First of all, I'm sorry.

A/N: So, I'm done with this fic. I can't write it anymore. Fairy Tail has lost my interest for some time now, and if you don't love a series, then it's really hard to try and write for it. When I first started this fic, I intended to use it as a learning tool to help me improve and become a better writer. And it really helped a lot and you can see the influence it has had on me as a writer. However, I know, and you know, that this fic is far from being what it could have been. A lot of people like this story, so it's hard for me to do this, but I simply cannot continue it.

Some of the lingering questions you may have about this fic are:

Who was behind the Fake Evokers?: Ikutsuki, though I was thinking of throwing Mitsuru's grandpa. He came in when Shinji came in and had been working behind the scenes ever since.

What about Minato's armor?: It's made from scales of Acnologia.

What about the prophecy that Ryoji spouted?: That was determining a set end point for the series during which the Fall would be happening again. However, due to the magic of Earthland, it would happen in seven years instead of ten. Meaning the timeskip would mark the end of the fic.

What about Rob's "apprentice"?: I was ironing out the details on that.

What about the assassins?: All the major dark guilds were contacted by Ikutsuki to get rid of Minato because Minato was becoming a bigger and bigger threat.

Was Takaya really a good guy?: Yes.

Would Elizabeth have shown up?: Yes.

Would Yu Narukami show up in the Edolas arc?: Yes.

Would Minato's house be "pimpin?": Yes.

What about the Giga Drill Break reference?: Minato would have basically used that with his body as the drill to destroy Phantom Lord's Guild.

Would Minato's Shadow have manifested?: Yes, and the original scene that I wrote for that was gruesome and horrible, so I put it off far into the future.

I did plan some things out, but I really just don't want to write this anymore. This fic is like my training wheels and it's time for it to come off. There are some problems you just can't fix unless you rewrite and I don't have the motivation in me to do it. If you want to adopt this, feel free to PM me and we can discuss it at length.

I hope you can understand. Now, what me dropping this fic means is that instead of focusing on this I can include a new fic into the rotation. I'll be putting up a poll in the coming weeks to determine which story from the Possible Future Projects section on my profile page.

Now, below I have what I wrote for Chapter 13 before I just decided to stop. You can read it and say farewell to this fic.

Once again, I'm sorry I cannot continue this and I hope that you will not only not hate me, but also read some of my other stories if you don't already. Wow. That sounds like a plug for myself. I now feel like a horrible person. I'm sorry. Let us all just mourn this fic in silence...

...

Chapter 13: A Familiar Face

"Makarov!" Erza shouted as she burst into his office.

Makarov, who had been sitting there enjoying a relaxing cup of tea, suddenly spit it out with such force that he hit Erza square in the face. Erza glared at Makarov, her expression anything but happy.

"Erza, please do knock first. I think we both would like to avoid more head shots in the future," Makarov said as he handed her a napkin. She tore it from his hands and wiped her face with it, still very, very angry.

"Minato. Has. A. Team. Would you kindly explain to me why I'm not on it? Minato and I have worked together for years. We live together, eat together, and he's been there for me when nobody else has. But, for some reason, you put him on a team with Mira of all people, Cana, and Mystogan? He's barely worked with any of them! If you want to give Minato a team, then I'm more than enough," Erza explained, still quite angry. She hadn't been this angry in a long time. Minato needed her. She needed Minato. The two of them had always stuck by each other, so they knew each other's strengths and weaknesses best. They knew each other best.

"You can't possibly be on it. And it isn't your fault. It's his," Makarov said with a sigh. Erza's rage turned into confusion. Minato's fault?

"How is Minato to blame?" Erza asked Makarov. Makarov smiled sadly as he looked at her.

"He still sees you as the child that he helped raise. If you are attacked, what do you think he will do? He'd gladly take the hits for you. He wouldn't risk losing you. Minato right now is unstable and is becoming increasingly so. The assassination attempts are getting to him. He doesn't trust anybody, but yet he doesn't want to lose anybody. Especially you. He's a walking contradiction right now. I'd like to put the two of you together, but I made this team to save Minato's life, not end it," Makarov explained.

"I can handle myself. Minato knows that. He trained me himself. He should trust in that at least," Erza said coldly. Makarov shook his head.

"You know Minato's story. The rest of us don't. So, tell me, has he ever lost anybody before?" Makarov asked.

Erza reluctantly nodded. Minato lost everything and everyone he cared for.

"Then he's almost certainly feeling that fear of losing again. If they can't kill him, what's to stop them from targeting you in the middle of battle? He knows that shaking him up even a little could mean his defeat. Thousands of mages have analyzed him in battle. They know his weaknesses and you're one of them. I won't risk Minato's death just so you can be on the same team with him. Besides, you live in the same house, don't you?" Makarov said as he turned back to his tea.

Erza walked out of the room and closed the door behind her, her fists clenched with anger.

'Damn it!' Erza almost screamed the words, but she kept them inside. She'd have more than a few words with Minato when he got back. He needed her at this time in his life. He needed somebody he knew he could trust. And she... she needed her sensei, the person she cared about most in the entire world. She became strong to protect him... what use was all this training if he won't even let her do that?!

"Out of the way! Coming through! Does anybody know where Minato is?" Natsu's loud voice came from the entrance to Fairy Tail. Erza moved over to the railing to see Natsu carrying a body over his shoulder. Lisanna, Lucy, Macao, and Gray all came in behind him. Romeo rushed his father, embracing him in a hug, but Erza was more interested in the body they had just brought in. She quickly went down the stairs, rushing past all the other members of Fairy Tail to get to Natsu first.

"Dad! You're alive!" Romeo said as he hugged his father tightly. The two began to talk with one another, but Erza ignored them. She was only focused on the body Natsu was carrying. The build, the height... Although it was hard to tell those things at first, Erza had spent years with Minato. She could already tell that this person bore a striking resemblance to Minato. She grabbed the body from Natsu and put it on the table.

"H-Hey? What are you doing, Erza?!" Natsu exclaimed, confused as to what exactly she was doing. Erza didn't answer, but she kept inspecting the body, the rest of Fairy Tail watching her with rapt interest.

"What's she doing?" Lucy asked Lisanna. Lisanna shrugged, not quite sure either. She hardly even knew Erza that well. How was she supposed to know why she seemed so interested in the boy? Certainly he looked like Minato, but it was clear that the two weren't the same.

"Erza knows more than all of us about Minato. If this guy is related to Minato, then she'd be the person who would know," Gray answered, remembering when Erza and Minato first appeared out of nowhere. Minato still looked the same after all these years... It really felt great being taller than the cocky bastard!

Erza moved over to examine his head to see if he was suffering from any blunt trauma. At the very least, she wanted to know why he was unconscious and the thought of asking Natsu didn't occur to her immediately. As Erza was examining the boy, his blue eyes suddenly opened and his head flew forward, banging into Erza's steel breastplate. Shocked, Erza stopped moving for a second and looked down at the head that had actually left a dent in her breastplate and was still there, seemingly unaffected by the impact.

"This feeling of metal... Aigis? No, the bust is much too big. It matches at least Mitsuru. But if she was wearing armor... Hmm. Yes, then it all makes sense! No, wait. They couldn't possibly be here..." the boy trailed off as he removed his face from her breastplate. He moved to get off the table, the rest of Fairy Tail frozen by the fact that he had literally just rammed his head into Erza's boobs, albeit indirectly.

He stood and stretched, looking towards Erza who slowly turned her head to face him.

"This is pretty good!" Happy said as he watched on the scene, nibbling on a particularly tasty fish. Lucy moved to grab a seat and Lisanna and Gray joined her. Natsu, however, stayed standing, watching with Happy perched on his soldier. Even Makaro was watching with a smile from the second floor.

"Similar, but no. You are not Mitsuru. Which could be a blessing," he said with a wink. Erza walked over to him, her face slightly red. Those names he threw out... This guy was certainly connected to Minato. From what she'd been told by Minato, this guy could really only be one person.

"My name is Erza Scarlet, student of Minato. If I'm right, then you must be Ryoji. If you are Ryoji, then I believe we can both agree on what's going to happen next," Erza said, hey eye twitching in anger. Ryoji tilted his head in confusion.

"Minato has a student? And he told you about me? Wow. It looks like me reputation precedes me," Ryoji said with a bow, "Then you must have known ahead of time of my overwhelming charisma, you beautiful woman. Since you're only Minato's student, I'm sure he won't mind if you come and spend a night in paradise with me." Ryoji winked.

The room was so silent you could hear a pin drop.

"Die, pervert!" Erza shouted as she uppercutted Ryoji straight up all the way into the ceiling.