#❰ ･ﾟ♡ Lisanna. ― INTERACTIONS. Pre War. ❱

[fairybond]

lucentaire​: // evergreen

keen eyes studied lisanna as the older woman sat back in her chair.  out of everyone from their old guild,  she had hardly expected herself to be the one giving advice,  but here she was.  far stranger things had happened,  such as a dragon attacking their guild during the s-class exam just as well as another dragon incident at the grand magic games.  gods,  why did these things keep happening around their guild all the time?  however — her point was that after everything that had already happened,  this was hardly worth the adjective strange anymore.

‘ ‘ i think the first step to coming across as — how did you say? — elegant and mature is to very confidently be, ’ ’  she responded with a shrug.  she had perhaps emulated her mother a little when she had been younger,  but she had never been quite able to fully reflect the graceful aura of the deceased.  and that had been before she had thrown all ladylikeness out of the window when she had gotten older.  ‘ ‘ i used to pretend a bit when i was younger,  but ultimately i realised that nobody else quite knows what they are doing either.  not even the real adults.  thus — i started to just do my thing,  everything else be damned. ’ ’

in terms of advice,  this was weak and stood on very wobbly legs,  but lisanna had not asked for advice.  she had just paid her a compliment and it was one that carena found — touching although it did remind her of the lack of proper role models she had encountered growing up in the guild.  she had turned out all right,  but she had been thirteen when she had first joined,  a somewhat sulky teenager as opposed to a bright-eyed child.  maybe that had protected her in some ways.

anyone who caught her interest.  oh boy.  carena paused and for a brief instant,  her gaze traversed the room to linger where she had last seen her teammates.  old habits were difficult to kill,  no matter how many incarnations of her past she had put to rest.  she did not think that anyone had put lisanna up to this — it was not the style of anyone on her team,  thankfully,  but  it did remind her of the gaps she had left in the narration of certain events.  her reasons had been perfectly sound — nothing about her past conversation with gray had been remarkably noteworthy,  but that she remembered it now was  …  interesting.  thankfully,  it was not interesting enough for her mien to reflect it.

she quirked an eyebrow and allowed a lazy smile to curl up her lips as her fingertips gingerly touched her teacup.  ‘ ‘ right now? ’ ’  she retorted as she shrugged slowly.  ‘ ‘ i’m not really looking for anyone to — dazzle me.  i’m busy with work and,  ugh,  physical therapy.  however,  i suppose that i would look for someone interesting who also knows to leave me my space. ’ ’ 

     Admiration lit her eyes and brought her a smile as she listened, and once again, appreciation for the other woman warmed her chest. Lisanna considered herself to be someone who tried to remain true to themselves, and yet the idea of doing her own thing, everything else be damned, seemed…entirely unfamiliar. Maybe one day she would achieve what Evergreen had. Maybe one day she wouldn’t feel guilty for doing things for herself.

     She found herself watching Evergreen closely, curiosity keeping her captive as she hoped for some sort of hint or sign that there was someone she had her eye on. Lisanna hadn’t known her to have ever been involved with anyone before (but that was hardly surprising, given how mysterious Evergeen and her team had been over the years), but it would be fun, and incredibly interesting, to learn who might garner her interest, and she had always found talking about such things forged a deeper connection between friends.

     A faint smile hung on her lips, and she sighed a little in wry defeat. It seemed there was no fun to be had in Evergreen’s love life for the moment. Dimly, Lisanna considered the possibility that even if someone did come to catch the woman’s eye, Evergreen herself may not want to share that information with her (a decision she would respect, of course).

     She lightly traced the rim of her teacup, offering a small shrug and a growing grin, “Well, if you’re not looking for someone to dazzle you, then looking outside of Blue Pegasus is probably a good idea.” Of course, she couldn’t help but remember the time she had been dazzled herself by Eve’s smile (but she’d best not get too caught up in that thought right now). “But, you’re right, there’s plenty else to be getting on with anyway.”

     Tempting though it was, she decided against asking how the physical therapy was going, instead allowing her thoughts to catch on Evergreen’s other words. She hummed thoughtfully, eyes lifting upwards as if the ceiling above might provide answers. “Someone interesting, and who knows to leave you your space…”

     A few ideas came to mind (a certain Gray Fullbuster, for one), yet she had to ask, “What’s ‘interesting’ to you?”

[fairybond]

lucy gives lisanna a squeezing hug.

Huggy meme

She had been told, of course, that a Sorcerer Weekly reporter would be coming to the guild. What she hadn’t known was who exactly that reporter would be ( she assumed Jason ). She was by no means disappointed when it turned out their visiting writer was in fact one Lucy Heartfilia.

The moment Lisanna saw her enter the Blue Pegasus hall, she blinked in confusion. She rubbed her eyes, wondering if she had imagined her…but, no, clear as day, there she was. And it was definitely Lucy, though her hair seemed longer than she remembered it, but Lisanna supposed it had been many months now since she had seen her in person.

Unwilling to waste anymore time, she slid off the barstool she had been occupying and hurried across the room to her former guildmate, mercifully reaching her before some of the eager men of the guild could spot her ( they could be cheetah quick when they saw a pretty lady ).

“Lucy!” Lisanna greeted her with a bright grin as she stopped beside her, “Wow, it’s great to see you again, you look amazing.”

If Lucy didn’t happen to clearly be holding a notepad and pen, Lisanna might have briefly hoped wondered if there was a chance the blonde was there to join the guild.

Thrilled to see her, no matter the reason, Lisanna held her arms out for a hug. Lucy didn’t let her down, stepping close and putting her arms around her. Sighing in contentedness as she returned the embrace, Lisanna was about to ask how she was…but she started to gain awareness of Lucy’s hug becoming tighter. Lisanna rather liked the firm hold, but she frowned a little at it, wondering if Lucy was okay.

Instead, she thought of how she herself liked the squeezing sort of hugs, as they made her feel less alone, and sometimes a hug like that was also the only way to really express a feeling.

She gave a little hum and mimicked the same pressure Lucy was using as she said, “I’ve really missed you, Lucy.”

[fairybond]

apricious​: / eve

anyone’s presence on that side sometimes made him wary,  made him want to turn into a tortoise just so he could retreat into his shell.  it was silly because it was not as if the average person could see through his shirt and onto the scar,  but he could not quite help it,  not when so much of his perceived value depended on his appearance.  blue pegasus was a world of glamour and glitter,  and yet,  there was a glaring mar in the gold,  no?  still — he had practice in holding still when someone was fussing with his hair and he did have to give lisanna credit,  she was gentle and unpushy in ways the people who usually touched him were not. 

‘ ‘ —thank you, ’ ’  he said after a beat and tapped his fingers against the ground,  caring little about the dirt that was sure to wind up beneath his fingernails.  ‘ ‘ as for ren  …  unless you ask him,  i doubt we’ll ever know for sure. ’ ’

the silent night was reserved on many topics,  but the topic he was famously quietest about was he,  the man himself.  sometimes,  eve was almost envious because it never seemed to take much effort for the other to simply  …  shroud something into mystique if he did not want to talk about it.  he was so unlike eve who had always had to show more cards than he wanted.

like many of their guildmates,  he had a stack of answers ready whenever someone asked him about himself,  but most of them were polished and meant for interviews,  not for conversations with people he hoped to befriend.  he just hoped that beneath the veneer of gold and glitter,  he was interesting enough. 

‘ ‘ oh boy, ’ ’  he said as he stretched his hands,  trying to recall what all of his hobbies and interests were.  he had many,  that much he knew,  but he always felt that whenever he was actually asked about it,  he forgot most of it.  ‘ ‘ i play the piano — not as much as i would like and not enough to justify to buy a piano of my own — and i enjoy photography.  i’m not really great at it,  but it’s enough for snapshots of people i care about. ’ ’  he shrugged,  trying to ignore the sudden ren voice in his head that was berating him for judging his own creative work when it made him happy.  ‘ ‘ and i do the occasional bit of upcycling of my own — i’m trying to find an old bathtub — you know,  one with those claw feet? — so i can make a couch for bryn out of it. ’ ’

She idly played with some fallen leaves, fingertip tracing the jagged outline without touching it. As she watched a few little bugs scurry around, she thought distantly and fondly of how Lucy would have reacted to seeing the insects, but her mind then directed all of its attention on Eve, eager to learn more about him. Interest sparked in her eyes, excitement bubbling within her and growing steadily stronger with each hobby that he mentioned.

“Piano!” she burst out, “I’d love to hear you play sometime, I love music. I haven’t properly learnt an instrument myself yet, aside from a couple of guitar lessons with Mira.”

Perhaps she’d pick up a book on the subject, or find someone to teach her. She admired the fact Eve was aware and honest with himself about not acquiring a piano, she normally considered herself a pragmatic sort too, but had the feeling she would have brought herself a piano by now if she’d been in his shoes ( and it would have gone unused like many other things she had convinced herself she would need and take up ).

“I love photography too!” A camera had been one of the more impulse purchases of hers that had actually made it into regular usage, but…that was quite some time ago. “I used to take a lot of photos.”

Upon her return from Edolas, she had found her siblings had kept her old camera, but she hadn’t been able to make herself pick it up again quite yet. It had still contained all the pictures captured the years before, and that was a little too strange for her at the time, a little too painful. Before she could work through that…Tenrou had happened, and the lost years had led to the disappearance of her camera, along with many other belongings.

She didn’t allow the memories to bring about a frown, instead directing her thoughts to stay upon the conversation path and allow excitement to continue to reign. Rocking gently back and forth in her spot to let out a little energy, she grinned brightly.

“You like upcycling too?” she asked, beginning to marvel at their shared interests, “I think we must have been destined to be friends, don’t you think? And a couch from one of those tubs would be amazing! I’d love to see it if you do find what you’re looking for, I’ll keep an eye out for you too. Maybe we could go looking around together sometime?”

[fairybond]

laxamoure​: / ren

there was,  he realised,  no not-rude way for ren to say that he now understand why she got along so well with eve;  they were both the talkative sort and while he would not mean it to come out wrong,  it would and it would sound like he was telling her to shut up because he minded her talking about her last assignment even though he did not.  he was friends with eve,  after all,  and eve sometimes seemed to compensate for all the assignments he was not permitted to talk about by going over his other jobs in detail.

‘ ‘ did your study of animals grant you any new insights for your takeovers? ’ ’ he asked curiously,  working working of what he had learnt from being in a guild with jenny for a  —  considerable amount of time,  hoping that he was not making himself sound like a fool.  as he continued to listen,  he rubbed his forehead to smoothe away the frown that was growing there because he was taken aback.  ‘ ‘ does that happen often? ’ ’  he asked,  raising an eyebrow.  ‘ ‘ that people live in nests? ’ ’

he did not mind being high up,  he even liked it,  and that might be because of his magic and his lack of fear of heights,  but for him,  that translated into best into penthouse apartment and not into what lisanna had just described.  then,  there were all kinds of strange people out there and he had grown up comparatively sheltered.  and he did did not want to be too judgmental of other people’s life decisions when his own had been occasionally questionable,  but still  …  he found himself seconding lisanna;  he would have preferred a giant bird over a strange guy as well.

‘ ‘ as for my quest,  it was rather straight forward,  though i do think that the employer expected hibiki or eve, ’ ’ he started slowly,  clearing his throat twice during the first sentence.  ‘ ‘ they are better at playing the part of the perfect son-in-law.  but all awkwardness aside,  what matters most is that my assignment also had a good ending,  even though i thankfully didn’t encounter any lost children,  and that i got the book that was part of the quest reward  —  hibiki’s aunt, ’ ’  he was not going to explain the intricacies of shion’s and hibiki’s dynamic to someone else without prior permission,  ‘ ‘ will enjoy the book,  hopefully.  and since you asked  …  i think that evergreen will appreciate anything involving tea cups.  we had tea together last week and she has a beautiful collection. ’ ’ 

She thought back to the studies in question, how she had observed the animals and enjoyed simply watching them in their natural environment. With a hum, she nodded, “Mhm, a little bit, I’d like to go back sometime though, when I’ve got more time to hang around.”

Humming again ( though this time in a more negative note ), she shook her head, “I mean, it’s the first time I’ve really come across someone living in a nest, like that anyway.” She shrugged and added, “Even I don’t really understand it, and I love both animals and sleeping outside.”

There had been a few times when she’d had to make do with creating a sort of nest herself while out on jobs, but that was temporary, and the guy she’d come across seemed quite permanent. She just hoped he wasn’t bothering the creatures around too much. Perhaps she should go back sometime to see what was going on there…

Her focus returned to Ren as he spoke of his quest, head tilting a little and small smile forming at his throat clearing ( she managed not to giggle at least ). She nodded and wondered about the book he mentioned, but decided not to pester him with too many questions.

“I really like quests where the reward is something, rather than just Jewels. I mean, the money is great, but when you get an item or something, it really makes the job memorable, and you’ll always remember it because of the thing you got. I mean, unless you give it away like what you’re doing with the book, but even so, it makes it more special, don’t you think?”

And, speaking of special- “Yeah, Evergreen sure likes her tea! I think I will do something for her. I saw this cool thing once about using old teacups as candles! They came out really nice, I think I’ll try that.”

[fairybond]

coruscatiio​: / eve / @apricious​

he was — glad,  he realised,  that she had been enjoying the investigation she had been hired for.  she was too new to know how deep the information gathering process in blue pegasus truly ran,  but if she stayed  …  someone with her abilities could go far in their guild and if he realised this,  master bob surely had already come to the same conclusion and would .  briefly,  eve caught himself wishing that fairy tail would stay a memory of the past;  things had been running so much smoother as of late.  but that was not a topic for a first proper conversation with a guild member,  he knew.  he was confident in his abilities,  but he knew that he could not pull off the question so,  ever given the more distant future a thought?  without stepping on feet.

‘ ‘ did you ever try,  uh,  what they’re called again — audio books? ’ ’  eve asked as he shrugged.  when he had been a boy,  he had had many that told all sorts of stories,  of young witches and of speaking elephants.  he had eventually outgrown them when he had started to read books by himself,  but he was pretty sure that he had seen a section at the bookstore that held all sorts of audio books.  and the covers had been nothing like the colourful,  bright ones he remembered from his youth.  ‘ ‘ they make them for adults, too.  ren once got offered to read a part,  but he turned it down,  i think? ’ ’ 

with ren,  there was always a certain likelihood that he had just said that he had declined the offer because actually being connected to the job in question might harm his carefully crafted reputation.  it had once bothered eve a lot more than it did now that he knew for certain what lisanna had said — ren might not show cards in a  ‘ normal ’  way,  but he did care a lot more than most people would give him credit for.

shaking out his hair  ( because it was getting long and he was still refusing to cut it ),  he shrugged.  ‘ ‘ i’m trying to think of other places you might enjoy in town — what other interests do you have? ’ ’  he asked as he raised an eyebrow.

Audio books? So, they were books that were read out? The concept turned over in her mind and sparked an excitement that brightened her with a grin. She clasped her hands together to contain some of her energy. “That’s a great idea! I could listen to them while doing other things too!”

She imagined stories being read out to her while she worked on one of her projects, or made some baked goods, or perhaps while she worked in the garden. The possibilities were endless really, and she was sure the sense of accomplishment and peace at multitasking in such a way would be wonderful. She had always liked to hear stories told by her friends while she worked on various things.

“Maybe he doesn’t like the sound of his own voice,” she suggested, regarding Ren’s apparent decline of the offer. She gave a little shrug, it was difficult for her to get to know much about her new guildmates, and it seemed Ren would be one who made it especially so.

Her gaze wandered, senses still alert for any threat, ears wanting to twitch at some not-too-distant rustling ahead. Eve’s movement pulled her eyes back to him and she took note of the way the light touched his hair and made it almost seem to glow. Such a nice shade, she thought, but oh –

“Hold still.”

She shifted herself forward, hand rising slowly and taking great care in removing an insect that had decided to cling to the golden strands of his hair. Smiling as she sat back and set the little creature free beside her, she then turned her attention back to his question, chest warming at the effort he was making with her. But still…it was a little strange to talk about herself, but she supposed she might need to get used to it.

“Well…I really like reusing and recycling things, it mostly started because I’m worried about the environment, y’know? And then –“ the ability to repurpose something had become vital to survival on Edolas, and she’d developed further interest and skill in it. “Uh…well, I like to visit second-hand shops and rescue things, make them new or into something new. Oh, and I love gardening and baking. What aboiut you?”

[fairybond]

coruscatiio​: / eve

eve smiled towards the sunny skies  ( he could only see three small clouds that drifted across the blue without much hurry ),  categorising her questions as he listened intently.  he was not quite as good a listener as hibiki was,  but he was good at keeping all strings of a conversation up without getting all tangled up in them.  ‘ ‘ i can give you a list with the,  in my opinion,  best places in the city so you know where to start your exploration of the city, ’ ’ he suggested as his brows knitted together.  ‘ ‘ there is one café that,  well,  it isn’t really a café.  it is a bookshop,  but you can buy a handful of drinks there,  i’m fond of their chai latte  —  but i thought of it just now because there are always cats in the store. ’ ’  he stopped for a moment as he looked at the mage who was now sitting right next to him.  ‘ ‘ i hope i’m not being rude in assuming that you might like to meet some cats? ’ ’

the grass beneath his hands tickled his palms and he chuckled,  more to himself than to lisanna.  he did hope that he was not being offensive,  but from what he understood of takeover magic,  it required genuine understanding of the target creature.  and cats were,  as far as he was concerned,  adorable.  maybe he should talk to hibiki about dragging ren to the shelter so he could get one  —  or was the silent night more of a dog type?  it was a question he had never really given much thought before.

following a large bird,  probably a falcon,  with his eyes,  eve sighed softly.  ‘ ‘ ren and hibki are my teammates,  but we split up on occasion  —  i have the clearances needed for assignments that come immediately from the council,  but after what happened the one time ren was on a council job,  he hasn’t been interested in these jobs since. ’ ’  it was a kind way of saying after witnessing a lot of madness and getting his face sliced open,  ren favours caution nowadays,  despite how cool he seems,  but to go into depth on the nirvana assignment would mean to break the non-disclosure agreements he had signed when he had been not even seventeen,  and eve was a man of his word.  ‘ ‘ together,  we tend to pose as guests on fancy parties so there’s additional security that,  thanks to transformation magic,  isn’t immediately spotted.  and yes,  we are pretty close,  i’d say  …  it’s sometimes hard to tell with ren,  honestly. ’ ’

and the air mage had been even more withdrawn ever since he and sherry blendy had broken up.  almost four years had been considerably longer than even the most generous members of blue pegasus had given the relationship of this odd couple,  but nevertheless  —  that did not give anyone in the guild the permission to throw mean glances towards the marionette mage or make jabs at ren now.  a part of eve did wonder how long this would keep happening before someone would snap and it was perhaps not the action that best in line with his alias,  but he did hope he would be present for the inevitable fallout.

‘ ‘ personally,  i like jobs that require some investigation, ’ ’  he finally added with a small shrug.  ‘ ‘ i may,  uh,  read a lot of spy books. ’ ’

To say her eyes lit up at the mention of the store having cats, would be an incredible understatement. She fairly glowed at the thought of the shop and the cute felines within it, her grin wide and her perpetual little fangs in full evidence. Even so, her cheeks coloured slightly and despite it, she reassured him, ❝Not rude at all, I’d love to meet some cats.❞

She did have to hope that his guess about her fondness for cats was based on her magic rather than her having come across as some kind of crazy cat lady ( perhaps she had worn a few too many cat related t-shirts around the guild after all ). But she had to push her doubts and thoughts aside as he began to speak of his teammates. She didn’t want to miss anything.

Though keeping her attentive eyes on him, she drew her legs up and rested her cheek on the tops of her knees. It made sense, she thought, that he and his teammates would split up from time to time. Sometimes there simply wouldn’t be requests that suited or required the whole team, and she knew from experience that sometimes a little time apart was well needed too.

Curiosity perked up at the mention of him having council clearance, and she pondered briefly on what might have turned Ren away from such jobs, but had to smile at Eve’s comment about him. Ren reminded her of her sister’s teenage years, ( but with considerably less leather ).  Lisanna knew people had found it hard to know what Mirajane truly felt at the time, as her anger and attitude concealed it well.

❝I’m sure his actions speak for him,❞ she said with a smile, ❝He shows he cares in other ways.❞

Her thoughts turned to the previous mention of fancy parties and the idea of posing as guests. She wasn’t sure she would do all that well at that sort of mission, even if she stayed with Blue Pegasus for the next ten years! She decided it was lucky the guild still got a variety of job requests. Her favourites so far had been the stealth missions, where she had been able to sneak into places and gather information using her magic.

❝Oh.❞ She blinked and lifted her head, grin jumping into place at hearing his interest in investigations and spy books, a small giggle slipping out before she could stop it. ❝Investigating is fun! And I think I’d like to read spy books.❞

She rubbed by her ear in mild embarrassment as she admitted, ❝I don’t read a lot though, I can’t seem to concentrate long enough on written things... But I do like to listen!❞

[fairybond]

coruscatiio​: / Eve

sometimes,  eve felt like he had spent so much time practicing the perfect smile that he had forgotten how his actual smile worked.  it was not something he faulted anyone for  —  he had known what he was getting himself into,  but there were moments when he was all too aware of the thick glass wall that separated him and his guild from their colleagues,  and he knew that they were not always taken seriously by others.  and this,  he could admit this much to himself,  stung quite a bit.   

if they were sitting closer to each other,  he would have reached out to pat lisanna’s arm but like this,  he could only incline his head and nod in a way that he had copied from his mother,�� one that signalled that he was listening properly and not just hearing what she was saying.  ‘ ‘ don’t worry, ’ ’  he said reassuringly as his smile turned a little loop-sided,  ‘ ‘ all of us were new in town at some point so we went through it.  and a lot of things are probably similar,  too,  even if they don’t look like it at first glance  …  although the fair city of dahlia does not rearrange itself when gildarts clive comes to visit, ’ ’ he added as he shook his head.  ‘ ‘ but what we do have are seventeen different cafés out of which four are recommended by both hibiki and me. ’ ’

there had been thoughts to get ren on board,  originally,  maybe make some kind of trimens recommended seal for places in the city the three of them all enjoyed wholeheartedly,  but their third was not only notoriously hard to wrangle,  he was also not into coffee or tea at all which had made it impossible for the idea to appeal to him.  ichiya had despaired over that.

clapping his hands,  he slid off the tree and settled down on the ground,  resting his back against the rough bark,  careful not to get his hair caught in anything.  growing it out had been his own decision,  but it meant that he had to be careful.  ‘ ‘ but you are a mage,  of course,  so you will probably take a leaf out of ms evergreen’s book and go on plenty of jobs, ’ ’  he said as he titled his head upwards to study the clouds above them.  out of the former fairies who had found a new resting place  ( home sounded much too presumptuous )  in dahlia,  the brunette was the one who unsettled him most  —  she had a strange energy about her that had him on edge.  ‘ ‘ if you want to,  you can come along on my next quest?  i asked ren,  but he and hibiki were hired for extra security at a ball. ’ ’

She smiled back at him, with a warmth in her chest that did not waver even at the mention of Gildarts, a figure she missed dearly. Instead, she was able to laugh freely at Eve’s comment, amusement alight in her eyes and soon humming behind her lips.

“Seventeen cafes? That’s impressive.” She grinned and tilted her head slightly, adding, “I’d like to see those recommended four sometime.”

Perhaps they would give her more insight into both Eve and Hibiki, as you could often tell quite a bit about a person from the places they liked to frequent. To have four places favourable to both of them was also a definite sign of their similarities and closeness, she was sure. The warmth she felt swelled, but had a shaft of cool loneliness through it. Having a team, close friends…it sounded nice.

Forcing herself away from such thoughts, she watched Eve as he moved, a spike of irrational nervousness skipping through her heart at the brief thought that he was leaving.  She sighed a little as he settled in his new spot, and the need for closeness rippled through her, nudging like an insistent pet wanting attention. And, despite herself, she gave into the urge and shuffled herself over to sit beside him, likewise leaning against the tree, turning her face up towards the sky.

Going on jobs had been one reason for joining the guild, of course, so it was something she intended to do more of soon, once she was a little more settled perhaps. It was just as she was thinking that she’d like to go on a mission with someone, that Eve made his suggestion.

She sat up straight with a little gasp, eyes jumping to meet his in surprise and excitement. “Really?”

Typically, her enthusiasm would have her grab his arm or perhaps even hug him, but for the moment she contained herself by clenching her hands and pressing them against her chest. Part of her wondered if she should have tried to play it a little more cool, or at least allow him to back out of the offer while saving face, as maybe he was simply offering out of politeness…but –

“I would love to!” Her grin was bright, reflecting happiness like sunlight off snow, not dampened by the fact she was a second choice, so to speak. Curiosity jumped forward. “Do you do jobs by yourself often? Or do you usually team up with at least Hibiki or Ren? Are you guys super close? What kind of jobs do you like going on?”

[fairybond]

coruscatiio​: / Eve

as curious as eve was about elfman strauss’ search for the true essence of being a man  ( because what did that even mean? )  and as close he was to suggesting that maybe,  ichiya could assist him on this quest,  eve chose to stick to what he knew how to handle first.  his questions would have to wait a little longer,  he was patient.  ‘ ‘ if your sister calls ahead of time,  i can give you some recommendations for nice places in the area where you could take her for lunch since i doubt you’ll want half the guild to try listening in on your conversation?  i mean  —  you could ask jenny for recommendations as well,  but she has been kind of busy recently … ’ ’  he did trail off there,  feeling a little awkward.  the honest truth was that eve had never quite figured out what the deal between jenny realight and mirajane strauss was,  exactly,  and it had been recommended to him not to ask by windsor who seldom steered anybody wrong.  

there was a reason why eve  —  and hibiki,  too,  in all likelihood  —  was glad that ren still spent a lot of time with his former mentor,  even if their time spent together sometimes just consisted out of sitting in the garden together and studying weather charts as they nursed their glasses of expensive bellumese whiskey. 

asking questions about bryn was,  of course,  one of the safest ways to keep eve talking.  hibiki had once taken advantage of this to keep him from slipping into unconsciousness until they could get his head injury checked out by a healer,  according to ren,  eve had been obnoxious in his pride;  the snow mage himself could not comment as he had no recollection of the incident since he had been concussed. ‘ ‘ she’s about seven years younger than me so she’s sixteen now,  almost seventeen. ’ ’  he shrugged as he managed to push off his shoes without having to untie them first.  ‘ ‘ it’s a pretty big difference in age,  i guess,  but it means that i can actually remember a lot of our earliest shenanigans quite well. ’ ’

and there had been shenanigans aplenty.  rubbing his neck,  he smiled brightly at lisanna as he contemplated her words.  she struck him as the genuine sort which was a nice change of pace from the usual masks that were so common in the guild.  and she was relatively new to the guild and sure,  there were other former members of her old guild in blue pegasus,  but it was probably a good idea to offer her a gesture of welcome to the guild?  ‘ ‘ and for  …  the record,  i guess,  i’m usually there to offer an open ear if you need to talk about anything related to the guild, ’ ’  he offered a bit awkwardly.  ‘ ‘ i can imagine that the difference between fairy tail and blue pegasus is pretty big so if anything confuses you,  you can always just ask me? ’ ’

Sitting up straighter, she adjusted herself to sit cross-legged, eyes alight at his offer of recommendations. While she might have familiarised herself with the wilderness around town, the town itself still held many mysteries for her and she would have been lost in the attempt at finding a good place on her own. And Eve was certainly right, having half the guild listening in was not in her ideal plan for catching up with her sister.

“Thanks, I really appreciate it! I still have so much to learn about everything here.”

Her curiosity wanted her to learn a bit more about Jenny, but she held back from asking, unwilling to bother Eve too much about his guildmates in case he wasn’t comfortable with it. She would just have to learn things herself. She’d spent some time with Jenny before, but like with most members of the guild, there was a layer of shimmering gloss across her that made it hard to know what was real and what wasn’t.

Lisanna rested her elbow on her knee and her head in her palm, other hand free to start tracing shapes on the ground. She drew a heart as Eve spoke of his sister, her gaze returning to him and her smile doing the same. Seven years was quite a gap with siblings, she supposed, but the number only brought to mind the time lost for herself and Fairy Tail. She sighed, looking down for a moment and distorting her drawing with a zigzagging line down its center. Mentions of shenanigans, however, brought her attention right back up, amusement curving her lips.

“Oh, really? I’d love to hear all about that.” Details were needed. It was hard to imagine Eve Tearm getting in shenanigans, he seemed a more straightlaced type to her (though she was aware she didn’t really know him enough to truly know that). She and her siblings had of course had their own fair share of shenanigans too, even before joining Fairy Tail.

Smoothing the surface of the ground to start fresh, she began to draw a simple smiley face, but as she caught Eve’s smiling face, she paused, momentarily dazzled, and yet becoming all too aware of one reason why he had plenty of admirers. He was so pretty. And against her will, her cheeks warmed, and she tilted her head down to hide it.

But she had to look up again, earnest eyes meeting his, fist moving to rest against her chest. “Really? Oh, that’d be great!”

She grinned and laughed, head tilting as she rubbed her shoulder and neck. “I have to admit I feel a little lost sometimes, like…out of place.”

Though that was a feeling she carried around ever since her journey to Edolas.

“But, thank you, it means a lot and, uh, if you need help with anything…I’d be happy to try help.”

[fairybond]

coruscatiio​: / Eve

eve rather enjoyed conversation with his guild mates,  especially when it was not about work.  he was often sent on different jobs than the rest of them as he still had some of his old connections to the council and there were times when it was just the smart thing to let him play to his strengths and let him be the liaison between the council and the guild.  he did not mind this,  but it usually meant that his reports were wrapped in a lot of red tape  —  and that he was not meant to discuss it with anyone over a cup of coffee.  additionally,  talking about work got dreadfully repetitive after a while as a lot of assignments were similar in the end.  now,  life was far more interesting and the anecdotes they shared with him about it were more personal,  told him more about who they were than the tale about what gala they provides security to.

‘ ‘ i don’t mind you asking at all but  …  bryn,  coming to the guild? ’ ’ he could not help it,  he had to snort.  his sister was well-mannered,  but she did not come with an off switch that was not the human’s body hardwired need for rest.  this meant that from the moment she got up to the time she went back to sleep,  she was best described as very intense and likely to talk circles around anyone she talked to  —  at least if the topic was lacrima related.  jenny and hibiki might stand a chance,  but most others would be hopelessly lost.

he cleared his throat and reigned in the laugh that was threatening to escape him with middling success before he continued to speak.  ‘ ‘ she is  …  more of a practical person,  more of a doer than a talker,  you could say?  so blue pegasus isn’t really a place she enjoys,  i think she’d be over as often as her schedule allows if we’d be in quatro cerberus, ’ ’  he tried to explain.  come to think of it  —  he had never given the question what kind of guild his sister might one day join  ( if she ever wanted to )  much thought,  he had always just possessed the distinct knowledge that it would not be blue pegasus.  ‘ ‘ what about your siblings?  are they gonna come visit you? ’ ’ he added as an afterthought and there there was a hint of caution in his voice.  he did not want to seem pushy or as if he was trying to pry into something that was technically none of his business.

he was curious  —  but he tried to make sure that it was a tolerable,  nice character quirk and that he did not turn into someone who lost all sense for boundaries.  his mother had raised him well,  after all,  and would be most disappointed if she learnt that he was shedding the manners she had taught him.

Eve snorted and Lisanna blinked in surprise. She brought her fingertips up to press lightly against her smiling lips, an attempt at suppressing a laugh while her cheeks coloured ever so slightly. It seemed her question had been ridiculous, but she could only be glad he wasn’t bothered by her being nosy about his family. There were plenty of people, especially of the famous or well-known variety, who would rather not reveal much at all about those closest to them, for good reason.

So as he continued, she soaked up each word in rapt attention, her smile growing as she curled her hands into fists and held them against her chin. A doer huh? And clearly someone sweet enough to want to leave a light for an owl to find their way home again.

“I hope I can meet her someday,” she said, a trace of wistfulness in her tone. There were still more questions circling the surface of her mind, even if the passing thought of Eve in Quatro Cerberus and thoughts of that guild in general threatened to distract. It was a guild she thought of visiting herself, honestly, after hearing the master was an expert on Take Over magic.

At the question of her siblings, she cleared her thoughts and gave an easy shrug, equally easy smile curving. It was strange to be in a guild without them, that much was true, and at times it was especially unsettling and, in some ways, bringing to mind the times in Edolas. But time apart was sometimes the best thing for families, and she knew they would all grow from it.

“It’s likely, but we call each other pretty often anyway. Elf-nii-chan is busy doing some serious training and…uh, well he says trying to find the ‘true essence of being a man’, or something.”

She smiled but couldn’t maintain it, gently chewing her lip as her brows furrowed faintly. Her brother had been through a lot and while she certainly understood his need for some time to think and work through things on his own, she just hoped he wouldn’t get too caught up on things he hadn’t been able to help. The destruction of the guild, hurting her too…they weighed on him heavily.

The thoughts put a weight on her own chest, and she had to take a small breath to refresh herself, pulling on a smile and turning her thoughts to her sister.

“Mira-nee will probably come, she’s been doing a lot of training too, but she likes to check in on me in person. She’s mentioned wanting to see Jenny again too.”

Her eyes wandered the scenery for a moment before returning to Eve, her questions likewise making a return in her mind, but she allowed herself just one. “How old is Bryn? My siblings and I are all very close in age.”

[fairybond]

coruscatiio​: / Eve

eve sighed softly as he ran a hand through his hair.  obviously,  jenny was right and it was too tempting to mess with him if newcomers to the guild were already picking up on it as well,  but the snow mage was not angry about this.  he had always found that as long as he could laugh about these things,  it was all right and in this,  he could see the inherent hilarity  …  although he did resolve that he would not mention this to anybody who might decide that they were the only ones who were permitted to prank him because frankly?  that particular attitude sometimes got on his nerves.

smoothing his jacket until it looked at least somewhat presentable,  eve smiled.  ‘ ‘ lisanna-san, ’ ’  he said quietly,  calmly,  more to himself as he reviewed what he did know about her already  ( it was not much,  he was more familiar with her older sister due to jenny’s stories )  before he snapped out of his thoughts and focused fully on the conversation that was to unfold now.  perhaps it was better like this  —  he did prefer it when he could form his own opinions.  ‘ ‘ it doesn’t bother me,  no, ’ ’  he added as his brows knitted together as he resisted the almost unconscious habit of slipping back behind the layers of personas one tended to amass after having been a member of the guild for as long as he had.  ‘ ‘ but i do believe that conversation is far easier like this  —  in case that you are still curious? ’ ’

truthfully  —  he had quite a few questions as well,  but he also had the good sense to know that nobody would want to be asked about the two years they had been missing and thought to be dead,  only to return out of nowhere.  eve’s curiosity might one day spell his  ( possibly very painful )  demise,  but he was hoping that if it happened,  it would be because he got caught trying to uncover a government conspiracy or something  …  equally dramatic.

thoughts of his potentially vaguely imminent death aside,  he smiled.  ‘ ‘ i mean  —  i wouldn’t recommend doing the same to ren,  he’s been in a bit of a mood lately,  and it is far from me to encourage you to purposefully mess with any of our esteemed guild mates,  but  …  you aren’t the first transformation mage who has done something similar, ’ ’  he said sagely as he tied his hair into a ponytail.  he had never worked much with lamia scale’s transformation specialist,  but he had heard the stories about her proficiency when it came to ruffling the feathers of those who could only dish out but not handle anything thrown back at them.

She tucked her hands together against her chest in the attempt to prevent fidgeting, her smile still holding a hint of apology. Being a member of Blue Pegasus seemed to involve being always ‘on’, a particular image or personality presented at all times, and she imagined perhaps it was a little uncomfortable for him to have been caught in a more relaxed state, ‘off’ so to speak. So a measure of relief eased her shoulders as he first spoke of not being bothered, lips parting with a sigh before jumping into a grin as she nodded.

Curiosity had always flowed through her as rich as the blood in her veins, and the interest in others, particularly guildmates, had always been there alongside it. Questions now bubbled in her mind, the words dancing on the tip of her tongue – and yet she held herself back for the moment, wary of being too annoying to someone who had taken the whole situation so good-naturedly. She wondered too, that if she was not careful, he might take his leave or worse, retreat behind a typical Pegasus façade right before her eyes.

“Really? Well, I didn’t really mean to mess with you,” she said, defending herself with a slight pout, only to scrunch her face a little and tilt her head, somewhat sheepish smile returning, “I mean, I did go along with it…but you can get me back for it anytime, okay? And I’ll try not mess anyone else around, with my magic at least.”

Agreeing to not mess with anyone in any way would be a promise she couldn’t keep, so she dared not make it. Even so, she had to amend in all honesty, “I mean, at least not until I know everyone better maybe.”

She rubbed her jaw lightly with the back of her hand as she watched him secure his hair. It looked cute, she thought, but she had the urge to go over and do it for him. Doing others hair had always been something she enjoyed, and she felt it helped build a sense of closeness, sometimes playfulness. Her brother had received a myriad of wild hairstyles over the years, much to his horror and her amusement, and the mental image of Eve with one of those styles now almost made her giggle.

Hopping off the rock she’d been on, she moved closer, only to sit a few steps in front of him. She pulled her legs up once more and wrapped her arms around them, her chin resting on the top of one of her knees as she stared at him with genuine interest.

“So, does Bryn come to the guild often? Do you mind me asking?”

[fairybond]

coruscatiio​: / a Cutie

he yawned quietly as he rolled his shoulders.  it was a nice day,  thankfully.  he was not spoiled when to came to the seasons,  he was from viburnum where winter tended to last much longer than here,  after all,  but as much as he enjoyed winter  —  and not just because it was almost expected of him,  considering his magic  —  he did appreciate spring as well.  although,  the thought of getting roped into helping his guild mates spring clean was not very appealing to him,  but he would cross that bridge once he arrived there.  or rather,  once it was dropped into his lap when he tried to enjoy his espresso  —   last year,  ren had ambushed him with the request of helping him sort through his collection of animal print shirts during eve’s usually sacred espresso and crossword time,  an almost nefarious act.

eve was perhaps not as dramatic as others in his guild  ( and some of them were bonafide actors ),  but he was  …  territorial over his me time.  there was often not enough time for him to just sit in a corner an observe what was happening in the guild  —  he had become a popular member and he was often asked to entertain these days,  even if he did prefer more hands-on jobs. 

watching edelweiß sail away to land on a stone,  eve found a fallen tree to sit down on,  patting the pockets of his trousers to see if he had anything in there that might make for a spontaneous game  —  but he had been in a meeting earlier and he had left anything that could make for an improvised toy at home;  master bob was on high alert of late and eve did not want to be the one who got caught playing around during briefings.  he had never drawn his guild master’s ire before and he did not think he wanted to start now.

( not when sometimes,  he felt he was breathing secrets and tension rather than air in the guild. )

for a moment,  he closed his eyes and reached across the meadow with his senses alone.  he had been neglecting his meditations,  too caught up in all that was happening in the guild whether it was said or not.  he was not slipping,  his magic was not in a state of turmoil,  but he should not rely on his temper’s tendency to being calm and justify his neglect like this.  he should be doing better and he knew this well.  his surroundings were a shimmering pool of tranquility,  matching his own mood and he was at the verge of drifting off  —  less into a deeper state of meditation and more into a state of,  well,  napping,  when something struck him as  …  odd.

usually,  edelweiß’  presence barely registered when he was trying to feel the steady hum of magic  because as much as he cared for her,  she was a normal owl at the end of the day …  if an especially smart and brave one at that.  right now,  however,  this was not the case.  he titled his head as he opened his left eye,  skeptically eyeing the owl in question now.  he had not really paid attention before as there was,  as far as he knew,  just one snow owl in dahlia that would come when he called,  but  …  the stripes were a little off,  now that he was looking closely.  and it not being edelweiß did make more sense than his girl overcoming her distaste for the guild where strangers tended to coo at her,  admittedly.  he probably had accidentally collected a transformed guild mate. 

‘ ‘ ex-excuse me, ’ ’  he started,  only to curse himself for the brief hesitation while his ears grew hot and dark red.  ‘ ‘ i believe an,  hm,  misunderstanding happened here? ’ ’

As Eve didn’t appear to have an adverse reaction to her actions, she relaxed a little, wondering if perhaps her ruse would continue a while longer. What else might she learn about him while in this form?

She watched him move to sit on the tree and, content for the minute, she let herself sink into the owl’s urge for preening for a moment. Once satisfied feathers were all nicely aligned, she returned her attention to Eve and found he almost appeared asleep. Did he enjoy outdoor naps too? She had found a large boulder in the woods the other day that was flat and in perfect position for soaking up the sun (needless to say, she had curled up on it for a good two hours that day), maybe she should direct him towards it…

The thought drifted away like a faint breeze as her senses began to tune themselves further to the world around. Distantly, other birds were chirping and chattering, and other creatures darted around. Her sharp eyes tracked a fox far ahead in the treeline and her talons dug into the rock, the instinct to scare it off with various calls and cries surging within. She suppressed it, unwilling to disturb Eve’s moment of peace.

She kept her focus trained on the fox regardless, only pulling her attention from it as Eve spoke. Ah. The jig was up, it seemed. Her earlier tinge of guilt returned, but was all too soon overrun by amusement at his apparent embarrassment. Perhaps it was good she was in animal form, or else she would have been a giggling mess.

As it was, she couldn’t quite contain herself and gave several chittering sounds and clicks of her beak. She then supposed she had an option to simply stay in animal form and keep him guessing as to who he had been chatting with, but she dismissed it as being something that might get too much on his nerves (though it would have been fun).

That only left her with the choice to revert to human form, but as she thought of that, she realised she had left her clothes back where she had first changed to the owl form. Hmm. She glanced around and gauged the temperature to pick which Partial form she would take. The air was a little crisp, so she settled on her Hare form and allowed the magic to roll over her. Her body shifted to human, the insulating fur of the hare covering her instantaneously. She sat on the rock with her legs pulled up, fluffy boots helping to keep her propped up. The tall ears she gained in this form twitched, still aware of the fox in the distance and other predators that might be lurking.

Lisanna raised a hand and scratched the back of her neck, a sheepish smile in place as she peered over at Eve and gave a little wave.

“Uh, sorry, I should have changed back before-“ she started, then interrupted herself earnestly, “But it was just nice to get to know you a bit more like this, y’know? I hope it doesn’t bother you.”

[fairybond]

coruscatiio​: / Eve

edelweiß was,  and ren had made more than one joke about this,  one of the reasons why eve had moved recently,  why he had traded his old apartment with the unforgiving rules regarding on pets for a home that did allow eve to let his owl roost in the attic,  one constantly opened window enruned to only let her in and out.  hibiki’s help in the matter had been more useful than ren’s jokes,  but the silent night had gifted eve a new couch for his new,  bigger living room,  claiming that he had gotten it as a job reward which had been clearly a lie,  but there were times when it was easier to let ren keep pretending that he did not actually care.  couches were one such situation,  performances in front of all fiore,  eve thought with a quiet wince,  were not.

however  —  back to his owl who was nicely perched on his arm now as he walked,  away from the guild and its too neat gardens,  towards the woods.  ‘ ‘ bryn called me earlier, ’ ’  he told her earnestly because once upon a time,  it had been his sister who had found the abandoned hatchling edelweiß had been when he had first taken her under his wing and though eve was not certain how much his owl understood,  he was rather certain that she did know who bryn was.  ‘ ‘ she is sending a little light for your window so you can find it.  i told her that you’re doing an excellent job without it,  but— ’ ’  and here he whispered as if there was any chance that anyone could overhear him.  ‘ ‘—i think she’s just very proud of her newest invention and wants to show it to us,  but doesn’t know how to ask us without looking as if she’s bragging about it. ’ ’

not that eve would mind it if his sister would brag to him about her progress.  mother mountain,  he was her older brother.  when he had been new to the guild and had not yet figured out how he wanted to go about it,  he had talked off hibiki’s and ren’s ears about how brilliant his little sister was and about how proud he was of her and of what she had been building from the lacrimas and wires her pocket money could afford.  in retrospective,  it was downright hilarious that he was to play the little brother in the trimens when all he truly knew how to be was an older brother  …  and a rather involved one at that. 

absentmindedly,  he scratched the back of his neck before looking back at edelweiß.  ‘ ‘ but that’s enough about my day,  miss edelweiß, ’ ’  he said with a wink as he reached out to pat her feathery head.  ‘ ‘ did you have a productive time hunting? ’ ’

Blue Pegasus was a guild of interesting people, she’d always known that, and now that she had recently become a member, it was all the more clear to her. Many of them were quite eccentric characters (and indeed, many of them seemed to project a particular role, a persona, something she could relate to in a way) and she hadn’t yet gotten to know many of them enough to see beneath the surface of whatever type of glamour they had around themselves. Perhaps it was a bit unfair, that she wasn’t the type to reveal herself any further than a particular layer, but she was curious and driven to know the depths of others.

Eve was someone she hadn’t had much time around, especially not away from the other personalities of the guild, and so she wondered what he was like on his own, when he felt a similar freedom to what she could achieve in animal form. A sense of guilt tickled at the back of her mind, but it was flicked away by curiosity and the justification that getting to know her guildmates was nothing wrong.

She listened to him and would have smiled if she could at the way he spoke to her. It seemed to her that he clearly had a pet owl he often talked to like this. It was a fact that delighted her, warmth and hope filling her chest. Anyone who could befriend an owl and treat it in such a way was someone she would love to call a friend.

In interest, she tilted her head slightly at him while she tried to put things together as he went on. Bryn? She recalled something vague about him having a sister. How sweet of her to want to give a light to the owl…Edelweiß? With every word, little puzzle pieces formed in her mind and she found herself wanting more, almost wanting to take her human form just to ask him about his sister, and for the story of his owl.

Before she could debate too much on it, the touch to her head distracted her. She closed her eyes in reflex, enjoying the brief contact and rather wishing she could have more. Touch was something she and her animal sides craved, and it was something she hadn’t had much of lately.

With a soft, almost sigh, of a hoot, she opened her eyes and tried to ignore the way the word hunt threatened to stir up instincts to fly off and bring him back a mouse. How would his owl react to his question, she wondered. How should she react? And how long would it take for him to realise she was not who he thought?

She probably shouldn’t drag it out any longer, she knew, and yet…she also couldn’t pass up the opportunity play some more. So she adjusted her perch on his arm, a careful shuffling upwards to… boop his nose lightly with her beak. Amused by herself, she hopped up to his shoulder and gave an affectionate nip to his hair. With that done, she flew over to a large rock and turned to watch him.

[fairybond]

coruscatiio​: / Eve

there were times when eve could not take a breath anywhere near the guild building without being seen,  but there were also times like this when he could just be.  admittedly:  it helped that the former fairy tail mages were more interesting than him  —  he was known and they were not.  he did not have to be hibiki to work that one out,  though he did wonder how long it would take for tempers to clash.

he sighed quietly as his eyes searched the skies,  only to halt as they found a white owl sitting on the eaves of the nearest roof.  his brows furrowed as he took a step closer,  whistling quietly.  ‘ ‘ you hate coming to the guild,  my girl, ’ ’  he said as he stretched out his arm.  ‘ ‘ there are no mice for you in the garden  —  i know,  i know,  it’s truly outrageous.  c’mere and i’ll show you a good place to hunt? ’ ’

@fairybond​  /  lisanna.

As social as she was, and as much as she enjoyed being around her new guildmates, there were times when a person just wanted to be alone. Well, not alone. That was something she never wanted, the idea of total isolation was downright terrifying. But to be in nature was to never truly be alone, and so it was nature she had taken to earlier, when her own soul and the ones she held grew restless.

There was nothing like cool, fresh air to soothe any agitation, to ease the sensation of ruffled feathers or fur rubbed the wrong way. For a while, she had simply wandered the area on her own two feet, the birds and other small creatures inhabiting the surroundings keeping her good company. It was the distant thought of wanting to avoid being seen that had her deciding to use her magic to hide. Just an opportunity to practice with her newest Take Over, she justified.

The truth was, in animal form there was always more freedom. It was the freedom to just be, and where she didn’t have to hide or manage her mood or expression.

If she had not currently been in the form of a white owl perched on the eaves of a roof, her expression at seeing Eve would have been one of interest. The intrusion into her solitude wasn’t unwelcome, as after her time exploring and flying before, she felt quite a bit better than when she had first come out, and Eve was someone she was curious about.

As he noticed her and spoke, she was tempted to look around and see who he was talking to. Oh. The realisation had an amused warmth sparking inside her. Did he think she was someone else? His girl hmm? She inwardly giggled, teasing nature rising to the surface. It was that nature of hers that had her wanting to play along, rather than do the polite thing of making herself known.

Yes, she couldn’t resist. With a slight push, she kicked off, wings opening to aid her silent descent towards him. In but a moment, she landed as gently as she could on his arm and awaited his next move, curious about where he might take her. He’d been around the area a lot longer than she had, surely he knew some lovely spots.

[fairybond]

lucentaire​: / evergreen

neither empathy nor insight had ever come easy to carena unless she knew the other person well,  but she was not oblivious either.  she could almost hear the gears work in lisanna’s head,  and what she felt was  …  sympathy.  her own course for the foreseeable future was charted out;  she would not leave her boys.  come hell or high water,  blue pegasus or any other guild  —  she would be with them all the way.  not just because she felt bound by old promises but because they were the people she wanted to walk her path with.  she might even tell them that,  given she found a non-sappy way of saying it.

but lisanna  …  she sighed inwardly.  they were not the same.  what was right for evergreen might be wrong for the takeover mage.  ‘ ‘ you are free to make your own choices,  lisanna,  and i  —  implore you to do so.  honestly— ’ ’  she tossed back her hair and almost reached for the younger woman’s arm.  she did not have any blood-related siblings,  but she had laxus and she would tell lisanna the same thing she would tell laxus,  if he was sitting on the other side of the table.  there might be people who owed makarov their loyalty,  but carena did not count herself among them  —  and she did not think that lisanna owed the old man anything either.  if anything,  makarov owed her.  

she smiled softly as she watched the younger mage sip her tea.  ‘ ‘ i encourage you to make the choice that is best for you.  and yeah,  i mean what i say.  you are brilliant at what you are doing,  and more than that  —  you always look like you have fun with your magic. ’ ’  don’t lose that spark,  she wanted to add.  don’t burn yourself out where you aren’t appreciated.  ‘ ‘ and i think that you might  …  grow here.  dye your hair purple or blue or both at once.  figure yourself out.  plus — and i honestly wish i were half as good at this as you are,  you are the type to make friends easily. ’ ’

Lisanna absently played with the ends of her hair as it tickled the tops of her shoulders ( it was getting longer finally! Soon she might be able to tie it up ). She avoided Evergreen’s eyes for a moment, reminded of a similar conversation with Porlyusica not all that long ago. Both women were right, she knew, and it was that knowing which had led her here in the first place, wasn’t it? So why was she still hesitating?

She drowned her inner confusion with another sip of tea. Her life had been spent with others always at the forefront of her mind, a sense of guilt springing forward at any moment she even thought of doing something for herself first. Joining Blue Pegasus had been the first time she had made the jump over the chasm of guilt towards something she wanted. Was it what was best for her? It had certainly been best for her financial situation.

An involuntary smile leapt to her lips at Evergreen’s compliment, shyness and soft delight brushing her cheeks with a light blush. Brilliant? She lifted a hand to rub at the side of her face, as if it might wipe the flush from it. She could agree, at least, that she did have fun with her magic.

And as for growing…she did hope that would be the case. It could never be said that didn’t love her siblings or didn’t want to be around them, but a girl did have to get some independence and try things for herself sometimes. In Blue Pegasus, she was Lisanna, not ‘one of the Strauss siblings’ or ‘Mira’s little sister.’ Sure, there were a few who still referred to her as such, but things were…slowly changing.

She laughed a little at the thought of changing her hair colour, and held out a lock of snowy hair, “Well, I do love purple, maybe I will.”

Lisanna understood what Evergreen meant, and it seemed that now was a grand opportunity to try new things and find her own path. Blue Pegasus seemed the right place to start from too.

“I think you do just fine,” she said, feeling the need to reassure her. She smiled and observed her for a moment. “I really admire you, Evergreen. You’re so…cool and confident.”

She barely suppressed a laugh, “As my brother might say, you’re a real ‘woman’.”

The laugh escaped and she waved her hand to dismiss it, “I just mean, you seem…mature and elegant. You’re smart and strong too.”

She tapped her lip in thought. “You’re quite a catch.” A playful glint came to her eyes. “Say, is there anyone that catches your interest?”

Such a topic was always entertaining to Lisanna, and it served an additional purpose of shifting the attention off herself for the moment, how perfect.