~*****~

Happy's muttering and Natsu's growling was the only thing that seemed to echo in the dungeons. "Oh, wait," Happy perked up.

"You okay?" Ballad asked, her little paws resting on the manacle they put her in.

Happy nods. "Guess so." He sighs. "Hey, Aria? Is your tummy feeling better?"

I hum in response. "Yes. I've frozen my internals to ensure it doesn't happen again." I mention as I palm at my belly. "Although, with these sealstone chains on, I'm not gonna be able to thaw them out any time soon."

"Gray is such a jerk," Natsu growls. "What in the hell is wrong with him?"

"And without the Fairy Tail Guild Mark, he looks totally stupid," Happy hums.

Ballad and I share a discrete, insulted expression before turning our noses upwards. "Uh-- I mean, not you guys, though!" Natsu suddenly exclaimed as he took notice to our sour expressions. "Just Gray looks stupid without the guild mark!"

"Oh, and I suppose I look totally normal without it, huh? Thanks a lot, you freakin' jerk!" I hiss. "Great work makin' me believe rejoining Fairy Tail is a great move!"

Ballad chuckles as I immediately turn on my knees to peer out of the bars instead. Natsu whines at my attitude. "As crazy as this might sound, I believe Natsu's theory." Lucy mentions. "Something's taken him over, or he's being manipulated. I mean, you heard Aria, he can fool anyone, but not what's inside."

"The Gray we know would never do anything like this." Happy nods.

"No one who joins a dark guild has a good heart." I murmur to myself. My brow twitches as vibrations rumble against my knees. I press my face against the bars, peering out anxiously after shushing them violently. Gomon approaches the cell, facing down the hallway before bowing.

Lucy gives a shriek. "What kind of lunatic bows to empty air?!"

"Scary!" Happy cries.

Natsu suddenly charges to the bars. "Where is Gray!?" He bellows, his body creating a loud clanging noise from the collision. "Bring him down here right now!"

"Gray and the other mighty ones had to leaf to begin to the mission we've been brewing up." Gomon hums.

"What's that?" Natsu asks.

"Our purifications plan for the unclean masses." Gomon states. "Our exalted leader asked that I stay behind to snuff out who sent you here. Under strain of brew-tal torture."

"What is this purification plan?" Happy asks.

"The purification of souls. Only one thing will beckon the return of our Dark Lord Zeref. The deaths of countless innocents." Gomon states.

"There's no way Gray would be involved in some evil plan like that!" Lucy exclaims.

Gomon peers at Lucy for a moment. "Why have you not mentioned my outfit?" My brow quirks in confusion. "Well, I'm obviously cosplaying as our dark lord Zeref, and I think I nailed it to a tea!"

"I don't think so--" I trail off.

"I'm such a major fan of Lord Zeref I even got this awesome face tattoo! It's spell in some kinda foreign alphabet, but I was told it says Zeref Rules!" Gomon continues excitedly.

"It actually says Powdered Tea. You probably shouldn't have done that. Tattoos are kinda permanent." I hum.

"Say what?!" Gomon barks. "You bergamot be telling the truth!"

My wrists sling upwards and pull me to the ceiling. "He can control his torture stuff without touching it?" Happy gasps.

"You just noticed?" Gomon chirped.

"You let her go, round boy!" Natsu shouts.

"Shut up. You should realize I have the power here." Gomon retorts nonchalantly. Natsu, Lucy, Happy, and Ballad all give a bark of frustration as they're slung to the walls. "Time to get started. And I will show no pi-tea!"

"No, Aria!" Natsu shouts.

"Lemme go!" Ballad cries.

My legs swing aimlessly as I wait for him to get closer. "Magic doesn't work on Sealstone, that's the point!" He swishes a blanket off of the table and reveals a collection of instruments for torture. "I can use a whip. Or a candle. Or water. Or rope! How about some foot licking torture? So what's your cup of tea, huh?"

"You're as kinky as Virgo, aren't you?" I hum. "You guys are just a match made in heaven--"

"Or hell if you ask me," Lucy retorts.

"I would go with the foot licking, if I were you. I mean, how bad can that be?" Natsu hums.

"That's so gross!" Lucy cries.

"It seems that you fail to comprehend the barbari-tea of that particular method of torture." Gomon explains as he brandishes a bottle of salt water.

"Yeah, yeah, the feet get slathered in salt water and let a goat go to town on 'em." I retort. "Listen buddy, I used to work as a mercenary, I know all types of torture."

"YOU SOUND LIKE YOU'VE DONE IT BEFORE!" Lucy cries.

"That is some freaky, messed up stuff!" Natsu exclaims.

"You mean that poor goat as to lick at Aria's frozen feet forever?!" Happy stammers.

"Gimme those feet, girl!" Just as Gomon grasps my leg, it swings upwards and slams ontop of his head. There's a devastating thud and just as he stumbles, I wrap my calves around his neck and squeeze. Ice crawls from my legs and arms, freezing the entirety of Gomon before the sealstone cuffs around my wrists snap. I twist my body and slam Gomon's frozen body onto the ground, shattering the ice. Gomon lays on the ground, shivering and wincing from the pain.

"I see you haven't lost your edge," Gray's voice rings out.

I turn my gaze onto him and snort. "You're the one playing dress up, you freak." I retort irritably. Ballad gives a triumphant shout of glee as she's released from her manacle and flies forward to tackle Gray's head.

"Gray!" Lucy cries.

Gray plucks Ballad off and grunts. "So typical! How can you guys always ruin everything?" Gray pulls out a small device and presses it to his ear. "Listen up, it's code blue. I just hit a snag here. No, no, not that kind." Gray retorts to whoever is on the other line. He hums. The black markings on his body start to recede. "Hell if I know. You should probably ask them yourself. Yeah, they're right here."

"All that stuff on him just faded away," Happy hummed. Gray tossed the device to me.

"Just hold it up to your ear." Gray informed me.

"Do I look like a moron?" I snap as I angle it to my ear. Gray snatches it and flips it over. I grimace and repress it against my ear. Natsu's suddenly pressed against the other side of the phone, and curious look in his eye. "Get out of my space, fire freak--" I snap angrily.

"Aria, Natsu." Erza's voice rings out. "You certainly have changed if you're snapping at him with that tone." I snort irritably. "Congratulations. Your antics blew Gray's covert operation."

"Don't go pining this on me," I snap immediately. "I was trying to be stealthy, but the blowhard wanted to scream at the top of his lungs like always. I had an official job to take down Avatar, it's not my fault Gray decided to join up with the bastards."

"I'm a spy, you moron. Give me some credit. You really think I would join some creepy Zeref cult?" Gray asked irritably.

"Well, I mean, you yanked our chain with that Daphne chick and the dragonoid things." I retort plainly.

Gray grimaces and pinches his nose. "It's time to get moving. We'll explain everything on the way." We left the dungeons and boarded some cranky looking hogs to stop this Purification Plan.

"Several months ago, Jellal asked me to do a favor for Crime Sorciere. I was to investigate Avatar. Discover their connection to Zeref. The trail grew cold. And I just happened to reconnect with Gray. It ended up being a lucky break." Erza explained.

"How're we still hearing her?" Happy asks.

"We've got a portable communication Lacrima. Anyway, after our last fight, this pattern broke out all over me, so I went to Porlyusica to see if she could help." Gray explained. "As you saw, now I'm able to make it appear and disappear whenever I want."

"So, after we had discussed our current situations, it was obvious we needed to come up with a plan to work together." Erza explained.

"It was fate. Of course, I would do anything for Erza. Not only that, I wanted to get my hands on the book of E.N.D. My Dad's last wish was for me to destroy it." Gray hums.

"Yeah, okay, but why didn't you tell Juvia about this?" Natsu asked. "She's literally worried sick!"

"I know." Erza sighs. "It's because I asked him to keep it a secret. A covert mission such as this needs to be kept confidential. The more people that are made aware of it, the more likely it is to fail. And also, mere knowledge of the plan can put someone in danger."

"So you kept her in the dark for her protection?" Ballad asks.

"Still a crappy thing to do!" Natsu snaps.

"I feel bad for what Juvia's had to go through. And unfortunately for all of us, the mission has lasted much longer than I first anticipated. The situation has changed dramatically. It started out as a routine investigation, but then, we learned of their diabolical purification plan." Erza states.

"Avatar's gonna try to wipe out an entire city because they think it'll summon Zeref. They actually believe the site of concentrated death like that will attract their dark lord. It's up to us to stop that from happening." Gray explains. "No matter what it takes."

"Why didn't you guys just wipe 'em out in the very beginning?" Natsu asks. "Somethin' like that would be easy for you and Erza!"

"You'd think, but you'd be wrong. After a little digging, we found out Avatar is a way bigger organization than we'd thought. I was able to infiltrate to some degree, but only inside a single branch. Each one is kept separate and has limited contact with the main headquarters." Gray states.

"That left no room for error," Erza adds. "But we still couldn't let their plan come to fruition. Our only hope is to stop it from happening was to wait until today."

"That's right. The day all the branches will be gathered in one place. Before they kill anyone, we'll destroy them." Gray states. I hum in thought. "Aria. Sorry about all that crap I said in there. But I knew they were watching me and I couldn't risk blowing my cover right then."

I feel a flush crawl up my neck as he offers me a sincere smile. I turn my nose up. "Whatever, man, I told you, I can see everything." I retort irritably. "Fake eye or not, my right eye can still see your heart's good."

Gray just smiled wider. "Same as always, super cute when you're embarrassed." Gray compliments. Natsu roars in outrage, but it's quickly swallowed by the aggressive snort. I snort again louder and turn my nose up and away from him. "You guys are my friends for life, and nothin's ever gonna change that."

I snort again and angle my head to the side. "Yeah, that seriously hasn't changed." I hum. "I feel the same, Gray."

"That makes things a whole lot easier!" Natsu exclaims, suddenly fired up. "We can wreck their stupid plan in no time if all of us work together!"

"Don't get so fired up, save that energy for the fight!" I snap.

"I'm totally in it to win it!" Happy cheers.

"You sure about that?" Gray asked.

"It wasn't our intention to drag you into the fight with us." Erza hums.

"I was already heading to the fight before the Glory Hog stole it from me," I retort plainly.

"And if you weren't gonna drag us into it, then we just have to drag you!" Natsu exclaims. "It's been way too long since Fairy Tail's strongest team kicked some butts! There's only one thing to say at a time like that, right?"

Despite still harboring resentment towards Natsu, he's still managed to get even me excited for the fight. "I'm fired up now!" We all cheer.

~*****~

We manage to arrive just in time to stop the horde from entering the city. "Who wants first dibs?" I ask impishly.

"I think you should have the honors," Natsu chirps excitedly.

"I like the sound of that," I grin. My leg sweeps out in front of us, kicking up a little dust before an avalanche crashes over the incoming cult members.

"There ain't no way you meatheads are gonna get past us!" Natsu cheers loudly. "Step on up and I'll roast ya! So, did you get stronger this last year, too, or what?"

"Just watch me, ol' buddy. It'll be pretty obvious." Gray beams.

"Check this out, guys!" Lucy orders. "Here goes! Open! Gate of the Golden Bull! Taurus!"

In a flash of golden light, Taurus appears with a wide grin. "I'm so ready to moo-ve!" He exclaims. "Did somebody order beefcake?"

"Plus... Star Dress!" Lucy exclaims. "In Cow-Girl Style!" Lucy's usual clothes are replaced once again with a cow patterned bikini top and pants with one leg cut off of them. She brandishes her whip.

"Moo! Let's round 'em up!" Taurus chimes.

"Aw yeah! Been a while since we had this kinda party!" Natsu grins savagely.

"We're gonna have to do it up right," Gray hums.

"Which means no glory-hogging, got it?" I chime.

"This really brings back some memories, huh?" Lucy asks.

"Aye!" Happy chirps.

"But now I can fight, too!" Ballad exclaims as she hops up and down in her spot, already in her battle form.

"Keep out of trouble, and don't take unnecessary risks, got it?" I order.

"Aye, ma'am!" Ballad chirps.

"You want purification? We'll start with you!" Erza barks as she crashes through the back of the cult horde.

"Let's go!" Natsu roars.

"Come on!" Gray snaps.

It's an immediate massacre between us all. And it felt great. Like, really, really good. Rogue's a great partner, sure. And so is Minerva and Olga, but I couldn't let loose with them. Not like I could with Gray, Lucy, Natsu, and Erza.

I skid to a halt, knees scraping against the ground for a moment when I feel pain start burning in my gut. "You remember my Virus spell, don't you?" Mary's voice chimes out as ice crawls along my internals, freezing my intestines and stopping the pain. "It's black magic that can destroy your frail little body. This particular one I'm using goes straight for the gut. Yep! You'd better run and find a potty soon, or there's gonna be an awful mess!" Mary just gives a delighted laugh. "You guys are so weak, it's actually kinda hilarious! C'mon, make those pretty noises you were makin--" Mary gives a choked grunt as my fist collides with her face, sending her tumbling backwards.

"Did you think you could get me with the same trick twice?" I ask angrily. "Keep your gross magic out of my body."

"Just be careful, Aria!" My gaze snaps to the side and I beam at Wendy as she approaches with Carla. "I've casted an immunity enchantment just in case."

Carla gives a sigh of annoyance. "There's an army of robe-wearing goons."

"They're a buncha cult freaks!" Ballad chirps with a sweet look on her face.

"You came with her? How'd you know I'd be here?" Happy asks.

"Look behind you, Aria!" Carla called out. My gaze snaps over my shoulder and I grimace as Mary charges forward, big purpling bruise covering her eye.

I cock my leg upwards and sling it back. "Stay down, ya freak!" I snap.

"Another knock out with the donkey kick!" Happy cheers.

"What's with the timing, Wendy?" I ask, ignoring the whining and groaning coming from Mary.

"Yeah, how come you two just showed up here, anyway?" Happy asked.

"A-Actually..." Wendy stammered, scratching at her cheek. "Juvia wanted to come... I knew where to go, thanks to my nose."

I hum in response. "Goodness, Gray's in for it now."

"No kidding," Ballad chirped.

We peer off at her obliterate the battlefield with Gray. "Well, it sure looks like Juvia's back to her old self again!" Lucy chimed.

"All thanks to Wendy, that is." Carla commented.

"Oh, stop." Wendy pleaded.

"Thank you, Wendy!" Happy cheered.

"Sorry, ladies, but there's stampede of bad guys comin' our way!" Taurus exclaimed. "So we all gotta moo-ve!"

"Mind if I take a bit of that power?" I ask Lucy. She just grins and clasps my outstretched hand tightly. Taurus' symbol appears on my palm where she's touched, and my body suddenly feels invigorated with double the strength. "Ice Dragon Multi-Art: Blue Flame Tempest."

I cut through the horde, leaving a trail of scalding ice and flickering blue flames over the soldiers and ground. "There's a suddenly chill in the air," Happy comments lightly.

"Yeah, but it's also super warm now, too!" Ballad cheered. "Go get 'em, Miss!"

There's an explosion in the distance and I can't help but grin as I turn my gaze upwards. "Glory hog!" I shout. "Save some for the rest of us!" Dozens of cult members are suddenly falling from the sky, the smell of ash and smoke on the wind.

Then, a booming voice echoes over the sudden hush. "Oh terrifying god of battle, remember our covenant. I made the requisite sacrifice, now unleash your fury! Ikusatsunagi! I summon thee!"

"What'd he say?" I exclaim. The sky goes pitch black, and an overwhelming aura floods the air.

"Miss, my tail is totally wigging out!" Ballad chirped nervously, latching her arms around my waist.

"That's one big bastard--" I gasp, gaze pinpointed at the large vortex in the sky.

"Something feels wrong--" Erza barks as she leaps down besides me.

"No shit, he summoned a literal battle god-- that's coming straight for us!" I exclaim.

"Outta the way! Or that gigantic monster's gonna crush you!" Gray shouted.

With a booming thud, it's large, black foot slammed into the earth, sending violent vibrations throughout my entire body. "Those are his men," Wendy gasps.

"Awful," Carla stammers.

"That thing's terrifying." Gray comments.

"Where'd it even come from?" Lucy asks.

"It's one of the eighteen battle gods of Yakuma," I retort.

"But how is that possible?" Erza snaps. Ikusunagi raises his giant sword. "He's beginning to attack!" Erza bellows.

It comes crashing down with a devastating blow, tearing the ground apart with a single swing. My lashes flutter to dispell the dust. My vision clears and I gape when I notice Natsu running up the blade of the sword. "Hang on! You see what I see?" Happy cries.

"Somebody's up there! Running on the sword!" Lucy gasps.

"Not just someone--" I exclaim. I feel my face flush and old feelings start burning at my gut. I grit my teeth to try and stave off the grin worming its way onto my face.

"Oh yeah, there he goes." Gray chuckles.

"Natsu!" Happy cheered.

I heaved a sigh and palmed at my face. Ballad tugs at my sleeve. "It's okay, Miss, no one's watching." Ballad whispered.

I pinched her cheek irritably.

"How can you do this?!" Natsu's bellow rings out as he nears the God's face. "Don't you care about them?! This is not how you treat your friends!"

The cult leader just laughs. "You fool-- Your youthful inexperience has left you so naive. Time teaches us that friends are but a means to an end."

"You're wrong!" Natsu barks. "Friends are people that share the same goal! Who come together 'cause that's the only way to move forward! They might not all look alike, or think alike, but they make a pledge to grow together. Laugh and cry together! Help each other! And put their faith in each other!"

"What you're talking about is just dependency." The cult leader snorts.

"I don't give a crap what you call it!" Natsu growls. "But what I'm talking about is the bond that's always been my salvation! Friendship is what gives me power!" Natsu leaps off the giants nose and angles his fist upwards. "It's what fires me up!"

He lands a successful, powerful punch against the bridge of the God's nose. "You cannot hurt a god!" The cult leader chortled.

"I made a promise to protect those dear to me," Natsu growls. Tears burn at my eyes from the unwilling image of Natsu bearing his soul out for Igneel, how he cried, how he mourned for his father that bubbled up in my mind. "I will never stand by and watch when someone needs me. Not again! That's why... I'll get even stronger!" Natsu bellows, rearing his fist back again. The power suddenly radiating off of Natsu was astounding. It grew and grew until it resembled a small sun in the crux of his fist. "My father Igneel gave me this flame! Fire Dragon King Destruction Fist!" The collision causes an explosion, and the God crumbles and cracks before it's obliterated into nothing but ash.

"My friend... You have grown so strong." Erza sighs.

I stare hard at Natsu, waiting for the fluttery feeling in my stomach to stop. I swallow hard and advert my gaze for a moment before it's naturally drawn back to him. The skies clear and the sunlight filters in. "Impossible! How could this have happened?" The cult leader whines.

The cult of Avatar started running off, pleading for mercy. There's a commotion somewhere behind us, but I can't seem to drag my eyes away from Natsu, his eyes staring right back. I hear a familiar voice bark out in annoyance. "You know this is forbidden magic, so I'm gonna need to confiscate it." Gajeel growls out. My gaze snaps away from Natsu and I beam.

"You left yourself completely open," Pantherlily snorts.

"DON'T LET ANYONE ESCAPE!" Gajeel roars. "ARREST ALL THESE SCUMBAGS!"

"It's Gajeel--" Wendy chirps.

"And Lily, too!" Carla exclaims.

"I don't understand," Juvia hums.

"Obviously, they work for the council now." Gray comments.

"It's about time you showed up, Big Bro!" I shout.

"B-Bro?" The others stammer.

"What'd I say about calling me that shit in public--" Gajeel snapped as I hurried up to him.

"Good to see you guys!" Natsu suddenly pipes up and I feel my teeth grit tightly. Gajeel snorts at me.

"Natsu!" Levy chirps.

"Been a long time," Pantherlily beams.

"Hey there," Gajeel smirks.

"Whoa, you look just like Gajeel!" Natsu comments.

I'm suddenly being shoved to the side as Gajeel gets into Natsu's face. "Are you trying to get under my skin already?!" Gajeel asks angrily.

"Nah, man, I just thought you were too much of a rebel to work for the council." Natsu retorts with a shrug.

"Money doesn't grow on trees, ya know." Gajeel comments irritably. "But that old tree did offer me a job."

"You mean Old Warrod hooked you up?" Happy asks.

"That means any guild wizard has to do what I tell 'em. So I'm gonna be puttin' you under arrest, Salamander!" Gajeel roared with a wide grin on his face. "For makin' that stupid ugly face, and for leaving my sis all by her lonesome!"

"S-Sis?" The others stammer.

"And you're goin' down for Indecency!" Gajeel snaps to Lucy. She gasps in offence. "Juvia! Uh-- You're too clammy!"

"I am?" Juvia asks.

"Yep! Happy! You're eatin' way too much fish!" Gajeel snaps.

"Yumminess isn't a crime, okay?" Happy complains.

"Ballad, you're actin' too cute for the likes of anyone!" Gajeel snapped to the overly affectionate cat attached to his back. "Wendy Marvell! You're under arrest because, um, because reasons!"

"What? But I didn't do anything--" Wendy stammered.

"Aria, you're under arrest because you keep pulling that sappy shit in public!" Gajeel roars at me. "That leaves you--" He says to Gray. "I shouldn't have to explain to you what you did, Gray. Don't expect me to go easy on ya."

"Sorry, but I'm invoking my immunity," I retort casually. Gajeel flinches and stands up straight. "Y'know, that present the council gave me after I got my eye blown out? So buck up, cause this is gonna hurt." My fist slams down atop his head and he crashes into the ground, a sizable lump growing out from the back of his head. "Now listen up, I happen to be here on a very important job assigned to Sabertooth. As you may already know, I am in full rights, as are my teammates."

"Didja hear her?" Lucy chirped teasingly.

I snort loudly and she clams up immediately. "As you can tell, we were ultimately able to bring Avatar's Purification Plan to a halt. But I won't take the credit."

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Gajeel grunted, rubbing at the lump on his head. "It was clear when we'd stormed their hideout."

"We never would've been able to find this place without your help, Gray." Pantherlily comments. "Thank you."

"No problem, but I'm sorry for the trouble I caused." Gray mentions. "I know it was a pain."

"Don't worry, dear~ The only thing that really matters is you're okay!" Juvia chirped.

"Not gonna lie, you had me fooled," Levy chuckled.

"Wish I could say the same for you," Gray hums. "But you gotta do some work on your disguises."

"Oh! You knew that was me?" Levy chirps in surprise.

"I'm lost. I have no idea what they're talking about." Wendy sighed.

"And where did Erza come from?" Carla asked.

"Ask and you shall receive," I comment dryly. "But it's best told over some warm tea."

"The important thing is the city is safe." Pantherlily states.

"No thanks to us, unfortunately," Levy sighs.

Gajeel hums. "We kicked some butt Fairy Tail style!" Natsu roars excitedly.

"It feels so good to work as a team with all of you again!" Juvia chirps happily.

"You look like you've gotten a little taller. Am I right?" Gray asked Wendy.

"Sorry, I'm exactly the same as before." Wendy chuckled.

"I think Aria's the only one who grew," Happy mentioned as he perched on my shoulder.

I hum in confusion. "What's that supposed to mean? I'm not getting any taller." I mention irritably.

"Your boobs are so much bigger now!" Happy exclaims loudly.

I slap Happy off my shoulder with a loud grunt of irritably. Ballad just laughs. "It feels like we're all back in the old guild hall!" She exclaims happily.

"I have to admit, I feel the same." Carla smiles.

Lucy chuckled. "I've really been missing times like these!"

Erza raises her sword. "All right! Victory is ours! Let us raise a shout of triumph!"

Everyone shouts in excitement. I feel a tug on my pants and peer down. Frosch stands at my feet, smiling wide and lovingly. I coo in adoration and sit on the ground, palming at his head without a care in the world.

"Froschy! When'd you get here?" Ballad asked as she tromped up to us.

"Frosch?" Happy chirped. He hurries over with Carla and Pantherlily on his tail. I'm suddenly surrounded by four cute cats. Pure bliss, is what it feels like.

"Hey, isn't that Frosch from Sabertooth?" Gray asks as he steps towards us.

"I think so, too!" Frosch chirps.

Gray kneels down and peers down at Frosch. I just stare at Gray, but the shining in his heart doesn't quell one bit. I smile and pluck Frosch off of the ground. "What are you doing so far away from home?" I ask softly. "Did you get lost again?"

"Good question," Frosch hummed.

Natsu shouts in horror as I squeeze Frosch against my chest with a loving hum. "That big jerk! He broke his promise to me!"

"Technically, I did," I retort plainly. "Since you tried to force me to keep him in the guild hall."

Gray plucks Frosch out of my hands and squeezes him against his face, a dreamy smile suddenly plucking at his lips. "Get closer so I can see your cute widdle face!" Gray exclaims.

"Awe!" Frosch chirps happily.

"Just look at you makes me happy!" Gray continues, rubbing his cheek against Frosch's.

"Give him back!" I complain.

"Yes, Frosch is adorable," Erza hums. "But you still need to try and get control of yourself."

Gray just smiles. "I know, but I can't help it."

"Gray, should I be worried, darling?!" Juvia exclaims. "I'm cute, too!"

"Hey!" Sting's voice rings out. My head swivels and swerves until I spot them. "Aria! Natsu!"

"We just wanted to come and congratulate you on a job well done!" Lector exclaims as the trio runs towards us.

"I'm gonna be right there, Frosch!" Rogue exclaims.

"Oh, wow! It looks like Sting and Rogue are here, too!" Wendy chirps. "It's good to see you guys, again!"

"Hey there, Lector!" Carla hums.

"YOU GOTTA GIVE FROSCH BACK TO ME NOW!" Rogue complains, tears in his eyes.

"Okay, sorry about that," Gray laughs as he holds up Frosch. "There's no reason for you to get upset."

"I think so, too!" Frosch hums.

"Don't worry about it, Rogue," I laugh as I loop my arm around his neck and tug downwards. "Honestly, you get too emotional about Frosch sometimes."

Ballad giggled. "Like the time he sobbed when Froschy wanted to sleep in our bed for the first time and poor Rogue ended up sleeping on the carpet cause he was worried!" Ballad giggled.

"No kidding, I'm pretty sure Aria brought the guild hall down when she found you at her feet." Sting snorts. He peers over and gasps. "What? Gajeel? You're working for the council now? I thought Aria was tellin' some joke!"

"I had a feeling he'd say that," Pantherlily hums.

Erza suddenly slinks closer to try and get Frosch in her grasp. "Oh, you think it's a joke, huh?!" Gajeel roared. "Well, you can laugh about it plenty in jail!"

"Hey, relax, he was just being friendly!" Lector reassures him.

"Nice to see you slimmed down, Guild Master," I comment as I pat at Sting's belly.

Sting's face alights with color from the contact. "I said-- St-Stop calling me Guild Master!" He exclaims.

I hum in response. "Nope, since I'm technically not apart of Sabertooth anymore, I've decided to exclusively call you Guild Master."

"It's almost like she's flirting with him," Lucy comments dryly.

"Almost?" I retort. "I told you, I flirt with guys I find strong. And Sting's gotten stronger, that's for sure." I purr.

Sting nearly collapses to his knees with how much blood is rushing to his face. "Aria's been doing this for about four months," Lector sighed while shaking his head. "It's like she gets a kick outta poor Sting turnin' into a sap."

Rogue snorts. "And you think I'm the emotional one," Rogue comments.

"I think so, too." Frosch hums.

"F-Frosch--" Rogue complains.