Character Q&A

Yeah, so this is a bit early, but if I waited another chapter then I would be to far into the next arc, so here this is, a bit early. I hope you enjoy, it was a lot of fun to make.

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For once, all was quiet in the guild, Natsu and his usual team were gone, which probably contributed to a lot of that and while there was a bit of tension hanging around, it was peaceful. 

Of course, there were the usuals, Cana sitting on top of a table with her keg of beer in her lap, and Mira at the counter with Makarov; but there were also some odd additions, which included Laxus, Ember, and the Thunder God Tribe. This group certainly gained some uncertain looks from their peers, but for the most part, they kept to themselves, unwilling to deal with anyone else.

Quiet conversations were all that could be heard, and everyone couldn't help but take a deep breath of relief. There had been so much insanity going on lately that even just a few minutes of peace was much appreciated.

Considering that, it was no surprise hat the guild door opening caught everyone's attention quickly, even if it was just in an inquisitive manner. Obviously, most people, including Laxus and the others in the thunder god tribe dismissed this quickly enough and turned back to their personal conversations, but the hooded person who came through carried with them a completely foreign aura that captured the attention of the more sensitive in the room.

The stranger, a tall person completely shrouded in their cloak, carefully closed the door behind them, aware of the sets of eyes that were glued to their back. They knew that they could only fly below the radar for so long before everyone decided to pay attention... After all, they were here to kick ass and take questions, so why not start with a bang?

As soon as the door clicked, the stranger muttered out a short incantation, which caused a white glow to appear and begin to spread quickly. Soon enough, the room was covered in the white and for a moment, nobody could see because the light was too bright.

As everyone surged from their seats, tendrils of white rose from the floor to wrap around their ankles, rooting them in place.

"What the hell are you doing?" An irate Ember growled out, her weapons ready in her hands as she prepared to face this unknown foe.

Before the stranger could answer, the light reached blinding levels and everyone was forced to close their eyes for a split second, which was more than enough. By the time they opened their eyes, their scenery had changed completely. No longer were they surrounded by the familiar scenery of the Fairy Tail guild hall, but rather an odd room made of strange materials and little comfort. 

The only seating available was sparse benches, and there were odd machines in the corner that held brightly colored packages. Through windows, a sheet of ice could be seen in one direction while the other, that must have lead to the outside, appeared to have snow as well, as well as oddly shaped contraptions that looked a bit like magical cars.

The cloaked figure was still in front of them, but now their cloak had disappeared, leaving a tall, brown-haired woman who had a slightly apologetic look on her face, "Sorry about that..." She said awkwardly, rubbing the sleeve of her navy blue shirt that seemed to be a uniform of some kind, "I didn't mean to startle you, but this was the only way I could make sure I get to talk to you guys."

Silence reigned for only a moment before everyone started talking at once, though some voices were certainly louder than others, "Where are we?!" Wakaba called out furiously, his pipe clenched firmly between his teeth.

The other comments that were being called out all seemed to be along the same line, minus one, that was said by the short guild master, who approached the woman from the crowd, glaring threateningly at her, "What is the meaning of this?"

The woman, far from looking intimidated, simply sighed as she waited for the yelling to die down a bit, "Don't worry Makarov, I don't mean you guys harm, I just needed to pull you here so I could guarantee I have your attention." 

Once again the talking exploded as everyone attempted to make their opinion known at once, causing the noise to explode into the large room with the sound of a bomb going off. Nobody liked this situation, but the woman could care less. She was in control here, and most of the guild knew it... Otherwise, there would have been a full-scale riot on her hands.

Ember kept an eye on the woman, completely befuddled, normally she was able to get a read on a person just based on the feel of their power and blood, but there was nothing to read on this person. It was unsettling and she didn't like it.

The woman, on the other hand, ignored the eyes that remained riveted on her as she navigated her way through the crowd, heading towards an enclosed area in the corner that had a desk. along with large racks of ice skates... one of the only things most of the wizards recognized on sight.

"Attention!" The woman called out, now standing on top of the desk waving her arms above her head, "The sooner you all shut up, the sooner you can go home and forget this ever happened!" That did the trick nicely, those who were yelling out their displeasure got quiet immediately as everyone was now glaring at the woman on the desk. "So you know, my name is Klypso, and I've asked people to come up with questions for you guys, so all you need to do to go home safely is answer some questions."

Everyone began looking around with bated breath, could it really be this easy? After fighting big bad guys for so long, was there no catch to what she was asking? "Of course," Klypso said and people began to sigh dejectedly, waiting for the other foot to drop, "If you don't answer the questions to my satisfaction, you'll have to elaborate on your answer until I'm satisfied."

People once again began to look at each other quizzically, she was playing the role of a bad guy, but what she was asking was incredibly easy. 

Flashes of light began to glow through the room as certain people began to disappear as Klypso muttered under her breath, quiet enough that only Ember could hear what she was saying, "Forgot how many members there are... Gosh darn it, Gavin... Way too crowded." Once again the volume rose until it was audible to everyone else, "Sorry, I brought too many people here, give me a sec... Don't worry, I'm just sending them back to Fairy Tail."

As soon as the flashes stopped, the group was considerably smaller, only The Thunder God Tribe, Makarov, Laxus, Gajeel, Ember, and Cana were still around, simply staring at Klypso with expressions that ranged from confusion to straight up anger.

"Um..." Makarov was able to get out before he coughed slightly to clear his throat, "I don't believe you ever answered a question that was posed to you before; where are we?"

Klypso moved to sit on the desk as she began threading her fingers in odd patterns, "Oh, yeah, I guess I owe you an explanation before we start, don't I?" Everyone nodded as she winced, "I won't say I'm sorry that I brought you here, because I'm not, but I will say sorry for how I did it. The spell I bought was only supposed to bring over certain individuals, the group I have now in fact. Anyways, you're in my world right now, a world where Fairy Tail, and by extension, all of Magnolia, is something that only exists in fantasy books.

"You guys are adored by many, which means that there are obviously people who have questions for you, so I was able to get ahold of a contact of mine to bring you here temporarily. As I said, all you have to do to go back is answer our questions, so... Shall we get started?"

Everyone (Besides Cana, who still was quite drunk) looked far too confused to give a proper answer to that, so Klypso nodded and pulled out a small sheet of paper, "Don't worry, there aren't a ton, it won't take too terribly long. Also, stop looking at me like that Laxus, your stink eye has no effect besides making you look like you have constipation."

Ember snorted audibly at that, dropping to sit on a bench as she finally deemed this to be a safe situation, "Fine, ask your questions, let's get this over with."

"I'm glad you said that, Ember," Klypso said with a slightly sadistic grin, "Because the first question is for you." A shiver ran down Embers spine, but she refused to back down to this woman who may be the same height as her but was weak in every aspect that Ember was strong in.

"The question is from Zodiac_Spirit, who asks: Ember, on a scale of one to ten, how hard is it to control your magic?" The question immediately caused Ember to blanch as the others began to look at her curiously, panic was evidently growing in her eyes, which Klypso seemed to love.

Ember's eyes were wide and she was as still as a statue as she battled the panic that was hidden oh so well, "What kind of stupid question is that? I don't have magic. I think whoever asked that should check their facts." Was what she finally forced out.

Klypso cooed slightly, causing an irritated blush to darken Ember's cheeks, "Oh dear, that answer just doesn't cut it, so how about we try this again. Don't worry Ember, once you leave here, you'll forget this whole thing ever happened. Now, on a scale of one to ten-"

"I get it, I get it!" Ember snapped, cutting over Klypso's condescending words, "It's damn hard right now... Maybe an 8 at this moment, but it's gotten to 10 several times since it flared back up. Porlyusica says it should be fine eventually, but even she doesn't know when that will be." She shifted lower in her seat, avoiding the curious looks everyone else was giving her. "Are you happy now?"

Everyone was staring at Klypso with a bit of fear in their eyes, where did the awkward shy girl from earlier go? This version was terrifying!

"Very." Klypso shifted slightly with a satisfied grin, "I guess we'll get the heat off of you for the moment, this next one would probably be best to direct to the Thunder God Tribe. Any of you can answer, scottadam682 was quite curious about this and I look forward to your answers;  What are some of the funniest nicknames Ember has made up for people and why? What is the story behind them?"

The whole team heard that and slumped slightly in relief, apparently, they thought that all the questions would make the recipient as nervous as it did Ember. They were quiet for a moment before Freed spoke up quietly, "The thing you should know about Ember and her nicknames is that they are rarely clever. Most of them are simply the most obvious physical attribute, such as the one she used to call me, Grass Head, or calling the Master Old Man; honestly, Laxus does the exact same thing by calling Ember coal head because of her black and red hair. It's rare that she comes up with a good one."

One look at Ember made it painfully obvious that she was deeply offended by Freed's observation.

"Though," Bickslow jumped in, "When she does, it's a beautiful mix of offensive and accurate, like Miana Harper. Do you guys remember her?"

The entirely of the Thunder God Tribe, as well as Cana, groaned at the name, "Oh God yes," Evergreen said as she twirled a piece of her hair between her fingers, "That woman was the epitome of the expression 'two-faced,' and she treated the younger generation like we were stupid."

Bickslow nodded emphatically, "Exactly, which is why we all kinda adopted Ember's name for her, what was it again?" He looked expectantly at Ember who grinned a little.

"Miss Bitch."

Evergreen's face lit up as she stopped slouching against Ember to look at Klypso excitedly, "She has a good for that one team in Blue Pegasus, you know, the one with the perfume creeper?" 

Ember's face twisted immediately as she realized who Evergreen was talking about, "Oh God..." 

Ever smiled triumphantly as she gestured, but then stopped for a moment, "Though, I'm not sure if that's a nickname, or what she instinctively says whenever she sees them." Slowly Evergreen trailed off her own face curling in disgust at the idea of that creeper.

Slowly, Klypso looked at Freed, obviously expecting him to say something, "I suppose the one she came up with for Makao and Wakaba is rather amusing, if not... odd. I honestly have no idea where she came up with it, she just saw them one day and asked us about Tweedledee and Tweedledum. It took us ages to figure out who she was talking about."

A pencil appeared out of thin air as Klypso moved to mark something off on her paper, "Thank you so much, that was indeed amusing, now Gajeel, I'm sure you want to go back to the guild?" She looked up at the Dragon Slayer, who nodded with narrowed eyes, "Perfect, I only have one question for you, then you can go home. Zodiac_Spirit wanted to know what you've thought of Ember thus far? Also, did the fight with Laxus change your opinion at all?"

The two had a rather intense stare down for a moment before Gajeel sighed and looked away, "I don't know what you want me to say, Ghost is just as terrifying now as she's always been." Klypso glared at him slightly and he sighed, "Fine, you said everyone'll forget this when we leave, right?" Klypso's grin said it all, "If you really want to know, I respect the hell out of Ghost, she a ridiculously good fighter, I mean, she took me out in less then a minute when we fought. I really didn't know that anyone could move as fast or as ferociously as she does without magic... Though, apparently..."

He faded out awkwardly as he glanced at Ember, who shifted down into her seat, trying to avoid everyone's stares.

"Oh bravo Gajeel, you made a perfect segway to give another question to you, Ember!" Klypso looked a little too happy about this as she waved her hand and Gajeel disappeared in a flash of light.

"Why the fuck are all the questions about me!" Ember growled out, having snapped ever so slightly.

Klypso's ominous laugh echoed through the room, "Because, my dear Ember, you're the belle of the ball! Now, shall we continue? AstelleDreemurre wanted to know why you don't show your kind and motherly side more? She gets that you were an assassin, but you don't live that life anymore... At least you shouldn't. And yes, she knows about that."

A visible wince raced across Ember's face, "I don't know what you're talking about. I am not kind and motherly, and even if I was, there would be no way in hell that I would just show that to people who don't know me."

Eyerolls could be seen all around as Klypso snorted, "Real quick, raise your hand if you think Ember has a kind and motherly side." Every hand in the room went up, which included Cana and Laxus, even the Ghost of Ikaruga from Trinity Raven popped back up to cast her vote in the positive.

"Fine, I have a kind and motherly side, whatever," Ember grumbled as a storm cloud began to gather around her head. The others in the room simply chuckled at her irritation

As Klypso consulted her list, a sly smirk began to grow on her face, "Oh Evergreen, I have one just for you!" Her voice was singsongy as she leaned forward to smile at Ever, who looked absolutely terrified, "ginjaninja2801 Has a question for you that I am particularly curious about. Do you have a thing for Ember? She low-key ships you, and I must say I agree."

The question caused Ever's face to flush completely red as both Bickslow and Freed began to laugh quietly... Well, Freed began to laugh quietly while Bickslow had to cover his mouth to stop himself from going over backward with his laughter. Everyone besides Ever and Ember was grinning at least a little, while those two were looking everywhere except at each other.

It was a full minute before Evergreen could get more than a squeak out, "I-I... I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about. I respect Ember as a phenomenal fighter, and she's my friend. I don't know why that needs to equal having romantic feelings... Besides... Besides... You should really ask someone else a question so we can get this over with!"

Suddenly a flash enveloped Evergreen and in an instant she was gone, leaving everyone looking between where she had been sitting and Klypso, who looked just as confused.

"Wait..." Klypso pulled out a notebook labeled, 'Magical Anomalies, Notes and Observations' before jotting down whatever was in her head, Midoriya style. "That is interesting, it seems that particularly strong adverse emotions can force a person to fade back to their own world... In this case, embarrassment." As soon as she was done, she put her notebook away and turned back to the group, "Sorry about that, I wasn't even aware that that was possible... We're actually close to the end, so shall we continue?"

Reluctantly everyone nodded and Klypso turned to Cana, who met her stare with no fear and a keg of beer that Klypso knew had not been here where she brought the group here, "Okay... I guess that's on character, so whatever." Cana grinned at her, causing Klypso to roll her eyes in exasperation, "ginjaninja2801 had a question for the whole guild, but you seem like you have your ear to the ground. What is the general view of Ember right now? How does everyone see her?"

At that, Cana laughed, "Man, I thought you were going to ask me something difficult, this is a piece of cake! Most people are genuinely terrified of Ember, they don't know her well enough to understand her, but she isn't enough of a stranger to idolize her like she was not too long ago. It honestly cracks me up, because it's extremely obvious that Ember doesn't give a crap about what others think of her."

"Of course, there's a small group of people that seem to... Idolize her? No, that isn't the right word, it's more like they really, really admire her. Unfortunately, that group does include myself, Alzack, and Biska, as well as a few others."

With that Klypso smiled and waved, "Well, it looks like that's it for the group questions, though I do have a few more for Ember and one for Laxus. If the rest of you want to go home, I can certainly make that happen."

Cana and Makarov both volunteered to go home, as he had decided that Klypso wasn't a threat to his children, which just left the Thunder God (Minus Evergreen), Laxus, and Ember. Now that Bickslow and Freed knew that they were no longer in the line of fire they seemed rather eager to hear what happened next.

"This one should be pretty easy," Klypso said, for the first time wearing a genuine smile as she looked up at Ember, "ginjaninja2801 Asked if Freed is like a brother to you?"

Without hesitation, Ember nodded as she looked at the Grass head in question, "Well, yeah. I mean, I see all of the Thunder God Tribe as my family... They were the first ones to give me a chance when they could have delivered me straight to the council because of the bounty that was on my head."

Out of the corner of her vision, Klypso could see a tear welling up in Freed's eye as he watched Ember with pride.

"And to go a step further, Freed was the one who stood up for me when the Old Man announced that I would be joining their team. Even then he was willing to look past the emotions and see the fact. If I'm being honest, that's something I really admire about him." Ember had a far off look as she spoke, so she completely missed the fact that Freed was now sobbing as a near blinding light pored out of him.

This wasn't Klypso's magic at work here, this was just his inner paternal feelings coming out in tangible waves.

Bickslow was grinning at the situation, just as happy about it as the others were; but he was curious about one thing, "I swear you've used that name before, how many people do you have asking questions? At first you made it seem like there was a large group."

With that question came the return of shy Klypso, she tugged on the long sleeve of her shirt as she looked away in embarrassment, "Well, I guess there aren't as many people around as I stated, but the ones I do have come back regularly and are just genuinely great people... All of them have been so supportive about my work, which has meant the world to me; even the ones who didn't ask a question are still reading, which is so weird to me to begin with. Anyways, sorry for rambling, I really only have one question left."

Klypso coughed to clear her throat as she changed the subject away from her, "Last question Ember, this is one I completely agree with; fulltime_reread asked if you have ever tried medication for your PTSD? She also added that you should, and to take care of yourself.

The question was met with a completely blank stare as Ember arched her eyebrows, "PTSD? What's that? I mean, thanks for the concern, but I'm a bit confused as to what that even is."

It took everything Klypso had to not face palm at that. Sure, Fiore was advanced in a lot of ways, but their knowledge of anything related to mental health was surprisingly subpar. Unwilling to write the whole definition of PTSD down, Klypso leaned over to Ember and began to whisper in her ear. It took a moment, as PTSD is an incredibly complicated mental illness, but once the point had been made, Ember shot out of her seat.

"Wait, there's a name for that?!" Shock poured from the girl in waves as she realized that there was a word for that, "I thought that was normal! You mean that other people experience this kind of thing too?"

This just about broke Klypso's heart as she watched this, it struck a few to many chords with her, "Absolutely, it's pretty common, especially when you've experienced as many traumatic events as you have... I mean, medication isn't a cure all, but it can definitely help, I just wouldn't know where to look for help in Magnolia... Maybe we can do that another time?"

Ember visibly restrained herself as she nodded, sitting back down, deep in thought, "But won't we forget this when we leave here?" The whole group got quiet, as even Freed and Bickslow had begun to make plans to try and help Ember out with this new issue.

"Yes, but don't worry," Klypso's hand moved to rest gently over Ember's, "I will remind you, no matter how long it takes." Slowly Ember nodded as she twisted her hand around to grip Klypso's a bit better. "Well, I guess that wraps that up, I guess I can send you guys home now, thanks for doing this for me, it really does mean a lot."

Everyone began to stand as they prepared to be sent home, "Wait a minute, Princess," An irritated voice rang from the corner of the room, one that had mostly been forgotten up till now, "I thought you had a question for me, if you didn't, then what was even the point of bringing me here? I had a million better things to do than sit here and listen to all you idiots chat."

Once again Klypso turned, a familiar creepy grin on her face as she locked her sights on the irritable blond dragon slayer, "Oh, that's right, you are here, I feared for a moment you had lost your tongue." A tick mark appeared on Laxus' forehead, but Klypso really didn't care about that, "This question comes from someone who you could say I am particularly close to, klypso01 was wondering if you used your big cloaks and your bigger attitude as a shield against the fact that you have a small dic-"

And that's how the fight started. Nobody knows who won, seeing as how their memories were erased once they got back to the guild hall, but those who knew Laxus well could tell that something was off...

Perhaps it had something to do with the unexplained words that had been scrawled on his neck that nobody knew the meaning to, "Little Man Syndrome."


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