Chapitre 197: What Laxus Lacks
Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia.
October, x784.
*Smack!*
"You know, I actually agree with Gajeel on this one." Another male voice said after stopping Laxus punch just before it could hit Gajeel.
"Alfonzo!" Levy cried out in relief after seeing who intervened.
Alfonzo, using his [Lightning Enhancement] had quickly approached Laxus and Gajeel as soon as he noticed that Laxus had the intention to take things too far. As a result, he caught Laxus' wrist, stopping the momentum of his punch, just before it could smash into Gajeel's head.
"I didn't need your help." Gajeel said defiantly.
Hearing Gajeel's complaint, Alfonzo glanced at him briefly before returning his attention to Laxus.
"No, you really did." Alfonzo replied. "If that had landed, even if you ground yourself like the first time, you would have needed around half a year in the hospital."
"Why are you getting in my way, Alfonzo?" Laxus asked, anger seeping into his tone.
"To keep you from getting kicked out of the guild." Alfonzo replied.
"Kicked out of the guild? Are you out of your mind?" Laxus asked incredulously. "Like Gramps would ever kick me out of the guild."
"Uh… Yeah, he would." Alfonzo replied after a brief pause while staring at Laxus with disbelief in his tone. "You should know your grandfather better than that, Laxus. Gramps eats, sleeps, and shits for Fairy Tail. Everything he does is for the guild. You should know this better than most, he's not above excommunicating a member of his family, either."
That last statement caused Laxus expression to stiffen for a moment before it returned to normal.
"Why do you even care if I get kicked out or not?" Laxus asked, not wanting to continue the previous topic. "Wouldn't that be better for you?"
"Look, Laxus, it's no secret that we don't get along at all." Alfonzo said while shaking his head. "But we grew up together, Dude. And since I don't hate you, why would I want to see you get kicked out?"
By now, Elicia had joined the group of four, namely, Levy, Jet, Droy, and Gajeel. And like the others, she watched the ongoing conversation with interest. She did, however, pull Gajeel away from the two since he had still been standing only a few inches (2.54 cm) away from Laxus' still outstretched fist.
In response to Alfonzo's statement, Laxus looked at him skeptically.
"Don't look at me like that." Alfonzo said in response to Laxus gaze. Then, he shrugged his shoulders before releasing Laxus wrist and taking a step back towards Elicia and the others. "You can call me sentimental if you want. But after losing my family once, I don't wanna lose anyone from my new one."
Surprisingly, Laxus did not lash out at Alfonzo for suggesting they were family. Instead, he remained silent and held eye contact.
"Look, I know why you've been all pissy for the last ten days or so." Alfonzo continued. "Gramps told us on the day we ran into you after our vacation."
Remembering how bluntly Makarov had declined his request to become the new guild master, Laxus gritted his teeth and clenched his fists.
"And to be honest, I agree with him." Alfonzo continued, not paying attention to Laxus' current expression. Instead, he continued by listing his reasons why Laxus would not make a good guild master. "For one, you're too aggressive. Also, you don't have enough empathy."
Hearing Alfonzo admitting that he did not think that he would be a good guild master either, Laxus turned around, prepared to leave. However, when Alfonzo started listing his reasons, he stopped to listen, even though he really did not want to hear it.
Surprisingly, the two reasons Alfonzo gave were not the same as his grandfather's, who only told him that he was not ready and that he needed more life experience. Yet, he never told Laxus what he was missing or why he was not ready.
Honestly, that kind of vague reasoning would never work with the straightforward Laxus. Not to say that Laxus is dumb. Which he certainly is not. However, he is impatient and impulsive. So, not spelling out what he was lacking was more like brushing him off to him.
"And the biggest issue is that you always try to get rid of anyone you consider weak." Alfonzo continued. "Something I never understood. I mean, when you wanted Lici and I to leave because you thought the magic that we could use was worthless, you were only ten years old. Dude, you weren't even someone who could be considered strong at that point."
"I want the guild to be strong." Laxus said without turning around. "For that, we can't have weaklings bringing it down."
"Dude, are you stupid?" Alfonzo asked in an exasperated tone.
That caused Laxus to turn around, anger visible in his, literally, flashing eyes.
"You better have a good reason for that." Laxus growled.
"If Blondie really doesn't get it, then he really is stupid." Gajeel said mockingly.
Gajeel's statement drew all the attention to him.
"What? If he can't see that driving away children, for whom the sky is the limit, is a bad idea for the future of any guild, then he really is stupid." Gajeel said with a shrug in response to the gazes of the others. "I mean, I don't even like brats, but I know how necessary they are for a guild's development."
"Once again, I have to agree with Gajeel." Alfonzo said after the gazes lingered on Gajeel for a bit longer. "Like he said, you tried pushing away future members with unknown potential. On top of that, what if Gramps had listened to you? Sure, you and the rest of the Thunder God Tribe would still be here… But you would be here all alone as this generation's only wizards. You know… Since you wanted everyone that joined after me and Lici to get lost, as well."
Although Laxus expression did not change after Alfonzo said that, he did slightly avert his eyes from the eye contact he held with Alfonzo.
'I guess he had already realized that part on his own.' Alfonzo mused to himself.
"Even worse than that." Alfonzo continued. "All of us would have left and went to join the other guilds of Fiore. As a result, you would have indirectly strengthened the other guilds in the Kingdom. And by now, Fairy Tail's spot as Fiore's strongest guild would be in question."
Once again, Laxus could not respond.
"On top of that, Ur would have---" Alfonzo tried to continue.
"Shut up!" Laxus barked, turning around as he spoke. "I get it. So, you don't need to say anymore."
With that, Laxus turned into a bolt of lightning and flashed away from the park.
"Damn… He's so rude." Alfonzo murmured after Laxus left. "He could have at least let me finish."
"Why are you looking at me like that, woman?" Gajeel shouted, causing Alfonzo to look back at the rest of the group.
When he did, Alfonzo saw Elicia looking at Gajeel with equal parts interest and disbelief on her face.
"I didn't' know Dragon Slayers had brains." Elicia teased in a tone of mock surprise. "That argument was so well structured. Are you really a Dragon Slayer? Or just someone who uses magic that looks like [Dragon Slayer Magic]?"
"Of course I'm a real Dragon Slayer!" Gajeel exploded. "Don't lump me in with that idiot, Salamander."
*Giggle!*
Hearing a feminine giggle from behind, Elicia and Gajeel looked back to see Jet and Droy staring at Levy in surprise while Levy covered her mouth to suppress her giggles.
"Sorry." Levy said when she noticed that she had drawn everyone's attention. "But I couldn't help it. I mean, you did challenge Alfonzo to a fight and get beat up, just like Natsu, so it's hard to not put you too in the same category."
While Alfonzo shrugged at Levy's statement, Elicia smiled, and Gajeel frowned, Jet and Droy looked mortified. Levy's smile while looking at Gajeel was so… genuine. Not to say that her smiles at everyone else were fake. But she looked really happy. And they did not like that.
'Don't tell me she likes him.' Jet and Droy thought at the same time after exchanging glances.
Jet and Droy's thoughts could not be further from the truth, however. The reason for Levy's genuine, happy smile was very simple. Her imagination had substituted Gajeel into the impression she had of Natsu.
However, instead of a pink-haired wizard with plumes of fire shooting out of his mouth as he made challenges to every strong wizard he knew, there was a black-haired wizard with chunks of iron dribbling out of his mouth while doing the same.
"Anyway, since the show's over, I'm going back to the guild." Alfonzo said, turning around and starting to leave the park. "I've still got training to do."
"Why did you even come here?" Droy asked. "Were you following us?"
"Obviously." Alfonzo replied.
In hindsight, Droy felt that question was just as obvious as Alfonzo said it was, causing his face to redden a bit in embarrassment.
"But why?" Jet questioned.
"To keep all of you from doing anything stupid." Elicia replied this time as she started following Alfonzo back to the guild. "Like what Fonzie said to Laxus, if any of you had gone too far, you could have been kicked out of the guild."
With that, Alfonzo and Elicia continued to walk away, leaving the other four in silence. Eventually, however, that silence was broken when Gajeel took a step forward and shouted at the backs of the two.
"One day, we're gonna finish that fight that got interrupted, Magic Seamstress!" Gajeel shouted. "And I'll beat you one day, too, Master of Metals."
Immediately after Gajeel's declarations, Levy giggled once again, the image in her imagination overlapping with the current Gajeel.
Meanwhile, Jet and Droy both felt as if they had taken an arrow to the heart when they heard Levy's giggle and saw her smile.
Alfonzo and Elicia, on the other hand, only waved without turning around as they continued to leave.
"Sure, we can do it whenever." Elicia said.
"Yeah, come find me whenever." Alfonzo said. "I make it a habit of handing out lollipops and ass whoopings to guild mates that challenge me. But you should know, I've been outta lollipops for a long time."
In response, Gajeel simply clenched his fists.
"Oh, and you should call me Alfonzo, instead of using that grandiose epitaph." Alfonzo continued.
A moment later, once Alfonzo and Elicia were out of earshot, Gajeel relaxed his hands and turned back towards Team Shadow Gear.
"So, did you guys still need to blow off some steam?" Gajeel asked nonchalantly. "Or are we done here?"
"Come on, guys." Levy said, finally over her fit of giggles. "Let's just leave it here. Now that we're all part of the same guild, there's no need to fight like this."
"Tch! Fine." Jet agreed begrudgingly.
"Yeah, but only because you're the one who asked us, Levy." Droy continued.
"Simps." Gajeel said before turning around and walking away. "I need to do some missions, anyway. The Old Man told me that I could have one of the best meals I've ever had if I collect enough points by not causing property damage on my missions. And I need to see how true that was."
With that, Levy, Jet, and Droy watched Gajeel walk off with strange expressions. Then, when Gajeel could no longer be seen, Levy glanced at Jet and Droy, who were clearly thinking the same thing that she was.
"So, that's how Master convinced him to join the guild!" The three members of Team Shadow Gear exclaimed simultaneously.
"Well, I guess I can't blame him for being lured by Alfonzo's cooking." Jet said.
"Yeah, just thinking about it makes me miss the old days when he cooked at the guild every day." Droy added.
"I guess he really is a Dragon Slayer, like Natsu." Levy said, stifling another fit of giggles. "I mean, the only things they ever think about are fighting and food. But Master has to be a genius to use that knowledge to invite Gajeel to join Fairy Tail."
At the same time, back at the guild hall, Makarov, with a mug of ale, was sitting atop the bar after finally finding his favorite spot on the new bar.
*Sneeze!*
"I wonder which lovely lady is thinking about me." Makarov said while rubbing his nose. "Anyway, I wonder how long it will take Ivan to make contact with Gajeel. I know he won't be able to resist having a contact in the guild."
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Chapitre 198: Before the Pageant
Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia.
October 15, x784.
A week or so after Gajeel's confrontation with Team Shadow Gear and Laxus seemed to pass within the blink of an eye as today, October 15, the day of the harvest festival in Magnolia, hard finally arrived.
In the town, around eleven in the morning, the streets were covered in festive decorations. On top of that, those involved in harvesting the autumn crops had just finished and were in a jubilant mood, which had spread to all the townsfolk.
Naturally, the jubilant atmosphere had also spread to the most prominent group of people who called Magnolia home. Namely, the wizards of Fairy Tail.
The guild hall's exterior had festival banners hanging from its walls that flapped in the wind. Meanwhile, colorful decorations could be seen all over the guild's first floor. On top of that, one of the features Alfonzo built in to the hall on the first floor was finally being put to use. On the wall opposite of the bar, a large stage, that had not been present before, could be seen. According to Alfonzo, it was built to fold into or out of the wall when a bit of magic power was sent into a certain sigil.
"Every time I see some of these features, I'm amazed." Makarov said from one of the front row seats in front of the stage. "You really outdid yourself, Alfonzo, my boy."
"I aim to please." Alfonzo said with a satisfied nod from the seat to Makarov's right.
"Still, I can't' believe this is really happening." Macao, who was sitting on the other side of Makarov said with a smile. "So many of the girls in our guild signed up for this Miss Fairy Tail Pageant of yours, Master. This is truly a great day."
Instead of the smug smile everyone was expecting to see on Makarov's face, the old man wore an expression as if he had just solved world hunger.
"If you think that just the pretty, young girls in the guild will be the only ones in the pageant, then your imaginations are truly lacking." Makarov said before putting on the expression of a senior teaching his juniors. "And you must remember, imagination is one of the keys to advancing in your study of magic."
With that, Macao, Wakaba, Reedus, and other wizards from the older generation first wore shocked expressions before those expressions morphed into enlightened ones.
"Master, do you mean...?" Wakaba asked, anticipation glowing in his eyes.
"Yes, it's exactly what you're thinking, Wakaba." Makarov replied, the smug smile everyone was expecting finally appearing on his face.
"But how?" Reedus asked curiously. "She won't even let me use her as a model for my paintings."
"All I can say is a refine gentleman, such as myself, can be very persuasive when I need to be." Makarov said with a smile. "And with my refined tastes granted by experience, I did my best to persuade her to join. She'll even be in the swimsuit portion of the pageant.""
"So, you got Porlyusica to join, huh?" Alfonzo added casually. "You really are impressive, Gramps."
"Exactly, I got Porlyusica to---" Makarov began to agree smugly.
However, as soon as he completely registered Alfonzo's words, Makarov froze. Immediately afterward, his face paled after involuntarily imagining Porlyusica striking a sexy pose while wearing a swimsuit.
Unfortunately, Makarov was not the only one who was effected by Alfonzo's words. Macao, Wakaba, Reedus, and all the other male members… and some female members… of the previous generation recoiled before gagging after a nearly identical image appeared in their heads.
Meanwhile, Levy, Mirajane, and Chica, the daughter of Fairy Hills owner, sat a few rows back and watched all the old perverts in the guild wretch thanks to Alfonzo's question.
"Hmph!" Serves those old men right." Chica said with a snort.
"Seriously." Levy chimed in. "Other than take the occasional quest, all they do is stare at the girls in the guild all day."
"To be fair, though, the girls in our guild are really pretty." Mirajane said with a smile. "So, can you really blame them?"
"Of course, we can!" Levy and Chica replied simultaneously. "They only stare at the girls with big boobs like that!"
"Ah… I see." Mirajane said with a knowing smile after being taken aback for a moment. "So that's what this is about."
Of all the girls in Fairy Tail, Levy and Chica were two of the three girls with the worst natural endowments. Unlike the two of them, however, the third, Marin, seemed completely unbothered by the fact that her figure was on the modest side.
"Anyway, I'm surprised you won't be joining the pageant, Mira." Levy said with a blush to cover up the embarrassment she felt after Mirajane saw through hers and Chica's anger.
"That's right, as a model in Sorcerer Weekly, I thought this would be right up your ally." Chica added.
"*Sigh* I was going to, but Lisanna said that she wanted to participate." Mirajane replied, sounding a bit sad that she was not participating. "And I really didn't want to compete with my sister in a competition like this."
Upon hearing Mirajane's reason, Levy and Chica smiled at her warmly. However, when they heard her following words, those smiles began to strain, immediately.
"Besides, like you said, I'm a model in Sorcerer Weekly. I even overtook Karen Lilica… Pfft! *Cough* Excuse me… for the position of the most popular model at the end of last year." Mirajane continued.
When they heard Mirajane cough to cover a laugh, both Levy and Chica were surprised and confused. To them, it sounded as if Mirajane was looking down on Karen. And although that was something rather common back when Mirajane was first called the Demon Girl, it was not something one would see very often now-a-days.
Like in the case of Levy and Chica, to most people, it would sound as if Mirajane was laughing at Karen as the former number one most popular model of Sorcerer Weekly. But anyone who ever saw the way Karen acted around Elicia, it would be hard not to laugh at least a little.
"So, it would be unfair to everyone else if I participated." Mirajane concluded her short speech while acting as if that little peel of laughter never happened.
"I guess the old Mira really does show up every now and then, huh?" Chica whispered after leaning into Levy's ear.
"Yeah, every now and then when we train together, she gets like that whenever things get too competitive." Levy replied with a whisper of her own.
"Kinda makes me glad I never trained with you guys." Chica said. "The old Mira was really hard to deal with."
"It's not that bad." Levy replied with a wry smile. "Even back then, she was just a tsundere."
"What have you two been whispering about over there?" Mirajane asked with a kind smile on her face.
That kind smile, however, had the exact opposite effect a kind smile should have on Levy and Chica, leaving them absolutely terrified after seeing it.
"Oh, nothing." Levy and Chica replied simultaneously with cold sweat flowing down their backs.
"Anyway, I'm surprised you didn't participate in the pageant, Chica." Levy said, trying to change the subject swiftly.
"*Sigh* I might have if there was a chance that Laxus would be here to see it." Chica replied in a down trodden tone. "I mean, maybe seeing me in a bikini might have made him notice me. But since he would never come to something like this, what's the point? It's not like I would have won with all these boob lovers in the guild."
"But Marin is participating, so that's not really an excuse.." Mirajane pointed out, more interested in this topic than the previous one. "And from what I've gathered, she's got just as good a chance of winning as any other girl whose participating."
At the same time, in the backstage area.
*Sneeze!*
"Marin, are you okay?" Lucy asked with concern. "You're not catching a cold, are you?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." Marin replied with a smile while waving off Lucy's concern. "Someone's probably talking about me, that's all."
Back in the audience, the conversation between Levy, Mirajane, and Chica continued.
"She doesn't count." Chica denied. "Marin isn't really on our side."
"Yeah, she's not really part of the itty bitty titty committee." Levy added. "I mean, she can make hers whatever size she wants with her magic."
When Levy said that, Mirajane noticed the envy on not only Levy's, but Chica's expression, as well.
"You know, having big boobs isn't as great as you two make it out to be." Mirajane said with a wry smile while shaking her head. "I mean, they---"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Chica said, interrupting Mirajane. "I know exactly what you're gonna say, Mira. They cause back aches and stiff shoulders. Yada, yada, yada. Although that's probably true, I know you only say that so that girls with tittle litties like us don't feel so bad."
Levy nodded along fervently.
In response, Mirajane could only shake her head while once again smiling wryly. Although the bit about back aches and stiff shoulders are almost always said in a conciliatory tone, that made it no less true.
'I should get Alfonzo to give me a massage after the parade.' Mirajane thought to herself. 'My shoulders have been pretty stiff while working on the preparations for the Fantasia Parade.
At that moment, the front doors to the guild hall slid open, drawing everyone's attention to them. But when Laxus, Bickslow, and Fried were the ones that walked in, everyone was thoroughly shocked.
"He actually showed up." Chica muttered in frustration. "If I knew he was gonna be here, I would have shown off my newest swimsuit in the pageant."
"Don't worry, Chica, there's always next time." Levy consoled while patting Chica on the shoulder. "Plus, you should have a chance when the Rainbow Cherry Blossoms bloom next month. Everyone will drinking together, right?"
Hearing that, Chica perked up a little. However, it was clear that she was still a little sad about the missed opportunity.
Levy, Mirajane, and Chica were not the only ones who were surprised by Laxus' sudden arrival. Alfonzo, who was expecting the pageant to be interrupted by Laxus doing something stupid, was even more surprised than Chica.
'Well, this sure as hell isn't canon.' Alfonzo thought to himself as he watched Laxus, Bickslow, and Fried take some seats while keeping a distance from everyone else. 'But looking into his eyes, Laxus is definitely up to something. But for the life of me, I can't figure out what it could be.'
Although Alfonzo was quite surprised by Laxus' arrival, he was definitely not the most surprised. Instead, that honor went to Makarov.
I didn't expect Laxus to show up today.' Makarov thought to himself as he remember all the good memories he made with his grandson over the years at the Fantasia Parade. 'Maybe we'll get the chance to spend some time together like we used to. Except I'll probably be the one sitting on his shoulders this time.'
Seeing the happy, nostalgic smile on Makarov's face, Alfonzo simply shrugged his shoulders before smiling and returning his attention to the old men who were still occasionally throwing glares at him for the mental image he gave them.
Those in the audience were not the only ones who were surprised. At around the same time Laxus, Bickslow, and Fried entered the guild hall, Evergreen strolled into the backstage area confidently.
"Alright girls, now that I'm here, none of you have a snowball's chance in hell of winning." Evergreen declared in the changing room loud enough for everyone to hear. "So, I have a question for all of you. Who's coming in second?"
Hearing that question, the tension in the changing room began to rise. However, there was someone in the room who either could not read the atmosphere, or did not care to.
"Hey, Ever!" Elicia shouted while waving at the late arrival. "I didn't know you were gonna be in the pageant. But I should have known, I guess. I mean, you did ask me to rush a swimsuit for you."
Just like that, the building tension was shattered immediately. Then, after everyone gave Elicia an incredulous look, they all went back to making their final preparations for the pageant.
Evergreen, on the other hand, frowned at Elicia for destroying her intimidation tactic. Even if she did not realize that she was only lighting afire under the other proud young women of Fairy Tail, who were just as confident in their looks as she was.
Seeing that no one was paying attention to her anymore, Evergreen pouted before she walked over to a locker and started changing out of her casual clothes and into an evening gown, the first event in the beauty pageant.
"*Sigh* These girls sure have spunk." Ur said while casually changing into her evening gown.
"Yeah, it's all over their faces." Ren replied.
That reply caused Ur to stop and take a glance at Ren, who did not seem to be bothered by what she just said. Shaking her head, Ur turned her focus back to getting dressed. Still, she thought she needed to say something.
"That was a poor choice of words, Ren." Ur said.
"I know, right." Ren replied with a giggle.
Immediately, Ur snapped her head in Ren's direction only to see her grinning back cheekily. In response, Ur could only smile wryly and shake her head as she went back to getting dressed.
"You're bad, Ren." Ur said with a smile.
"I have no idea what you could possibly be talking about." Ren replied with a smile of her own.
A few minutes later, a waitress from the guild's bar entered the room. However, instead of taking orders, she was acting in the capacity of a member of the pageant staff for today.
"Ladies, the pageant will begin in three minutes." The waitress said while holding a clipboard in her hands. "Please finish your preparations before then."
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SixthSense1029
2/2
You can read 5 chapters ahead on my Patr3on at:
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