Shannon woke up a little while later and looked around her. She could smell the ocean and taste the salt in the air, but her friends were nowhere in sight. She got up and looked at the area around her: she was laying on a bed, in a quiet tent. She sat on the bed and sighed, "I overdid it again, didn't I?" I've got to get back into it, it seems that I've grown weak from Gerald's rules.

She got up and walked out of the tent and saw the brightness of the golden sky. She couldn't help but smile as she saw the first rays of light striking the shore line. Everything here was so peaceful, and she admired that peace. She then looked out towards the temple and saw a crowd of people gathering near a circle.

She ran towards the circle, yelling, "What's going on?"

An older man stopped her in her tracks by putting his hand out in front of her and she ran into it. She fell on the ground and looked up at the man, "What was that for?"

"Quiet, young one, the Summoner is about to call upon the Aeons."

"The what?" She got up, shaking her head and saw Braska, Jecht, and Auron standing in a concrete circle. Braska was in the center, while Jecht and Auron were on the sides. She looked as Braska started to raise his arms and his...summoner's wand (she wasn't sure about this) towards the sky. He then took it in one hand and pointed it upwards, and little balls of light started to surround him.

Shannon gasped because she thought he was going to die, but instead, a large bird, almost phoenix like, came flying out of the sky! It approached Braska and Braska touched it and Shannon knew that spirit was nothing to fear. She sighed out of relief, knowing that her friends wouldn't be harmed by it.

Yet, she heard a voice in her head, "Are you a summoner as well?"

She shook her head in disbelief, there's no way she can hear a spirit's voice! She looked and saw the bird staring at her and she nodded slowly. Why could she hear his voice, but no one else seemed to notice?

The creature smiled at her as it flew away, back to wherever it came from. Everyone congratulated Braska on a successful first summon, but Shannon could only look on in shock. Could she have forged a bond with Braska's aeon somehow? Yet, she didn't even step into the same area as Braska!

The only thing that snapped her out of her thoughts was Jecht snapping in her face, "Are you there? Wake up!"

Shannon gasped and shook her head, "I'm fine, I swear! Honest!"

Jecht smirked, "Good, I wanted to make sure that your magic power or whatever didn't sap your personality."

"No, it just needs to recharge after I use it all. Plus, using two magics at once wears me out easily and I haven't had the proper training in...well, ever since I got with Gerald. I'm fine though!"

She looked ahead and saw Jecht walking on, not even listening to her, back towards the road they came from. She looked for Braska and Auron and she saw them a little bit ahead of her and yelled out, "Wait for me!!!"

She blasted past Braska and Auron, trying to catch up to Jecht, shouting still, "You're so dead Jecht!!! Next time pull me along with you!!" She pulled out her wip, ready to string Jecht up by his feet, but little did she realize, Jecht had stopped dead in his tracks!

She ran into him and yelled out, "Watch where you're going!"

Jecht turned, "Next time, I'll let you face these things." She saw fiends that looked like...well, big piles of goop.

She looked at the whip held in her hands and said, "I've got this." She cracked her whip and yelled out, as she threw it towards one of the blobs. "Let's show these blobs what's up: Fleuve d'étoiles!" She cracked it and a river of stars flew out of it and it wrapped around the creature's torso! She smiled as she tossed the creature in the air with her whip and as she slammed it down into the ground! It quickly faded into a cloud of light balls.

She jumped up and down, "Oh yeah, still have it!" She was excited, until she saw the worst thing possible: a bird fiend wandering towards Braska and Auron, who were still behind them. She yelled at Jecht, "Fight the goop, I've got this fiend!"

She ran towards Braska and Auron and yelled, "Look out!" She managed to strangle the creature's neck with her whip, but it started to fly around! Shannon got lifted off the ground and flew around in the same path the creature had, the whip holding the two of them together! The creature kept squawking at her and she kept trying to slam it into the ground, but nothing could be done! The force managed to undo the hold she had on the creature and it was able to be freed!

As for Shannon, well, the creature had managed to be freed over water, so she started to fall towards the water! She threw her whip up in a last ditch effort to save herself, but it only smacked the side of the cliff. She yelled, out of fear of what was below the water, but she couldn't see her friends anymore.

Slowly, she saw the water getting closer to her and she closed her eyes, bracing herself for the impact of her fate. She felt the coolness of the water touch her head as the water's grasp took her into its embrace, her mind filling with memories of the water.

*****

"You're a pathetic excuse for a Wizard!" Gerald cried out at her as she came back from her latest mission beat up and bruised. "Why do you keep going out on missions, you're only shaming wizards!"

She retorted back, "I don't see you doing anything to earn money, so I had to take the job, plus, if I want to become S-Class, I have to put my life on the line to keep others safe! I want to have a life outside of this house and you don't seem to understand that!"

"You don't need to have a life outside of me at all! All we need is each other, right?"

Shannon shook her head, "I'm through with you. We're done. I'm tired of being the only one who earns money for us and I'm sick of you hindering who I am! I'm going to my true home: Fairy Tail. You are never welcomed into MY GUILD EVER AGAIN!!!"

Smack. She felt a whip smack into the side of her head. She then was whisked off of her feet and forced to face Gerald. Gerald smirked, "I don't think that's a good response for a house wife at all. You'll pay for shaming me!"

Whips smacked her in the face and her body. Gerald then used his strength to carry her outside, into a river that flowed through Magnolia. He tossed her in it and Shannon instantly felt the shock of the cold water. She swam up to the top of the water and yelled out, "What was that for?"

Gerald then summoned, "Open, gate of the water bearer: Aquarius!!!" A mermaid with light blue hair and a light blue tail came in the water and Gerald yelled out, "DROWN THAT SORRY EXCUSE OF A WIZARD!"

Shannon gasped as she saw Aquarius approach her and cried out, "Please don't hurt me!"

The spirit only mouthed out to Shannon, "I'm sorry," as she sent a column of water towards Shannon. It knocked Shannon down to the bottom of the river and the spirit said, "As you wish, Master."

Anger and fear coursed through Shannon because the one she had loved turned to the one she would hate.

******

Shannon opened her eyes and gasped for fresh air, fearing the feeling of water filling her body up. She looked around after feeling just air fill her back up and saw Braska, Jecht, and Auron looking at her, "What happened, did those fiends get defeated?"

Braska shook his head, "Yeah, they did, but we were more worried about you. Why did you fall like that?"

"Momentum? The creature managed to get free over the water, so I fell. I tried saving myself from the fall by using my whip, but I couldn't latch onto anything. Oh man, I truly did manage to embarrass myself again."

"What matters is that you're okay, alright? Let's march forward now, into a world without Sin."

Shannon stood up and nodded, "Sounds good to me! But who saved me?"

Auron, who did not have on his red coat, smiled calmly. Shannon ran up and hugged the stoic man and Braska and Jecht had to do everything in their power to avoid warning Shannon of Auron's...nature towards emotions like that.

She embraced him and looked up to him, "Thank you for saving me! I owe you big time!"

To Braska and Jecht's shock, Auron hugged the girl back, "You're welcome." Braska and Jecht even swore they saw Auron cry a bit.

They let go of the embrace and Shannon turned towards the group, "Well, we still have time to head to the ship?"

Braska nodded, "Yeah!"

"Let's get going then!" Shannon then raced off towards the port, putting her melee weapon back into place along with her keys yelling, "Can't catch me now!"

Jecht raced towards her, "Watch me!"

Auron and Braska stayed behind, watching the two race. Braska smiled at Auron, "So, do you like Shannon? You never would have jumped into the water like that for that priest's daughter."

Auron nodded, "Yes, I do my Lord. Somehow, she managed to make me feel...I don't know what to call it."

"Loved?"

Auron smiled, "Yeah, loved."

______

A/N:

Now this is the length I like!  Enjoy this update! I'll put some music to it soon!

~Shannon