feather fall

THE STRAINED RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE Dreyars is no secret. Naturally, she would side with the guild master. Erza owed him for taking her into the guild and standing as her parent, after all. However, she'd grown up, and her beliefs had changed. She had come to the realization that not everything was black and white. She had only known things from Master Makarov's perspective, and gained a better understanding after learning Laxus'.

        There's vitriol in his response to her greeting, but Titania remains unfazed, understanding that the bitterness isn't directed at her. ❝I can guarantee you, there are no lies. I've been asked to pass the message, but how you interpret it is up to you. I'm merely a messenger,❞ she says, her voice even—it's neither friendly nor hostile. ❝Besides, I prefer to wield a sword than a dagger.❞ The last, additional remark is thrown in a deadpan humor, attempting to mitigate the tension.

as annoying as it was - the young knight was correct. she was merely the messenger and ivan was supposed to be BETTER than this. and so, he relented his negatively and shook it all off metaphorically. he won't let that man win, not when he isn't being an active player.

"you're right, forgive me ms. scarlet. your proficiency with swords is rather, well, famous." ivan nodded at her. he offered her to lead the way into his office, for this was an official visit. "please, take a seat. would you like any refreshments?" see? he could kind. sort of.

“Just go to sleep!”

“It’s nothing. I’m sorry.”

“Call him and I’ll kill you.”

“Did you fail on purpose?”

“Sheesh. You’re hopeless.”

“These… these footprints…”

“…Then what was that pause for?”

“There you go, again! You’re crying!”

“You fell down first and you know it!”

“You never get tired of that, do you?”

“He’s dangerous. Don’t go near him.”

“I just wasn’t really… feeling very well.”

“You don’t have some ulterior motive?”

“Just being around you wears me out!”

“What the hell did you come here for?!”

“You can learn from their bad example.”

“I think I can get by without anyone else.”

“This is the first time I’ve seen a real one!”

“You being levelheaded would be creepy.”

“My, my, how wonderfully thoughtful of you!”

“It was all you could do to protect yourself…”

“I just keep getting more and more pathetic…”

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry, but please… don’t hate me.”

“Goodness… that’s quite a bite you’ve got there.”

“It’s not cool making yourself sick from worrying.”

“It would only end in sadness for her… and for me.”

“Do you realize how much we’ve worried over you?”

“That’s why you always keep suffering needlessly…”

“It saddens my heart that you would suspect me so.”

“You’re a demon! You’re a demon in mind and body!”

“Why did you run away? Why won’t you say anything?”

“I’ll kill you! Today will be the day you breathe your last!”

“Actions spawned from jealousy are quite unbecoming…”

“You know, you’ll end up with a fever if you keep that up.”

“I’ll see you sink to the bottom of the lake before I let that happen.”

“If she happened to remember something, it would be… problematic.”

“Even if the entire world turns against you, I will forever be on your side!”

“He does have a point. You always let people push their troubles onto you.”

“You cannot say whatever comes into your head and assume you’ll be forgiven.”

“Why are you suddenly saying stuff that doesn’t make any sense? Are you drunk?”

“If I did anything to offend you, please tell me! I’ll make sure to never do it, again, so…”

“You know, you have a really bad habit of saying things that are like pouring oil onto a fire.”

“I realize that kindness is one of your best features, but seriously, you go way overboard.”

erza scarlet had a serious disposition, but her voice was kind. in a way, she was very much the knight in all the old tales, an older tradition that she stuck to and probably exemplified the ideal more than those the tales were based off of. her reputation certainly preceded her on that front. and despite her kind attitude, a dark chuckle escaped his lips at her words. he truly wasn't trying to be like this, but that old bastard had a way of getting to him, through miles of distance and through other people.

"i think this would go over more smoothly without lies. while i won't speak for laxus, i can guarantee the only regards makarov dreyar has for me are more daggers in the back." ivan shifted his weight, inwardly delighting at the reference to other betrayals, a knowledge most likely hidden from the young one. that was how makarov operated. ivan's own exile, a hushed secret.

A quick toss of her hair over her shoulder and an equally fast click of her hair clip secured her messy hair at the back of her head with far fewer pieces of grass. She did not like it when people she was not close to saw her in a state other than tidy and neat. Possibly because mage work was sometimes very dependent on impressions.

Consequently, she could be very pleasant, but it was still a little awkward to run into anyone like this. It was even more awkward to run into the guild master of Raven Tail. Huh, it seemed like she had strayed farther off course than she had originally assumed. No matter, it was not like she was doing anything that would get her into trouble with other people.

a monster that didn't enjoy crowded areas. well, this part of fiore would be the go-to place. away from the hustle and bustle of the other coast, this area was lovingly referred to as "the sticks" for a reason. it was on purpose ivan himself moved to this area, after all.

"well, this is the perfect area." he didn't want to bring her to raven tail. besides, she was a mage in her own right regardless. "does this monster have any other equalities? i know the area well and i could, at the very least, point you in the direction." and the opposite of raven tail, hopefully.

✖ Hi, I am Zeref. When I was younger I tried to revive my brother and I got cursed by a God and. Now I am an immortal sorcerer being who kills everything he touches. I wish I was dead. If you don’t reblog this post I will come to your house at midnight and I’ll hide under your bed. When you’re asleep, I’ll KILL YOU and everyone you love with my devastating Curse of Contradiction.

DON'T BELIEVE ME ?

Case 1 - Zancrow saw this post. He doesn't believe in silly ghost stories and scrolled right past it. Well, foolish ZANCROW ! He was walking in the woods when I got him. Now he’s not with us anymore.

Case 2 - Mavis hated chain posts, but she didn’t want to die that night. She liked the post and sent it to 3 treasure hunters. Not good enough, MAVIS ! Now, Mavis is in a coma. we don’t know if she’ll ever wake up. .

YOU DON'T WANT TO END UP LIKE ZANCROW AND MAVIS ― DO YOU ?

✖ SHARE THIS POST WITH YOUR FOLLOWERS OR YOU'LL FACE THE CONSEQUENCES !

Gennady Aygi, from Into the Snow: Selected Poems of Gennady Aygi; “Outskirts: Winter; Without People” (translated by Sarah Valentine)

He'd long since gotten into a habit of waiting until someone made themselves known before he turned to acknowledge them, finding with many of the others at the -- at his former guild -- it helped avoid a certain sense of scrutiny when he'd turn to them unexpectedly. He wasn't entirely sure it'd be the same case here, seeing as Ivan had been one of the few aware of the heightened senses from the start, but he still waited until he heard his name before turning with a brow raised (and the raven on his shoulder fixing one eye on Ivan, feathers ruffling and settling at the movement).

The slight hesitance had been someone of a norm, at first -- there had been so many things unsaid, so much they had to figure out. Things had calmed...slightly, since then, and they'd settled into a more comfortable coexistence. Enough so, at least, that he'd assumed most of that awkward stage was behind them. Perhaps not.

"Hm? Yeah -- I haven't really heard from 'em much since getting here, honestly. Did somethin' happen?"

though ivan could control his face and not outwardly react to the bond of laxus and one of the hatchlings — he could not stop the feeling of the fondness blossoming within his ribcage. it was nice to see laxus had bonded with one of the ravens. he couldn't explain why, not yet, but it made him happy nontheless. ivan walked closer, his steps light as to not bother laxus' hearing. did laxus get overstimulated still? probably not, he must have plateaued at some point and adjusted to the new normal. otherwise, he'd have even more reasons to justify trying to takeout his traditionally loud former guild.

but. back to the topic. the topic being a short shadow mage who was on her way home from her first official quest as a raven tail mage. it was to watch some magical supplies for a probably very shady man (hence dr. shelley's presence with her) and he got word of her impending arrival three hours ago.

the time for procrastination had truly come to a bitter, bitter end. he didn't know why he was so worried. well, he was lying to himself really. he knew why he was worried. he had laxus around, on laxus' own accord, a laxus that makarov threw away. it suddenly opened a door that was previously sealed shut. laxus would no longer be in the middle. ivan could finally be open!

laxus and the raven were both looking at ivan expectantly. it was time to rip the bandaid. he offered a smile, even knowing he couldn't muster up anything other than a nervous smile. "there's something — someone, i've neglected to mention." ivan paused again, this time rubbing his beard. "i've...been reluctant to make her life too public, considering how public makarov can be. but. her name is zilla claramond and i've adopted her. she's your younger sister, she's fourteen and she's a shadow mage." ivan was quick to add, "you two can, of course, decide the nature of your relationship together, but legally, you are both my children. she's very quiet, almost shy and due to arrive home tomorrow."

"Oh, I -- yeah. I'd like to."

He shouldn't feel so...hesitant in this, and he knew as much -- despite everything that had (and hadn't) happened, this was his own father. He had every right to be here. But their disconnect had persisted this long, and in some ways he'd permitted that.

A sense of guilt, then.

But, considering his experiences...guilt didn't always mean condemnation. His own father likely had more reason to forgive him than the guildmates he'd actively hurt, as well...right?

"I won't mention it to anyone, either. If you don't want me to." He kept the upbeat tone he'd been using, though there was something close to apprehension behind it, too.

His team knew he'd been here, of course, and he trusted them with that. They'd encouraged this, when he'd wavered on the idea. But they'd keep his secrets with them to their graves, if he asked them to. He hoped he never had to ask them to. As for anyone else, he wasn't exactly a social fixture at the guild -- most would have no concern over his absence for a day or two, assuming it to be a job, and there...weren't exactly many words shared between him and Fairy Tail's "guildmaster." It was a promise he could make, with reasonable certainty, but something within him still felt awkward at the prospect. He disliked keeping secrets from those he trusted, of course -- he wouldn't exactly be happy if they were kept from him -- but this was more deep-set. Some part of him was angry, he supposed, that this situation even existed -- that he had to keep his dealings with one part of his family secret from another. Or maybe just worried. Worried he'd say the wrong thing, somehow, or end up distancing himself further.

Did promising such things right off the bat make him seem as desperate as he felt, for this to work out? Was it even a bad thing, that he wanted to reconnect with his own blood?

pride was something ivan held onto close to his chest — for at the end of the day, what else did he truly have? his family had been torn from him by the sharp daggers of fate. his academic progress slowed considerably with his reputation (though he still researched it wasn't much he could do to publish). his guild almost fell through, but it was held together. how? in his pride's tight fist. a fist whose strength only waned when failure crept close. and ivan felt the familiar shadowy presence of failure just around the corner.

just how badly did ivan fail laxus and was it even feasible to ever truly make up for it? laxus was a child — his child — and laxus was put right into the midst of a battle between adults. and he grew up in that. it was normal. it was normal for a simple invitation to be hushed in secret. it as normal for his own father not to reach out to him as much. and when ivan did reach out, he couldn't confidently say that each and every time was truly about laxus. sometimes, it was about who laxus was with. someitmes, when they saw each other, ivan couldn't look at laxus without thinking of makarov. so, even the few times they saw each other post ivan's execution excommunication, it wasn't always about laxus or for his best interest. because somewhere, he became a player in the game, no, even worse — laxus was a pawn in the game. and ivan allowed this because of his pride. how could he ever make up for that?

there was a time, once upon a time, where ivan openly smiled at his son and made promises of protection, of always being there to keep him safe, of loving him. and ivan failed at two of them. 

he kept his expression carefully neutral, the smile relaxed a bit but not frowning  —  ivan was doing his best to not appear too affected by the words. affected enough to think of them, not analyze them.