#time for some master bob stan life behaviour

[lucentaire]

resolvebound​ --- gray fullbuster.

     A hug? His face scrunched at the very thought, aiming a look her way that said he didn’t think she was all that funny this time. They may not have been close, but he was sure she could guess he was hardly the hugging type. It was all part of the teasing, he knew, but still…even the mention of his so-called teammates was a little unpleasant. Sure, together as a team, they had achieved some incredible feats, but that didn’t mean he always wanted to be lumped in with them. But in any case…

     “I don’t do hugs,” he said, but even as he spoke them, the words sounded strange to his ears (and a smidge petulant, or defensive). Perhaps they sounded strange because they weren’t entirely true, or maybe he just wished they weren’t, and that in some version of the world, the idea of anyone getting close to him in any way wasn’t uncomfortable. Sure, the urge to give physical affection was not one that often came to him, the urge to receive it was likewise rare, but there were a select few people who were exceptions (so he wasn’t…broken, right?). But, joke or not, needing a hug badly…would he even recognise such a need?

     He sighed, choosing to focus his gaze on the words Evergreen was writing. The note about cereal and juice brought him a faint, momentary smile, it was so…normal. There would be things like that everywhere, he thought, frowning, people’s intentions frozen in place. A person could go from having their biggest concern being the lack of their favourite breakfast foods, to the lack of a roof over their head, or a missing loved one, or worse. He could still recall the destruction of his village, homes scattered in pieces, fractured belongings strewn in the rubble, and among it all…the evidence of lives suddenly halted. A child’s half completed drawing, an unwrapped but crushed gift, an unfinished letter.

     It was highly unlikely many areas would be spared from the ruination to come, but minimizing the severity of it (and the lives lost), was all they could try to do for now. The thought pulled him back to the present, and he watched as Evergreen moved about the kitchen. Her question prompted a small laugh and shake of his head, “Nah, no allergies, can’t get rid of me that easily.”

     His attention shifted to the fruit as she mentioned it, despite the fact he wasn’t all that hungry, given the situation looming over them. An apple tarte? He wondered about her baking skill, tempted to ask about it, yet deciding to add it to his list of things to bring up with her after they all survived what was to come. They would have time to talk after, he had to believe that.

     The foreboding pressure of what they needed to overcome first, it pushed around him and had him absently rubbing his shoulders in an attempt to alleviate it. His eyes wandered the room, catching for a moment on a piece of art hanging on one of the walls. Once again, he found himself curious about Evergreen and her team, and thinking about his own place. There wasn’t any art up in his cabin yet, but he had a room full of his unfinished works (not that he would ever put up his own art anyway).

     Evergreen’s movement brought his eyes back to her, a frown settling in. He stared at her hands for a moment before her words raised his gaze to her own, eyes intently studying her. He found himself moving towards her, stopping just a step or two away with an urge to…he wasn’t sure exactly. Communicate something, somehow. Reassure perhaps.

     His breath then left him in a tired exhale as he settled with a small nod. Furious. Yeah, he could understand that sentiment, even if, for the moment, his own feelings on the matter leant towards disappointment in how everything had come about, and sadness for all the pointless destruction and death that was to come.

     “Well,” he said, after a moment, a slight smile cracking, “I’m glad you’re furious and on my side at least.”

     There was no telling, of course, how the fighting would all play out and if the two of them would be anywhere near each other during it, but he found himself wondering if they would work well together in a battle situation. Almost as soon as the thoughts began, however, he found himself glad their proximity would be unlikely. The enemy coming to them would no doubt require him to pull out the demonic magic within himself, and he’d rather not have her or any of their other guildmates around for that. Because he might not come back from it.

     He moved away, towards the painting he’d noticed earlier (was it an Icebergian landscape? Something about it seemed familiar), but glanced back to her with a slight grin, “Don’t worry, I plan on coming back for the silver later.”

     It was just a joke of course, and yet the ‘later’…it was more of a promise, that there would indeed be a later for all of them.  A ‘later’ that they needed to work on securing in the here and now.

     “So…should we check out those maps now?”

everyone in the guild knew---evergreen was not someone who talked much to others. and when she did, people probably thought, it was to establish her superiority. the truth was that she did not talk much because she watched more. she paid attention, she took note of things---and then, often filed them away for later. also: those who did not talk much rarely drew much attention to themselves, could choose to stay back and take their time. and even after years, she still thought the notion that most people did not know her well comfortable.

she was not the best at reading body language, but she could read some tells easily enough. she did not know gray well enough to read him like an open book, but she could spot tension as well as stress. but well. who would not be tense and stressed in a situation like this? 

‘‘ give me a warning so i can hide all the valuables, ’’ she quipped with a possibly ill-advised wink as she grabbed two empty glasses, placing them on a tray before grabbing a water bottle, too.  she was---what was it called again?---compartmentalising. reality was almost unbearable, if she looked at the full picture. she had to make it smaller, cut it into pieces that were almost digestible. there was no other way through this. still, a quip here and a sarcastic remark there might just help her to carry on.

she just had to get through another dangerous situation with questionable odds. lovely.

she grabbed the tray from the counter and moved, leaving behind the kitchen and the living room. they kept their maps in the study. well, in one of the studies. they had two. once upon a time, the house they inhabited had been meant for a more . . . traditional family. more two parents, two point five children and a dog, less four adults and a dog and as many ‘babies’ as bixlow deemed necessary at any given point of time.

she smiled briefly at that thought, then her face grew serious again as she left her tray on an empty desk and unlocked the cabinet that held their maps, dark eyes scanning the shelves for anything that might be of use, finally settling on some city maps as well as maps of the larger area. ‘‘ i was briefly wondering if the cathedral would have a sufficient amount of structural stability to withstand some magical damage to serve as some kind of shelter, but then i recalled that it took damage when. well. when laxus fought natsu and gajeel. which means it’s probably not in the best condition---unless you think that someone paid enough money to get a full repair done while we were all . . . absent, ’’ she pondered out loud as she placed some of the maps on the table before turning back to the cabinet to look for older, historical maps. 

they should have some of those---maybe because freed had bought them, maybe because they had gotten them as a reward at some point. and they might be helpful if they showed any old underground tunnels.

‘‘ i do wonder, ’’ she said as she placed the stack of historical maps on the table, ‘‘ if master bob saw something like this coming. blue pegasus does have a flying warship. ’’

there had been a time when she had written the existence of the christina off as an eccentricity of an eccentric man. but that had been before she had been in his guild and had seen him operate. there was little, it seemed, that got past master bob. he was dangerous in a way she could appreciate as it was so easily overlooked. but---it was as her team said: if you don’t think master bob is dangerous, you aren’t paying attention.

she grimaced---just a little!---as she continued, her voice softer and quieter than usually. ‘‘ it was strange, being in a guild where the person in charge cares about all his mages. ’’ she rubbed her wrist. makarov had paid attention to her team. but that had been mostly, she knew, because they were close with laxus. ‘‘ before we were told ‘hey, a war’s gonna happen’, i was thinking about how many of our colleagues had, y’know, financial troubles this last year. and it feels so unfair. a lot of those that have struggled were also the ones who kept fairy tail going while we were all asleep for seven years. i obviously want to stay alive in what’s to come, but---i really want them all to stay alive because after all their struggles, they deserve some . . . i don’t know. they deserve to catch a break, i guess. ’’