Very well. If you insist on staying by my side at all times, then I shall train you."
Erza nodded, eager to learn and make the older woman proud.
"The Uzumaki are special because we heal quicker than other people. We live longer and we rarely get sick." she paused. "Our stamina is our strength but the art of sealing is what we are feared and revered for."
Here, she tilted her head to a side.
"Sealing?"
Asami nodded, pulling out a scroll and a brush.
"Here, let me show you." she said before drawing a series of symbols.
Erza didn't understand them.
An ancient language?
Noticing her childlike confusion, the woman explained. "What makes our seals legendary is their complexity and how they require learning a dead language. Before we mingled with the other shinobi nations, we spoke and wrote a different language all together."
Erza bobbed her head up and down to signal she understood. Sealing reminded her of Levy's magic. Though the symbols were nothing alike, the mechanism was pretty similar.
"What does the seal do?" she asked, feeling how her mother's chakra left her body in small, controlled waves. Those waves merged with the ink.
Asami smiled.
"Put one of your toys there, Akane."
Erza took her wooden sword and did as told. She rose a confused eyebrow when nothing happened.
"Now try taking it."
The younger redhead did reached out to grasp the sword only for her hands to encounter a visible wall. She didn't insist, aware it wouldn't budge. Instead, she bowed her head.
"Please teach me, kaa-san."
A few days later, Erza was left feeling sourly disappointed. She stared at her tiny hands as though they had failed her greatly. What did that say about her, if she couldn't adapt, couldn't fit in with the rest? Magic had always come so easily to her. Upon discovery, it never left. She could always use it to defend herself and the ones she loved.
Of course there were limits to what four-year-olds were able to do but she couldn't help feeling frustrated. Never before had her progress been so slow.
Is this how the others felt? She wondered, melancholy threatening to swallow her from the inside out.
Eyes downcast, she kicked a pebble, watching it roll and fall into the river.
I...took my power for granted, didn't I?
Her vision blurred, sadness clouding it. She was utterly ashamed. How could she have been so entitled?
Worse still, I took Fairy Tail for granted. I thought my power alone would be enough to save them all. Always and without fail.
She was alive, yes, but victory was hollow if there was no one around to celebrate with her. Erza could go on believing her nakama were alive and waiting somewhere for her to come find them. Whatever things she chose to tell herself wouldn't change the cruel truth, however.
I'm alone again.
She lost yet another family.
Tears rolled down her cheeks. Erza allowed them to fall, didn't fight the water that begged to make its exit. All she did, all she had been doing...was fighting. It was what she knew, what she was good at.
What good was a soldier without battles to fight?
What good was a knight without someone to rescue?
What was a mage without magic?
Erza gripped her skirt. Whoever named her 'Titania' had been mistaken. Underneath the armor, she was human, just like the rest of them. Human, broken and lost.
"Akane dear, your mother will be giving birth any minute now!"
The voice of her neighbor, Mrs. Takeshima startled her. Erza's jumbled thoughts stretched to a halt. She blinked, taking a moment to digest the information she had been given.
"Okaa-san...is giving birth?" she repeated, beating herself up over leaving the woman alone when she needed her the most.
"Hai, little one. Let's go to the hospital right now."
The elderly lady picked her up as though she weighted nothing and proceeded to run, astonishing Erza. The Uzumaki elders could be as energetic as the youngsters. It was truly amazing.
She reminds me of Master.
Suddenly, there were tears in her eyes once more.
"I left her alone..."
"Oh, shush now, child. Don't blame yourself. Your mother is in good hands, you know. And she used to be quite the capable shinobi; still is. You don't quit being a warrior. It stays with you."
Erza wiped at her eyes. "It does?"
"Of course. The battles we face might change in nature, time isn't a straight line child and neither is life, for that matter. Life is a whirlpool, a never ending struggle. The world will always need warriors. And this I'll take to my grave: They are everywhere. Not all carry weapons but..." here, she smiled down at her. "...all are dragon-hearted."
Her lips formed a smile of their own. "Thank you, obaa-san." she whispered fiercely and hugged her.
"Maa, don't mention it. I don't want the other brats to think I'm soft. They'd be taking liberties with my cherry tree."
Titania nodded, thoroughly amused.
"Don't worry yourself, I know how to keep a secret." she assured the elderly.
Mrs. Takeshima lowered her down on the hospital floor and waved a finger.
"You better." Her expression softened then. "Go see your mother now."
Erza looked up at the doctor who gestured for her to follow him then back at the empty space where only moments before the old woman used to be.
She bowed at the waist.
Thank you for restoring my faith, obaa-san.
Asami looked exhausted but she was glowing with happiness and beaming at her newborn baby. Erza lingered in the doorway, feeling nervous. As if sensing her inner conflict, the older redhead beckoned her closer.
"Come, Akane. Meet your baby sister." she exclaimed.
The enthusiasm was contagious. She inched closer, observing the small bundle of joy that just entered their lives.
My...sister.
Erza's eyes widened when she felt tiny fingers grabbing her own.
"She is strong." she breathed out, awe filling her voice. "And so small."
Asami giggled.
"You were like that, too." she leaned down to kiss the top of her head, causing her cheeks to redden. "And look how much you have grown!"
I was wrong before. she realized.
"Can I hold her?" Erza asked eagerly.
I'm not alone.
"Of course you can." her kaa-san replied. "Here, let me show you how. You need to support the head..."
The former Fairy Tail mage followed the instructions, being extra careful as not to hurt her baby sister.
Gentleness had never been her strong suit, after all.
"What's her name?"
Asami grinned.
"Kushina, Uzumaki Kushina."
Erza cradled the baby to her chest as though it was the most precious belonging she had.
Kushina, arigatou.
Arigatou, imouto.
She would protect her at all costs.