Hi, everyone. So, I've decided at the last minute to participate in Jerza Week 2018.
This couple has been my first Fairy Tail OTP, so I thought I might as well take some time to honor them as best as I can.
The original plan was to write really short prompts for each day, but as usual, I couldn't. Most of what I've written so far is falling between 1600-2600 words.
As the summary says, you can expect to find multiple plots here, such as pregnancy, proposal, family time and childhood flashbacks. All FLUFF, no worries.
I have also included Gray and Juvia (Gruvia) in many days since they're my favorite couple.
Anyways, here we go with Day 1: Colours
Happy Reading!
'It was the color of your hair.'
It was the color of your hair. Erza's heart tightened at these words and suddenly she felt the urge to cry.
She remembered that day so clearly, even though nearly a decade had passed since then. It would forever be engraved in her mind, because it was the first time that she'd smiled ever since being taken to the Tower Of Heaven.
It wasn't a special date or anything, but she always held it close to her heart because of what happened then. The memory wasn't faded like so many others, instead she could see it so clearly: Sitting on the floor, watching as Jellal and Whally conversed. Hearing them tell each other their full names before turning to her.
"So you're Erza what?" A sad smile had come upon her face.
"Nothing. That's all I've got; just plain old Erza." She remembered Jellal's face once he heard it; it was a mixture of shock and disbelief.
"Well, you gotta have a last name." He said it as if it was some rule and she couldn't help but to smile.
Then, all of sudden, he was behind her and holding onto her short red hair. Erza had been surprised, to say the least. She turned to him with a frown: "Hey, what's the big idea?"
Back then, she didn't like being touched by anyone; since usually it were the guards that grabbed her and took her to the outside of the tower so she could work on its construction. She had nightmares about it every night, but there was nothing she could do. She was a prisoner then, just as he was.
"Your hair's pretty, that's all." Jellal's kindness surprised her; it had been a while since someone actually said something nice to her. She'd gotten so used to the constant bossing and yelling coming from the guards that she'd forgotten what it was like to be complimented.
"You think so?" She'd asked him in disbelief and he smiled brightly.
"Of course." Then his eyes widened once the idea came. "I got it. How about we make your last name Scarlet?"
She'd thought about it, ignoring Whally's protests, and realized that she really enjoyed that idea. It would be nice to have a last name, to be recognized as an actual person. "Iā¦like that a lot." She'd admitted, making Jellal's smile grow. "So now I'll be Erza Scarlet." She'd smiled then, while picking a lock of scarlet hair.
"That's perfect!" He had told her, nearly jumping with excitement. "Now I'll never forget your name. All I'll have to do is think about your pretty hair."
Erza watched Jellal being taken away by the Custody Enforcement Unit; he gave her one last soft smile that made her heart stop before entering the carriage and disappearing from her sight.
The knowledge that she would probably never see him again sinked in once he was gone and it was too much for her to bear. No matter how much he'd hurt her; the thought of this being the last time she would see him, when he didn't even remember his sins (or her), was too heartbreaking to even consider.
She wanted them to have a chance to reconnect; for him to have a chance to redeem himself and atone for his sins. He had wanted to do that after she convinced him to keep living, but now it didn't matter anymore.
He had been taken away and there was nothing else she could do. She had lost him, in a sense; and it hurt too much to think about that.
Ignoring her friend's concerned looks, Erza walked away, glad that they didn't attempt to follow her. Once she was finally alone by the edge of the cliff, she finally allowed the tears to fall.
The memory of the day Jellal had chosen her last name brought too many emotions she had tried to bury over the years.
Sadness. Regret. Comfort. Love. Because, no matter how much she'd tried to deny it over the years, Erza knew that she loved him. She understood that while they had started out as friends, after everything that happened, something had changed
Although, back then she'd been only a child, so she hadn't realized the true extents of her feelings for Jellal until they had met again during the Tower of Heaven incident.
More tears fell at the memory of that disaster and the terrible things he had done. Kidnapping her, having assassins attempt to eliminate her friends, killing Simon. Simon, who had fallen for her and ended up sacrificing his own life to save hers.
But Jellal hadn't been himself, Erza thought, he'd been possessed by darkness then and everything he did was because of that. That doesn't mean she had forgiven him, though, no matter who had been in control, he'd been the one to murder one of their closest friends.
But she also knew that he had potential to be good; the light inside of him shone brighter than ever while they fought against Midnight and Erza knew that he could follow the path of hope and life.
She knew that he could become someone worthy of her forgiveness; he had already taken the first step when he had nearly killed himself while thinking that it would be enough to take away her pain and sadness. He had proved that he could be better and she believed in him.
Belief. Hope. Faith. She couldn't let these emotions go. She needed to hold onto them, because only by doing so would she manage to keep moving forward.
So she dried her tears before her hands found her long scarlet hair and she held it between her fingers while smiling. Another memory came, this one of the day she joined Fairy Tail.
Erza recalled how, when it came to the choice of her guild mark's color, she didn't even need to think. Blue, because it reminded her of the sweet boy who had helped her, sacrificed himself for her and given her a chance even when he had been lost in darkness.
It represented the hope she had that someday, he would come back to the light. It was the color of your hair.
So, what did you think? Was this as sweet, angsty and emotional as I hoped?
Stay tuned for chapter 2; we'll have NaLu, Gruvia and GaLe talking about Love and how much it can change someone; followed by plenty of Jerza flashbacks.
I wish you all a great day!