A/N: This is it, guys. This is really the end. No more tricks, no more CoLu Weeks to add more to this story. We've reached the final curtain on this story, and I couldn't be happier about the positive reaction this story has gotten over the past four years' worth of CoLu Weeks. You guys are amazing, and I love you. (I misspoke last chapter when I said it was three years.)

I'd like to give super props to imurmisconception, MadSoullessQueen, and Paname for being wonderful sounding boards, and for reminding me of advice I'd given before to put on my crazy hot pants and just write. If it wasn't for you guys, I probably would have agonized over the ending of this for ages.

2018 - Delirious

Epilogue

The days had passed in a flash for Crime Sorciere. Three days after Cobra woke up, Jellal went to a meeting of guild masters for the five largest guilds, with Mermaid Heel's guild master not in attendance because her funeral was later that afternoon. While Erza and Makarov attended for Fairy Tail, and knew just what Crime Sorciere was, none of the others did. So he explained it to them all. He told them of his guild's part in the efforts against Zeref, how they'd traveled to Caelum on a lead gleaned through Cobra's magic. He answered questions about why he'd formed a guild of former criminals, and then he'd asked them for a favor.

They'd been wary, but Jellal had powered through the unease in the decimated tavern they'd all agreed to meet in, and he'd asked for just one thing. For cooperation with his guild while they all worked to bring harmony to Fiore once again. He asked for each of the guild masters to inform their respective guilds of Crime Sorciere's presence, and to let them know that - regardless of the members' sordid pasts - they were still mages who were trying to do the right thing.

He had no illusions of being pardoned, or for the Rune Knights not to chase them. His guild would have to be careful, even while helping to rebuild towns and reunite families who'd been separated by the shift in the landscape. But if they could have tentative alliances with the legal guilds, then things would go more smoothly.

"While I don't see a problem with more help," Master Bob said carefully. His rouge lips turned down slightly while he took in Jellal's dented armor and torn cloak with the crest of Crime Sorciere proudly on display. "How can we be sure that your guild will hold their end of the bargain?"

"Since being released from prison, the former members of the Oracion Seis have been law-abiding citizens," Jellal said. That wasn't entirely true. Cobra was the biggest issue where law-breaking was concerned.

"I can vouch for this," Erza said. "They have turned over a new leaf."

"Agreed," Makarov said. He winced while adjusting his seat in his wheelchair, waving away Erza's instant concern over him. "While I was trying to reason with the Spriggans, the Crime Sorciere guild was there to keep an eye on me."

"These are the same people who terrorized the countryside and nearly ended the world," Goldmine said.

Ooba Babasaama nodded, her finger already spinning and ready to send Jellal whirling away from the group. "And weren't you the one who built that Tower that nearly killed us all?"

"I am," Jellal said. He turned away from Erza when he saw that she was about to protest. She couldn't protect him from this, and it was high time that he answered directly to the people for the crimes he'd committed. "And they were. My guild doesn't believe that our past crimes will ever be erased. We know that no one will ever forget what we've done, and the pain that we've caused with our careless actions."

"Then why should we believe you now?" Bob asked.

"You have no reason to believe me. We're guilty of everything you've said and more. But…" Jellal raised his head and looked right into Bob's eyes, then to Goldmine and Ooba Babasaama. "There is one member of my guild who believes in us, against all odds. She believes when we say that we want to make this world into a better, safer place. When we question ourselves, when we begin to doubt that we'll make a difference, we can turn to her and be reminded of what forgiveness truly means. Because she knows firsthand, the pain we've caused, and she chooses to stay with us."

"As heartwarming as that may be," Goldmine sighed, "That doesn't change what's been done, Jellal. We're too tired and worn to fight against you, should you choose to take advantage of it."

"We would never do that," Jellal said. "All I want for my guild is to be given a chance to prove ourselves. Let us help you put things back together."

When the guild masters remained silent, he was positive that his words had fallen on deaf ears. He knew Fairy Tail was on their side, but the others…

"I'll vouch for Cobra." They all turned as one to the only person in attendance who'd remained so silent, he'd been forgotten about entirely. Sting Eucliffe grinned from where he slouched on a half-destroyed chair, but it wasn't nearly as bright as it had once been. It was a tired lift to his lips that was echoed in the bags under his eyes. "And I'll tell Sabertooth that Crime Sorciere is an ally."

"You may be too young to remember," Ooba Babasaama sighed. "What the Oracion Seis attempted to do would have destroyed us. Our guilds banded together to put them away in prison, Sting."

Sting's minimal smile faded and his brows lowered as he stared back at her. "I'm not too young to remember. I may not have been a guild master back then, but don't forget… Before Fairy Tail disappeared on Tenrou Island, I was the same age as Wendy."

That was something even Jellal hadn't considered. And as he looked at the others present, he saw them mulling it over.

"But what they've done in the past is nothing in comparison to what they've done for this country," Sting said. He stood and came to stand beside Jellal, clapping a hand on his cloaked shoulder. "They joined us in the fight against Zeref. And I saw Cobra fighting. I was with him while he fought against Acnologia. We stood shoulder to shoulder, and he put his life on the line to bring that bastard down."

"It's not that we don't appreciate what was done," Bob said slowly.

"This is a very tenuous time for everyone," Goldmine added.

Jellal's jaw tightened and he bowed his head slightly while stepping away from Sting's grasp. "Thank you for your time, then," he said. "At the very least, let my guild finish resting here in peace. We'll leave once Cobra can be moved."

"Jellal," Erza said, standing from her seat. "Wait."

"There's no reason to wait, Erza," he said with a soft smile. "Their minds are made up." He nodded to Makarov, then to Sting who was still standing beside him, and turned to leave through the tattered cloth acting as a flimsy barrier between them and the destroyed city outside. He needed to check in with the guild and see how they were doing. Cobra's condition was his priority now. And after that, gathering supplies so they could move on and find another city in need of help.

Even if the guild masters wouldn't agree to a truce, to not pursue them if they were found, that didn't mean Jellal would stop trying to atone for his own sins. He would continue leading his guild in the right direction, maintaining their goal no matter what. They didn't need the approval of any other guild or even the Magic Council to do what was right. He knew they were doing the right thing. And with Zeref gone for good, the amount of dark guilds in the area would either diminish, or grow even faster than before.

There were always people looking for some sort of savior. And some stupidly believed that Zeref was that savior. He was sure people would continue believing it, even after the pain and suffering caused by this war.

Before Jellal could take two steps away from the other guild masters, the cloth over the door was ripped away, and a lone figure stumbled inside on a direct path to the gathered mages. His footsteps were heavy and uneven, but there was no solid sound of boots on warped wood. Just the slap of bare, dust-covered feet as he ambled closer to them.

"That's a load of horseshit, and you fucking know it." Cobra groaned when he stumbled again and Jellal caught him. His arm stayed wrapped around his bare stomach - missing the bandages that should have been there because he'd snuck out while Lucy went in search of clean ones for him. Cobra pushed away from Jellal and forced himself to stand on his own. "You're all a bunch of fucking pussies."

"Excuse me?" Bob gasped.

"Cobra," Erza said with a scowl. "You shouldn't be moving around. Wendy-"

"Wendy can suck it the fuck up!" he shouted, doubling over a moment later when pain shot through his stomach and radiated down to his thighs. He very nearly vomited from the pain, but he breathed through it as best as he could. Even with his hands on his trembling knees, he forced himself to look at the shocked faces around him.

He couldn't stop himself from hearing their souls, even from the makeshift infirmary nearly a block away. And when he'd heard what was happening, how Jellal was fucking this whole thing up, he couldn't just sit there and let it happen.

"You don't like us, fine," Cobra growled from between tightly clenched teeth. "You think we're a bunch of fucking monsters and murderers, we are. But don't sit there and spin it like you're doing this for the good of mankind or some other bullshit!"

"Cobra, stop," Jellal said softly. "You need to relax." He and Sting came closer to try and help Cobra before he could fall over, only to stop dead in their tracks when he stood and pulled his bloody hand away from his stomach.

"You want a pound of flesh from us, then take it," Cobra spat. He couldn't find it in himself to smile at the sickened waves washing through their souls as they watched blood seep from his stitched wounds. "I gave that fight everything I fucking had for ungrateful pieces of shit like you. To come back to a place that wants me and my guild dead."

"No one ever said we want you dead," Makarov said gently. "Child, you really should lie down."

"What's the fucking point?" Cobra roared. "Nothing we do will be good enough for you. No amount of tiptoeing around and playing the fucking good guy will make you assholes see that we're not the real fucking monsters here! The real monster was Zeref. And that piece of shit Acnologia who tore my ass to pieces! But that's not good enough for you? What more do you want from-"

"Erik, what the hell?!"

Everyone watched Cobra's shoulders slump and his head drop back in defeat. The shift in him was so sudden, they weren't sure what was about to happen. Well, no one except Jellal knew. He'd seen this play out enough times to know that Cobra was giving up instead of trying to fight with Lucy. Maybe he was just too tired to argue with her.

Lucy stormed into the center of the tavern with her own cloak billowing behind her, and her worn leather boots cracking so loudly on the floor that Jellal was sure the wood was going to snap. She didn't look at anyone else, only at Cobra, who merely tilted his head in her direction.

"I leave you alone for five minutes, and you leave the infirmary to go galavanting around a fucking warzone?"

"War's over," he sighed. "I'm just trying to make them understand that we're not like we used to be."

"Jellal said he was going to handle it," she said. "So leave it to him."

"He was fucking it up."

She stopped in front of him, glaring up at his chin before turning her attention to his stomach. Lucy's eyes widened, then narrowed even further than before. She didn't say a word, and instead reached forward and flicked him in the stomach. The way he howled and doubled over, clutching at his stitches, startled the other guild masters. Jellal simply sighed and took a small step back.

"Oh my," Bob gasped. "What in the world is going on?"

"Wendy told you to rest," she hissed, glaring down at him. "And you're out here, undoing all the work she put into reconstructing your organs, to do what?"

"Fuck you," he groaned. "Asshole…"

"If you throw up more poison on me, I'm not gonna be happy."

"Then don't fucking hit me!"

"Then don't get off that cot unless you're told!" Lucy screeched. "Are you trying to get yourself killed?!"

Cobra's head shot up and he glared at her. "Are you fucking kid…" He trailed off after that, and everyone present watched as his anger melted away until all that was left was a pinch between his brows as he stared up at her. Cobra's head tilted just slightly and Jellal turned his attention toward Lucy.

The first of her tears slid down her cheek as she crossed her arms under her chest. With her face shadowed by her hair, the others couldn't see it. But he could.

After having her with the guild for the past year, he'd come to understand Lucy fairly well. And ever since she'd gotten hurt in Caelum, everyone had been able to see a different side of Cobra when it came to her. He'd long since grown accustomed to the silent conversations they had with one another. He wasn't sure if Cobra was actually talking to her in some way, or if he was simply reacting to her thoughts in a way that only she understood.

But Jellal had a feeling that these tears of hers were a direct result of Cobra having disappeared when she was trying to care for him. And the fact that he'd ignored his own injuries, possibly setting back his recovery by weeks, all so he could rip into the guild masters in this room.

"Uh," Sting muttered. Before he could say anything else, Jellal stepped over to him and put a staying hand on his arm.

When Sting looked at him instead, Jellal smiled and said, "This happens all the time."

Finally, Cobra stood. It was slow, and he mostly held back a quiet, pained groan. But once he was upright, he wrapped an arm around his stomach and the other around Lucy's shoulders. "I'll go back now," he said to her. "Make sure I don't keel over in the street?"

Lucy simply nodded and curled into his side, letting him use her for support while they walked out of the tavern. Jellal knew that everyone was staring at the scars littering Cobra's back. It was only from being around the Poison Slayer so often that he didn't react to them in the slightest any longer.

Once they were gone, Sting turned his attention back to Jellal. "Wait, was that Lucy? Like, Natsu and Lucy, Lucy?"

"Yes," he chuckled. "She joined the guild after Fairy Tail was disbanded." He looked over at the stunned guild masters, then toward Makarov who had happy tears in his eyes. Erza was smiling where she stood beside the small Fairy Tail mage. "I would say that we've taken good care of her while she's been with us, but…"

"She seems to be taking care of you," Makarov said softly. "She's always been such a kind child."

Jellal's head lowered and he smiled down at the floor. He missed the way Bob's eyes softened, and how he nudged Goldmine in the side. "She does, Master Makarov. Lucy's brought all of us closer together. Cobra even stopped poisoning my food every morning."

"He only does it every couple months now," Erza interjected, causing the older mages to laugh quietly to themselves.

Jellal sighed and shook his head. "We're lucky to have her," he said. Mostly because there was now someone in the guild who could get Cobra to actually listen to reason when he would otherwise go on a killing spree. Meredy had been the one to spread the ongoing joke of her being the Dragon Whisperer, and everyone in the guild had latched onto it.

It was even funnier when Cobra got angry over it, only for Lucy to start massaging just behind his ears. It shut him up in an instant.

"Your guild sounds about as dysfunctional as we were," Bob giggled. "Oh, Makarov, don't you remember that?"

"I remember how much damage you caused," Makarov laughed.

"Oh, please," Bob tittered. "Goldmine was ten times worse than I was, and when you put him and Rob together…"

"Anarchy," Goldmine chuckled, shaking his head. "But we had Porlyusica there to patch us up."

"And Makarov to take the fall," Bob said. He turned back to Jellal, his smile much more genuine. "Tell me something, and tell me honestly."

Jellal nodded, waiting for the question that he felt would decide the fate of his guild in the coming months.

"If there was one thing you could change from your past, what would it be?" Bob asked, crossing one hairy leg over the other. Now that was something that Jellal could answer easily. He'd given it a lot of thought over the years while trying to come to terms with his own guilt.

"Absolutely nothing," he said, smiling at the curious looks he received. "The man I am today only exists because of those experiences. I know what pain and heartbreak feel like, having felt it myself and having been the cause of it for so many others. There are people alive today because of my presence, even if it was only for a short time."

He was not going to look at Erza, even though he could tell she was trying not to smile at him.

"The former Oracion Seis members wouldn't have suffered any less in the Tower of Heaven if I hadn't been there," he continued. "And while I have made a great number of mistakes in my lifetime, and I've hurt so many people with my choices, I'm capable of righting those wrongs now because of what I've endured. I can make a difference and stop someone else from following the path I took, because I know where it leads."

Bob looked at Goldmine, then over to Ooba - who'd fallen asleep at some point and was quietly snoring away on her chair, her finger still spinning in a circle. He smiled and uncrossed his legs more gracefully than Jellal would have imagined possible for a man of his stature. "It looks like we've come to an agreement," Bob said. "Blue Pegasus is now an ally of Crime Sorciere."

"Quatro Cerberus as well," Goldmine said.

"Let's just assume Ooba also agreed," Makarov chuckled.

"You have the support of Fairy Tail," Erza said with a proud grin.

"And Sabertooth," Sting chimed in.

Jellal bowed low to all of them, hiding his smile as best as he could. "My guild and I thank you," he said softly. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to make sure my Dragon Slayer hasn't died."

"Oh, he should be fine," Bob giggled. "A delicious man like him? Those injuries won't keep him down for long."

"I doubt it's the injuries he's worried about," Erza said, smirking. "But Lucy will handle him. If she's going to marry him, she should learn how to do it now."

"They're getting married?!" the men in the room, except for Jellal, shouted in unison. Ooba Babasaama shrieked and used her Spinning magic, sending the entire gathering whirling out of the open doorway of the tavern and into the war-torn street.

Crime Sorciere left their most recent encampment in the newly rediscovered Stone Forest that now surrounded the Mercurius Palace, instead of Sun Village as it once had. They'd been summoned to the palace by a royal messenger, with no explanation whatsoever as to what the reason was for their requested presence.

Jellal had been utterly baffled by the scroll that had been given to him. Even more confusing was the added message from the man who'd dropped it off.

"Be sure to clean yourselves up before meeting with her majesty."

Well, it wasn't as though they had much opportunity for getting a warm shower and washing their clothes in anything that wasn't a river. But then Angel had reminded them that Lucy's spirit, Virgo, might be over the moon with the prospect of doing those chores.

The spirit in question had opened her own gate and scared the living daylights out of Lucy - much to everyone else's amusement - only to offer her services in person. Washing and mending their clothes and armor was at the top of her list. After that, she also wanted to get them some new clothing made for their meeting with Queen Hisui. And Lucy, who really wanted to say that she didn't have to do all that, saw the look on Virgo's face when she offered. She saw the hopeful gleam in her normally vacant blue eyes.

She hadn't been able to say no. Besides, she already denied the spirit punishment every time she asked for it - which, Cobra had still conveniently "forgotten" to tell Lucy that Virgo actually liked being denied - so letting Virgo do some chores if she really wanted to was a concession Lucy was willing to make.

"We're getting arrested," Angel sighed, looking down at the feathered dress Virgo had made for her as they walked through the forest. "At least we'll look good while doing it."

"Better than the other two times," Racer chuckled.

Midnight nodded. "At least my makeup isn't messed up this time. And I'm not crying… That's a plus."

"Why were you crying when you were arrested?" Meredy giggled.

He gave her a lazy smirk, not noticing how her cheeks flushed a gentle pink when their eyes locked. "A certain someone used the Infinity Clock against me," he said. "I was stuck in a nightmare, and bawling my eyes out."

"It was pretty disgusting to look at," Cobra chuckled.

Lucy frowned up at him - which he ignored - then turned toward Midnight. "You know, I am sorry about that," she said. "I'm glad you're okay now."

Midnight simply waved away her concerns as he yawned and stepped over a stone flower. "It was self defense. I was trying to sacrifice you. You turned it around on me. We're even." He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. She still looked upset though. It had happened so long ago, and they'd been through so much since then, he didn't hold it against her. Especially not after seeing the way she'd taken care of Cobra, who was the most childish brat when he was hurt.

"One, no I'm not," Cobra spat. "I was incapacitated, and literally couldn't do shit without her yelling at me."

"Oh, she babied you, and you know it," Midnight chuckled.

"It's not like I asked her to do it."

"But you didn't stop her either," Angel snickered. "It was precious."

"Shut up, Featherduster," Cobra huffed, then set his attention on Midnight once again. "And two…" His lips turned down slightly, and he looked to Lucy instead while wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Don't feel bad about it, Belle. He didn't ever really hate you for that shit in the first place."

"No, I hated my makeup for running," Midnight said. "I looked like a mime that got gangbanged by a hoard of giant, muscled prostitutes."

"Oh my god," Lucy laughed. In an instant everyone else joined in, and Midnight just shook his head while slowing in his steps. They all looked ahead of them and found a whole garrison of knights standing guard in front of the palace.

Jellal took the lead position, and Cobra removed his arm from around Lucy's shoulders before taking a wide step away from her. She simply rolled her eyes over it, but didn't argue when they started walking forward once more. Jellal paused when an officer came forward to meet them, then handed him the message they'd been given telling them to appear before the Queen.

When they'd gotten it, there had been no question in Jellal's mind, just what was going to happen. They were going to be arrested again, regardless of whether or not this seemed to be an olive branch from the monarchy. They all knew better.

Still, on the off chance that it wasn't to arrest them, Jellal had insisted they go to see the Queen. They were trying to be law-abiding citizens, and they didn't have anything to hide. Since the war with Alvarez a year prior, they'd done everything in their power to help the citizens of Fiore to rebuild and get their lives back together. Crime Sorciere had put everything else on hold to help others, and the only time they hadn't stopped to help someone was when Cobra heard a whisper in someone's soul about a dark guild trying to recruit members.

That had them traipsing all over the country - trying not to get lost - to stop those guilds before they could really get started.

It was more than surprising for them not to be handcuffed first as the knight in front of the palace garrison looked over the paper, then at each of them. Instead, he motioned for the knights to move and allow them to enter the palace, unhindered and with full use of their magic.

That was how the eight mages making up the small guild of former criminals (and one who wasn't) found themselves kneeling in the throne room of Mercurius. Kneeling before the newly appointed Queen of Fiore, Hisui, with Arcadios glaring down at them from just behind her.

"The independent mage guild, Crime Sorciere, my Queen," a nearby squire said. They listened to his quick tapping footsteps as he rushed away from the gathering. No one spoke until the heavy doors had been slammed shut.

Hisui looked down at the mages kneeling before her. "Jellal Fernandes," she said, and his head lifted slowly for him to meet her gaze. "Leader of Crime Sorciere, former Council member and Wizard Saint under the name Siegrain. The perpetrator behind the R System's completion in X784. An owner of slaves and a murderer."

Jellal winced and lowered his head again.

Hisui looked at the two men kneeling just behind him. "Midnight of the Oracion Seis, and Brain II of the Neo-Oracion Seis. The mastermind behind the Infinity Clock, and guilty of orchestrating the murder of nearly every Celestial mage in Fiore."

Midnight's shoulders raised just slightly as he tried to shy away from her without moving all that much.

"Meredy of Grimoire Heart," Hisui said, skipping past Cobra and looking at the row of kneeling mages behind him and Midnight. "The second guild of the Balam Alliance. A murderer and thief since the age of seven. Racer, Angel, and Hoteye of the Oracion Seis…"

She looked down at the head of familiar blonde hair, then back to Jellal. "You've gathered quite the group here, Jellal."

"I have, my Queen," he said softly, keeping his head bowed.

"If the last part of the Balam Alliance hadn't been demons, how many of them would you have recruited into your ranks?"

Jellal fought not to look at her. "Whoever sought redemption and atonement for their sins," he said instead.

"And is that what you believe your guild of criminals has done?" she asked. "You wander around in my country, free from persecution of your crimes. Weren't you the one to break the Oracion Seis out of prison?"

"No, my Queen," he said. "I took them in after the prison was destroyed by Jackal of Tartaros. They were saved by someone else."

"And were their lives worth saving?"

"All lives are worth saving," he said.

"Even the life of someone who murders anyone they come across?" she asked, her gaze finally falling on Cobra. "Is someone like Cobra of the Oracion Seis really worth saving? He doesn't just murder people. He mutilates them, disembowels them, then sets their corpses up as macabre displays for all to see. He burns churches to the ground with women and priests locked inside. While Midnight was the one who planned the deaths of those Celestial mages, Cobra is reported to have been at the heart of the actual murders. Is someone who tortures innocent children truly worth keeping in this world?"

Jellal raised his head then, his hands tightening into fists where they were pressed to the cool marble floor. "All lives are worth saving," he said. "Cobra has vowed to spend his life atoning for the mistakes of the past, and I won't turn someone away when they want to become a better person."

Cobra smirked only a moment before Hisui did the same. She watched as Jellal's deep brown eyes flickered with determination until it roared across his features. How dedicated, he was. "It has come to my attention that you've been travelling from one side of the country to the other. What have you been doing?"

"Helping the people," Jellal said. "The war affected everyone, and we don't take payments for our work like legal guilds do. So those who can't pay for a job request can count on us."

"What sorts of payment do you take?" she asked.

"None," Jellal said. "We help them with no charge to them."

"I see…" Her eyes narrowed slightly before she raised her hand. The guild mages tensed, even as Arcadios came forward and placed a small stack of papers in her gloved hand. "Do you know what these are?"

Jellal didn't need to shake his head. There was no way for him to know what those papers were.

A hidden door behind her throne opened, and three knights came marching out with large stacks of scrolls and sheaves of bound envelopes hefted in their arms. They came to stand on either side of the throne, but stayed silent.

"And how about these?" Hisui asked. "Are you aware of what these are?"

"No, your majesty," Jellal said carefully. His gaze honed in on her other hand when she lifted a single envelope.

"And this one?"

"No, your majesty."

"These letters have been pouring in for months," she said. "Each of them talks about assistance they received from mages who wouldn't give anyone their names. A man with one eye who waded through a marsh for two days, rescuing a four year old girl. A woman dressed like a bird who brought angels from the sky to reassemble an entire building. A man running so quickly that the only evidence he'd been there were footprints on the road and the buckets of water being thrown on a fire."

Jellal's brows drew together in confusion once again. He remembered those things that they'd done, but for the most part, no one had been around for them. A few townspeople here and there, but that was it.

Hisui set her papers in her lap and picked up the top page, then turned it toward them. A poorly drawn image of a person with long black hair, a white face, and black lips covered the paper. Surrounding the person was a bright red heart. She read the back of the page to them. "It says, 'Thank you for helping me sleep because Mommy's dead.' Charming."

She tossed the page on the ground, watching as it fluttered down the steps and slid across the marble toward Midnight. With his head still bowed, he simply stared at it. He remembered that little girl. She'd been having nightmares so intensely from her mother's death that Cobra had been able to hear her soul screaming in terror halfway across the country. It took them two months to make their way to her - stopping along the way as they'd been needed. When they'd finally reached the girl, Midnight had found a frail, malnourished little thing whose grandmother hadn't known how to care for her anymore. She'd refused to eat or sleep, and when her little body couldn't stay awake any longer, she was caught in memories of her mother dying right before her eyes. Frozen to the core and shattered by Invel's chilling fight against Gray.

It had taken him three days and nights to figure out a way to help her sleep peacefully. Midnight had never told her his name. He'd only said that he was there to help.

"This one says, 'Thank you for taking away the snakes.'" Hisui tossed another page on the floor, showing a drawing of some person with pointed ears and a scarred eye wrapped up in snakes, and smiling. "And this one. 'Dark guilds ate my brother, but you killed them good. Thanks.'" She gestured to the knights who were still holding large stacks of papers. "It's not hard to figure it out. Between the reports we're getting from Rune Knights about attempts at creating dark guilds being thwarted before they even begin, and the amount of men and women who are tied up and waiting outside the jail for them… and then these letters… It must be quite the group of mages they're talking about."

Jellal said nothing, even though he could feel Angel and Meredy glaring at his back. They probably wanted him to take credit for what they'd done, but he couldn't. They were just doing the right thing. They didn't need recognition for it. Hell, it was a miracle that the legal guilds all agreed to not pursue them - after he'd gotten Fairy Tail and the other four on their side, of course.

"But if that wasn't enough," Hisui sighed. She held up the single envelope again, then opened the flap and pulled out a letter consisting of several pages. "I received this two weeks ago, sent from Blue Pegasus. It seems at the last guildmaster's meeting that was held, they came to some sort of agreement."

The mages of Crime Sorciere watched as Arcadios took the letter when Hisui held it out to him. He walked down the steps, his armor shifting loudly in the otherwise silent room, and stopped in front of Jellal. "Read it," he said.

Jellal took the letter carefully, looking from Arcadios to the Queen, then finally down to the pages in his hands.

We, the guild masters of all forty six legal guilds in Fiore in the year of X793, do hereby make a formal request to the Queen of Fiore, Hisui E. Fiore (hereafter referred to as "the Monarchy") that former Councilman and Wizard Saint Jellal Fernandes, Meredy of Grimoire Heart, and Midnight, Cobra, Angel, Racer, and Hoteye of the Oracion Seis and Neo-Oracion Seis (hereafter referred to as members of the independent guild of "Crime Sorciere") be pardoned of all past charges against them.

Jellal's jaw dropped and his hands shook as he continued reading the contents of the letter. A short list of their past crimes, their most notable and despicable offenses. The bulk of the pages, however, were filled with the things his guild had accomplished while working in tandem with the legal guilds. The people they'd helped. There was even a story from Sting about how Rogue had gone to deal with a dark guild, only to find them already apprehended.

And there, at the very bottom of the final page, were forty-six signatures with their respective guild names. The first five guilds had him smiling silently to himself. He knew for a fact they were the ones behind this.

Erza Scarlet - Fairy Tail
Goldmine - Quatro Cerberus
Bob - Blue Pegasus
Ooba Babasaama - Lamia Scale
Sting Eucliffe - Sabertooth

Finally, he looked up at the Queen, only after forcing himself not to show how much he appreciated the wasted efforts of their allies. Nothing would come of this.

"Ah, silly me," Hisui laughed. She pulled another letter from a hidden pocket in her skirt. "I also received this letter from an old friend of mine, telling me all about what your guild did in the war last year. I was unaware of your part in that."

"We only did what was right, your majesty," he said. Jellal handed the letter back to Arcadios, then bowed his head again. Was this why they'd been summoned? For the queen to tell them… what, exactly?

"Well, considering the opinion of the people I rule is a large part of my job," Hisui said. "And there seems to be an overwhelming amount of support and love for a group of mages who have all tried to end the world in one way or another. Somehow, you've won the people over."

Jellal hadn't meant to win over anyone. He knew the others felt the same way. They weren't trying to make people like them. All they'd been doing was what was right. Helping people in need, instead of taking advantage of them. Using their magic for good, instead of evil.

"Now, it's come to my attention that there were some details a great many people hadn't known about, considering your guild's creation. I'd like for you to explain that to me."

"Of course, your majesty," Jellal said. "I founded the guild with Meredy and Ultear Milkovich after Grimoire Heart was defeated by Fairy Tail on Tenrou Island. We'd realized the error of our ways, and wanted to atone for our sins as best as we could."

"Where did you all come from?"

As one, the mages of Crime Sorciere lifted their heads to find her watching them with an inscrutable expression. Her eyes were cold, her face a blank mask. Cobra was the first to speak, surprising everyone.

"I was born in the Tower of Heaven," he said. "A guard raped one of the slaves, and she gave birth to me there. She named me Erik. I was a slave there until Brain took me away and made me Cobra of the Oracion Seis."

Hisui nodded, then turned her attention to Midnight, who took his cue from Cobra's own honest answer. "My village was raided by a cult when I was four," Midnight said. "They took me to the Tower of Heaven and enslaved me. Brain took me in and made me believe that he was my long lost father, so I joined the Oracion Seis."

"And what was your name before you became Midnight?"

"... Macbeth," he said.

Racer shifted uncomfortably under her stare. "I was running from my house when dark mages burned it to the ground. They caught me and I was taken to the Tower of Heaven. Brain picked me to be part of the Oracion Seis… My name was Sawyer."

"How old were you when you were captured?" she asked.

"I was five."

Angel lowered her gaze to the floor when Hisui's attention shifted to her. "My name was Sorano," she said. "I protected my younger sister when they came to our village. I hid her in a barrel of fish. I was taken to the Tower of Heaven when I was four. Brain came for me when I was six, I think. He made me Angel of the Oracion Seis."

"And you, Hoteye?"

He smiled sadly up at the Queen. "My brother and I were taken to the Tower together. My name was Richard. Brain separated me from my brother, and made me into Hoteye of the Oracion Seis.

"And you, Meredy?" Hisui asked.

"I wasn't in the Tower of Heaven," she said softly. "Grimoire Heart destroyed my village when I was six. Ultear Milkovich found me and took pity on me. She took me in as her own child, and raised me in Grimoire Heart."

Hisui ignored Lucy and turned back to Jellal. "And you, Jellal. What's your story?"

His brows drew together, but he still answered her. "I have no memory of where I came from. One day, I woke up in the Tower of Heaven as a slave. When they tortured me, I thought I'd been possessed by Zeref, and took control of the Tower at the age of eight. I sold five children to Brain for him to create the Oracion Seis. My persona as Siegrain was..." He shook his head and looked away from her again.

Hisui looked down at the letter she still held in her hand, and finally she smiled. "Jellal, Macbeth, Erik, Sawyer, Sorano, Richard, and Meredy…" She looked into each of their eyes, and her smile widened. "As the Queen of Fiore, I grant each of you a full pardon for your past crimes."

"P-Pardoned?" Midnight gasped.

"What now?" Meredy whispered.

Racer shook his head, his eyes widening. "Our crimes have been… forgiven?"

"Indeed!" Hoteye laughed.

Angel's head shot up and her jaw dropped. "But we… we were a dark guild!"

"I've heard the particulars," Hisui said. "And I'm familiar with the past, as well. Moreso now than when I'd made the decision to pardon you all. You were all forced to shoulder heavy sins. This monarchy failed you and the other slaves of the Tower of Heaven. For some of you, that was the only life you'd known. And despite that, probably more than anyone else, your hearts always looked to tomorrow. So, I will ask that, from now on and for the sake of the people who look up to you, you try to live on. Never forget where you've been, but don't let it hang over your heads any longer."

"Live on," Jellal whispered to himself. His head dropped and his hair shadowed his eyes from everyone around him. No one missed the way his shoulders began to shudder, or how his hands clenched into fists where they rested on the floor. Cobra was the only one who could smell his tears well before they dripped onto the cool marble beneath him.

"Rise, Crime Sorciere," Hisui said. "From this day forward, you are all free." She watched as the seven former criminals stood, still unsure of themselves. But as they looked at one another, she could see it. There was the smallest shift in how they held themselves. A weight had been lifted from their shoulders, and even though Midnight was still stunned and Meredy was on the verge of crying, Hisui could see how happy they were.

Midnight was the first to smile. He turned toward Meredy, saw the tears in her eyes, and pulled her into a hug just before the first sob broke past her lips. "We're free," he whispered into her hair. "N-No more running."

"Macbeth," she whimpered. Her arms wrapped around his waist tightly, letting her feel the silent hiccup as he held back his emotions. "It's okay to cry… Y-You can fix your makeup later."

Racer and Hoteye crushed Angel in a tight hug between them.

Hisui finally stood, watching as the small guild worked through their emotions. The only ones who didn't seem surprised in the slightest were Cobra… and Lucy. Hisui maintained her composure and came to a stop in front of Jellal. She took his hands in hers, waiting for him to meet her gaze. And when he did look at her, she couldn't stop herself from swiping her thumbs over his tear-stained cheeks. "Erza has vouched for you," she whispered to him. "As the guild master for Fairy Tail, I hold her opinion in very high regard. But there is one more person who helped to convince me."

"Who?" he asked. "Who do I have to thank for this?"

She gently patted his cheek, then turned away from him toward Lucy. "My friend," she said. Jellal's eyes widened as he watched the Queen walk toward Lucy, then wrap the blonde in a hug that was returned easily. "I've missed you, Lucy!"

"Aw, I've missed you too, Hisui," Lucy giggled. They drew back and grinned at each other. "Thank you for this."

Angel peeked out from between Racer and Hoteye's crushing embrace. "Wait, you're the friend who wrote to her?!"

Hisui laughed when everyone stared at them. "I'm guessing Lucy didn't tell you?"

"No," Jellal said. "We didn't know she was friends with the Queen."

"Well, she was just the princess when I wrote the letter," Lucy said sheepishly.

Hisui nodded, patting her skirt where she'd tucked the final letter. "She wrote to me just after the war, and explained everything. How she wasn't in Fairy Tail anymore, but a guild called Crime Sorciere. How it was a guild of reformed criminals who took out dark guilds. She didn't say who you were, but she did tell me that you were the ones to track down Zeref and gave us intel for the war."

"It was mostly to catch up," Lucy said, scratching the back of her neck as her guildmates stared at her in shock. "But then I figured I could find out if there was any way to give you guys a fresh start."

"You have more than proven your loyalty to Fiore," Hisui said. "It only seemed right."

"And I'm sure the fanmail and that letter from the legal guilds was some solid evidence in our favor," Meredy said.

"Plus, now you don't owe me any favors," Lucy giggled, nudging the Queen.

"Favors?" Midnight asked. Everyone ignored how his mascara had started running down his cheeks, and the smudges on the back of his hand from when he'd wiped at his own teary eyes.

Hisui winced, but Cobra stepped in. "Water under the bridge," he said. "No need to get into it." He ignored her thankful nod and the way her soul thrummed with relief.

"Oh!" Lucy said, taking a step back from Hisui. She turned toward Cobra and, ignoring his very clear signs of having a personal bubble that he didn't want invaded, reached into the inner pocket of his coat for a small envelope. She turned back and grinned while handing it to Hisui. "I wanted to give this to you."

Hisui opened the envelope and quickly read the contents, her eyes widening in shock. Maybe a little horror. Definitely shock, though.

"The wedding's in a month," Lucy said. "The past year's been crazy busy, but it's starting to calm down now. Think you'd be able to come? It's not gonna be a big thing, but-"

Hisui squealed at such a high pitch, and so loudly, that Cobra had to cover his ears. "Yes!" she shrieked. "Oh, I'll definitely come to your wedding!"

"Is anyone else a little freaked out by this?" Angel whispered.

"You mean that Lucy just invited the queen to her wedding like it's no big deal?" Racer mumbled.

"Or that she accepted?" Hoteye added.

"Either?" Angel said. "Both? I dunno…"

Hisui looked down at the invitation again. "Who are you marry-" She nearly dropped the invitation while going utterly still. Her gaze shot from the grinning Celestial mage in front of her, over to Cobra - who was still holding his hands over his ears - then back to the invitation. "Really?" she asked, staring at Cobra again.

He lowered his hands and glared at Lucy, who nodded. "Really," she giggled.

"This isn't a joke?" Hisui asked.

"How is she the only one who's asked whether it's a joke?" Midnight muttered, pulling a quiet laugh from Meredy.

"Not a joke," Lucy said.

Cobra blinked slowly when Hisui continued staring at him. "It's really not a joke," he said. "We're getting married." Again. Honestly, with how long they'd waited, he was surprised that Lucy had still wanted to have the ceremony. They'd already been legally married for almost a year. It was a little pointless in his opinion, but it was what Lucy wanted. He'd agreed to it for her sake. And to keep Erza from killing him, like she'd promised to do, if she wasn't there for a second ceremony after Jellal's loose fucking post-coital mouth had spilled the beans three months prior.

Hisui's jade eyes drank him in from the tips of his wild maroon hair to the scar over his eye, his rich coffee-colored skin, thin hips… All the way down to his boots. Finally, Hisui turned back to Lucy and squealed even louder than before as she lunged for the blonde. Lucy lost her footing when Hisui connected, and they tumbled to the floor. "Bad boy elf kink!" Hisui cackled. "He's so cute!"

"Isn't he?!" Lucy laughed.

Cobra huffed and crossed his arms, turning away from his laughing, blushing wife who was being crushed by the Queen. "Oh, fuck off," he grumbled. All of Crime Sorciere laughed when they looked at Cobra and found his pointed ears turning a bright shade of red.

Meredy giggled and nudged Midnight in the side. "How did we never realize that Cobra's a total tsundere?"

"Oh, that's it!" Cobra snarled. He lunged for Midnight and tackled him to the floor.

"It wasn't me!" Midnight yelped. It was pointless though. Cobra wouldn't hit Meredy, regardless of what she said.

"Close enough, bitch tits!"

The wedding ceremony took place in an orchard that autumn with orange and yellow and red leaves littering the ground around Cobra and Lucy as they held each other's hands and listened to Makarov officiate. Jellal acted as Cobra's best man, but only because he quite literally hadn't cared who took on the position. Erza stood across from Jellal, her cheeks a gentle pink when she imagined marrying him in a place like this.

Crime Sorciere and the old Team Natsu were in attendance, as well as Hisui and Arcadios as her guard.

It was everything that Lucy had wanted for her wedding. A small, intimate gathering with the people who mattered the most. Natsu and Gray even behaved themselves, but she noticed that they seemed much less hostile with one another. She didn't have all the pomp and circumstance that Mira Jane probably would have forced on her if she'd had a wedding anywhere near Fairy Tail.

There was no fancy dress for her, or a tuxedo for Cobra. Instead, they wore their normal clothes, and made sure that no one felt like they needed to dress up for the occasion. It wasn't about that. This was about Lucy and Cobra tying the knot and being with each other forever. A million Jewel dress and doves and pretty pink bows on rows of pews in Kardia Cathedral wouldn't change that.

"Now, children," Makarov said. "Please say your vows and exchange rings."

Cobra took Lucy's ring from Jellal, and Lucy took a ring from Erza. She gazed down at the black metal, smiling when she saw the little skulls that had been molded around the band. Cobra had been the one to choose the rings, after all. And this was definitely something that she could see him choosing. Honestly, she loved the way it looked. She reached out for his hand and slid the ring on his finger.

Cobra took her hand in his and brought her knuckles to his lips for a tender kiss. He slid the ring on and kissed her knuckles again while he grinned down at the matching black band with little skulls and a small ruby in the center. It was perfect for her. "Do you remember how you proposed to me?" he asked.

Lucy's cheeks tinted a gentle pink and she nodded.

"You mean the world to me, Lucy," he said, pulling those words she'd spoken to him in an alley before that ridiculous Fairy Tale ball from her soul. God, had it really been two years since that night? "This crazy whirlwind romance we've found ourselves in has me so utterly enraptured with you. I don't think you realize just how deep for you my feelings truly run, but I'd love to spend the rest of our lives showing you, in every imaginable way, that my love for you is fathomless. I could use any number of cliché lines for this, but I know what you want to hear me say."

Lucy gripped his hands a little more tightly and smiled up at him. "I'll never let you forget just what it feels like to be loved," she said. She remembered so clearly, how shocked he'd been to hear her saying this when they hadn't known each other. "To feel me wrapped around you while I'm screaming your name every night. How my lips feel while I'm worshipping every inch of your body, because you're a man who's more than deserving of my affection."

"My heart and soul sings just for you with every breath I take, just as yours does for me," he said.

"I want to be the harmony to your soul's melody forever." She paused and lifted a hand to his cheek, lightly brushing her thumb over the bottom portion of his scar, just as she'd done that night. "Erik, would you do me the honor of becoming my husband?"

"Yeah," he chuckled. "I can do that." Before Makarov could continue, he added, "I just want you to know, you do deserve all the bells and whistles for our wedding."

"I don't need them," she said.

Cobra just smirked and hooked a finger under her chin, forcing her to look above them. Hanging on the branches that arched over their heads were small bundles of bells that tinkled lightly in the breeze and several small whistles. And just as he'd hoped, Lucy laughed. She laughed so hard that she ended up bent in half, holding her sides as tears gathered on her lashes.

By the time she'd calmed down, everyone gathered was left smiling, even though they didn't really get the joke. "I can't wait to have your babies" she said, wiping her eyes.

What no one had expected was for Cobra's expression to shift into something bordering on shy as he smiled at the ground. Even more surprising was the way he blushed, though he would never admit that it was because he was over the moon about her admitting she wanted to have a family with him, where others could hear.

Even after being married for a year, he was still baffled by her continued presence in his life. Every day he'd woken up with her by his side while he'd been healing after the war, he'd wondered how he'd been so lucky. How could he have someone like her, someone so good and kind and caring, when he was nothing like her?

How the hell could she still find it in herself to love him, even after a year of being his wife? Not much had changed for them after they'd gotten married. It was almost exactly like when they'd just been engaged.

But she'd stayed with him. She handled his quirks and well-hidden insecurities like a fucking champ. When he'd proposed to her, he'd told the truth. She was the only woman he'd ever love, simply because she never tried to change him. He loved everything about her. Even how cold her toes got at night when they curled up together in their tent.

Lucy deserved the world and then some. And even though she couldn't hear it, he swore in his soul - right there in front of everyone they knew that actually fucking mattered, at least a little - that he'd spend the rest of their lives making her the happiest woman to have ever existed.

"Those two are too precious for words," Meredy sighed. She leaned her head on Macbeth's shoulder as Makarov continued with the final portion of the ceremony. Only Cobra was aware of Macbeth's running commentary about how good Meredy's hair smelled.

The pregnancy hadn't been planned in the slightest, but neither Lucy nor Cobra complained about it. They hadn't exactly ever practiced safe sex with one another to begin with, so it was bound to happen eventually. They'd been married for three years by the time she found out she was pregnant. And unlike most would have thought, Cobra wasn't the first to know. There hadn't been a change in Lucy's scent that he could detect. He hadn't heard their baby's soul trilling along with Lucy's.

Nothing had changed, except for her period being late. But even that wasn't much cause for concern for either of them. Lucy had never really had a regular period - and she was thankful that he'd actually been more turned on when she'd started her period once while he was eating her out - so having one a week or even two weeks later than it was supposed to be, wasn't out of the ordinary.

Lucy still had her period while she was pregnant, so even that hadn't been an indication. Sure, it had been a fair bit lighter, but she'd just brushed it off. She didn't have morning sickness, although that could have been because she'd recently started eating mostly vegetarian; it was easier to get meals from foraging than trying to hunt while they were constantly on the move. She didn't put on much weight for the first few months, either.

No, what had tipped them off about the pregnancy was wholly unexpected. And just a little terrifying for Lucy.

She'd complained of a headache while they sat around the fire, and turned in early. Cobra came into the tent a short while later with a flask of fresh water from the nearby stream. He laid down behind her, wrapped his arm around her waist and up between her breasts and pressed his chest flush against her back while she drank.

"I told Jellal we should rest for a couple days," he whispered. "No reason to run ourselves ragged right now."

Lucy gulped down the last drop of water and laid her head down. "Sounds good," she sighed. "Give Macbeth a chance to get some good sleep for a change."

"Do you need anything?"

Lucy was about to shake her head no, but then a sharp pain pierced the space between her eyebrows. There was no bright light to give her a sudden migraine like this. She hissed and grabbed Cobra's hand, holding tightly to it and hoping with everything she was worth that the pain would go the hell away.

'... Sorano…. pain meds… help…'

"Want me to see if Sorano's got some pain meds?" Cobra asked. "It might help."

Lucy's brow furrowed and she turned toward him slightly. He didn't look worried in the slightest. He looked the same as always. "Huh?"

'... must… tired… rest…'

She had to have been losing her mind, or dreaming, or something. Because she was hearing Cobra's voice without his lips moving. And that wasn't fucking normal. Not at all.

Cobra chuckled quietly. "You should probably get some rest, Belle."

"Why do I hear you?" she asked.

'Hear-'

"Hear me?" He frowned. "I mean, I'm talking." He pulled his hand from her grasp and pressed it to her forehead, watching as she bit back a whimper at the contact. "Belle-"

"I hear you," she said. Lucy's eyes closed and she pressed his hand more firmly against her forehead. The more of his skin she was in contact with, the clearer his voice became. It echoed slightly, and there was a tinny sort of warble to it, almost as though he was talking to her through a metal pipe underground. But she heard him.

'She can't mean that she hears me the way I hear her. I wouldn't wish this shit on anyone.'

"That's exactly what I mean," she said. "And if this is even a fraction of what you hear, then I completely understand." Her eyes slid open and she found him staring down at her in surprise. It was so rare that Cobra was surprised. She almost wanted to take a picture of it for posterity, but she couldn't because she was still hearing the way his thoughts whirled around in his head.

'Fuck. No. She's not supposed to hear this. It'll drive her crazy, and then who will be there to keep me in check when I start going crazy and killing everything, and fuck what I wouldn't give to kill something right now. Flay it, carve it up. I want to carve something. Carve it, carve, carve, carve. Fuck, focus. Not on skin and blood. Focus on Lucy.'

Was this the way he normally thought about things? Was this why he had a hard time controlling himself sometimes? It seemed as though thinking about murdering something was in a nearly constant loop underneath everything else Cobra thought about.

'She hears it. That look, she hears it all. She'll leave now. She should've left a long time ago! Back when I killed those deer in that lake and she was wearing my shirt, making it look so fucking delicious, and it was the first time I saw her like that out in the sun. Fuck, she was so beautiful. So beautiful. So beautiful, I love the way she looks at me, smiles at me, how she holds me so close. Focus!'

"Erik, relax," she said gently. Lucy rolled to face him, took his cheeks in her hands and pulled him into a slow kiss.

'Kiss me… Kiss me until I forget how to hear everything… Kiss me… until it's just me and you… so perfect… perfect… love her so much…'

Lucy smiled and nipped at his lips. "I love you too, handsome."

"What's going on?" he asked. He didn't stop kissing her. He couldn't. Not when his hand slipped under her shirt and his fingers danced along her spine, stopping between her shoulder blades. In the three years since they'd gotten married, he'd grown more addicted to her. The feel of her skin under his fingers, how she always tried to mold her body to his. Her hands in his hair and the how he could feel her smiling against his lips every single time they kissed.

He'd become a sappy fool around Lucy, but it was better than the alternative.

There were days when he wondered how he'd gone on living when he'd been consumed with thoughts of murder and destruction on a daily basis. He could barely remember how it had felt, having to hide his pastime from everyone around him - even though Macbeth and the others knew exactly what he did when he disappeared for days on end.

He groaned quietly as her leg curled around his hip, and she rolled on top of him. It wasn't often that Lucy was on top. Every once in a while, definitely, but for the most part, he liked being able to move her however he wanted. And she definitely never complained about it.

Their kisses intensified while she pushed up the hem of his shirt and laid herself on him fully, allowing him to feel the soft, supple skin of her stomach.

The only problem was that her lips went slack against his. His eye shot open to look up at her, and he found her brows pinched and her eyes closed as she focused on something else. "Belle?"

"Oh shit," Lucy whispered. She forced herself to look down at him. "Erik…"

"What?" Her soul turned into a static-filled mess that he couldn't listen to. That was more alarming than anything else, even her being able to hear what he was thinking for no reason.

When she smiled, it was impossibly bright. Almost giddy. But what she said next, completely floored him. "I think you knocked me up."

He blinked. "You… huh?"

She looked down at where her stomach rested against his. "I'm not hearing your thoughts," she said. "Our baby is… Erik…"

"Wait… wh-what?"

Lucy sat up and crawled off of him. "Think of something," she said as he sat up as well. "Something I wouldn't know."

He thought she was losing her fucking mind.

"I don't hear anything," she laughed. She reached forward and placed his hand on her flat stomach, then closed her eyes. And all the while, Cobra kept staring at where his hand rested just beneath her navel. God, he wanted to lick her from head to toe. "You can lick me all over later on, Beast."

"Holy shit…" He looked from her stomach up to her face, more than ready to see disappointment in her eyes. She hadn't wanted to start a family just yet. He'd heard it. He was positive that she'd wanted to wait until they'd found Aquarius' key again. Apparently, the mermaid spirit wasn't giving Lucy any fucking clues. Not even whether or not they were getting close. He'd promised Lucy that they would make Aquarius a priority, and still…

"We'll find her," she said.

She wasn't disappointed in the slightest. He saw it. He heard it. She was happy. She was ready for this. Lucy was excited to start a family, and she'd been secretly hoping it would happen when they least expected it. She'd always loved surprises that had nothing to do with people trying to kill her.

"Holy shit," Cobra whispered. He sat completely still when Lucy threw her arms around him and hugged him like there was no tomorrow. They were going to have a baby. Fuck. This was really happening. "Holy shit…"

Lucy drew back and kissed his scarred cheek, then crawled toward the entrance of their tent. She peeked her head out to find everyone was still sitting around the fire. Sorano and Meredy were braiding Macbeth's hair while he dozed off. Richard, Sawyer, and Jellal chatted quietly with one another. "Guys, you'll never believe it!"

"Are you feeling better?" Meredy asked, grinning at her.

"I think I'm pregnant!"

Meredy's suddenly shrill screech woke Macbeth up with a start. "You're pregnant?!"

"Maybe," Lucy laughed. "I keep hearing his thoughts when he touches me, and it's really strong when he touches my stomach and - Ack!"

Meredy blinked when Lucy was dragged back into the tent and her face was instantly replaced with Cobra's. "All of you might want to fuck off for a bit," he said, grinning wickedly at them.

"Gross, Cobra," Macbeth sighed. Still, he stood and dusted off his pants.

"Fuck you," Cobra laughed. "I'm gonna be a dad, which means I need to fuck my wife."

"That's how we got into this in the first place!" Lucy giggled from inside the tent.

Cobra disappeared from sight and the rest of Crime Sorciere stared at the flap when they heard Lucy's playful squeal quickly shift into an aroused, throaty moan.

One week later, they would take a trip down to the nearest hospital and find out that Lucy was already four months pregnant. Her uterus had tilted back, which gave her the appearance of not being pregnant at all. The baby was healthy, and she was assured that there would be no complications as long as her uterus started growing forward in the coming weeks - which it did.

Cobra was so happy with the news, he didn't even threaten the obstetrician for having to put her fingers in Lucy's vagina to do an exam. Although, he did threaten to maim Meredy for trying to intrude on the appointment and watch everything unfold.

On the easternmost border of Fiore, Jellal led his guild through a thick forest with tall, ancient oaks that blocked out nearly all of the heavy summer sun. Richard, Sorano, and Meredy surrounded a flying carpet with Cobra taking up the rear position, guarding the precious cargo it carried. Namely, a slumbering, nine-months pregnant Lucy who was using Macbeth's lap as a pillow.

It had been more than surprising for everyone when he hadn't yelled at Macbeth for offering to let Lucy ride with him. But it made sense to Cobra. She did need to walk and exercise, but with the amount of ground they covered in a day, it would tax her body way too much at this point in the pregnancy. Macbeth had gotten the flying carpet - Cobra suspected it was actually the same one he'd had more than ten years prior when they'd tried to activate Nirvana - after finding out that Lucy was pregnant. His reasoning had been that she needed a way to relax if they were still on the move; it was just an added bonus that he had to sit on the carpet to keep it afloat. So, when she'd started getting tired nearly an hour ago, Cobra had all but forced her to get on the carpet and use Macbeth as a pillow so she could be comfortable.

The teasing from their friends over him being an overprotective dragon were annoying as hell, though.

"Are we almost there?" Meredy asked, peering around at the vines and moss hanging down here and there along the trail.

"Just up ahead," Jellal said. In only a few minutes, they came to a clearing that was covered in overgrown weeds so high, the stone ruins held within them were barely visible. But when the light shifted just right, they could see the back half of the building still had a second story. "Here it is."

Cobra looked from Jellal to Macbeth, then to the others. "What do you guys think?"

He'd found this place while wandering around after Lucy had yelled at him for hovering over her too much. She'd told him that she loved him, but if he didn't get the fuck away from her then she was going to take an industrial iron to his asshole and cauterize everything up to his gallbladder. He'd had to leave the camp with a raging fucking boner - seriously, why was she even sexier now that she'd gain twenty pounds and nearly twisted his ear off when she was upset? - and he'd stumbled on this place.

Some sort of ancient ruin. Where it was from, or who had lived there before, he hadn't a clue. And he didn't really fucking care all that much either. When he'd seen it, Cobra just had this feeling that he needed to show the others.

And there they were, looking at the broken stones and creeping vines, the cracked pillars and crumbling steps leading to what had once been a front door of sorts. He didn't need to be able to hear souls to know what they thought of it, though. Just looking at their faces was enough of a tell.

They loved it.

"It's settled then," said Jellal. He glanced at Lucy's still sleeping form when she shifted and mumbled something about french fries, then turned his attention back to the others. "It'll be a lot of work, but if we all pitch in then we'll have it done in no time."

"I have a feeling I'll be stuck here for a minute," Macbeth said. Cobra glanced over out of the corner of his eye to watch the way Macbeth gently stroked Lucy's hair. "She should probably get up soon to drink some water though."

"'m up," Lucy mumbled. "Whadd'I miss?"

Cobra chuckled and made his way over to the carpet as Macbeth gently landed it on the ground. Once settled, he knelt beside Lucy and helped her slowly sit up, giving Macbeth a solid reason for getting her head off his lap. "Just some walking," he said. "How are you feeling?"

She yawned and rubbed a hand over her swollen belly. "Like I'm ready to get this baby monster out of me." At his soft laugh, she smiled and leaned against him. "Can I walk for a bit?"

Cobra nodded and wrapped an arm around her waist. He didn't pull her up, but he was there in case she did need help standing. With how her center of gravity had changed in the past few months, Lucy was more prone to toppling over if she wasn't careful. Well, he didn't think she'd put on all that much weight. She was still almost as skinny as she'd been before getting pregnant, but every once in a while he could tell that her face had gotten a little more round. She glowed more now, but he couldn't pinpoint just how she was glowing. There was just something about her that was different, past the way her stomach stuck out and how she'd started waddling when she walked.

"It's a good thing you feel like walking," he said once she was on her feet. "It's time for the tour."

"Tour?"

Ah, it seemed the baby-brain was strong with her that day. "Yeah," he said, smiling down at the confused pinch in her brow. His free arm swept out before them. "Welcome to the Crime Sorciere guild hall."

Lucy blinked and took everything in from the low-hanging vines up in the trees to the weeds and clusters of flowers poking out at odd angles from the broken stones. The building itself was mostly decimated, though whether it had been damaged in the war or not, she wasn't sure. There were still things being rediscovered even nearly four years later. "Guild hall…"

She vaguely remembered Cobra and the others talking about trying to find a place to really settle down. Had that been last week, or the week before?

'We talked about it last week.'

Lucy's lips lifted only slightly as she glanced up at Cobra. She could still hear his thoughts if he was within arm's reach - or anyone's if they were touching her skin. It had taken some getting used to, and she'd found out that what she heard wasn't nearly as intense as how he heard things. It was just the thoughts on the surface, not all the down to someone's soul. It wasn't her magic doing this in the first place, but their daughter's unrefined magic, so it made sense that it wouldn't be as strong as his own.

She let Cobra lead her around the perimeter of the building, and the rest of the guild followed as he pointed out different things. One area looked as though it could be repurposed into a tool shed of sorts. She didn't really care all that much about the specifics. While Cobra talked about a large space near the back with only half a wall being made into a functioning kitchen, Lucy's eyes closed. Her head tipped back against his shoulder and she breathed deeply.

The air here was rich with the earthy scent of the forest. Dirt and shrubs and so many trees. Just a bonus of the increased hormones, she supposed. She could smell things so much better than before. She didn't smell animals near the area. There were no hints of dung still in the air. Flowers, though. She definitely smelled flowers.

"Can we have a garden?" she asked softly. "The flowers smell so good."

Sorano nudged Sawyer in the side and they both smiled when they saw the way Cobra nestled his nose in Lucy's golden hair to hide his grin. "I wouldn't be opposed to a garden," Sorano said. "It might be fun to learn how to do it."

"We can do whatever we want here," Jellal said. He stepped away from the group and over a pile of rubble. "This would be a good common area."

"Are these stairs safe?" Meredy asked.

"Sort of," Cobra said. "Be careful when you get up to the second floor. Some of the stones are loose."

"Can we look?" Lucy whispered, pouting up at him. It wasn't necessary though. Of course he would take her up there. And besides, a good portion of the second floor was visible from where they stood on the ground, but she wanted to know what else he and Jellal had cooked up for plans.

It had been quite the sight to see, with Jellal and Cobra huddled over a piece of paper, drawing out plans and marking things in a ledger she'd never seen before. She kind of liked that they'd been working together for a change.

While Cobra carefully guided her up the stairs, Lucy found herself silently thanking the stars that she wouldn't be pregnant for too much longer. It would have been a bitch to climb up and down these steps in her current condition, even if the stones hadn't been shifting under her feet just slightly. The errant thought crossed her mind that if she didn't weigh so much, the stones wouldn't be doing that, but she dismissed it before Cobra could even turn her way.

She was actually considered slightly underweight by her doctor. But the baby was healthy, and that was all that mattered. Even if Lucy had gained another twenty pounds, she wouldn't have minded as long as their daughter was healthy. The doctor had said that, with how active she was, it made sense for her to be thinner. And if the doctor wasn't concerned about it, then she wouldn't be either.

"We don't need offices like they have at Fairy Tail for the S Class mages. And if this is gonna be a base of operations, we need a place to live. So the bedrooms will be up here," Cobra said once they reached the top of the crumbling stairs. "Jellal and I figured if we rebuild with the same materials, it'll save us a lot of hassle."

"So all stone?" she asked. She reached out and let her fingers drift along the moist moss creeping along one wall that was still standing. "We'll need rugs and a fireplace, then. It'll be freezing come winter."

Cobra nodded. "When the time comes, me and Sawyer will go out and get some vulcan pelts and we'll tan them. It'll limit the money we'll have to spend for furnishing." There was a lot that could be made from the forest around them. They were nearly ten miles from the nearest town that had any sort of transportation, so it would be a bit of a hassle to get supplies for the time being. They could make it work though.

He led her further from the stairs, pushing Lucy behind him so he could test the stones before she touched them. They stopped at the edge of the stone that overlooked the first floor, and he gestured to an empty doorway on the right. "Jellal can make this into his office for official guild shit, but over here…"

Lucy bit her lips and tiptoed after Cobra, pressing herself up against a half wall to squeeze past a bit of rubble blocking another doorway on the left.

"Our room," Cobra said. He only let her peek through the door. It wasn't stable enough inside. Sure, he'd gone in and checked it out, but he'd also slipped and scratched the shit out of his back when he fell down to the first floor. Hell no, his pregnant wife was not going in that room until it was complete and perfect and not a safety hazard.

"I can't wait to see what it looks like," she said. A slow grin stretched across her lips and her eyes misted with tears.

"Everyone will have their own bathroom, and we'll sort out water pipes and all that bullshit," he said. This place didn't have anything of the sort, but if there was one thing the majority of their guild was good at, it was construction. At least this building wasn't going to be made with the blood and sweat and tears of slaves. Everyone who worked on it wanted it to be created.

"Closets?" Lucy asked. She started inching her way back toward the stairs, then laughed when Macbeth appeared in the air before them, riding on his carpet.

"Hop on," he yawned. "You don't need to be up here right now."

"She's fine," Cobra muttered. Lucy smiled gently at him and placed her hand in his. After a moment, he nodded and helped her climb onto Macbeth's stupid flying carpet, watching as they flew back down to where it was completely safe for her to stand. Cobra sighed and jumped down to the first floor. "No closets," he said while standing beside her once again. "But Meredy's been in touch with that Laki girl from Fairy Tail, so we'll hire her to make some furniture and shit."

Lucy nodded and turned when Jellal called for her. Cobra watched her walk off toward the rest of the group, how she slowly lowered herself to the ground and started pulling weeds beside Meredy. As long as she didn't strain herself, he didn't see a problem with it. Maybe later on they could have her summon Taurus or Virgo to help with the heavy lifting.

Cobra knew that his stumbling on this ruined building was nothing more than pure luck. If it hadn't been for Lucy threatening him, he never would have gone wandering around the area. And if he hadn't found this place, the idea probably never would have fully formed in his mind.

Not right away, at least.

Because their daughter was going to be born in another week or so, and when he'd found this place, all he could think about was how hard it was going to be to raise her without a roof over their heads. He and Lucy had talked a fair bit about trying to find a place to actually live once they'd found out she was pregnant. Except nothing had ever come of it.

They moved around too often. The guild moved around too often, and the last thing Lucy had wanted was to leave the others behind.

So this was the compromise. Finding a place where they could all live together. An actual guild hall that could be a base of operations for them. This way, it didn't have to be everyone travelling together every single day for one job or another. He and Lucy could hold down the fort and raise their daughter while the others roamed around.

At least, that had been his intention when he'd told Jellal about what he'd found. The reality, however, was that they were going to finally become a legal guild. There was nothing stopping them, really. Everyone had been pardoned of their past crimes - and no one talked about the fact that Cobra was still committing some of those crimes to that day, since he'd cut back on the murdering thing quite a bit in the last few years - and they got job requests just like a normal guild.

Crime Sorciere was one step away from being a legal guild those days. All they really needed was a guild hall and a piece of paper with a seal of approval from the Magic Council.

The jobs they took those days weren't nearly as intense as they'd been a few years prior. With Zeref's defeat, dark guilds were finally starting to dwindle down to mere whispers in history books. Sure, there was still the occasional moron here and there who thought they could resurrect the Black Wizard, but even those idiots were starting to figure out that Zeref and his bullshit schemes were long gone.

There was no getting the bastard back, and Cobra swore to himself - and to Lucy - that he'd listen to every soul on Earthland for the rest of his life to make sure they never had to deal with the evil piece of shit again.

Cobra took a deep breath filled with the earthy air surrounding him, and gazed across the ruins to find Lucy once again. She hadn't moved from her spot. She was still carefully pulling weeds and flowers, minding her stomach with one hand rubbing slow circles over their unborn daughter.

When he thought about that conversation with Jellal so long ago - back when they'd first set up camp in Caelum on their way to find a lead to take down Zeref - Cobra remembered how he'd called the guild master out on not caring one fucking bit about what anyone else really wanted. He hadn't cared to know that Richard was searching for his brother, Wally. He hadn't cared that Sorano wanted to one day reunite with Yukino.

But since then, Jellal had a much more vested interest in their lives. And their desires. They were free to do whatever they wanted, and he'd told each of them that he wanted to help them achieve their goals.

He'd helped Sorano reunite with Yukino. They'd gone on one wild goose chase after another on search of Aquarius' key for Lucy.

Cobra hadn't really known at that time, what he'd wanted out of life. He'd just been wandering through the days, doing as he pleased. He still did most times. But now, he had someone else to look out for. Someone past himself, who actually cared what happened to him. Lucy loved him with her whole heart and soul, just as he loved her.

So, when he'd found this place, it had been an easy decision to finally tell Jellal what he wanted.

"I want a place where my family can always be safe. Not just Lucy and the baby, but all of you. I want to be able to come back to one place, to know that it's mine, my family's, and that I'll be welcome there. What I want, Jellal, is to live long enough to see my child grow up having what I never had."

Cobra had never been as open with anyone who wasn't Lucy as he'd been at that moment. He hadn't cared what it sounded like, or if Jellal thought he was being a sappy son of a bitch. Everyone knew, when it came to Lucy, he was. He'd accepted that fact years ago.

"Cobra," Macbeth said, nudging his shoulder to get his attention, "You gonna stand there all day?"

Cobra shook his head and chuckled as he glanced at the Reflector mage. "Macbeth," he said softly. That definitely had his attention. Cobra never called anyone by their name. Even to that day, after they'd all given up the names Brain had given them, he still refused to make the change. Macbeth was still Midnight to him. Sorano was still Angel. And they still answered to it, even though he was the only one to use those names. "Do me a favor."

"Possibly," Macbeth said. He was definitely wary, but Cobra didn't fault him for it.

He smirked and rested a tanned hand on his friend's shoulder. "Call me Erik."

Macbeth's eyes widened for a fraction of a second before returning to their normal half-lidded stare. His lightly glossed lips lifted in a tired smile. "You got it, Erik," he said. "Now, how about we go help before your wife starts yelling? She's scary while she's pregnant."

"Fuck that," he laughed. He and Macbeth made their way toward the rest of their guildmates. "She's scary even when she's not pregnant."

"That's saying something, coming from you."

"I know," he snorted. They parted ways when he stopped just next to Lucy, and he knelt beside her. "Need some help?"

She turned toward him with a smile already on her plump lips. He couldn't stop himself from leaning over and kissing her right then. He ignored Meredy's not-so-quiet aww in favor of letting his lips move over Lucy's in a slow, tender kiss.

When he finally pulled away, there was a healthy flush on her cheeks that only deepened when his hand rested over hers on her swollen belly. "Promise to take it easy," he said.

"I promise," she giggled. They got to work, side by side, pulling weeds. It would take a lot of work, but he was determined to make this place into a home. Considering how much work was ahead of them, he figured it wouldn't be a bad idea to call up Natsu and see if his fellow Dragon Slayer would want to come out and help them. Then again, he already knew Natsu would say yes. And he would probably bring Lucy's old team from her time in Fairy Tail to help as well.

Their life was far from a fairy tale. He was a psychopath who still found ways to murder things when he needed to blow off steam. She was a saint who put up with his shit and still loved him regardless.

They were nowhere near perfect, but he loved it. He loved her. And maybe they would never really have a true happily ever after, but this was enough for him. And he knew, as he listened to the song in her soul and the life of their daughter growing inside her, that those fairy tales he'd heard so much about when he was younger could go fuck themselves. This was his fairy tale. His wife, his family, his home. Things he'd never imagined having were all right here in his grasp.

And Erik would gladly face a thousand dark mages and evil dragon wannabes to keep it forever.

Marie Heartfilia laid on her stomach in bed, her wide indigo eyes filled with tears that glistened in the soft lacrima lighting from the lamp on her nightstand.

Plump caramel cheeks lifted in a teary smile as Marie read the last words on the final page of the book in her hands. Her fingers brushed over the yellowed page and the overly slanted cursive she was already so familiar with.

She heard them coming well before their soft footsteps pausing in the open doorway would have drawn her attention. She'd always been able to hear them like this. She turned and her parents stood there, just inside her bedroom, looking back at her. Her mother smiled that same, easy smile that Marie had grown up with. She always smiled. And her father definitely looked amused. He wasn't quite smiling really, but Marie had grown up deciphering the looks he gave people. And this was as close as he usually got to smiling more often than not.

"How's that for a fairy tale?" he asked. She didn't need to be able to hear his thoughts to know that he was both on the verge of laughing, and trying not to get emotional over her having read the book he gave her.

Marie looked down at the book again. "So this is how you two fell in love, huh?"

"There's more it than that," her mother giggled. "Quite a bit was skipped over, I'd say."

'Can't believe he actually let her read that in the first place.'

Her father chuckled and pressed his lips to her mother's temple. Marie didn't try to avoid watching them. He'd always been so affectionate. Marie had never known anything different than the man who'd raised her, and had been around nearly every single day of her life. But the man in front of her, brushing his nose against her mother's cheek, wasn't the same man she'd read about.

She'd never known that her father was once a murderer, or in a dark guild. Or that he actually fucking ate people when he was so inclined. Although, that did explain some things that she'd just overlooked in the past because her dad was way too sweet to actually do the things she thought maybe he might be doing… Like that time he'd come home late from a mission and she'd sworn there was blood on his ear, but then he'd wiped it off and licked it, and she'd been so sure that no one would willingly lick blood off of themselves that she'd been convinced it was just jelly or something stupid.

Marie had also never known that her mother had once been in Fairy Tail, and on a team with Uncle Natsu and Aunt Erza. She'd always just assumed that her mom had been part of Crime Sorciere since the very beginning. She had one of the original guild marks that had been burned into her skin, not the kind that Marie had that was just a normal magical stamp. But now she knew why Uncle Jellal had changed it from a brand to just a normal guild stamp.

Because Crime Sorciere had once been the only home that a group of reformed criminals on the run had, and they'd sworn to themselves that they would never forget the crimes they'd committed. Now, it was still a small guild, but their newer members weren't criminals. They were definitely a little rough around the edges, and usually very young, but Marie had seen firsthand how well they worked when they had a real goal in mind.

Maybe Uncle Jellal had done it that way on purpose. He took in kids that reminded him of himself and the others, and made sure they never had to struggle to survive.

She realized in that moment, there was a lot she didn't know about her parents, or even her extended family in the guild. This book that her father had tossed at her the day before had told her more about their past than anything she'd heard in their thoughts. Like how his name used to be Cobra. Or how he'd nearly died just after marrying her mother.

The one consistent thing between this book's version of her father and the man she knew, was his relationship with their family.

He still tried to poison Uncle Jellal at least once a month. He still teased Uncle Macbeth and Aunt Meredy relentlessly for taking ten years to finally wake up naked in bed together after a drunken night. Marie remembered very clearly how confused she'd been at the tender age of six, because Uncle Macbeth and Aunt Meredy always had sleepovers, so why's this different? To which her father had just laughed and laughed, and then he'd called Uncle Macbeth a dense twat and walked out of the room.

Her father still fights with Uncle Natsu every time they cross paths, too. Apparently, the fighting they did now was much friendlier than it used to be.

"It's got the important parts," he said, pulling Marie's attention back to them.

Her mother snored and rolled her eyes at him. "Detailed sex scenes are not important parts of our relationship."

"Ah, but that's where you're wrong," he said, smirking down at her. "Those are crucial."

Marie shook her head and astutely ignored the way her mother's fingers brushed through the greying hairs at his temples. Instead, she looked back down at the leatherbound book on her bed. She closed the book and her fingers brushed across the embossed cover.

There was something there that she'd never noticed before. Beyond the title that she hadn't fully understood until reading all the way through it. She hadn't recognized the author right away and had simply thought it was written by one of her ancestors somewhere down the line. Maybe it had just been a story that her father had though she would like. Except then the names became a little more familiar. She'd wanted to believe the familiar places were just a coincidence.

But the more she'd read, the more she realized that she knew that Midnight person, and she knew this Jellal. She recognized the serious guild master of Fairy Tail named Erza. These people weren't from some time long since passed, but they were still alive. They were her family.

And if that hadn't been enough, then the way parts of history started lining up with what she was reading, was the real kicker. Mostly, the Great Alvarez War that changed the landscape of Fiore, and the death of the Black Wizard Zeref and the Dragon King Acnologia in X792. The founding of Crime Sorciere as a legal guild in X796, the same year she was born.

When Marie looked down at the author's name, she knew just who it was that wrote this. Her mother was a famous author those days, but this was something special. Something from the heart. And the only person who could write a story like this, who could know what everyone was thinking and feeling all at once, was the man who she'd inherited her magic from.

She peeked at her parents again, and found them lost in their own little world as they gazed at one another. Marie didn't miss the way her father smiled the longer he looked into her mother's eyes. She'd noticed a long time ago that the only time he truly smiled was when her mother was wrapped up in his arms, when he was holding her close and thinking about how much he loved her. Sure, her father smiled when he hugged Marie as well, but it wasn't the same. That was a fatherly smile, a proud sort of lift to his lips.

What he did when looking at her mother was on a whole other level. It was deep, like the love they shared had wrapped itself around the very center of his soul and he never wanted to untangle the sticky mess left in its wake. And maybe he didn't.

Maybe that's what love really was.

It left Marie wondering if that was something that she'd ever find in her lifetime. Not just someone to love - she was rather fond of that one boy who hung around outside the guild with the forest green hair - but someone who would look at her the way her father looked at her mother.

What she wanted was her very own happily ever after.

That was when it hit her. The reason her father had given her this book to read. She'd been thinking about the fairy tales that her mother read to children at the library in town every weekend, and what it might be like to be a princess whose Prince Charming was just a nap away. Was this his way of telling her something? Maybe that she didn't need to wait for her own fairy tale to come true. She could make one herself, just like her parents had.

In their own fucked up way, they'd found their very own happily ever after. And in Marie's opinion, what they had was ten times better than any princess in a tower could hope for. Because they'd fought for this. They'd nearly died for this life they had now. Her mother and father helped to build their guild hall from the ground up with the other original Crime Sorciere members, and they'd more than earned the happiness they now shared.

"You coming to dinner sometime tonight, Viper?" her father asked.

Her eyes narrowed in reflexive annoyance. She'd asked him to stop calling her Viper when she was ten years old. As a sixteen year old girl, she was well past the point of baby nicknames. But then she paused before that oh-so-familiar Shut up, Dad could come barreling from between her lips.

Marie looked right into his single eye, and she understood it. She understood why he called her that, instead of his little angel or anything else. Because she was his daughter. And no matter how much she acted like her mother, there was still quite a bit of her father in her as well. She was just as vicious with her words as he was.

Finally, Marie smiled and tucked her pale pink hair behind her ear. "Yeah, Pops," she said softly, drawing her mother's wide-eyed attention in an instant. Marie's thumb curved around the title embossed on the cover of the book, then she stood and made her way to the door and downstairs to the common area for dinner with her family.

That night, as she sat between Aunt Sorano - who was playing footsie with some barely-twenty dweeb - and Uncle Macbeth (who would have face-planted in his bowl of soup, if it hadn't been for his wife giving him a purple nurple), Marie realized that her dad was absolutely right.

Who Says Fairy Tales Are Normal?
by
Cobra Heartfilia

.The End.