"Get everything you need?" Mereleona asks, glancing down at the girl who tying her hair. The front of her red hair shadowed her face as it grew longer for the past few months.

Kana nods, fixing her hair and shouldering her bags, she smiles as she looks up revealing her bright green eyes, showing her excitement.

The patrons give weird looks as they all either secretly stare or merely avoid Zora as he sat waiting for someone with a cup of tea, a plate of two blueberry muffins and strawberry parfait in front of him.

He mindlessly taps his finger while staring down at the bustling people who are eager for the upcoming festival. His thought was away and when someone poke him in the cheek then he becomes aware of his surrounding and was about to shout to whoever it is but was speechless by the sight behold to him.

Kana stood by his side with her finger still on the position when she teased him. "Sorry for being late. I have some detours to make before coming here." Said the girl. Putting down the hood of her coat.

Zora was wordless as he stares at the girl who seems to grow so much. Her hair has become shorter but he guesses that she had a cut recently and she also become a bit taller and tanner. Her style also changed as she's wearing a large beige coat paired with a maroon dress and by her neck hangs a necklace that have blue stone between it. "Hime-chan?" He gaped. He couldn't point his fingers at but she just radiated a new sense of aura.

"Hm?" Kana took a seat on the empty chair in front of him, whose eyes never leaving her. "What's wrong?"

Blinking as he finally snaps out of his trance, again. Zora chuckles, shaking his head. "I just think that you look beautiful, Hime-chan."

Kana blushes, and let out a cough to ease the awkwardness. "Weirdo. So, do you find anything new while I was away?"

"Bit of this and that." He shrugs, "Same as the one I wrote to you."

"I see. Then why did you ask to meet then?" The fire user rose her eyebrows, tilting her head.

"Why?" Zora grins teasingly, leaning forward. "Can't a friend invite a friend for a drink?" He pushes the bit melted parfait near the girl whose eyes are instantly lured to the sweet.

"Guess there's nothing wrong with it." She mumbles, taking a spoonful of the dessert and the taste of strawberry filling her mouth making a smile of satisfaction creep over her lips.

Zora eyes soften as he observes the girl silently enjoying it and he felt himself feels a wave of calmness washes over him. Before he can even stop himself, his hand suddenly moves as he pats her head thinking. 'cute'

"You surely acting weird today," Kana states, moving his hand away from her head. "That's been saying something with you already screaming weird with your outfits."

"Eh?!" The leather face man annoyingly asks in high pitch. "I don't know what you are talking about."

"You have the talent of making me want to hug and punch you at the same time—"

"I will take the hug—"

"I will take your life!"

After having their lunch, they both decided to tour the city, watching the merchants setting up their booths and enjoying the calmness before the festival.

"How has your training been going?" Zora asks as they stop by a booth that has finished and currently selling crystals.

Kana's eyes dart around the stones as she finds them to her liking. "Honestly, all those training with that old lady have been paying off. All those toughing up have paid off but I need to test it first before running back to her." She picks up a stone that has golden-like coloured and lets the sun shine through it.

"That's a citrine stone." The merchant informs her. "Also called the 'Light Maker' as it gives off a bright energy to those who have it."

"It's beautiful." The red hair mutters, and suddenly a pair of eyes that are similar to it flashes into her though making the girl blush. "C-c-can you pack this one for me?!"

Zora watches in silence as the girl stutters while the seller teases her making the girl's conditions worsen and then looks down at his hand that held an emerald stone.

"Thank you for today," Kana states as they stop in front of an inn where she currently staying while Mereleona returns to the Vermillion's mansion. "It felt good to take a break after so long."

"Seeing me again wasn't so bad right?" The ash user grins, teasing her making the girl glance away.

The redhead did have fun spending the time with him and she just wishes a certain wind user won't know about this and know him—

"Will you be joining the festival tomorrow?"

The man shook his head. "I have somewhere to be tomorrow. Maybe I will give it a visit for a while after I finished my work."

She nods, understandingly and dug something in her pocket. "Here, I found this when I defeated a golem." Between her palm is a flower with bright red petals and darken in the middle. The edge of it has a lava-like motion that flows across it. "This is the only flower that grew through the hot volcano. It reminded me of your father."

Taking the flower from her, he stares at it in awe as she continues.

"You told me that he was the same fire magic user like me and from the way he fights for us commoners, his bravery— it just reminded me of him. Like this flower, your father managed to bloom through the tough environment and he even made the impossible, possible." Kana scratches her neck, feeling shyness creeping up. "And his death anniversary coming up, right? Just give it to him, send my regards alongside." She grins.

The breeze passed by them as they both stood in silence as the ash user's eyes shadowed. He didn't utter a word, simply staring at his palm that has the flower on it.

Kana became flustered, feeling that she might have overstepped her boundary between them making her quickly speak up, "O-or you can throw it away! I-I-I may have too far—"

The girl's words are cut off by the sudden warmness as she finds herself engulfed by Zora and only then that she notices his shoulders shook. He was taken off by her actions since he only mentions his father once and she remembers everything about his late father.

A stray tear fell on his face but his eyes were still shadowed and his grip on her tighten. "Thank you."

A/N: Apologize for the short chapter, I did quite a time skip since the arch when Asta fought one of the Midnight Sun, Kana has been training all along so there isn't anything special happening to her and now our girl finally returned! Stronger, mature and like our favourite leather man said, lovelier. Thank you so much for all your loyalty and your patience. This semester has been the toughest for me and I recently adopted a kitten as my emotional support buddy. 

A friend of mine shows me pictures of kittens waiting to be adopted and I decided to adopt one. I name her, Nala as in The Lion King since she's quite smart and feisty. 

Anyway, I once again apologize for the wait, I want to write for so long but the assignments piling up and my daily life can be quite time-consuming. I hope you guys enjoy this short fluff since the few next chapters can be fluffier before the story took the turn too..............

He he