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kiliinstinct · 3 months

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Snowflakes on Shadows - Stingue Secret Santa Gift

[A03]

A late Secret Santa gift for @ostensiblyfunctional for @theguildawards Server Secret Santa! I'm sorry this is so late, like I said on the A03, my internet dying really threw me off. This is my First Stingue, but I hope you enjoy it!

Sting was late.

Again.

This wasn't the largest of surprises. Rogue wasn't too startled by the fact his shared quarters remained still and quiet into the night. In fact, he relished in his time alone while Frosch played with Lector. However, he couldn't ignore it when both Exceed's returned from the chilly outdoors, eyes swollen from exhaustion, as they crawled into their respective beds. It was late.

Far too late.

Rogue set aside the book he was reading and tucked Frosch into his bed with a click of his tongue, urging his small friend to sleep. His brows were knitted when he turned to the other, sitting forlornly across the hall on an empty mattress, head bobbing as he struggled to stay awake.

”Where’s Sting?” He asked, dreading the answer.

“Not here.” Lector snipped, his fur bristling. Usually, he would be the first to sing praises of the Sabertooth Master, but today, distaste and disappointment darkened his expression, “Again. He said he'd come home tonight…“

”Do you want to go get him?“ Rogue asked, thinking back towards the already fast asleep, frog-loving exceed back in his room. Frosch could sleep the whole night through and not notice they were left alone for a short time.

As if reading his thoughts, Lector shook his head, ”Nah, that might scare Frosch and it's my job to look out for them, y'know? But uh-“ and he wrangled his little paws together, voice rising with the plea, ”You could get him?“

In the end, despite the silence that fell between them, the Shadowslayer already knew what his answer would be as he nodded and walked briskly to the main room. Lector would keep an eye out on Frosch and once Sting was home, the mood would be far less somber. Or so he hoped.

Though he eyed the book he'd left behind mournfully, already half way through it. There'd be less time to enjoy the silence once Sting was home. Shrugging, he grabbed his boots and listened to the wind howl outside the window. The glass panes were rattling and he could practically taste the chill in the air. By the time he left for the Guild, it would be snowing.

Grabbing his coat for good measure, and an extra one with a scarf for Sting, he steeled himself for the cold night air and left their apartment behind.

Honestly, he should have done this hours ago, but the recent Guild Master's meet-up left him socially exhausted. In the past, they would meet together on neutral ground not run by any one master in Clover, but a new initiative for 'better guild unity' flipped the whole thing on its head. Now the Guildmasters drew lots and the so-called winners would be the next host. He recalled the day Sting had drawn the winning lot, smiling as he boasted their meeting would be the best experience in the home of Sabertooth.

A sense of dread hit him that very night, but Rogue kept his doubts to himself. Being the youngest Guild Master spurred the White Dragonslayer to prove himself, leaving no detail out of his plans for a Grand Meeting; demanding Rogue and the others work together to decorate, the Shadowslayer had bit back his words of disdain at every turn. Something hadn't set right with him about it, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

Until recently. Five days after the meeting and he felt as if his own brain had oozed out from his ears and Sting... turning his attention to the fresh flurries beginning to cross his view, Rogue pushed the thoughts from his mind. He'd deal with his partner when he got there and not a moment sooner.

Gazania was gorgeous in winter, even with the chill and towering mountains that shadowed the city. His trek to the Guild was met with peaceful silence as the denizens of the City were locking their shutters and doors for the night, well-prepared for the coming cold. It filled Rogue with a homely comfort.

Unfortunately that comfort dropped the instant he stepped into the Guild. New friendships forged and new strength was found amidst his fellow guild members, but a strange, tense air overwhelmed the hall as he entered. Either due to the silence of stragglers sleepily sitting at their tables or the hollow emptiness of the room so late at night, he couldn't be sure, but he mourned the loss of the crisp air and snow that had begun to cling to his thick hair and lashes.

But he could only step so far into the hall before a few of his comrades perked up, eyeing him with forlorn expressions misted over by ale and frustration.

“Where have you been?” Dobengal asked through a tired yawn, “everyone's tried to drag Sting out of the office and nothing worked. Even Yukino's given up.”

A nudge of his head signaled Rogue to peer towards the nearby bar, where Sabertooth’s resident Celestial Mage dozed across the counter, fingers lightly grasping what looked to be a plate of cookies. Recognizing the white confections instantly, he raised a brow.

“...he wouldn't come down for the Float cookies?” He rhetorically asked.

The echoing groans of assent from those remaining followed his steps as he moved along, draping Yukino's coat over her shoulders to keep her warm as he passed. At the same time, he grabbed the plate of cookies and continued up, considering his options as he went.

Reflexively, he stopped from nibbling on one of the cookies, not wanting to deal with a loss of gravity as he headed for his goal. The further up he went, the more muted the great hall became and the more he could hear tired yawns and snarls of aggravation down the hall. Sting’s snarls.

With the sounds came the scent of his partner and Rogue sighed, already feeling a headache bubbling behind his eyes. This would go one of two ways and he quietly hoped the easier path would come out on top. Willing himself to meld in with the shadows of the hall, he whisked himself towards the door, sliding beneath it with nary a sound. It was easier that way, and gave him a better chance to assess Sting's mood before attempting conversation.

He didn’t regret the decision upon merging with the shadows on the floor, following stacks of paperwork and law books that sent his head spinning when he'd attempted perusing them months ago. Sting must have attempted reading through Guild and Counsel law for days if the multitude of open books littering the floor covered in dog-eared pages were the judge.

The rumpled pages of unfinished documents and rewritten proposals, thank you letters and the like, were another hint to the pressure Sting was under. He sat hunched over his desk, furiously scrawling words to paper that could barely be seen as the ink had long gone dry, he was simply too tired to notice until the paper tore from the sharp jabs of the pen. With a frustrated snarl, he tossed the document aside and rubbed his temples, eyes lacking their usual energy as he grimly looked at his covered desk.

The young Guild Master was exhausted. Rogue saw it in the grit of his jaw, the fluctuating, weakened magic that hummed under his skin, at the way his hair drooped from dragging his fingers through the blond locks far too many times. But the stubborn set of his brows spoke of a man refusing to give in despite his body's need to rest as he robotically reached for another paper to begin his writing anew.

Rogue didn't give him the chance.

He struck as fast as his namesake, hand emerging from the shadows on Sting's Desk to grasp Sting's wrist tightly while the rest of his torso followed. Shadows kept him immersed in the hardwood while his red eyes glared into the blue of Sting's, expression neutral as he stared the other down.

Sting, despite the exhaustion, was quick to react, body jolting as he stood up, knocking his chair over in the process while a yelp echoed off the walls, “Holy shit, Rogue, what the hell do you think you're doing scaring me like that?!”

“The better question," Rogue said, grip tightening to steel as he set the extra coat and cookies aside before pushing the unused parchment out of Sting's reach, “Is why didn't you sense me?”

“Tch,” Sting twitched at the accusation, baring his fangs in distaste, “Asks the guy hiding in the shadows like a-”

Rogue tugged his hand, “Are you admitting I'm better than you at something?”

“What? Don't twist my words like that, you know I'm not that-”

“Exactly,” He wasn't going to let Sting get a word in if he was to get his point across, “We're partners for a reason and you are off your game. That's a problem.”

He grabbed the cookies then, brandishing the plate beneath Sting's nose.

“Yukino is still downstairs,” He said, then added, ”Sleeping now, but these were clearly made for you to relax. Did you know?“

Crossing his eyes to look at the plate before him, Sting had the grace to look guilty, ”...I ah... didn't unlock the door when she knocked.“

“You ignored her.”

He balked at the accusation, ”No! I knew she knocked, I just asked her to leave me alone so I could finish, that's all.“

When Rogue's only reply was to tighten his hold to almost bruising levels, Sting hissed in anger and yanked his arm back, almost spilling the cookies in the process.

”What's it to you anyway?“ He griped, rubbing his aching flesh, ”shouldn't you be at home, relaxing with a book?“

Rogue rolled his eyes so hard he felt they might get stuck in his skull, “Lector is upset.”

He didn't have to say anything further, watching as Sting deflated, head bowing to hide his expression behind his bangs. Cursing under his breath, he looked at the tossed aside letters and grimaced, ”shit, he begged me to come home tonight too.“

”And you haven't because...?” Rogue drawled, setting the cookies down to fully re-emerge from the shadows, effectively seating himself on the desk before the guilt-ridden Guild Master.

When Sting refused to answer, teeth gritting so tight Rogue could hear the grinding of his jaw, the Shadowslayer realized he'd have to do more of the talking. Conversation wasn't his strong suit, no matter how much he tried, but relying on their well-tuned abilities to read the other was out of the question.

Not when the White Dragonslayer looked close to breaking down, shoulders quivering as exhaustion and frustration warred inside him.

”You're not going to prove anything to the other Guild Masters by overworking yourself.“ He pointed out, watching as Sting flinched at the call-out, ”didn't Master Bob tell you not to let the others get to you?”

A swell of emotions lit Sting's eyes, but his jaw clenched and served as the dam to hold each wave of thought back as it struck against him. Eyes shifted away in guilt and the slayer clicked his tongue, irritated.

“You make...” He sighed, screwing his eyes shut, “It's not that simple. He makes it sound easy, but-”

He waved a hand to the stack of papers he'd been rifling through: stacks on stacks of documents to sign, correspondence with the counsel as well as future clients, but most notably were the letters sealed by a multitude of guild masters; the responses to their last meeting. All the envelopes were torn open, some uneven and others obliterated in a stress fueled rage. Rogue didn't have to look long to recognize the handwriting of a few and he could guess the content of most of them.

“... they didn't like meeting here, did they?” He surmised, waiting for Sting to fill in the blanks.

The coaxing was enough and the tired Master of Sabertooth exploded in desperate fury, throwing his hands into the air, “I can't please any of them! Either the meeting here was too non-professional, or too stuffy. They just have complaints upon complaints. One even claimed Jiemma would do better and I—!“

That name alone was enough to leave a foul taste in the shadow slayer’s mouth and he wasted no time in covering the envelopes with an entirely different stack of documents, hastily blocking Sting's view. It was enough. He deflated, voice dropping to a whisper as he resettled in his chair and dropped his face against the desk by Rogue's leg.

His voice whispered, muffled by the hardwood, but punctuated in exhaustion and a childish whine. ”Sometimes, I really HATE being the Master. Things were simpler when I was a regular member.“

Rogue wanted to respond, but the words jarred in his throat. Words of agreement or comfort tangled themselves and slipped away, leaving him to stare at his partner with a knitted brow and aching heart. It wasn't right to see the light to his shadows so dimmed and while he wanted to brighten it, strengthen that glow Sting was known for, he didn't know where to start.

What he did know for certain, was that Sting was looking at this entirely wrong. His gaze shifted back to the hidden stack of letters, lips thinning into a deep set frown as a rumble of displeasure ran through him.

”You'll never be Jiemma.“ He said, voice firm as he untangled the string of words burning the tip of his tongue, ”Isn't that the point?”

Sting tilted his head, one eye peering through the fringe of his blond hair at the other, ”What do you mean?“

Rogue's frown deepened, ”Maybe this wasn't the job you had in mind. Maybe you'd be just as happy with someone else running our Guild, but can you honestly say you'd want it to run the way it was before?“

Sting's answering growl was all the encouragement Rogue needed to continue. ”Those who claim otherwise don't understand what he did to us. How he turned us into soldiers who couldn't trust our own members. They're the old Masters, stuck in their ways, who will be replaced sooner than others.“

And, thinking back towards the bit of return addresses he'd seen, Rogue added, ”... and they weren't all bad, were they?“

”Hmm?“ Sting mumbled, already a bit of shine was returning to his eyes, a sight that chased away his ill at ease feelings.

”Master Bob's letter thanked us for hosting,“ He replied, voice lowering to match Sting's tone, holding their voices just between them and away from the office's open air, “And you can't tell me Makarov of Fairy Tail had anything negative to say. Not with how his Guild is run after all.”

Sting snorted, lips giving the slightest curl of a grin, “He asked what brewery we get our drinks from.”

“Of course he did,” he deadpanned. His expression must have changed as the sight sprung a laugh from Sting, giving just a little more light to the room.

But there was still doubt, the shadow slayer could sense it and when Sting's amused grin turned down again, he acted fast. Cutting him off with a finger to Sting's lips, Rogue leaned down to brush strands of hair from the other's face, quietly talking into his ear as he did.

”Those outside of us,“ He murmured, ignoring the way Sting shivered as his breath ghosted across his skin, ”- outside of our Guild, will never fully understand the changes you wish to implement. Not yet. But we know. All of us. And we support it. What matters more, the opinions of those old coots or our Guild?“

”Why are you asking obvious questions?“ Sting snapped, though there was little bite in his words. Rogue hummed and allowed instinct to guide his actions, nipping the tip of Sting's ear in gentle reprimand before he leaned back, just in time to see Sting's wide eyes and pink cheeks as he snatched Rogue's hand in his.

”A bit forward for you, isn't it?“ He drawled, grip tight as he rubbed his smarting ear.

“Obvious questions for an idiot stuck in the opinions of those who don't matter,” He said matter of factly. Temptation pulled at his senses, to tease and meld back into the shadows and out of Sting's grip, but now was not the time for that sort of play. He smirked, “And a bite for the stupid question.”

“You're really asking for it, you know that-”

“Later.” He interrupted, eyes hardening. “For now, we should head home. Lector's waiting.”

“But-” And while Rogue could see the confliction on Sting's face, a want to avenge himself warring with duty, he could see the way his eyes slowly slid back to the mountain of papers before him. There was a lot of it. Too much for one person.

“Sting,” Rogue said, his voice a simple demand for his fellow slayer to turn his attention back to him. “You are what this Guild needs. Just Sting Eucliffe. No one else. If I offer to help tomorrow, will you please come to bed?”

A plea. His last ditch effort for results, but it did the job he intended. Sting's shoulders sagged and relief flooded through his body like a wave as he finally allowed a yawn to pass through sharp fangs, blinking wearily at the ceiling.

“I hate when you're right,” He grumbled, jumping back to his feet with no further coaxing. “Leave the float cookies: I can have them tomorrow.”

“And Yukino?” Rogue pressed, not missing Sting's subtle nod to his hand, offering to tug him off his perch. He accepted with ease and followed the White Slayer back around and towards the doors. He only paused to grab the spare coat off the table, unceremoniously draping it over the Master's shoulders and as the scarf dragged against the floor. The snickers heard beneath the coat as Sting struggled to put it on, set the world back into place and he nodded to Rogue's question the moment his head was free and clear once more.

”Yeah, yeah, I'll apologize to her, too,“ he griped. ”You're awfully naggy tonight, aren't you?“

”I'm not against throwing you into the first snow pile I see,“ he threatened, but the heat of their fingers together warmed him from inside out and finally, the light he counted on to chase his shadows away, illuminated his every step.

There was no need to sink back into the dark magic now. He'd rather bask in the heat of Sting's rays as they finally left the guild to give Sabertooth’s young Master the sleep he desperately needed.

When they made it through the door of their shared apartment, with snowflakes dusting their hair and the cold chill of the night painting their skin, Lector had joined Frosch in sleep, curled side by side as they patiently waited in Rogue’s bed. But there was no time to wake them or give apologies, as Sting's stubborn determination finally gave way to exhaustion and he stumbled over his own feet.

Rogue was fast to maneuver him to his own bed and he sighed when his back sank into the mattress. As Rogue finished tucking him in, stuffing bits of blankets onto either side of him, he was already out cold, gentle snores escaping with every breath. His fingers, however, were still entangled with Rogue’s, refusing to let go.

Rogue thought back to the book he'd been reading, left alone in the other room, out of reach, and shrugged. It would be a simple matter to unhook their hands and grab his book, returning to a night of quiet, but one look into Sting’s face told him all he needed to know. He held tight to Sting's hand and accepted his new plans. Falling atop the thick blankets of Sting's bed, He curled up beside the other, listening to the rise and fall of his partner’s breathing to lull him to sleep.

Everything else could wait.

#ftfanfiction #Stingue #Stingue Fanfiction #Sting Eucliffe #Rogue Cheney #Fairy Tail Fanfiction #Secret Santa #Gift Exchange #The Guild Awards Discord Gift Exchange #bbys first stingue #My Writing #My Fanfiction #late gift #i'm suuuuper sorry this took me so long!#;.;

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mirage-05 · 1 year

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Sting and Lyanna [Fairy Tail]

So... it’s been a while since we do this, but seeing some likes on our Fairy Tail content lately couraged me to post another fanfiction collab between me and @eleanor-devil xD As usual, this is part of our bigger project.

This story take place after the Alvarez war and there are a few OCs in it, namely Rin ( @mirage-05 who you probably already know by now), Eleanor ( @eleanor-devil ) and one of the titular characters, Lyanna. We don’t want to give many spoilers, though, so I hope you enjoy reading x3

Oh and a small warning that by this time, StingYu (Sting x Yukino) and NaLu (Natsu x Lucy) are already a couple!

Feedback is, of course, highly appreciated. ^^

-------

For some reason, and it had to be a very good reason, Sting Eucliffe was quiet... for days. That never ever happened, not even Rufus had memory of such a thing happening.

Rogue and Lector had noticed this started happening not long after Sorano, Yukino's elder sister and former member of Crime Sorcière, having asked - she actually more like demanded along with her nuts of a knight boyfriend - to join Sabertooth.

Sting would still do his usual stuff, go to the bar, take walks, do Master stuff but just in a very quiet way, almost gloomy and nobody could understand why.

It wasn't that Rogue didn't ask him... time and time again what was bothering him, it had reached a point he'd give anything for Sting to act in his usual childish and annoying way - though it was not like he was gonna admit it to anyone, let alone to that knucklehead. The awful quietness of the White Dragon Slayer had started to worry him, so much so that it wasn't beyond him at this point to try desperate measures.

"Rogue... what is that?" Sting asked while raising an eyebrow, looking at the big envelope in the Shadow Dragon Slayer's hands.

Without ever changing his stoic expression, the young man answered. "Orga's baby photos." It shall remain a secret as to how he got a hold of said photos. He held up the envelope, knowing that under normal circumstances Sting would never say no to that. "You wanna take a look at it?" Honestly, anyone watching them from outside would think they've just swapped their personalities.

After a moment of silence and stares between his Twin Dragon Slayer and the envelope... Sting went back to what he was doing. "I have a lot of paperwork to deliver Rogue, I don't have time for that right now."

And that's how Rogue Cheney's jaw dropped... well... not literally but the Shadow Dragon Slayer was shocked, so shocked that he nearly asked what had the guy in front of him done to the real Sting... but he chose not to as he probably would get a not-very-Sting-like answer. So he just forcefully dragged his feet out of the man's office, without saying anything else to the blond; he faced almost the whole guild that was waiting outside for an answer and hopeful looks.

"...He refused the photos." The Dragon Slayer announced.

"Okay that's it, I'm calling him sick." said Eleanor.

The Master, in the meantime, sighed and rubbed his temples as soon as the door closed. He was aware that his friends were just trying to help him, but really, the problem was all in his head, and it wasn't something small that a little group therapy would solve. He was having a number of recurring dreams lately - not the same nightmares from a while ago, thank god -, all of them included the same three people, laughing and chatting with... well, a younger version of him. It was such a nice and warm atmosphere that there had been mornings he found it hard to get up and face the reality that those three people didn’t exist anymore.

Sting had no doubts about it...he had been seeing his real family, the one he had lost many centuries ago. A wave of sadness washed over him again at the memory, threatening to drown him...and that’s why he had decided to immerse himself in his Guild Master's duties, work to forget - that and well, the sense of responsibility that had finally kicked in -. If he didn't do anything to keep his mind busy...he felt like he would go crazy.

The blond didn't know how much time had passed while signing off the paperwork, but he suddenly heard chatter out of his office again. 'Sheesh...what does a guy have to do to get some privacy?' he thought to himself, mildly annoyed now.

And suddenly a familiar pink haired man burst into his office so fast that it even made some papers fly around the room - awesome..he had just finished organizing those...self-note to get some paper clips later… Attached to both his arms and practically dragging on the floor were both Lucy and Yukino, clearly they seemed to have been trying to hold back the Salamander from doing exactly what he had just done.

"Yoooo Sting! It's been a while!"

Sting just blinked a few times to see if he was actually seeing right. "Um... Natsu-san?"

Natsu moved closer to the Light Dragon Slayer, the girls completely forgotten on the floor, and patted him a few times in his head, maybe with a little too much strength as Sting was trying to hold back winces whenever he did that. "Drop the 'san' man, we're brothers aren't we?!"

Well... apparently some things were never going to change. "What brought you two here?" he asked instead of replying to the Fire Dragon Slayer.

"Eh what, is it too weird to want to see my fellow Dragon Slayer?"

"You still shouldn't have interrupted his work though." Lucy pretty much chastised the pink head.

"I'm sorry, Sting... we tried." Yukino supplied her.

"Yeah, what's up with that, man?" Natsu continued as if he didn't hear the girls. "Your friends keep telling me that you're all work and no play lately. Or well what Rufus actually said was that you've become dull as Orga's songs."

Now his eye had begun twitching. Typical...leave it to Sabertooth to start rumors behind his back...

"There is nothing wrong with me." he said as he stood up from his chair. "And I haven't become dull either...! I am just being the Master I should have been for a long time, I don't have time for plays right now."

"Sting..." Yukino whispered, sweating at how harsh her lover was acting, this definitely wasn't him... she wished he would at least open up to her or Rogue...

"Now, what did you come here for?"

Natsu was just silent for a bit, not seeming bothered by his friend's bad humor, and then grinned. "Weeeell we have come here to invite specifically you - and a few more if they want to - on a job."

Sting raised an eyebrow. "Why would you ask another guild to come on a job requested to Fairy Tail?"

This time it was Lucy who talked, she stepped forward and held out the piece of paper that contained the information about the mentioned job "Actually it's because the client demands this job to be done by both Fairy Tail and Sabertooth mages, but don't ask me why, I have no idea. Plus the client decided to keep his face anonymous until we find what he wants."

"Oh, I think I've seen that job on our board," Yukino walked to another table in the office where there were a few recent job requests and looked through them. "Here it is, this is the copy but it's no doubt the same job." The request actually demanded Sting himself to participate in the job although like Natsu mentioned he was allowed to take more Sabertooth mages with him.

Yukino couldn’t help but find this strange, last time they had seen a request with specific demands it turned out to be a trap set to capture both Sting and Rogue.

"Well we came to pick Sting up for the job," Natsu crossed his arms behind his head and then grinned with tease. "But since he's so busy being Master I guess he won't have time to do it with us."

There were times the White Dragon Slayer wouldn't stand by and let a teasing pass over, but he didn't feel like it now. The blond didn't say anything for a moment as he took the job form from Yukino and glanced over it. His confusion only increased when he saw the location of the mission. "...Fairy Tail's library? Is Makarov-san okay with it?" After all, a guild's library held many things, including their secret archives most of the time. To allow another guild to walk in freely was something unheard of in the many years past.

"Yeah, uh...there won't be any problem regarding that." the blond celestial mage said while sweat dripped down her chin. To be frank, what led Fairy Tail's Master to accept the job was what the mission promised in the end...or so he said, even the reward was being kept a mystery.

"Find... a treasure hidden in the library?" Now this was becoming even more mysterious.

"Well? Are you in or not?" Natsu folded his arms, impatient.

Sting sighed, closing his eyes for a minute. "Fine. I'll come with you." He looked over at his girlfriend. "Are you coming too, Yuki?"

The girl shook her head. "I can't... I'm leaving on another job, but..." a sweat dripped down her cheek. "I... think there are already a flock of our members ready to take it on."

Sting just glanced at the door and he felt sweat drops on the back of his head when he saw nearly all the guild members at it with their hands up and even their eyes shining, he could only guess they wanted the mysterious reward more than just do the job itself.

But no he wasn't going to take the whole guild into Fairy Tail's secret library, Sting just sighed. "Okay... Rogue, Rin, you're coming with me on this job if you are free."

"Oh come on, you always pick them!" complained Orga, who now looked like a child pouting while he crossed his arms.

Sting raised his eyebrow. "Maybe because I know they won't destroy the entire library..."

"Touché," mumbled Rufus.

They set off to the train station... and the two girls of the group had their hands full considering they had to deal with not one but three motion sick Dragon Slayers during the trip back to Fairy Tail, it was so bad that Natsu wanted to jump out of the window and run there instead.

But finally, after what felt like hours... they were in front of the entrance of the library and it wasn't an exaggeration to say that the Sabertooth mages were awe-struck.

"Whoa, this place is huge," Sting said, voicing their thoughts. To be honest...during her recovery time in Fairy Tail, Rin had been allowed to visit the library to keep herself distracted so she was already familiar with the place. Still it was a sight to be amazed.

A normal person would be intimidated by the size of this mission, especially when they didn't know exactly what they were looking for. But Natsu Dragneel was not what you would say a normal person. He cracked his fingers, totally unperturbed. "Okay... let's get this going!"

"Wait, not just like that," Lucy interrupted, then she distributed to all of them what looked like marking devices. "Let's pick a section each. When you are done, you can use this to mark the shelves, so we know not to check there again."

"That's boring." The pink haired mumbled, boredom translating to his eyes and it only made the Celestial Spirit Mage angry.

"You would just destroy the library otherwise!"

Rin giggled at the two mages arguing, it was funny that theirs was such a fiery relationship whereas Sting-nii’s and Yuki-nee's was so calm and quiet, despite Sting-nii not being the most calm person when he was in his normal days of course.

"Next time you get your butt stuck in a cactus don't come ask me to take off the thorns!"

Those words for a reason ringed in Sting's mind, he couldn't explain why but he felt he had been in a similar situation before, well not exactly the argument between Natsu and Lucy but... something else...

~.~.~.~

"Ow! Ow!" the voice of a little boy rang through the air. "Can't you do that a little more gently??"

"Taking them off slowly only hurts more, dummy," a soft female voice answered back, amusement was clear in her expression as the little blond boy laying tummy down on her lap was trying to hold back the tears. "And you deserve this you know, how many times did mom tell you to not play near the cactus, Lys?"

"Don't call me that." the little boy said with a big pout curled in his lips while he folded his arms. The older girl laughed.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I should be calling you Lysander."

"Stop it."

"Lysandeeeer~"

"I hate you!" The boy said indignantly, and then another "Oww!"

"You know actually, now that I think of it... I think I know what I will call you from now on. I have the perfect idea."

There was a big moment of silence, it was apparent that the boy was trying his best to curb his curiosity. In the end though, he couldn't keep it in. "What...?"

"Since you keep falling on your butt in cactus... I will just call you Sting from now on."

~.~.~.~

"Ugh..." Sting brought his hand to his face as he felt a sudden headache settling in. Where did that come from?!

"Sting-nii, are you okay?" Rin immediately asked, concerned.

Rogue's attention was also on Sting, just what was wrong with him...? The worry for his brother in arms was becoming bigger.

"Nothing," of course he would say that, it had been his answer in the past few days. This time though, the young man rubbed Rin's head softly and gave her a soft smile, not his usual smiles but at least it was one.

'Rin... actually looks a lot like her...'

"Let's just get started, yes? We have a lot of work ahead of us." Sting pretty much dragged Natsu inside the library so that he and Lucy would stop arguing at once. Something that usually wouldn't bother the Light Dragon Slayer, it would actually amuse him, but not this time. Not with the headache he was having.

The group split up and began checking every single shelf in attempts to find... whatever they were looking for.

"It's hard to find something when you don't even know what you are looking for..." mumbled Sting as he took yet another book and blew away the dust on it, the job itself was just too strange. "Who is even the client again?"

Apparently no one knew the answer for that, and as Sting was about to put the book back in its place without much of a glance at it, the title suddenly caught his attention. "Dreyar Family Chronicles".

Maybe he shouldn't - this was nothing short of invading private space... but the Light Dragon Slayer still found himself opening the book. He would just take a quick peek... this couldn't hurt anyone, right?

For some reason he started from the end, looking at the current members of the Dreyar household, Laxus-san (with whom he was on neutral terms, the two of them really didn't have a lot of contact), his father Ivan (whom he believed was still in custody) and the current leader of the guild, Makarov-san. He flipped the pages forth, looking through various generations of the family, almost as if in a trance.

He was a bit caught off guard when he came across the photo of Makarov-san's father, Yuri, he looked a bit familiar even the way his spiky dark blond hair was done, the smile too.

Sting continued flipping the pages, seeing some family photos and then he just stopped when he saw the picture of a woman, immediately considering her really beautiful the Master took a look at her long and straight blonde hair, a bit darker but not as dark as Yuri Dreyar's and then her sharp shaped but gentle aquamarine eyes and an equally gentle smile.

It was her, the one he saw in his dreams…

His... mother...

~.~.~.~

"Lysander Eucliffe!" The voice of a woman echoed through the walls of the wooden house. "What in the world happened to you?" The woman bent down, holding her long dress as she did so, until she reached her son's height. The child was on the verge of tears and looked all battered, scratches and dark circles here and there.

"Have you been fighting again? God how many times have I told you to not do that?"

"But..." the child sniffed, trying his best not to cry.

"It's not his fault, mama..." A young girl approached the two, looking down, ashamed and sad. "It's mine... there were some kids messing up with me... Lys just tried to defend me..."

"Don't call me that." the child mumbled, raising a hand to wipe his tears but wincing as he touched one of the cuts.

The look in the woman's eyes softened a little, and she reached out to scoot both of her children to herself. "Lyanna, Lysander... I'm glad you are standing up for one another but-"

"Of course I will stand up for her! She is my sister!" The boy said defiantly, holding his hands in fists. "Those boys had what was coming for them! I will do it again if I have to!" Tears started falling down one by one, but he didn't care now.

His sister turned to him and flung her arms around his neck, also teary. "You are my hero." she whispered in his ear, and the boy felt a little blush spreading across his cheeks.

Their mother smiled fondly at them, her light colored eyes soft. "Okay... but now let's get this hero cleaned up, shall we?"

~.~.~.~

Sting blinked as he came back to reality, and was surprised that he had teared up too. The memory was still fresh... like it didn't happen centuries ago, but just yesterday... But the question was... why was the picture of... his mother in the Dreyar's family album? Granted he had never known other relatives from both his parents' sides but still... it was all too confusing for him. He flipped to the next page and there was another photo of his mother but this time she was in the company of a man, tall, strong body built, short but slightly spiked light blond hair and a pair of dark blue eyes. The man had an arm wrapped around his wife's shoulders while the other hand rested on her swollen belly, standing in front of them with both her hands also on the belly was a younger girl, Lyanna for sure.

This was becoming more confusing, why was his family depicted in this album? What could even be their connection to the Dreyars when his family had been gone for over 400 years?

Sting suddenly remembered a question he had once made to his father…

~.~.~.~

He had come with his father into the forest so they could cut and gather wood for winter. It was going to be a very harsh season, his father had said.

Lysander would often hear how those harsh and cold temperatures could kill someone and he didn't like the idea or the thought of his family dying, whether it was because of the cold or something else.

The child was now sitting on a trunk of a tree that his father had already taken down, he was waiting for him to finish cutting the wood they would be bringing back some. Wrapped in the warm scarf knitted by his mother, Lysander swung his little legs back and forth, watching with lack of interest how his breathing turned into a cloud right in front of his face and then slowly disappeared.

His attention then turned towards the cutting sounds that came from the impact between the wood and the axe on his father's hands. Suddenly a small pout formed on his lips.

"Daddy?"

The man stopped what he was doing and then turned his dark blue eyes towards his son "Hm? What is it?"

But Lysander then lost his guts to ask what he wanted... it was a silly question anyway "No... it's nothing."

Instead of hearing his father returning to his job, the boy heard the axe being buried one single time in the trunk and then the steady paces in the snow coming closer to him. Lysander raised his own dark orbs to meet his father's stern but at the same time soft look.

"What have your mother and I said about lying?"

He averted his eyes again "I'm not lying..."

"You wanted to ask me something, didn't you? So why did you suddenly back off?" He was now crouched down in front of him.

There was a time of silence before the blond boy finally spoke up, the pout still there "You will never die right...? We'll always be together... right?"

His father gave him a confused and surprised look. "What is this about?"

"It's just... I keep hearing about people... dying in our town... and I don't want that to happen to us…" There was a rosy blush on the cheeks of the boy though it was unknown if it was from embarrassment or the cold weather.

“I see, so you’re scared?” His father shifted his position to sit beside him but Lysander didn’t look up to him, the snow was suddenly something very fascinating to look at. “It’s alright to be scared, we are humans and it’s normal to feel that way.”

This got the child to finally look up at the man, a surprised look on his indigo orbs. “Even you are scared? But you never look like it...!”

The man laughed and pulled his son closer to him. “Of course I am scared, I am scared of losing you, your mother and your sister but feeling that way makes us stronger, it gives us strength to protect the ones we love.” He poked one finger on the child’s nose. “So never ever be afraid of showing how you truly feel, there is no embarrassment in showing that you are sad, scared or happy, understand?” Lysander nodded, a big smile finally reaching his lips and the blush on the cheeks spread further.

“Now, as for your other question. Death is something inevitable, it will come for us one day whether we like it or not but we just don’t know when. There is no way that we can be together forever in the physical world but ‘forever’ can be something that only this here…” and he touched the boy’s left side of the chest “...decides what it is and how it is.”

~.~.~.~

Sting couldn’t help the small smile that reached his face, it was an almost melancholic smile but at the same time a happy one. It seemed that even when he didn’t remember him, his father’s words had always accompanied and shaped how he was.

Moving to the next photo, the Master noticed how there was a woman, very similar to his mother but still with some differences, she was dressed in what looked like a beautiful white wedding gown.

Out of curiosity, Sting's eyes drifted to the description of the photo "Lyanna Dreyar on her wedding day". The Sabertooth Master's eyes widened in surprise, it couldn't be right?

Lyanna... was a very common name, it couldn't be her, she had died on that day along with their parents, he was sure of it...

Sting didn't even notice that his hands had started shaking, so much that the book dropped from his hands; it was still a sort of a big fall considering as Sting had been sitting on a tall ladder and it grabbed the attention of the remaining members of the group when the impact of the book on the floor echoed through the library.

"Oi, is everything okay Sting?" Natsu asked, approaching the ladder he was on and looking up at him. "Did you find anything?"

"U-umm... yes and no?" He really didn't know how to answer. Well yes the album became something very important for him but... they still had a mission to complete, which none of them knew if they were making progress or not. And yet, for him suddenly that album meant everything...

He quickly descended the stairs he was perched on, only to find out that the Fire Dragon Slayer had picked up the book and was... trying to open it to no avail - which made absolutely no sense, it was a goddamn book, how hard was it to open it?

"What is it with this book?" Natsu grumbled, not impressed. "Does Gramps want to keep all his family shenanigans to himself?" Just then a huge, mischievous grin lit up his features and he turned to his friend. "Oi Luce, you think we will find some embarrassing photos of Laxus in here?!"

"It's not like that!" Sting said almost indignantly as he grabbed the book out of the pink head's hands. All of their jaw dropped as the blond had no trouble opening the book at all.

Sting raised an eyebrow. "Why are you all looking at me like that?"

"You just opened the book when a second ago I couldn't that's why!" Natsu approached the Master and tried to flip a sheet of the book only to have it slam closed right into his hand; the Fire Dragon Slayer yelled both in pain and surprise, startling the others, and immediately removed the hand from the book. "Did you enchant the book or something?!"

"How would I do that, I don't even have Rune Magic."

"Um... well for some reason that book only opens with you," Lucy stated as she attempted to open the book herself. "So maybe we are on the right path to find the treasure..."

Natsu side eyed them. "How does gold fit inside a book?"

Everyone felt right in that moment the need to face wall at the pink haired’s brain work.

"Anyway..." Lucy spoke again. "Does the book say anything important? Maybe there's a clue..."

"Well..." Sting was suddenly very reluctant to share this private information for him. It was weird to explain, but it was almost this... instinct that he should protect this book and its contents to the last of his breath. Not that anyone in this room was an enemy or anything... but it was somehow private, personal.

It was then that he met Rin's eyes and that odd nostalgic feeling hit him again, that the little girl looked a lot like the sister he remembered... and maybe that was the reason why he started talking.

"I don't know if it's the special treasure the mission is talking about... it's actually some sort of photo album for your Master, Makarov-san..." he paused for a moment, a lump in his throat. "I know it sounds weird but... I saw the picture of someone... I thought it looked like..." his voice dropped, but he wasn't even aware of it. "...my sister..." It was weird, he didn't even know if his fellow Dragon Slayers remembered anything about their families...

"Sister?!" Everyone's voices echoed in Sting's already enhanced ears but the young man just nodded and re-opened the book right where he remembered the photo was.

"So... you remember your sister from..." Natsu tried to count with his fingers but it was too much. "400 plus years ago?? That's a good memory you have dude!"

Sting felt like rolling his eyes. "It's not like I've always remembered her... or my parents for all that matter, just... recently what I think are memories that started gaining shape in my mind, I can't explain how."

"Skiadrum and Weisslogia... they were the only dragons that choose to wipe the memories of their children before sending them to the future," Rogue began, a hand on his chin. "Could it be that the effects are wearing out? But I haven't had any memories of my original family."

"Wouldn't that mean that Natsu, Wendy and Gajeel would remember their past too?" Lucy pointed out.

"Well... I do remember my time with Igneel but I don't recall anything from my parents," Natsu put his arms behind his head casually. "The only thing I know is from when Zeref showed up in my mind or something."

"I... it doesn't make sense for me either..." The blond dragon slayer brought up a hand to rub his eyes, the headache pounding in his skull again. Still, he forced himself to talk about what to him was probably the most painful memory. "Because... my sister, I thought she didn't... survive the attack that separated us..."

As if on cue, the book in his hands suddenly started to glow faintly with a soft, golden light, once again attracting the gazes of all of them. "Whoa dude, what are you doing to that book?" Natsu asked him, now standing a couple of feet away from the book and his arms raised upon his head. Typical of the Fire Dragon Slayer to be freaked out by something as simple as a book...

"I'm telling you, I didn't do anything!" the Light Dragon Slayer said again. "I-..."

His voice was cut in by a soft, almost soothing sound coming from the book... and hearing it, a hushed silence fell upon the group, especially on Sting, who was looking at the object with an awed expression... he didn't know how... but he knew that voice...

"Year x396. This is the start of Lyanna Eucliffe's diary." There was a small pause before the imaginary woman continued, and they could all hear the smile in her tone now. "Well... I'm a Dreyar now. A little over twenty years have passed since I lost my precious family in the attack from the dragons... and now, as I continue my path with my new family, I would like to record all that made that little girl into the woman she is now."

Sting could feel his heart starting to beat faster, so fast that he was sure not only the other two Dragon Slayers present would be able to hear it but the other two ordinary girls as well.

"I was born on the Year x366 to Juliana and Ewan Eucliffe and six years later I received the best gift I could ever ask for, my little brother Lysander was born, I loved him so much... on the day he was born I promised I would always protect him no matter what... but..." The voice was getting teary. "...in the end I couldn't do anything as he was taken away by that dragon, nothing at all. He was always exploring, always getting his clothes dirty and making mom worry and sometimes angry, he even used to play around cactuses and would always fall on them, then would come crying to me and I would take all the thorns out." There was a soft laugh. "I started calling him Sting because of that, I think he actually preferred that over his real name."

Sting started feeling his eyes hot and a large lump forming in his throat, just... what was all this...? How...?

"Out of our family I was the sole survivor, I was just ten at the time and so I was taken to an orphanage but life was really complicated after the dragon attacks, so I lived there most of my life. When I was of age, I started traveling on my own but no matter where I went I couldn't find a place to call home, not without my family around. Then I met James and for the first time in years I felt truly happy... he helped me in many things, it is thanks to him that I am being able to record this diary now, it turns out I have magic that none of my family members had: Recording Magic." There was a pause. "...I am carrying our first child now, maybe if it's a boy I can name him Lysander."

"B-but... no, that's not possible..." Sting's voice was shaky as he frowned in denial, the book's glow dimming as the voice faded out. He was surprised how he could even still find his voice... it was like he just received a major blow, the pain in his chest was so real... "She... she died on that attack... that was the last thing I remember before that dragon took me...!"

The others were silent, both out of a profound respect for the diary's owner and loss of words in such a situation. "It seems that..." Lucy finally said in a sad tone, wiping a tear from her eyes. "...neither of you were aware that the other survived..." she couldn't even imagine the scope of the tragedy the blond was going through.

"But if Weisslogia rescued you from the attack... why would he leave your sister behind?" Natsu asked doubtfully.

"Natsu..." Lucy began in a warning tone, but Sting cut her in, shaking his head.

"No, it wasn't Weisslogia who took me away from the attack..." he whispered as another piece of memory came back.

~.~.~.~

Lyanna was holding her brother's hand tightly, both running through the ruins of what once was their village, now all there was fire, smoke and... death.

Their parents were both gone... their beloved mother crushed by the ceiling of their house... their brave father killed by the claws of a dragon. All that was left were the two of them and Lyanna was determined to keep her word, she would protect her little brother no matter what.

The two children were trying to stay strong, trying not to shed the tears that threatened to fall, trying not to sob out of fear of being heard by any nearby dragon.

Lyanna suddenly came to a halt and hugged Lysander close to her as they hid behind a broken pillar and wall, they heard footsteps, big footsteps and a roar nearby. There was a dragon closeby...

"Ly..." the girl put her delicate hand over her brother's mouth, signing him to hush. They stayed there for what seemed an eternity... and right when the dragon seemed to have gone away, the pillar behind them crumbled in the direction of the children.

Out of instinct, Lyanna threw her brother as far away as she could as the pieces of marble fell upon her. Lysander rolled a few feet away from the fallen pillar before looking up at where his sister once stood.

The little boy's eyes widened in terror as he tried to reach for his sister. "LYANNAAAA!!" he screamed out, his voice ringing around the area, and finally the tears came flooding down his cheeks... it was too harsh a reality for a four year old to realize that now he was all alone in the whole world... he had no one left from his precious family...this was everything he had always feared...

He didn't have a lot of time to proceed with his grief though. Big, heavy talons grabbed him and the kid screamed in pain as they bit into his shoulders. Despite the pain, he wasn't aware of his surroundings, his eyes were still fixated on the rubble beneath which his sister had disappeared, and he kept staring there even when it became a small speck on the ground, and even when he soared through and above the clouds... it was only the freezing wind that rippled through his thin clothing that finally made him snap out of his shock. That was when he heard a rumbling roar of laughter coming from the monster holding him... chilling him to the bone in a way no wind can.

"Heh... you, kid, ain't enough for my belly... but you'll make a fine meal for my cubs."

The little boy attempted to fight off the claws of that big monster but they were so tight on his tiny shoulder that the more he moved, the more they penetrated his thin skin making the child yelp in pain. It was over, he would be meat for baby dragons and there was nothing he would be able to do about it.

...Although it didn't matter anymore, he was all alone, maybe it was for the best now he would join his family and the pain of living alone in a world full of dragons wouldn't be a problem for him.

Just as the child's eyes started closing, he thought he heard a second roar tearing apart the skies and the dragon carrying him was suddenly covered by a shadow much bigger than itself. Then he felt it, the bigger dragon bumped into the other which caused it to let go the nearly unconscious boy.

The last thing he knew was that he was falling from the high skies, the last thing he felt was something grabbing him. Then it was all darkness.

...

When he opened his eyes again... the boy was a little surprised to find himself standing on a rocky place... surrounded by huge rock bodies everywhere. A mountain? Funny, in all of the stories he heard about heaven he was sure he didn't hear of mountains.

A sudden pain on his shoulder made him wince and put a hand on it. Something wet and sticky came to his hand, and he saw blood covering it. A chilled wind rushing through him also made him aware of the fact that his senses were pretty much intact.

"If this is heaven, I don't like it..." he mumbled under his breath as his lips turned in a pout. Where were mama and papa...? And Lyanna...

"I know no such thing as heaven," a loud, rumbling voice can be heard then, making Lysander jump a foot in the air. He saw a shadow moving behind a cave not too far from him. A big shadow... "But you are not dead, human child."

"A-are you...God?" the kid asked, his voice trembling. There was a low, chuckle-like sound.

"Well no, I don't think you would call me a god either."

Then the shadow moved again. Time came to a stop and the boy gasped in fright as the creature finally revealed itself.

It was a gigantic dragon, but actually very different from the one Lysander remembered that had taken him away from his burning village. This one was light-colored and had a large and long beard that resembled feathers; it also had two small antlers protruding from the top of his head. Compared to its feathery, windswept face the rest of the dragon's body was covered by thick scales and its belly looked really smooth. But what made the child open his mouth into a big 'O' was the wings of the dragon, they looked like those of an angel that his mother would often tell him about in bedtime stories.

Despite being in awe with the majestic and sage looking appearance of the gigantic beast, survival instincts kicked inside the small child and he reached for the first thing that he could find: a tiny and thin stick. Lysander stood up, although his shoulder burned like hell from the wound, and pointed the stick at the dragon as he attempted to keep his tears yet again at bay. "S-Stay back!"

The dragon once again grumbled. "Don't be ridiculous kid. What are you going to do with a stick?"

"I-I will hurt you," the boy was trembling from head to foot, but somehow he still stood his ground. "I will poke out your eye!"

"Uh-huh. And how is it wise to reveal your card to the enemy?"

Instead of answering the dragon, Lysander squared his shoulders and raised the stick again a little higher. "Don't underestimate me!" I had nothing to lose... was what he was about to add... but that thought almost made the tears fall and he didn't need that now.

"Relax, kid." the dragon's voice was weary now. "I don't eat humans. You folks don't even taste good."

"Eh?! I taste good too, you big-" realizing what he had just said, the little boy's hands flew to his mouth and his eyes widened in impossible size.

He heard the dragon growl. "Are you trying to tempt me now?"

Lysander trembled even more when the dragon moved forward and its head was now just a few inches away from him, again the child tried not to show his fear and also to not let his tears fall. He gulped when the dragon opened its mouth slightly... and then all he felt was a giant breath hitting his already fragile body.

...And he fell on his butt.

It was all it took for the child to finally give in to his fears and start bawling his eyes out, his cries echoing through the mountain they were standing in. He was scared, he was hurt, he was hungry... and he wanted his mama, his papa, his big sister.

The dragon breathed again in what looked like an exasperated huff... and then reached out with one of its paws, wrapping it carefully around the boy's body and pulling him closer.

"Uh... there there kid." it attempted to comfort the child but it was obviously not good at it. "You're quite brave for a human child."

"I-I'm not," the boy wailed as he brought his hands to rub his eyes, sobs tearing through his chest. "I-I couldn't even protect my family... m-my sister..."

"You couldn't do anything. Those dragons were some of the worst of our kind." Maybe it wasn't making it any better... so the dragon decided to change tactics. "Let's start this over, shall we? I am Weisslogia, the White Dragon. What is your name?"

Lysander hicked, trying to find his voice. "Lys-..." he stopped, and averted his eyes. "Sting. My name is Sting Eucliffe."

The dragon cocked its head to a side. Even among humans, as far as it knew, this was a pretty strange name... It decided not to comment on that though, since it already had a traumatized kid in its hands... "Alright... Sting Eucliffe... as long as you are with me, you are going to be safe."

~.~.~.~

He hadn't been aware of it until now, but Sting felt the tears wetting his cheeks as he came to the end of his story. Someone small came to his side then, and he felt Rin wrapping her arms around his middle, hugging him tightly. Somehow, he couldn't explain how... but her presence was reassuring.

Blinking himself back to reality, he used one hand to clean his face, now all tear stained - not that he cared much about others seeing him cry, it wasn't the first time it happened - while the other reached for Rin and caressed her head softly.

"Sad stories apart..." he finally said regaining his composure, he would ask questions later. "We lost too much time with this book, we still need to find what the client wants."

They suddenly heard a soft laugh coming from the top of the library's stairs, drawn to it the group looked up to see it was none other than the Master of Fairy Tail, Makarov.

"That's where you are wrong young man," he walked downstairs and soon reached the group. "That is exactly what I wanted you brats to find, more specifically you, young Master."

"Master..." Lucy mumbled. "W-Wait! That means you are the client?!"

"I am not understanding anything!!" Natsu cried out while he scratched his head with both hands.

Sting ignored his fellow Dragon Slayer and continued looking at Makarov. "How did you...?"

"Heh, I made my research after I saw the name of your sister in the book. Turns out there hasn't been a single person more bearing your surname since her, all it took was to do some math... and the knowledge that Lyanna-san made it so that only the Eucliffe family descendants could read it. My family is descendant from yours."

There was a silence as Sting looked back at the book, brushing the photo of his sister carefully. The moment though was broken with Natsu approaching them with a mocking face while he sneered.

"Well well well... so that means your real name is Lysander..."

Before the Light Dragon Slayer could reply in the appropriate manner though... Lucy was on her boyfriend, holding him by his ear and yanking him away through the doors of the library. "Are you a moron?! How can you be so inconsiderate, that was a touching moment!"

"How am I supposed to let him live this down?! Hey, Lysander, let's do this again sometime, this. was. fun! And hey, does it make you Gramps’..."

Makarov sighed in frustration and closed his eyes as their voices faded away. "I should apologize for Natsu... him and manners don't go hand in hand. But you are welcome to keep the book if you so wish, Master Sting. It is your right, after all."

The blond looked at the book longingly, but after a minute of indecision... left it on the top of the railings. "It was enough for me, what it had to offer... thank you very much." he said sincerely. He didn't know what else to say, and it was kind of a lot to take in that he was related to the Dreyars...

"So that was why you had been acting weird all this time..." Rogue remarked, his tone decidedly more understanding.

"Yeah... I'm sorry for making you guys worry."

"If you're apologizing then it is another cause of concern."

"Give me a break, will you?" Sting sighed... he couldn't be sure if with all these revelations, whether he would have a peace of mind any time soon... "Well in any case, let's get going. I still have a lot of paperwork to do."

"You can't be serious!" The blond raised an eyebrow at his friend's outburst. "That's all you can think about even now? Who are you and what did you do to the real Sting?!"

"C'mon man, you always complain about me leaving the official stuff to you."

Rin giggled softly at their antiques as she followed the Twin Dragon Slayers out of the library. Just at the doors though, she glanced back and her eyes met with Fairy Tail's master. She could've sworn that she saw Makarov-san wink at her. Feeling heat came to her cheeks, the young girl let the doors close behind her.

#fairy tail #sabertooth #sting eucliffe #yukino aguria #stingyu #natsu dragneel #lucy heartfilia #nalu #rogue cheney #celestial light #starlight #sting x yukino #stiyu #yuking #stikino #my writing #fanfiction collab

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