I slept for nearly a week straight after our fight, regaining strength and the desire to leave the house. Nightmares intruded into my waking moments and as I was surrounded by the sounds of blood rushing at every moment, but as the week went on, things slowly began to change.

The sound and feeling of blood became less prominent as my body adjusted, it was still there, but I wasn't always filled with the urge to grab it and pull the blood out of all my temporary neighbors. In fact, if this continued to get better, I may be okay with the idea of leaving the house before the year ended.

My life probably would have been much easier if I had gone home to Balsam village and been away from people, but two things were stopping me; Laxus and Lahar. The reason Laxus was stopping me should be fairly obvious, so I'll just ignore that. Lahar was a completely different matter altogether, one that I kind of wanted to just ignore, but I really didn't have that luxury because he knew how to contact my emergency lacrima... And he certainly wasn't afraid to bug me.

A large amount of time over the last week had been him calling me over and over to come to Era so he could give me a job, while I continued to explain to him that I couldn't for at least another week beyond this one because I was still on a needed break... I got that the job must have been important with how much he was bugging me but was there really no one else who could do it?

That is where I was when a knock on my hotel room door roused me from sleep reluctantly; I was irritable, tired, and well aware of just how cranky I was. I suppose I did feel bad for whoever had decided to brave my bad mood, but that didn't stop me from opening the door with a vengeance. A scowl on my face, my hair a complete rat's nest, and bruise-like bags under my eyes that clearly showed just how much sleep I still needed; a terrifying sight to be sure, but it was the one that greeted my comrades.

"Ember?!" The faces that belonged to the voices were still blurred beyond recognition as I tried to wake up, though I could clearly pick out several bright shades of hair that probably belonged to people I knew.

I nodded slightly before reaching up to rub my arm across my eyes as a ginormous yawn caused my whole jaw to pop loudly, "Wha'd'ya want?" My voice was slurred as I tried to speak, my body running on low power mode, though I was able to see who I was dealing with now, so that was a plus.

Juvia, Lucy, and even the woman I had seen in the guild occasionally gripping a large barrel of beer were all standing before me, taking in my wild appearance with wide eyes and dropped jaws. "M-Miss Ember?" Juvia said hesitantly, "Is everything okay?" The others nodded as I sighed; apparently, I looked worse than I thought.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I leaned against the door frame as I continued glaring, sure I was on decent terms with two of these people, but I really was a bear when I didn't get enough sleep. "I'm not letting you in, so what do you want?"

Lucy and Juvia both looked at each other uncertainly, but the third member seemed to have no problem stepping forward with a cocky grin on her face, "We wanted you to join the Miss Fairy Tail Contest with us!" Her voice wasn't squeaky, but rather calm and almost calculating, which put me on guard immediately, "We want to take down Mirajane this year, and we think you could help us do it." 

This Miss Fairy Tail Contest? My scowl deepened as I tried to figure out what they were talking about, "The hell is that?" 

This took all of them by surprise, I'm sure it was a big event, but I purposefully avoided Magnolia around this time of year just because of the Festival that was going on. Crowds and excitement over things that didn't matter were some of the things I hated most, which meant that I could care less about this.

Lucy's eyes just about bulged out of her skull as she realized that I was being serious, "What?! You don't know what this is?" I think my lack of knowledge offended her personally, "How have you not heard of the Miss Fairy Tail Contest?! It's only the most- Mphf!" A hand slipped over her mouth, cutting off what would have likely been a rant on exactly what this thing was and why it was important.

I won't lie, I was grateful to be spared her excitement, but the grin their companion had on her face was more than enough to put me on edge... Whatever she was about to say probably wasn't trustworthy.

"It's nothing too special, just a chance to prove which woman in Fairy Tail is the best. I've noticed that you don't really like Erza or Mira, right?" Slowly I inclined my head, it wasn't that I didn't like them, they were strong people and I respected Erza quite a bit (Squeaky less so. I knew she was hiding something powerful, but I struggled to respect someone who always had a facade up, even around family)...  But that didn't necessarily mean that I liked them either, "Well, both of them will be competing and I think all of us would love to see the two resident champs dethroned."

Slowly I nodded, "You know, I might have been interested in this, but you missed one key thing," I said as Juvia stepped forward her hands clasped and worry shining in her eyes, "I really don't need a competition to tell me I'm a better fighter than them, it's just a fact. If everyone else feels the need to prove themselves to the guild, then more power to them. I have not, nor will I ever feel that need."

I stepped back and grabbed the door, completely ready to shut it in their faces, but Juvia's soft voice stopped me, "Is that why Miss Ember is still a normal wizard rather than an S-classed one?" Damn it, no matter how irritable I was, I couldn't bring myself to snap at Juvia, she was just too pure.

"Well, that's part of the reason," I mumbled, once again running my fingers through my hair as I tried to tug out some of the knots. "But that's not important, I won't participate in this contest, find someone else to take down those two."

Juvia and Lucy both deflated slightly at my answer, but it looked like I hadn't quite convinced the other one, "Ah, that would be okay, but this isn't a conventional battle Ember, it's strategical warfare; you see, Mira wins every year because she is well known to the public," I quirked my eyebrow at that, I had done some research, and the main thing that came up with Mira was the fact that she seemed to be a pin-up model... Was this lady purposefully trying to drive me away now?

"It may be a fact that only one person can win, but if we take Mira off the top this year, it will mean that the tradition will be broken, and men will be more likely to vote for a different person next year as well."

I deadpanned entirely, men were the ones voting, Squeaky was the reigning champion... I knew exactly what kind of contest this was and no amount of wordplay would make me want to join.

Unfortunately, I was pretty sure that she wasn't just going to accept me saying no, even if I said it another dozen times, so I decided to go for the more diplomatic solution (Sometimes I really deserved a medal for how patient I could be), "I refuse, a modeling contest sounds terrible and nothing you say will change my mind." A rebellious look grew on the lady's face so I cut her off, "Even if I did want to join, which I don't, I won't be in town for too much longer. The Rune Knights contacted me to do a job for them, and I'll be leaving soon."

This completely took the wind out of her sails, which is exactly what I was hoping would happen, though both Juvia and Lucy perked up at the sound of that. Dammit, there was no winning with this group, was there?

***

The three women were far harder to get rid of then I had hoped, which meant that by the time they left I was close to needing to leave as well, Laxus' heartbeat (Something that I was surprised to find out that I could pick out from about a mile away because of how familiar I was with him) had entered town again, which meant that I needed to get ready. My gut was telling me that something was close, so I needed to prepare as much as possible if I didn't want to be caught unaware.

I also decided to tell Lahar that I would be there in about a week, just so I would have further evidence in case the girls came back again to try and convince me to join the pin-up competition again. Needless to say, Lahar was confused about why it would take me so long to get there, but he accepted my decision; ignoring the hints I was trying to drop that it would be far more efficient to assign someone else to the job.

Anyways, that led to where I was now, sitting on a hill overlooking Magnolia, watching as Laxus cackled wickedly, his words ringing in my ears, "You Fairies are going to eat each other alive, You hear me?! Your era's coming to an end, Old Man!" 

My bloodlust was rising; how dare he say that... I don't care how butthurt he was about his dad, that didn't give him the right to take it out on the Old Man! I wanted nothing more than to show myself now and challenge him to a fight to settle this, but I couldn't.

He was an asshole, a misguided one at that, but he was my friend still... Someone I respected and would entrust my life to in a heartbeat. 

Challenging him to another fight would help nothing.

He wouldn't learn unless he screwed up so royally that the consequences were almost more than he could bear. 

I hated it, but it was the only way.

Silently as the ghost I was named for, I stood and walked away feeling the tension in my shoulders rise with every step. I wanted nothing more than to stand with Laxus until he learned his lesson as I knew the Thunder God Tribe would, but I couldn't. 

Laxus was on a path that would help him see the error of his ways, but that lesson would come at the expense of the Guild... A guild that I had been gaining respect for over the last month. I didn't want to see them hurt either!

Before long I was lost in the woods, hopefully, I would be able to find my way out before I died, but that wasn't prevalent at the moment. I collapsed to my knees as soon as Laxus' heartbeat was gone as the air around me attempted to suffocate me.

Tomorrow I would have to fight either the Thunder God Tribe or the rest of Fairy Tail, both were my family, both had earned my respect. Either way, I would be betraying someone, either the people who saved me or the man who helped me see what a family could be.

Unfortunately, there was a clear correct side here. I knew that what Laxus was doing was based in selfishness, I simply couldn't side with him under these circumstances.  I wouldn't fight him directly, but that didn't mean I needed to stop myself from helping Fairy Tail... I didn't know what the plan was, but I needed to help Fairy Tail put a stop to it.

Unless the conflict tore me apart first. That was a definite possibility.

The air was still heavy around me, but I forced myself to stand, there was no time to wallow in self-pity, I had work to do... That is... If I could find my way back to town.

***

Dawn touched the sky before I found myself back among civilization, it was the wrong town, clear across the forest... but that was okay, I doubted anything major would happen before noon. Thankfully, the trains were running even at this time, so I hopped aboard one and headed to Gavin's shop as quickly as I could, I couldn't afford to spend much time there, but I was able to clean him out of all his shield lacrima's (Totally ignoring a dark guild master who about died when he saw me come in), before sprinting to the train station once more, praying I would make it back to Magnolia before anything happened.

The towns were all relatively close to each other, so this happened quickly enough, but it was still afternoon by the time I reached Magnolia, and already I could feel a difference about the place. The festival was in full swing, which meant that the crowds were ridiculous, but beyond that, I could feel hints of Freed's magic in the air. 

The whole town had been turned into a web of rune magic that was more than a little concerning, especially since they didn't register me, so I couldn't check to see what the runes were meant for. I would simply have to wait until one of them was tripped to find out, and that bugged me to no end. 

Thankfully, no fighting seemed to be going on just yet, but the closer I got to the guild hall, the more tense things became. Was I making the right decision here? Would it be better to stand with the Thunder God tribe?

No, my mind was made up. That was made even more apparent when I rounded a corner and saw exactly what the idiot spark plug's plan was. He stood up on stage with that cocky grin on his face and the Thunder God Tribe before disappearing in a flash of light, leaving behind the statues of over half the women in Fairy Tail.

He must have already given instructions, because only a second passed before the entire group turned as one and ran, knocking into me slightly as they rushed to get out the door. Panic was etched into all their faces, some even had tears in their eyes as they looked back to the girls, ignoring me entirely in favor of leaving to fulfill whatever twisted plan Laxus had in store for them.

They were terrified, that much was obvious, but me? I was pissed. My hands clenched at my sides as my hair overshadowed my eyes. He was holding the girls' hostage? 

How utterly despicable.

I forced myself to remember that I wasn't allowed to fight him, it would do no good besides, of course, helping me to feel a lot better. My feet moved numbly towards the stage as I ignored everything else that was going on around me, moving until I reached the stage. A hand rested on my elbow but I shook it off, choosing instead to jump up onto the platform and walk to the statues. 

Most of these women had done nothing wrong besides wanting to participate in a beauty pageant. I could feel my magic flaring up, but for just a moment I didn't care. How dare he do something this stupid, he would regret this... Hopefully not too much though.

"Ember!" Whoever had been trying to get my attention finally broke through to my consciousness, causing me to turn. The Old Man, Black Steel, and even the pink haired idiot were all standing in front of me, watching with some trepidation. 

The old man, in particular, seemed to be staring at me with quite a bit of solemnity, "Ember, did you know about this?" Normally, I would probably have been offended, but with how close I was to the aggressors it made some sense to question me.

"I did," My voice wavered as I fought to stop my powers from breaking free, "But I wasn't certain. I knew they had been planning something, but... I had no idea it would be this big. I'm sorry Master."

This whole situation was terrible, how dare they do this, "Old Man," I said quietly looking up only to see him watching me with determination in his eyes, "I can't fight Laxus."

That cut right through the tense atmosphere. Now all three were looking at me with dropped jaws as the color began to leech from them, perhaps they had been expecting me to swoop in and save the day.

The Old Man's jaw was moving but no sound came out. If this weren't such a serious situation, I would probably have laughed at their expressions, but I was serious right now.

"But... But... Ember?" Yeah, I definitely broke him, "You need to fight him, please? You're the only one here who could beat him."

I could feel the offense that both the pink haired idiot and Black Steel were giving off, their inflated egos seemed to take a swan dive off a proverbial cliff as the Old Man basically admitted that they weren't strong enough to face Laxus.

Oh they were good for entertainment if nothing else, "Sorry, but both Laxus and I know that I can beat him, I've done it several times before, so if I beat him now it will change nothing. He'll view it as nothing more than another sparing match that may have dinged his pride but, in the end, changed nothing."

The fact that I had beaten Laxus before was nothing new to the Old Man, he had even been present for several of our fights, but the other two looked about ready to fade from existence at this new bit of information. They were probably going into information overload with everything that had been happening.

Slowly the Old Man nodded before sighing heavily, "I understand that Ember, I truly do, but this has gone beyond our own preferences, Laxus has crossed a line and if he isn't stopped, I fear that he will do irreparable damage. You can stop him, I know that, so it is your duty to help us."

Black clashed with red as I shot a glare that was just as steely as his was, "Sorry Old Man, but I won't fight him, have faith in your people, but I will not fight against someone who helped to save me. I can go to Evergreen and get her to release these girls, I'll even go talk to the Spark Plug, but that is all I will do when it comes to the Thunder God Tribe. Do you understand?"

I looked behind me to the statues, namely the statues of the three girls who came to my door to try and get me to participate in this ridiculous event. "This is for you," I muttered, too quietly for even the dragon slayers to hear before I hopped off the stage and began walking casually towards the door.

"Wait!" The pink haired idiot called out from behind me, forcing a sigh from my mouth as I looked over my shoulder at him, "I want to fight Laxus, he's mine, got it?!" 

"No, he's mine!" Black Steel just had to choose that moment to interject, didn't he? Tension began brewing between the two as they glared at each other.

With a heavy sigh, I walked up to the two and slammed my fists down on their heads, sending them crashing to the ground as the cement cracked under them, "Would you two shut up already, I don't care who fights him, but I'm entrusting the idiotic Spark Plug to you two, think you can handle that without fighting?"

The only response I received was faint moans from the ground below me, "Shouldn't you be telling us to not hurt your loverboy too much," Came the garbled voice of Black Steel, who seemed to be having trouble seeing straight; though, in that moment I was 100% ready to make sure he never saw straight again...

Instead, I settled for reaching down and grabbing him by the collar, before pulling him up till his face was an inch from mine, "Call him that again and I will ensure that you won't leave the infirmary until Porlyusica gets a hold of you, do you understand?" He nodded meekly, his eyes wide with a newly realized terror. I dropped him with a cold look in my eyes, "Good, and I didn't tell you to not hurt him too much because I don't need to."

"I'll eat my swords if you can hurt him worse than he'll hurt you."