Chapter Text
The train had already left Magnolia Station headed towards Dandelion. Although once it had been a large city full of tourists who visited it every year, there was a popular old saying concerning it: "only those born in Dandelion can live there". Even now, it hadn't been a tourist destination for a very long time and you could tell by the number of people who had boarded that same train: only the six Fairy Tail wizards. It had become a desolate place by now, one of those that you only set foot in to change trains at the station. In any case, Mei didn't pay any attention to those — useless for her — gossips and made herself comfortable in the seat next to Laxus, who already had his arms crossed on his chest and his eyes closed, probably too concentrated on trying not to vomit, not wanting to show the nausea he held like any other dragon slayer.
-Are you all actually here with us without knowing anything? We're talking about an S-Class quest, you know?-. Instead, Mei much preferred to ask the people who had settled in around them, after asking what kind of job they had to do. Freed and Evergreen sat up in the front, while Bixlow and Ray took the seats next to them. And all four did not appear repentant or regretful at all.
-We are Laxus' bodyguards, Mei, you know that. Where he goes, we come as well.- Freed concluded quickly and the other two Raijinshuu members proudly agreed.
Ray gave a shrug, instead. -On the other hand, I was intrigued by the thing about our grandmother and mother. Is it true that they never managed to complete this mysterious job?-
Bixlow nodded, asking instead what this mission had to do with the house they were looking for, to move in together: it was something the couple had decided while Mei was away with Team Natsu on the hundred year quest which they had just recently completed and, obviously, the Raijinshu were the first to know the news. Indeed, they had even helped Laxus make a list of possible houses to buy for when Mei returned after clearing the job quest, so the couple could visit them all together.
-It’s true. It seems strange, given how intent you were on finding the right house.- Evergreen nodded thoughtfully. -If I'm not mistaken, after returning, you also told us that you didn't want to work for at least two weeks-.
“Yep… I said that”. Mei believed it was the tiredness of having to deal with those dragons and all that mess: luckily everything had ended well and Gerard had even joined their guild, much to Erza's happiness. Putting those thoughts aside, before answering, she glanced at her boyfriend and sighed, noticing how he didn't say a word, too caught up in nausea. Mei understood then that he was leaving all the explanations to her. "Okay, let’s do this."
-I think it's better to start from the beginning… Make yourselves comfortable.- In the end, Mei turned to the others, changing her crossed leg. -It all started when that real estate agent showed us the house of my dreams…-
_______________
Mr. Uva, or rather the real estate agent they had contacted to visit the various houses they were interested in, had taken them everywhere, but none of them were ever able to satisfy all of Mei’s and Laxus' requests. In the end, driven to exhaustion, the man decided to rely on the only card he had left to play: a house on the outskirts of Magnolia, but not too far from the guild, just as they wanted. Two-storey, with a garden and even an old oak tree to embellish the view. Not too big, but not small and it contained their every desire.
Mei Vrubel fell in love with it at first sight.
-Oi, are you sure it's within our budget?-. Laxus, on the other hand, had remained quite reluctant and had not hesitated to glare at the short man to understand if he was playing with them or not. It just felt too convenient to be true.
-You won’t come up with an absurd amount of money, huh?-.
-B-but no! No sir!-. Mr. Uva was in a cold sweat, but continued to rub his hands undaunted. -The last buyers changed their minds at the last minute and it recently went back on sale! You're lucky, yes sir, you can even move in immediately! And it will be all yours for the modest sum of 500 jewels! A pretty good bargain, don't you think?-.
_______________
-Five hundred?!-. The three Raijinshu chorused in shock.
Ray, however, gave them both a long, judgmental stare. -It's clearly a scam! I can't believe you two took it seriously!-
Mei ignored him, waving a hand in the air. -Can you let me continue, please?-.
The brother snorted, but said nothing else, making Bixlow smile after watching that reaction of his. Mei, however, thanked her brother with equal irony on her tongue, before continuing the story.
_______________
After finishing the house tour and exiting through the door, Mei stopped herself from taking in the sight of the house with brightly lit eyes, immediately turning around with a stunned expression. She and Laxus glanced at each other, before returning it to Mr. Uva.
-Then you're seriously fucking with us.- Laxus crossed his arms over his chest with the look of someone who didn't want to joke at all. -A house like this for only five hundred jewels? Spit it out. What’s going on?-.
Mr. Uva tensed up even more as he tried to deny everything, but Laxus didn't give him any respite and was forced to reveal the reason for that absurdly low price.
-Haunted?-. Laxus and Mei exclaimed at the same time, looking at each other as if to see if they’d heard wrong. Yet, there was no problem with their hearing and it all seemed rather true, considering the man’s reaction.
-Whoever buys it, runs away and wants to resell the house after less than twenty-four hours. Every time this happens the price drops until it reaches today's... I must confess, it's the only house my grandfather never actually managed to sell.-
-Your grandfather, even?-. Mei was still shocked. -I’m sorry, but since when has it been on sale?-.
Mr. Uva looked down with a hand in his head. -This year it turns one hundred years old. I've tried to fix the problems, but I can’t seem to find the cause. Since you two are Fairy Tail wizards like the original owners, I thought maybe nothing would happen to you this time-.
Both Laxus and Mei were astonished by the news, instilling some doubts in the former: if it was all true, Laxus definitely didn't want to have to deal with strange phenomena of any kind. It felt too troublesome to him, but he also knew how Mei might think. In the end, Laxus turned to his girlfriend.
-What do you want to do?-.
Mei took a long look at the front view of that house, of the garden... finally placing them in the tree. Nodding, she knew what to do.
-Let's buy it-.
Mr. Uva was the only one who looked rather stunned, because Laxus was smiling at her instead. He knew she would say that.
-Yes sir… I'm pleased but, well, are you sure?-.
-The house of my dreams is in front of me and it’s even low costs… It won't be a mischievous and vengeful spirit that will take it away from me.- Mei placed her hands on her hips, showing confidence. -And then, we've faced worse. Modestly talking, I know how to deal with spirits. Don't worry, Mr. Uva!-.
Laxus shrugged, turning to the man, not wanting to go against her decisions. It helped that he also rather liked the house, but Laxus loved her too much not to give in. And then, all that was needed was to find a way to deal with whatever was infesting that place.
-You heard her, right? Where should we sign?-
_______________
-And what happened next?-. Freed asked, as curious as the rest of them about this whole spirit and haunted house thing. Ray perhaps more than anyone, because he barely kept his intrigued streak as a horror lover in check.
-It was a real ghost, right? One of those which often appear in the books I read?-
Mei barely held back a smile. -Sorry to disagree, but it was only a nature spirit. Exactly as I thought.-
Ray hunched further in his seat, lowering himself with displeasure and Bixlow shook his head, thinking that obviously he would have preferred the paranormal option to the more — for him — "boring" one.
-You should know by now.- Bixlow prodded his forehead with his finger. -Where there’s Mei, in most cases there’s also a request made by some nature spirit-.
Ray groaned a little, but Mei ignored him again.
-It was about the spirit that resides in the oak tree.-
Mei explained how the spirit had bonded with the couple who had built that house, two Fairy Tail wizards: neither of them could see it, but they cared so much about the garden and its roots that she had taken a liking to them. One day, however, they left on a mission and never returned. The spirit waited patiently for them, but someone had put up a "for sale" sign on their land.
-They didn't want some stranger to take over their special place and home. They’re still looking for the couple and hoping to meet them again.- The tone became sadder and the others understood what she was implying.
-After a hundred years… if they never returned from that quest, I don't think they're alive.-
Mei nodded at Freed's words.
-That's what we tried to make her understand... but in the end we managed to strike a deal with them. Seek the truth.-
The spirit wanted to know what had happened to them and only then would it accept them without question: the spirit promised so only because they were aware of Mei's reputation and trusted the nature binder. In turn, Mei was intent on bringing to light what had actually happened. Not only to be able to live without problems in the house of her dreams, but also for the peace of mind the spirit… yet after going to ask Makarov if he knew anything about it, being the original mage owners affiliated with Fairy Tail, they discovered something interesting that led to accepting an S-Class Quest.
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Makarov Dreyar sighed, showing a frown as soon as Laxus and Mei had told him everything: why did every Vrubel, like it or not, end up getting mixed up with that quest?
-Yes… I know what you're talking about.- Seeing how much they cared, however, Makarov explained what little he knew. -I didn't know them, since it was before I was born, but I was told about the wizards who lived in that house.-
Their names were Harry and Olivia, a newly married couple. This was a very turbulent time, with many feuds even within the Kingdom of Fiore itself, but despite this they felt confident in completing a quest on Dandelion. However, neither of them returned. At the time, some of them had gone to that city to look for them, but none of them returned as well. Subsequently, a certain news made them all give up: two dark guilds had clashed in that very city and had caused much destruction and innocent deaths. They closed the matter, believing them as dead, and their house was put up for sale. The craziest thing, however, was the mission they accepted.
There were no longer any details of the original one, which was mysteriously replaced by another and no one, after a hundred years, had ever managed to complete. For this reason, it became S-Class.
-In the city of Dandelion, defeat the fairy-eating witch… What a strange name.- Laxus read aloud, picking up the request sheet Makarov had shown them. Mei's eyes widened when she saw the amount of money as the reward.
Without thinking too much, Laxus decided to accept it, asserting his title as an S-class wizard.
-I'll take it. It's the only clue we have, after all. There's no harm in trying.-
Even though she knew how right he was, Mei couldn't help but sigh and feel already exhausted. -A hundred year quest… again. It hasn't even been a week since I came back.-
Laxus placed the paper on the counter. -Then I can go alone, if the young lady is still tired.-
Mei snorted at being teased like that. -Hey, I didn't say that!-.
Makarov then interrupted them, stating that it would be better if Mei also accompanied him: she wasn't S-Class, sure, but Mei could be the only one to help him.
-What do you mean, old man?-.
The Master then spoke to them about the reason why no one had ever managed to complete that mission: just outside the city, on a cliff, there was an old villa surrounded by a forest and a thick fog and it was said that the fairy-eating witch lived in there. Anyone who entered the path, however, got lost and found themselves outside without being able to get close.
-Only two people managed to overcome the obstacle. One of these is Fine-.
That name made Mei very interested, showing surprise.
-Grandma? Did she also accept this quest?-
Makarov nodded.
-A fairy-eating witch? Interesting. It's the perfect mission for a Fairy Tail mage!-.
The Master still remembered how she had accepted all perkily and proud, only to see her return empty-handed and annoyed.
-I entered the villa, but…-. Fine clicked her tongue, still angry.
-This mission is impossible. I won't say anything else. No one must try it!-.
-Really…?-. Mei looked strange, not knowing what to think, but the surprise didn't end there. Indeed, Makarov let her know that Ingrid had tried too, shortly after becoming S-Class.
“Ingrid as well?”.
-A mission that woman has never completed? Perfect! If that's the case, I'll take it! If I complete it, I’ll be able to consider myself stronger than her… don't you think so, Reine?-.
The younger sister shrugged, not at all as cheerful as the older one, but still intrigued.
-Think of it however you want, I find the fairy-eater thing much more interesting.-
However, they too returned empty-handed and irritated.
It's just a joke, I tell you, Ingrid had replied irritably.
I don't want to talk about it... I don't think anyone can defeat her, Reine concluded instead. And those same exclamations made both Mei and Laxus confused, but equally determined.
-We will be careful, Master-. Mei nodded, after exchanging a knowing look with her boyfriend.
-We must at least try.- Laxus agreed and then Makarov didn't object.
-Whatever happens, come back. It doesn't matter if you don't finish it, but if your life is in danger... come back. That's my only request.-
The two smiled at him, before exiting the guild and preparing to leave.
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-…And you know the rest. Natsu getting all indignant because he wanted to come too, Erza and Gray stopping him, the usual fight starting and you joining us.-
Mei felt particularly thirsty now that she had finished telling how things happened. She quenched her thirst with her own water bottle, while the others thought about everything. As Freed exclaimed, they didn't know much so it will be hard to get to the truth and find the right clues.
-Not to mention that witch…-. Ray agreed, thoughtful about the detail that neither Fine nor Ingrid and Reine had managed to defeat her.
-There must be something lurking underneath.-
Mei nodded, repeating that they should be more careful than usual.
-Of course, it's important... but I say we should relax a bit for the moment. We'll see what to do when we arrive.- Bixlow stated, reminding them that there were still half an hour before arriving. Ray looked at him with a raised eyebrow instead.
-I've seen you particularly cheerful since before, now that I think about it, you know?-
Bixlow pretended nothing happened. -You think so?-.
Evergreen, however, claimed that she understood him.
-It's the first time we go on a mission with Mei. I no longer remember when the last time was... and now we have Ray with us too. It will be fun.-
That statement made them smile. Mei was struck by this because she hadn't thought of it. Yet it was true: it was since her argument with Laxus that they hadn't gone on a mission together and several years had passed. Even though they had now made peace for quite a while, she continued to carry out jobs with Team Natsu, occasionally with Ray, while Laxus was always with the Raijinshu.
Right then she felt Laxus holding her hand, squeezing it, despite the nausea. So she understood then that he too, hundred year quest or not, found it decidedly interesting. Finally, Mei smiled too, happily.
-It's true, how nostalgic! Let's do our best, then!-
**
When the train stopped at their destination, they all got off much to Laxus' happiness. Yet all the carefreeness of the journey was attenuated at the sight of the city: desolate was the only adjective that could fully describe it. They had never seen anything like that. It could already be guessed from the state of the station — dirty, full of dust, rusty or broken noticeboards and signs, with only one employee, an old man who was taking a nap — but when they left everything was probably worse.
The weeds and soil were dry and on the verge of dying, with lots of animal droppings lying around. The buildings seemed disused, if it weren't for certain lights that showed that someone actually lived there. An acrid, stuffy smell was in the air and only a few old people were walking down the street. None of the inhabitants, however, paid any attention to them. Both Mei and Evergreen wouldn't be at all surprised to see some revolting insects scurrying around.
-Desolate is an understatement...-. The only Raijinshu woman commented, turning up her nose at the smell.
-Now I understand why they say that only those born here can live here... I would run away as soon as possible-. Bixlow stated, continuing to look around.
-Let's hurry and find the client.- Laxus stated, however, reflecting how he didn't like that place at all and not for the desolate and rotten air it gave off.
The same thing was true for Mei, who looked for the nature spirits of that place, but no one was in sight and this was really strange. “Usually, no matter how desolate a place is, there is always some spirit fluttering around.” She didn't like that reflection at all, combined with the strange sensation she felt coming from the city itself. However, Mei couldn't define what it was exactly and this frustrated her because she had usually always been very sensitive to ethernano.
-There’s no name on the request sheet, but only an address...-. Freed mused, reading it. -We better follow it-.
-But are we sure that they’re still alive, whoever they are?-. Bixlow asked next, and Ray theorized that they might have been dealing with a son or some other relative.
Mei thought back to the client from the Hundred Year Mission she had done with Team Natsu. -I say instead to keep an open mind to anything.-
Unable to do anything but agree, they followed some almost illegible directions until they found a small house on the outskirts of the city, covered in climbing plants and with a small vegetable garden, now destroyed and not looked after at all. From that place, however, they were able to see clearly the large villa that stood on the precipice, covered in a thick, intense and sometimes dark forest.
-Could that be the witch's villa?-. Evergreen commented that she didn't like it at all.
Mei nodded in agreement at her, while Laxus opened the half-closed and rusted gate wider. -Let's go inside.-
He was the first to enter, followed by Raijinshu and Ray, who stopped immediately after seeing his sister distracted, still looking towards the villa.
-What is it, Mei? Did you see anything?-
The girl shook her head shortly after and denied. -This place is strange, that's all.-
**
The figure of a woman immersed in darkness spread one corner of her lips upwards, tightening her grip on the half-broken and frayed curtain of the window from which she was looking at the view of the city. In particular, a small detail made her heart beat, cheering her up. She had noticed them as soon as they stepped into her Dandelion and got off the train. With her free hand, she stroked the fur of the beast at her side.
-Some fairies have arrived... aren't you happy, Dandy?-
The beast let out a small roar and the chain tied to their collar moved slightly. The woman began to chuckle.
-Me too, darling, me too... Who knows if I'll have some fun this time?-