A long time ago...

The dark night sky had a slight glow to it as the full moon shone brightly above Magnolia. It was at this time that a mother and son returned home.

"Did you enjoy your birthday party at the guild today?" Erza asked her son closing the door behind her.

Five-year-old Hunter nodded adamantly, buzzing with joy. "Yes, it was the coolest!" He proclaimed making Erza giggle. Fairy Tail certainly knew how to throw a party, especially when Erza demanded nothing but the best for her little boy.

Hunter was dressed in his usual casual attire save for the bright blue sparkling birthday hat on his head and blue sash with the words, 'birthday boy' written across it. (Both which were courtesy of Mirajane). His hands were filled with presents that stacked up so high that his head was nearly covered.

"I saw that you certainly enjoyed playing with Ultear, today." Erza sent a sly glance to her son who's cheeks reddened at the girl's name.

"Mama." Hunter groaned doing his best to glare at the woman who unfortunately was unfazed by his attempt. He puffed his cheeks before looking back down at his presents. "I can't wait to show Papa!"

Erza's face turned grim. "It's been a long day, it's time for you to go to bed, young man." She offered but Hunter shook his head immediately.

"He promised he'd be here." He said smiling. "So I'm gonna wait for him." From his stack of presents, he pulled out a sword, generously given to him by his mother. It was a bit too heavy for him to hold above his head just yet. "I'll show him this one first!" He cheered.

Hunter sat in the living room sofa, sword in hand as he stared at the front door expectingly. His eyes gleamed with hope. Erza simply sighed before taking a seat next to the boy.

As minutes turned into hours of waiting for his father to come home, the hope within the young boy's eyes soon faded, as did his previously gleaming smile. His mother was still beside him, though now she had fallen asleep, completely exhausted from the day.

Tears welled up in Hunter's eyes as he stared at the door praying with withering faith, that maybe his dad would walk through. "So much for promises..." The little boy whimpered as quietly as possible to not disturb his snoozing mother.

Jellal never did come that night. It wasn't the first nor the last promise he broke to his son.

___________

Present Day...

"Dad!" Rose tackled her dad in a hug causing the blue haired man to smile down at her. Pulling away from her dad, Rose immediately grappled herself into the arms of the woman beside him.

"My little niece has grown up so much!" Meredy squealed as she squeezed Rose into a suffocating hug. She planted kisses all over Rose's face causing the girl to giggle. 

"Rose, where is your brother? I heard of his return." Jellal questioned, failing to see his son in the sea of guild members which filled the guild.

Rose regained her composure after freeing herself from Meredy's grip. "He's out doing some errands for the guild." She answered. "I don't know when he'll be back."

Jellal sighed. He had hoped to see his son. "Meredy and I have some urgent business with the Master but when we're done, I'll take you, your brother and mother to dinner, alright?" With a smile on his lips, he reached down and ruffled his daughter's hair much to the young girl's delight. 

"That would be fantastic. There's a new restaurant opened down near the town centre that I really wanted to eat at." Rose informed her father, eyes a light with excitement. Jellal smiled, the bouncing tendency of his daughter reminded much of his wife when she was excited. "I hear their strawberry cake is to absolutely die f-" 

"Rose!" A voice interrupted her excited babbling. She turned to Raiden who shoved a plate of strawberry cake in her hands before the boy looked up excitedly at her father. The girl frowned. "Hey Uncle Jelly!" 

Jellal grimaced at his embarrassing nickname given to him by the children. He chose to ignore Meredy's amused giggles behind him. "Hello, Raiden." He mumbled. 

Next thing he knew, a blonde haired boy joined Raiden's side. "Can you please fight us, Uncle Jelly? We improved a lot since you were here last time." Luke pleaded. 

"Get away!" Rose ordered the two boys standing in front of her father like a shield. She glared daggers at the boys. "He's my dad, go get your own." 

Before the situation could escalate, Jellal cleared his throat. "Raiden, where is your father? There is important guild business we have to discuss." He questioned the boy ensuring the seriousness in his voice was as clear as day. 

"He's where he always is." Raiden said as he pointed up at the guild Master's office. 

Jellal nodded. "Now you three go... play and I'll see you after I'm finished." He said. 

Luke winked. "We'll hold you to that, Uncle Jelly." He chuckled when Jellal grimaced once again. The boy turned to his best friend taking him by the shoulders. "Now, Raiden I think Nashi agreed to a rematch with us." Raiden grinned and so the two boys quickly scurried away. 

"What's this guild business that you have to consult with the Master?" Rose asked her father curiously. There was an uneasy feeling in her stomach. Her father only came to seek the Master's help when it was an emergency so something was definitely wrong.

"It's none of your concern, Rose. Now you go and enjoy times with your friends before I take you out." Jellal urged. Rose frowned at her father for a moment before accepting his answer and returning to her friends with a cake in her hands.

"She's so cute, I could squish her cheeks all day." Meredy breathed out looking to where Rose had disappeared off to. She turned back to Jellal with a curious look on her face. "And about this dinner... I'm invited too right?" 

Jellal was silent causing Meredy to narrow her eyes at him. The blue haired man cleared his throat. "I'll go inform Laxus of our precadiment and ensure at least some sort of plan is in place before Erik's arrival." Jellal said. "Maybe you could say hi to old friends."

Meredy's face brightened. "I haven't seen Juvia in ages. I'll see if she's here."

Jellal nodded before he proceeded towards Laxus' office.

___________

"Well, didn't think I'd see that blue mop of hair so soon." Laxus sneered sending a smirk to Jellal who simply shook his head at the blonde man's remark. He leaned forward, arching a brow towards the man. "So why have you come here?" 

"Jace was captured by our most recent target who had direct links to a dark guild we've been investigating." Jellal informed Laxus who's expression immediately turned grim. 

"Well, that's no good. I always liked that kid." Laxus said lowly. Jace - despite being lazy sometimes - was a reliable and highly capable mage. Him and Hunter were often referred to being equals, that was only when the poison dragon slayer was feeling motivated though... which didn't occur often. "Where's Erik in a time like this?"

"He's dealing with his worries by being a short fuse." Jellal revealed with huff. The blue haired man didn't like seeing his comrade and friend act that way but it was understandable. "It's troublesome. He's with Kinana now and hopefully she can calm him enough until we come up with a plan."

"I see..." Laxus hummed. He pondered for a moment in silence. "Well, Fairy Tail is always here to help family out. So where should we start?" 

___________

Hunter's day was not the best and he had two girls to thank for that. At lunch time, Alexis had asked him (well forced is the better word for it) to help her with gathering groceries for the guild's bar. Ultear happened to hear and decided to invite herself along for the trip. And so his day was filled with passive aggressive banter between the two ladies and it aggravated him to no end. Controlling Storm and Nashi's fights were easy, one look and the two would immediately separate. But Alexis and Ultear were different, they simply ignored Hunter's glares. The red haired Fernandez wished ever so deeply that he had stayed at the guild with Storm, Gale and Nashi.

When he returned home, he was looking forward to finally relaxing but it seemed luck was not with him once again. One step in doors and suspicion hit him. His mother was dressed in a long scarlet coloured dress, six inch heels and literally glowing in happiness. 

Erza's face only brightened even more when she saw her son. She walked to him squeezing him in a tight hug. 

Hunter frowned. He was utterly confused. "Am I missing something?" His eyes suddenly widened. "Is it your birthday? After the whole time travel thing, I can't seem to remember dates correctly." 

Erza chuckled. "No. It's not that." She said easing her son's conscience. 

"Then what's the occasion?" Hunter inquired. 

"Hunter." A voice called him. He looked up at the top of the stair case where the source of the voice was. He'd recognise that deep voice anywhere. His father walked down dressed in modest formal attire, a dark suit and tie. The man stopped in front of him and smiled softly. "Put on some nice clothes, I'm taking the family out to dinner. My treat."

Hunter was silent, his stoic expression unwavering as he looked at his father. "Go without me." He said quietly. Pushing past his parents, he began to make his way up the stairs.

"Hunter." Erza began, her voice dangerously low and lined with authority. Her smile wasn't there anymore, now replaced with an annoyed expression. Hunter came to a halt, his back facing his parents. 

"I'm not hungry and I'd hate to waste dad's money." Was all that he said before continuing his journey to his room. 

When he disappeared up the stairs, Jellal only sighed. "Well, I don't know what else I expected." He admitted rubbing the back of his neck. "I was foolish to assume he'd be willing to come." Erza took his hand into hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze. 

"I'll talk to him tomorrow." Erza said. "He has no reaso-"

"Erza, you and I both know I wasn't the best father at the beginning." Jellal sighed. "He has every right to act that way."

____________

Meanwhile... 

Groaning, Jace woke up with a killer headache. It was as if someone had hit him hard on the head. He squirmed in his spot only to realise... he was on a bed? His wrists were both bound by thick ropes which were connected to the bed posts. 

"Finally, I got bored waiting for you to wake up." The voice belonged to a woman and as said woman approached, Jace recognised her to be his target. 

He snarled. "Lilith..." 

Lilith ran a hand through her brunette coloured curls with a seductive grin. In her other hand, she held a sharp dagger that made Jace tense up. She raised the dagger and pressed the tip of the blade to the middle of his chest. "You're devilishly handsome, you know that right?" She dragged the blade across his chest with just enough force that it kept Jace on edge but didn't puncture him just yet. "You have no chance against me, my love."

"What makes you so confident?" Jace questioned, scowling at the woman. He pulled harshly at the restraints trying to break free but it was to no avail. 

Lilith climbed on top of Jace, both legs on either side of his body. "Because I'm irresistible..." She whispered. Jace tried harder to break free but Lilith held him down pressing both of her hands down on his chest. 

He knew where this was going. Lilith's magic was one that dealt greatly with desires. It was reminiscent to a succubus. He had to get away before she-

Lilith pressed a searing kiss onto his lips and Jace's mind went blank. 

__________

happy holidays everyone!

hope y'all had a good 2018 cause I certainly didn't lmao

now I hope you enjoyed this chapter

poor jace btw ):

#unedited

this chapter's gif honours uncle jelly!