Chapter Thirteen: The Transition

I do not and will not ever own Fairy Tail or Frozen. That is a fact of life I will have to deal with. Not one that I like, but still true.

After returning to the Lamia Scale Guild in Margaret Town, Team Lyon spent the next couple of months on a large number of jobs.

Though they obviously couldn't take any S-rank or above jobs without S-rank status (yet, Lyon reminded Elsa, we're aiming for it), there were quite a few more complicated Normal-ranked jobs that they could take.

They took as many jobs as they could get their hands on. They even went on domestic jobs, like working at stores or helping civilians with various tasks, in order to better acquaint themselves with their guild mates and the people of the town.

(Lyon wasn't a fan of those missions, but did them because Elsa insisted on doing some other kinds of jobs rather than just fighting monsters and smaller dark guilds. Lyon would have told just about anyone else no, but he had a very hard time saying no to Elsa.

Elsa, Lyon noticed, loved to talk with the other members of the guild and the people in town. She had an amazing talent of getting people to open up to her, and spill all their troubles and worries with one concerned glance their way. She always seemed a little awkward in large groups of people, and kept away from touching anyone, but she had diplomacy and kindness down pat, which was rare to see in mages since most of their job required not diplomacy but immense amounts of power to instead crush their opponents without words. The rest of the guild had quickly fell in love with Elsa, the new guild sweetheart, and proceeded to try and pry the rest of her free time away from Lyon...and the rest of the team.

But mostly Lyon.)

Team Lyon became the most active team in the guild with the enormous amount of jobs they seemed to take on, but that only meant that they spent more time becoming closer. They learned to better combine their powers and intelligence to create combos and plans. Despite their joint training sessions outside of jobs, jobs were crucial to applying their skills and strategies to practical and real situations.

Even though they spent so much time on jobs, Lyon and Elsa kept up with their own Ice-Make Magic training, often disappearing for hours at a time to the mountains around Margaret Town at Lyon's whim. He would appear out of nowhere and scoop her up to the mountains.

(Unknown to the pair, their guild mates had started to wonder whether or not Lyon and Elsa were actually just friends. They spent so much time together, surely something happened between them? After all, the cold and composed man tended to whisk Elsa away when people, both male and female, began to flirt with her. It was like he had an Elsa-sense that went off whenever someone flirted with her. It was uncanny.

Nathaniel, the resident bar tender and Wood-Make mage, ran the bet pool. It was going to happen, they were sure, but when it would happen was up for discussion. The most bets were within the next two months.)

They would spend a couple hours at a time in the mountains on days they had off. Most of their lessons were spent training Elsa on controlling her powers. Various theory and practical lessons helped her not only learn more about how her powers worked, but how such knowledge could be applied to her creations, such as strengthening them or increasing their durability. Lyon taught her not only about Ice-Make Magic, but also the little knowledge he had about Snow Magic, which he had a limited control over.

Elsa's favorite lessons were ones where Lyon demonstrated his own Ice-Make Magic. While they had the same type of magic, Lyon had a fundamentally different way of using his power. Lyon had described to her his focus on Dynamic Ice-Make rather than the Static variety, while Elsa had a strong balance between the two, as well as a higher proficiency in Snow Magic. It was fascinating and thrilling to see someone else do what she could do.

(After thinking she was a dangerous freak for all her life, meeting and learning others could do the same and could teach her not to hurt people was the greatest gift in the world.)

She hadn't realized how many kinds of magic truly existed. In their guild alone, there were a couple dozens of type of magic, from Caster to Holder alike. Lyon's Ice-Make magic was much more reliable than his use of Snow Magic, while she was able to use both to equal ability.

Lyon also took some time to teach her hand-to-hand combat. He had expressed concern when he found out how utterly dependent she was on her magic to defend herself, despite how attuned she was with it. He feared that should she be bound, she would be powerless, so he taught her the basics.

(She declined to tell her about her time in a jail cell, when she had frozen the entire cell and crushed it to escape, but it was probably for the best. She didn't want to give him a heart attack just yet.)

It took Sherry a little time to realize how much of a threat Elsa was to her love with Lyon.

Since she had met the other girl, she had recognized that Lyon had affection for his fellow ice mage, but she always assumed that it was more familiar, a replacement for the family that he had lost to Deliora.

(He hadn't told her about who exactly he had lost to the demon back in their rebellious days before Lamia Scale, but she had assumed that he, too, had lost family like the rest of them. It was a theory that only drew her closer to him, since they shared a common history.)

So sure, she felt a little threatened when her beautiful love rival came into their lives, but Sherry never really thought that the originally timid and conflict-fearing girl would pose any real threat. In Sherry's experience with love, and she had quite the experience, the true opponents were people that had confidence in themselves and their appearance, like the blonde girl from Fairy Tail (Lucille? Lacy?). But once Elsa began to come out of her shell and show how beautiful she was inside and out, despite her lingering fear, Sherry started to fear for her chances.

The real problem was trying to dissuade Lyon from Elsa's clutches, which in Sherry's lapse of judgement had sunk in quite deep. Sherry tried to tear Lyon's attention from her opponent, but he tended to ignore her declarations of love in favor of preparing and executing his lessons for Elsa.

The amount of time and attention he was dedicating to her made Sherry angry. Sherry had been at his side since the beginning, never faulting in her own commitment to her love while Elsa had shown up and claimed her spot as quickly as she had come.

But, Sherry tried to reason; Elsa wouldn't take Lyon from her. Sherry and Elsa were great friends after their many jobs. Elsa seemed completely uninterested in pursuing any type of romantic interaction with Lyon, she was sure of it!

But, her mind whirred, you don't know her plans. She could be plotting to steal his heart right from underneath your feet. You don't know he true self.

Sherry didn't want to think of her sweet, beautiful teammate as a threating love rival, but if it came down to it, she would put aside her growing affection and remove Elsa from the equation if it meant her fairy tale ending with Lyon came true.

As soon as Ooba-sama called on Lyon, Sherry, Jura, and herself, Elsa knew there was trouble.

Ooba-sama maintained a watchful eye on those under her, so being called to her large office often meant a large scolding and lots of spinning for either shaming the guild or being overly irresponsible on an important mission. Neither were obviously very good reasons, so it was quite jarring to be called when Elsa was constantly on her best behavior.

Elsa had never received a spinning herself, but Toby had gotten quite a few that left him seeing stars after tripping on many, many tables and chairs.

Ooba-sama sat down in her chair and gazed over the top of the table. Elsa tried not to melt into a pile of water.

"I've called you here for something very serious." Her face was blank, no sign of the nostalgic smile she looked upon the guild with. "A dark guild, Oración Seis, has been showing an strange amount of activity in the last few weeks

"Oración Seis? What's that? I've never heard of that guild." Sherry wrung her hands nervously. Elsa hadn't either, but besides the small dark ones they occasionally beat down, she had no prior experience with dark guilds.

"Oración Seis is one of the three guilds that head what is known as the Balam Alliance." Ooba-sama leaned back in her large chair. "Oración Seis, Tartaros, and Grimoire Heart all control the smaller dark guilds that pollute Fiore. They maintain iron-tight control over their operations."

As she talked, she swirled her finger and the small doll on her desk began to spin in rhythm with her movements, like it was performing a ballet. Ooba-sama continued.

"Almost all dark guilds fall under the so-called jurisdiction of those top three, except Raven Tail, which operates as an independent guild." Her face crumpled in disgust, pushing her nose inwards. "Dark guilds have an obvious tendency to stir up trouble wherever they settle, which I'm sure you all know too well. But Oración Seis has had an abnormal amount of activity in the past couple of weeks that cannot be overlooked considering the power that the guild possesses."

"What kind of activity are you talking about Ooba-dono?" Jura asked as he stroked his beard. Elsa figured he was pondering over the knowledge that she had given them.

"They've mostly scouting terrain in and around Worth Woodsea, the large forest in the north of Fiore. They haven't attacked the settlements nearby, but even the simple surveillance of an area is an extreme amount of movement for a guild with only six people that typically prefers to rule from afar."

"Six people?" Lyon questioned. "How can a group with only six people possibly be in control of all those other guilds and not be beat with sheer numbers?"

Ooba-sama sighed. "Oración Seis does not rely on numbers to win their battles. Those six people, despite their very limited number, possess immense power both physically and magically. There is a reason they remain on the top of the food chain, regardless of their lack of manpower."

Elsa frowned and considered the information they had learned. "I understand that Lamia Scale is a powerful guild and that all of us within these walls would put our heart and souls into winning a battle against such foes, but are we the only ones going against Oración Seis?" As much faith as she had in both her teammates and her guild mates, facing such a powerful and feared dark guild, especially one of the top three, would take colossal preparation and strength alone. She worried they wouldn't have the time to properly prepare.

"Of course not, child." Ooba-sama smiled at the female ice mage. "The reason why I called you all in here isn't because we're all going on an expedition to stop Oración Seis, but because I've chosen you to represent Lamia Scale in the alliance to take them down."

"An alliance? With who?" Sherry asked. Her pink hair bounced when she tilted her head questioningly.

"It's called the Light Alliance and it consists of Fairy Tail, Blue Pegasus, Cait Shelter, and of course Lamia Scale." the guild master pulled out a couple pieces of paper and handed them out. "As I said, I've selected you four to represent Lamia Scale. The three other guilds' representatives will meet you at the location on this sheet, which is Master Bob's Villa, the guild master of Blue Pegasus. The rest of the information you need is on that paper and I urge you to finish whatever business you have left and leave on your journey as soon as possible. There is not much time left before the scheduled meet-up, and you have to cross much of Fiore to get to Worth Woodsea."

Sherry, ever the optimist, exclaimed to the group. "As long as we have love," she cheered and lunged towards Lyon. "we'll succeed!" Lyon ducked out of the way and inched closer to Elsa.

Ooba-sama scowled. "Sherry! This is a serious matter! Act your age, child!" she lifted up her finger and swirled it. Sherry's body lurched and began to spin around, causing Lyon and Elsa to burst into a fit of giggles while Jura's mouth turned up in the corners. After about a minute or two, the spinning stopped and Sherry grabbed onto the back of her chair to right herself. Elsa could almost see the stars in her eyes.

"Alright, you lot." Ooba-sama waved them away in a shooing manner. "Go pack and get your rest, you'll need it."

The newly-dubbed representatives stood up and bowed to their guild master before turning to head out the wooden door. They were halted by one last statement form Ooba-sama.

"Elsa, my dear, please stay back one minute please. I have something I'd like to discuss with you." Lyon and Sherry glanced at their companion out of the corners of their eyes, clearly wondering why she had been singled out. Despite their curiosity, they both exited the room quickly and Elsa knew she would be given many questioning glances throughout the rest of the day.

Elsa stood in room silent as the other three filtered out of the door, waiting until Jura shut the door behind himself. She maintained her stare on the door, internally steeling herself with the practice of a queen, and turned her attention back to Ooba-sama.

"I can sense your apprehension to being picked for this job," Ooba-sama picked up the doll on her desk and cradled it gently in her wrinkled hands.

"Yes, Ooba-sama. I'm slightly confused as to why I was picked for such an important mission. I know that I've been progressing in my knowledge and control of my Ice-Make Magic but…"

"Elsa." Ooba-sama put up her hand to stop Elsa's rambling. "I didn't choose you for sheer magic control and I didn't choose you for seniority. I choose you because I can see your potential." Elsa's eyes widened. "While you may not have perfect control of your powers yet, your immense magic power is already so strong. You have the potential to be one of the strongest Ice-Make mages that I've ever seen, even more than Ur was."

Elsa's mind reeled. Being compared to Lyon's teacher was an honor in any context. From what Lyon had told her about his mentor, she seemed like a fantastic woman in both kindness and magical power.

But she also wondered how Ooba-sama knew how much magical power she had considering Elsa only practiced her magic on the other side of town, practically alone, and on top of a mountain.

Ooba-sama continued her speech. "This mission will give you a chance to truly test yourself. You must not be afraid of yourself, Elsa, or you will only hurt those around you. If you are to truly control yourself, you must first believe that you can. Fearing yourself and your powers will only lead to destruction."

"Listen to me Elsa," the troll in front of her stared at her with his black eyes glinting in the light from his glowing necklace. "your power will only grow."

A beautiful illusion of Elsa under the Northern Lights appeared over their heads. Her silhouette threw her hands above her head and snowflakes flew from her hands.

"There is beauty in your magic…"Elsa smiled at the beautiful depiction of her ice magic. "But also great danger!"

The snow turned to red spikes. Like blood, fear. Anger, pain.

"You must control it!"

The humans in the vision turned on her image and attacked. Elsa gasped. Her parents pulled her towards them, sucking in their breathes in surprise and fear.

"Fear will be your enemy!"

This was her fate?

Elsa snapped out of the memory. She tried not to flinch.

"Thank you for your kind words, Ooba-sama. I will do my best to make you and the guild proud." Elsa, true to her origins, curtsied low.

"I'm sure you will. I have nothing but faith in you, Elsa." She gave her a small smile and gave her permission to leave. Elsa stood up, bid her goodbye, and excited the room.

Once clear down the hall, Elsa leaned against the way and watched the frost come off her fingertips before closing them into a fist.

Lyon couldn't help but wonder what Ooba-sama told Elsa. When she came back, she had a pensive look on her face, but it quickly disappeared into a smile when a guild mate came up to discuss the latest news from the neighboring country of Seven.

Elsa sat on the roof of The Snake Den, the Lamia Scales dorm, contemplating the atmosphere around her.

She spent the afternoon packing for the job, taking time to ensure she didn't forget anything, but she still couldn't help but shake the feeling that she was forgetting something. Or maybe it was just nerves.

The breeze over the water chilled Elsa's skin slightly, but it didn't bother her at all. It was almost comforting, actually.

She gazed out at the town surrounding her new home, and despite how much it hurt to think of this place as her ONLY home, she was growing so much closer to this place than she thought she could have. Despite the obvious differences in culture and the widespread use of magic, so much remained the same.

The milling of people about, happiness and contentment in the air, all seemed so familiar. The town's merchants, both domestic and foreign, still yelled to catch attention towards their stalls, civilians rushed from place to place quickly to complete their daily tasks and chores. The noise of the city, both during the day and at night, filled her ears. The lights of the homes scattered around the town spoke true to the winters in Arendelle when you could see the firelight from the windows all around the square.

Staring out at the town calmed her, in a strange way. Like a comfort blanket she had rediscovered.

She breathed in the fresh air and closed her eyes. She could imagine herself standing on her balcony, watching the streets, and waiting for something to change…anything…

Tell the guards to open up the gates!

A tiny puff of frost escaped her mouth as she stood up, brushed off her pants, and headed in for the night.

update please don't kill me i know it's been a long time

I hated making Sherry like that, I can't wait till she changes. It'll be a happy day.

Struggled with this chapter, but I'm kinda happy with it. We'll see.

Excited for the next arc though. Should be lots of fun.

Another update coming very soon. This one I swear is coming soon. I'm very close with it. I also have a Fairy Tail/Frozen one-shot in the works that should happen sometime soon. And for anyone out there that has any idea what this means, I also have a small Persona 4 one-shot in the works as well.

~One