The Future Is Ours

BY: juvia0613 (aka FayeValentine00)

Chapter 8

It took a few minutes before anyone dared to interrupt the tender moment between Wendy, Kichirou and Carla but they needed to act quickly. Ultimately, it was Gildarts who spoke up, drawing all eyes to him. "We need a plan. Wendy, Carla… We need to know where to find Piper."

Taking a deep breath to center herself, Wendy gave Carla and Kichirou one last squeeze before wiping her eyes roughly and standing up to face their Guild Master. When she spoke, Wendy's voice was surprisingly strong. "You're right. I'll tell you everything I know."

Over the next half an hour, with the help of Carla, Wendy told her guild mates every detail she could remember about Bellum and Dugal. She threw in what little she knew about Dugal's father whom Wendy had seen once in the woods all those years ago. Everyone listened carefully but when it came to the location of Perdition headquarters the Sky Dragon Slayer was just as clueless as everyone else.

"Alright!" Natsu said loudly. "Enough talking! Let's go kick that guy's ass and get Piper back!" The Dragon Slayer had only taken one step toward the door when a voice called to him.

"Natsu, wait!" The deep voice boomed loudly across the room, stopping the surprised dragon slayer in his tracks.

Turning around, Natsu found himself faced with an expected group. Nearly all the children were standing together, united, looking to Natsu and the other parents with deadly serious expressions on their faces. What the parents and older guild members hadn't realized was that while they'd been talking and making plans for what to do, Ryuu, Mari, Bluebell, Shayla, Carnation, Nathan, Nashi, Slate, Akemi, Dillon, Daisy, Haruki, Aki and Katsuo had been doing the same. Now that those kids had come to an agreement, it was Ryuu's job to set their plan into action.

"What are you doing?" Natsu asked carefully, specifically looking at Ryuu and then at his own kids, Nashi and Aki.

"We've all been talking," Ryuu began, gesturing to the group behind him. "And we've decided that we're going to the ones to bring Piper home."

The following uproar was not unexpected but, per the plan, none of the younger generation wavered. Ryuu's eyes met Natsu's firmly as he continued. "Tonight, all of us realized just how sheltered we've been. We all think of Piper like our little sister. This is our fight."

"No way!" Levy jumped up from her seat, saying what all the other mothers were thinking. "It's too dangerous."

"Mom! Are you kidding?" Mari spoke up before her twin could reply, turning to her mother incredulously. "By the time you were our age, all of you had literally saved the world!"

"How can we ever prove ourselves to you… and to ourselves if you never give us the chance?" Akemi added, joining her sister as they looked to their mother pleadingly.

An uneasy silence fell over the room until Gray finally spoke up sounding resigned. "Do you have a plan?"

"Yes, we do." Ryuu turned to the Ice Devil Slayer with a smile. Over the next several minutes, Ryuu, Slate and Shayla took turns explaining their plan in detail. They'd even made lists and maps while they'd waited for Wendy and Mest to return to the guild. As far as the younger Fairy Tail members were concerned, this was their time to step up and protect their guild family.

Everyone had listened carefully to the plan laid out before them. Maybe the plan wasn't exactly what their parents would have done, but that needed to be okay if Ryuu and the others were going to make their mark. All the kids watched with bated breath as their parents exchanged glances. Some of them, like Gray, Natsu and Elfman, looked impressed. Others, like Levy, Lisanna and Wendy, looked concerned.

Master Gildarts was impressed with their plan but, what cinched his support was the look of conviction on the kids' faces. He could still vividly remember the first time Erza, Natsu, Gray and Mirajane had all set out on their first truly dangerous missions. Back then, it had been hard to let them go, regardless of their strength. Now It was time for Natsu and the others to let go as well. Quite honestly, the timing was well overdue.

"I agree. Ryuu, Slate and Shalya… I like your plan. You three will lead your teams to Perdition and bring back Piper." Gildarts announced to Ryuu and the others, crossing the room as he spoke before turning to Natsu and Gray. "Natsu, you and the others will stay here and help us refortify Fairy Tail."

With the Guild Masters blessing, Ryuu and the others all visibly relaxed as they exchanged excited grins and murmured excitedly to one another. At the same time, Erza, Gray and Natsu formed a huddle of their own.

"We should have let them do this a long time ago," Gray said more to himself than the others. Regardless of what who was going after Piper tonight, he'd already decided to bring Slate and Haruki along.

"I agree." Natsu nodded seriously. He was more depressed about being cut out of the action than worried about the kids who were running off to danger.

"I'm incredibly impressed by their planning," Erza nodded along with the men who were still her best friends after all these years. "This will be a good chance for them to solidify themselves as core members of Fairy Tail."

From the moment Ryuu had spoken up to Natsu, the original Iron Dragon Slayer had fully supported his children, but he also knew how Levy felt and he understood why she was concerned. Gajeel had been standing next to his wife while the kids laid out their plan and as soon as Gildarts gave the okay, he took that as a sign to pull her aside for a talk. When no one else was really paying them any attention, he flung her over his shoulder and carried her to a secluded section of the room.

"Gajeel! What are you doing?!" she asked, kicking her feet and pushing her hands against his shoulders in an attempt to escape but he easily overpowered her.

"Hey! Hey! Calm down," he said with a laugh before letting her down just enough to kiss her lips softly, not relenting until she gradually relaxed.

When she stopped resisting, Gajeel set her down on the ground and pulled her into a hug. The small bluenette rested her forehead on his chest and spoke in a pouting voice. "I already know that we have to let them go…," she began, sighing heavily. "And, I know I'm being selfish… but I don't like it."

"But Mari was right, you know. She and Ryuu are 20 now." Placing a hand under her chin, Gajeel lifted her face so he could meet her eyes. With a roughish smile, he added, "You do realize that when you were 20 years old, we got married and the twins were born, right?"

"Ugh! I know!" She protested with a groan but Gajeel saw the blush spread across her cheeks. She really was too easy to read. However, after a moment, Levy recovered and looked up to her husband with a half-smile. "I'm gonna be a wreck while they're gone. … You know that right?"

"It'll be fine, midget. I'm sure I'll be able to find plenty of ways to take your mind off things. Gihihihi." Those words just made Levy blush harder.

When the verdict was rendered and people broke off into groups, Nashi approached Lucy slowly. She'd been watching her mother the entire time that Slate and the others had been explaining their plan, but her mom had hardly reacted. Having a father like Natsu, Nashi'd had a lot more opportunity to cut lose than the others. Although her father had never put her in life-threatening danger, she'd had a good scare now and again. Most of the others weren't so lucky but, through it all, her mother had always silently worried.

"Are you mad?" the younger blonde woman asked her mother, nervously fiddling with the hem of her blue and white frilly dress. No matter how big Nashi got, her mother's opinion held the most weight to her.

"Of course not," Lucy said quickly, forcing a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "I'm not mad at all. I am proud of you… both of you," she added gesturing to Aki who was across the room with Daisy Strauss talking animatedly to Elfman and Ever.

"Then what's wrong?" Nashi said with a sigh, sitting down on the bench besides her mother and resting her head on Lucy's shoulder.

There was a long pause, followed by a heavy sigh before Lucy dropped her head down to her daughters. "Oh, you know, typical Mom stuff. I don't want to let you guys grow up. I'm overprotective and I don't want you guys to go through anything like we had to. Yet, I know I have to."

"So, basically, you are wallowing in self-pity."

"Pretty much," Lucy admitted, mother and daughter laughing together.

Finally, Nashi wrapped her arms around her mother's middle. "I love you, Mom."

"I love you too," Lucy returned the embrace tightly as she added, "Just… keep an eye on Aki."

The plan was to leave early the next morning so families from all over the guild were scrambling to help their children prepare. If the stakes hadn't been so high, the tension would have been comical but, with one of their own missing, it was anything but. Bags were packed, care packages and bentos made. Tactical advice was handed out and tears were shed but since Levy's initial outburst, not a single person had complained about the decision.

Since fifteen of the children were going out to retrieve Piper, they had decided to break into three teams of five. That would make travel easier and be less conspicuous. As Gildarts had said, Ryuu, Shayla and Slate would be the team leaders and it was their responsibility to ensure the safety of everyone with them. The breakdown would be:

Team One

Slate Fullbuster (Leader) – 17 years old – Ice Make Magic

Nashi Dragneel – 17 years old – Celestial Spirit Magic

Dillion Fernandez – 16 years old – Heavenly Body Magic

Daisy Strauss – 16 Years Old – Take-Over Satan Soul

Aki Dragneel – 15 Years Old – Fire Dragon Slayer Magic

Team Two

Ryuu Redfox (Leader) – 20 Years Old – Iron Dragon Slayer Magic

Mari Redfox – 20 Years Old – Magic Card/Fortune Telling Magic

Bluebell Strauss – 20 Years Old – Fairy Magic/Eye Magic

Nathan Dreyar – 18 Years Old – Take-Over Animal Soul

Haruki Fullbuster – 16 Years Old – Water Magic

Team Three

Shayla Groh (Leader) – 19 Years Old – Crush Magic

Carnation Strauss – 18 Years Old – Sky Dragon Slayer Magic

Akemi Redfox – 17 Years Old – Script Magic

Katsuo Strauss – 14 Years Old – Seith Magic/Human Possession Magic

Kichirou Gryder – 14 Years Old – Lightening Magic

Mostly, the teams made sense. They were comprised with pre-established teams, close friends and family members. The only person who felt completely out of place was Haruki Fullbuster. She understood why her brother chose the people he did. Nashi was his girlfriend, and they worked well together. For Lucy's sake, that meant Aki needed to be on his team as well. Where Aki goes, Daisy follows so, again, she understood. Last, he'd chosen Dillion, her boyfriend. She even understood that. Dillion and Slate were best friends and the son of Erza and Jellal had an extraordinary amount of offensive magic which would come in handy in a pinch.

As was said, Haruki understood the choices, but it didn't make her feel any less lonely. To make things even more strained, the water mage was going with Ryuu's team. The other four members were already a team. They'd been together as long as she could remember. Haruki was positive that she was destined to be the 5th wheel.

It was well after midnight, when the blue-haired girl assumed everybody else was asleep, that the normally happy young woman allowed herself to give in to the sadness that had been simmering below the surface all night. She couldn't stop herself when the tears fell. She knew mission wasn't about her and she knew that bringing Piper home safely was the most important thing, but that knowledge didn't make it any easier.

A little while later, there was a light knock on the door and then a second later, it opened, and she saw her father peek in looking concerned. Quickly, Haruki wiped her eyes and did her best to fake a smile. Even she knew that she failed.

Gray sighed as he entered to the room. After closing the door behind himself, the concerned father crossed the room and sat down beside Haruki on the bed. "You want to talk about it?", he asked.

"I'm fine, Dad," she was quick to assure him but her own cracking voice betrayed her.

Letting out another sigh, her father stood back up and crossed the room. Haruki was confused until he pulled back her curtains and she noticed unseasonal rain pouring down outside. She took a minute to realize that her father was implying that she caused the rain. It was the first time she had ever exhibited that magical ability inherited from her mother and it was obviously troubling her dad.

"So, let's try again…", the ice mage began again, returning to his seat beside her. "Want to talk about it?"

The water mage looked down at her hands, hesitating only a moment before she spoke. "I feel like I'm being left behind," she sniffed dejectedly. "I know that it isn't like that… and I know why Slate made the choices that he did but… still…"

Gray wasn't sure what to say either. Like Haruki, he understood the team dynamics, but he still would have preferred his kids to go together. Instead, he just wrapped an arm around his nearly grown daughter who was turning into a beautiful woman faster than he could accept. Before he knew it, she'd probably be off with Dillion doing God knows what so these were the moments he had to cherish. He knew he had to support her while he still could.

"You probably don't want to hear this from me but travelling with Ryuu's team will be a great experience for you. Also, you're strong enough to hold your own alongside them," he said with a smile, squeezing her shoulder tightly. "They are lucky to have you. No one realizes how much potential you have… not even you."

Haruki smiled despite herself and wrapped her arms around her dad's waist, giving him a huge hug. "Thanks, Dad."

"Any time." Gray said with a smile of his own, returning the hug.

The next morning, not long after dawn, the teams left Magnolia and their parents behind. The goal was to bring Piper home quickly and safely, but they were Fairy Tail members. Nothing was ever that easy.