Normal POV: Step into the Future's Past- Finale

A Shadow tried to collide with the woman, but she was fast, disappearing and then reappearing behind him within less than a second, ripping the Shadow's heart out while breaking his spine.

Another Shadow grabbed the woman from behind, but she dissolved in his arms, and then appeared above his head, snapping his neck. Shadows left and right charged at her from everywhere, yet the woman handled her own, and fairly easily. She was getting annoyed, ready to get this over with.

She spread out her palms and inhaled sharply. Then she exhaled, blue flames spewing from her mouth, incinerating the Shadows that didn't take shelter in the ground. Ashes decorated the floor, and more Shadows emerged. The woman grinned. "How tiresome."

One Shadow tried to emerge from behind her, but the woman reached into the ground and pulled the Shadow's shadow out of the floor, and incinerated him with her flames. She continued to kill or wound as much foes as she could before she realized that the two figures that the Shadows were guarding were no longer in the room.

Without a care, the woman screamed, her yells sounding like the screeching of a phoenix bird, and the dungeon shook. The walls began to cave in and the ground started to break apart. She was creating an earthquake with her screams, which caused the Shadows that were shadows on the ground to slip into the earth's cracks. Those who were in human forms were vomiting their entrails, blood oozing from every hole in their bodies. The Shadows combusted, and if any remained, the woman defeated them with her excellent combat skills.

The dungeon caved in and the woman was walking up stairs that led to the main part of the guild. She looked down and saw the debris of what was left of the dungeon, along with the many bodies blanketing the floor.

She looked away and ascended to the top.

When she finally got to the top, she was approached by another enemy. It was a tall man with long black hair tied into a ponytail. He was wielding a sheathed sword, and his purple stare was trained on her.

"Nice rack," the man replied.

The woman brought her attention back to the man who was now smiling mockingly. His eyes held amusement, which reminded her of something that happened in her past life. Amused eyes pissed her off. "I can see that just like those weaklings, you wish to die."

The man chuckled. "Unlike those weaklings, I plan to put up one hell of a fight."

"I doubt that," the woman said, before charging towards him, wanting to kill him quickly so she could continue to pursue those two.

The man didn't even unsheathe his sword when he cut through the air, knocking the woman back a couple of feet. To her surprise, when she wiped at her stomach, blood covered her hand. She didn't feel the pain of the slash, but the evidence was apparent. The man kept his grin, which further pissed her off.

"I guess charge attacks won't work on you," she said.

The man's grin grew. "I guess not."

This was annoying. She inhaled sharply and then exhaled flames directly at him.

With his unsheathed sword, the man sliced through the flames and advance towards the woman. She was slightly startled, not thinking it possible that someone could slice through her fire, but as she looked closely in the seconds she had, she noticed that her flames did burn away the man's sheath, revealing a black katana.

The man went for her neck, but she ducked backwards, falling to the ground while trying to trip him with a swipe kick. He dodged her attack, somersaulting away. She got back to her feet and advanced to him in his mid flip. She managed to appear above him, slamming her fist in his chest before he could complete his flip.

She was fast. Faster than he could imagine, but so was he.

Her fist hit his chest, but not fully before he gripped her wrist and flipped her around, slamming her into the ground. This all happened within the time it took to complete a full somersault. This told the man a lot. Time was precious to her, and she wanted this fight over with quickly. He grinned. Great minds think alike.

He slashed his sword in her back, erupting blood, knowing that his slash was a fatal one. He wanted more time with her, but his master ordered him to end it quickly should she emerge from the dungeon. When her body lied still, he sighed. "You did have a nice rack though. I wish I had the chance to get to know them better. Oh well."

He turned to look for his sheath, only to find a pile of ash. He tsked, thinking that if he miscalculated, that pile of ash could have been him. He walked away.

Which was a stupid mistake.

Hands gripped his chest from behind, and fingers dug in, aiming to grab his heart. The man took his sword and slashed the hands off, and turned to face his attacker. To his surprise, the woman, who he just cut the hands off of and slashed in the back earlier, was standing in front of him, palms out and inhaling sharply. Things rarely surprised him, something he shared in common with his young master, but he was surprised. She didn't even look like she had a scratch on her.

The man grinned, excitement creeping into his amused eyes. "I should have known that you weren't gonna make things easy."

The woman returned his grin, looking at the holes she was beginning to penetrate in his chest, before he cut off her hands. "It's said that the phoenix can regenerate itself. Who knew?" she said with a smirk.

The man held his hands to his chest, trying to stop the bleeding. If he was one second late, he would have been heartless. He threw his sword to the side. "I guess my blade wouldn't work on you then."

"I guess not."

The man put up his fists. "Thank goodness I'm one hell of a fighter." He charged her, driving her backwards before she could spew more flames. She back flipped, landing two kicks in his chin. The kicks didn't hurt him, since he pulled away slightly, and he grabbed her feet and threw her, slamming her to the ground. She got up quickly and stretched her fingernails like talons, which is what she used to dig for his heart. She slashed at him, scrapping flesh and blood, but didn't wound him like she wanted. He barely dodged her attack, still getting cut in the process.

Their combat went on for a while. One person attacking while the other defends, and vice versa. The two combatants were almost a blur, fighting at the speed of lightning.

The two stood on opposite sides, heaving and painting. They were equals in combat, each bleeding from multiple wounds.

The man, who could only see out of one eye, looked at the woman. He smiled knowing that he hadn't had this much fun in a long time. This woman was a match he couldn't afford to lose to.

The woman was healing fast, but she still suffered from the injuries she sustained. She had to admit that he was good, but she grew tired of this. "I guess I have no choice."

The man smirked. "Were you holding out on me?"

The woman spread out her arms, palms up.

"Oh no you don't," the man said, charging to stop her. He knew that when she opened her palms, she would spew fire, and he didn't know if he could dodge well enough not to get hurt.

Before he could land a blow to her temple, the woman's body engulfed in flames, fire wings spreading from her back, and she took flight. She hovered above the room the two fought in and spewed black smoke. She no longer cared to fight him and needed to get rid of him, so she hoped he would inhale the smoke and collapse.

The man couldn't see anything in the smoke, and knew that she was trying to knock him out. With a final smile, he turned into a shadow and dissipated in the ground, seeking shelter. "To have fought a phoenix and live. At least I can say this. But we will meet again someday, and I promise you that I will kill you with these hands of mine," he said laughing. His voice faded, and the woman was left alone.

She stopped emitting smoke and flew away to find the two that escaped her. She searched everywhere with her sharp eyes, and found only that while she was distracted fighting, her targets got away.

Angry, the woman flew above the building and rained flames down on it, making it explode into millions of pieces before she flew away.

In the forest just outside of the burnt building, the woman spotted two slain bodies. She flew down to them. One body was decapitated, and the other was of a female with gold hair. Her body was brutalized, and her onyx eyes were open. The woman touched the golden haired female's face, and instantly was rushed with memories of events that took place over a few days. The memories should have been longer, but the golden haired female was already dead, her memories fading.

What the woman caught was that the dead woman was related to her past life, and they belonged to a clan of phoenixes. She also learned that this dead woman was the family she lost to her two targets, which is what drove her to turn.

Not wanting to stick around any longer, the woman cremated the bodies out of respect, put their ashes in the cloth that the male was wrapped in, and took the ashes with her.

…

It is said that when a phoenix is born from the ashes of its previous life, it no longer retains the memories of its past life. It does not even retain the same name. The only way to regain those memories is to be emerged in it, meaning that the phoenix must be surrounded in an environment that has the things that once belonged to it. It must be surrounded by family and friends, so that the love and devotion that the phoenix once felt for them can be regained.

This phoenix was born in an environment filled with rage, anguish, hatred, and violence. The memories she obtained were that of devastation and grief, knowing that her two targets killed people who were once dear to her. She knew that she belonged to a guild, but she had no feelings of love or belonging to the guild, but her best bet was to go there and find out who she was.

…

But what awaited her was a guild filled with blood and bodies everywhere. There was no discrimination in the violence. Women and children were massacred as well.

As she walked through the guild, surveying the room, she saw a couple, the man with silver hair covering the woman with red hair. She looked at the couple, knowing that she should have felt something, but felt nothing. This was her clan, she knew that, yet the emotions she felt for them were empty. She touched as many faces as she could, regaining small memories of the last few days, and of the people who once belonged to her. Not knowing what else to do, she placed the cloth that held the ashes in the middle of the guild. Then she wrapped herself in the shawl the silver haired man was wearing, and left.

(*****)

The woman traveled for months, not knowing exactly where to go, or where the Shadows were. Stayed to herself and over the months, she got a chance to better analyze her changes.

She was a woman with orange, yellow, black and red hair that seemed to glow like flames. Her skin was tanned and she was toned. When she remembered the memories that she took from the golden haired dead woman, she saw her past life as a weakling, always sick. It was surprising to see herself now as a muscular person.

The things that stood out of her features were her eyes. Unlike the reds her body resembled now that she was a phoenix, her eyes were a bright blue, like the hottest part of a fire. When she was reborn, her whole eyes were pitch black, maybe because of her fury and rage, but now they were blue. She had to hide herself from the world so she wouldn't stand out.

(*****)

One day, the woman was traveling in a forest for a few days, quickly getting dehydrated for the lack of fresh water. Unable to muster up any more strength to move, she lied on the grassy floor and closed her eyes.

When she awoke, it was night, and for some odd reason, there was a campfire in front of her. She rose and looked at her surroundings. She was still in the same forest, but she was moved. Who the hell moved her?

Going on alert, the woman stood in defense. She didn't see anything move in between the trees, and the hairs on her neck didn't sense a threat, so who moved her, and why?

The crunching of leaves got her attention, and she readied to attack.

"So you're awake," a voice said before she could see who it belonged to. After a few more seconds, the person came through the trees, and she could see the male. He was average height, wearing long black pants, a black jacket, slippers and a weird looking scarf covering his hair like a bandana. His eyes were black and his stare was penetrating, letting her know that he was on the defense as well.

"Who are you?" she asked him.

"Isn't it in good nature to introduce yourself before you ask who I am?" the man asked. The woman just stared and he sighed. "Fine. I'm just someone who saw you lying on the grass. You probably were thirty, huh. It's not a good idea to not bring water when traveling in Dry Forest."

"Dry Forest?" the woman asked, a little puzzled.

"That's what these woods are called. There's no water here at all. The trees and the plants survive on the water particles in the air, but they don't grow for long. Twenty years max, which explains all the downed trees around. The closest water source from here is in the next town, and that's about a two-day trip if you're walking nonstop. Four days if you add in sleep, eating, and stopping to rest."

"Why are you here then?"

The man walked over to the fire and threw more wood in it. Then he sat on a log and opened a bag he had that contained meat of some sort. After arranging the meat on sticks and placing them over the fire, he held out a canteen of water to the woman, and she hesitantly took it. While she drank, he spoke. "I've been traveling for a little more than ten years, just wandering. I came here because it's on my way to the next town that I'm trying to get to."

"Why do you need to travel to this town?" the woman asked, handing back the canteen.

The man took it, drank from it, and then placed it back on the log. "I'm tracking someone."

"Who?"

The man sighed. "Well, to be more precise, it's a group of people."

"Why are you tracking them?"

The man stared at the fire in front of them, his onyx eyes glowing from the flames he was looking at, and without asking, he grabbed a stick of meat and handed it to the woman.

She stared at it a little resistant. "Why are you helping me?"

The man smirked. "You sure do ask a lot of questions. Aren't you hungry?"

She shook her head, not wanting to trust the man so easily, but her stomach growled giving away her lie, making the man laugh out loud. She blushed in embarrassment and grabbed the stick of meat, frowning at his mocking laughter. "Stop laughing at me, or I'll kill you."

"I'm sorry," he said, wiping away the tears. "That was just too funny. I knew you were hungry. If you didn't have water, chances are you didn't have food either. It's cool to be suspicious, but I'm eating the same food you are."

"That doesn't mean you didn't poison this stick."

The man looked at her with furrowed brows. "Why would I do that? I barely even know you, so why would I try to poison you?"

The woman shrugged. "You can never be too trusting. This world seems to be filled with deceit."

"You say that as if you're new to the world." When the woman didn't respond, the man took her stick and ate a piece of meat. "If you're gonna die, than I guess I will too."

The woman stared at him, and then finally ate the food, gaining a smile from him.

"By the way," he started while grabbing a stick for himself. "You asked me so much questions, yet you never told me about yourself. Who are you? Where are you from? What are you doing in a forest you're unfamiliar with?"

The woman swallowed, not really wanting to answer his questions, but knew that she would have to if she wanted him to answer hers. "I was wandering like you. I don't really have a set destination, and I don't belong anywhere."

"Are you a mage?"

The woman knew what a mage was. She had time to collect a lot of knowledge on her travels, and she was kind of familiar with that term from her past life. "I guess I am."

"You guess?"

She nodded. "Believe it or not, but I have few memories of who I was or anything. Mages use magic, yet what I have is natural. I heard someone once call it ancient magic, whatever that means."

"Ancient magic?"

"Magic that hasn't been used in a long time, and can only be presently used by a few mages."

The man stared at the flames with a hard stare. "Like slayer magic?"

She turned to face him. "Exactly. I'm a phoenix."

The man turned to look at her with puzzled eyes. "A phoenix? Never heard of it."

"Well I guess not every one would." The woman tossed the stick in the fire before grabbing another one.

The man did the same. "So, you have amnesia, right?" The woman nodded and he nodded once, signaling that he understood. "Sometimes I wish I couldn't remember. Then the pain would be gone," he said in a mumble.

The woman heard his words however, and it was her turn to look puzzled. "Why?"

He exhaled. "There are just some things in life that people shouldn't go through. Like being kicked out of a guild, or losing your magic…or losing a loved one."

"Did any of those ever happen to you?" the woman asked.

The man tossed his stick in the fire and stood up. "Only one of them." Then he drank from the canteen before lying on the floor. "I'm tired. I have a long trip ahead of me tomorrow, so I want to get some rest. You should rest too. You might as well follow me to town so you can get proper supplies for traveling."

The woman finished her meal and picked a spot next to the fire. She studied the flames, remembering her own flames that she spewed the day she was reborn. "Are you a mage?"

"Yeah," the man said after a moment.

"What kind of magic do you possess?"

After another pause, the man said, "I handle fire. That's all that you need to know."

The woman smiled. "Just like me."

The man rose up on his elbow and looked her way. "I just had an idea. You don't belong anywhere, yet you're a mage. I don't know how good you are, but you should try joining a guild."

The woman thought for a moment. "Guilds are weak. They try to protect one another, which just causes everyone's downfall."

"You should really hear how you talk. You're so gloomy. I don't know what happened to you and to be honest I don't care to, but not all guilds are weak. And wanting to protect each other is a strong suit, believe me."

"Whatever. I don't even know a lot of guilds. I'm fine on my own."

"You may say your fine, but you don't even carry proper gear. And don't worry, I know of a guild that will accept you."

The woman closed her eyes. "Whatever."

The man smiled and turned on his side to sleep.

When the woman woke up, the fire was out and the man was gone. He left behind a bag with a canteen of water, a hunting knife, a map and his scarf along with a note. The woman opened up the note and read it.

Head towards where I marked on the map. You'll find this really great guild that will accept you no matter what. If they asked who sent you, just give them my scarf. Good luck.

The woman looked at the map and saw where it was circled. "Magnolia?"

(*****)

After another month of traveling, she reached Magnolia. She managed to get enough money for an outfit and some minor supplies, and hoped that this guild wouldn't judge her because she had nothing. She looked at the X on the map where the guild was located and followed the direction.

After finally finding it, she looked at the flag over the building that held the guild's insignia. "Fairy Tail, huh?"

After a knock on the door and no response, the woman decided to enter. "Pardon the intrus−"

"How many times have I told you not to change your arm into a club! Stop following your father. You're a girl, Livia. Don't you want to be more like mommy?" a blue headed woman said.

"No way! Papa's the best! Let the new baby be like you," said a small kid with long black hair and a piercing in her nose.

"I can't because he's a boy, honey."

"Well he could be a bookworm like you, shrimp," said an older male, identical to the little girl but with more piercings, and a meaner look.

"I'm your wife, not a shrimp, and I don't want our daughter turning into metal, so stop teaching her to do those things please. She's ten."

"And I was a little younger than her when Metalicana taught me slayer magic."

"But she's ten!" the blue haired woman said in frustration.

"She's tough, right Liv?"

"Yup, Papa. I'm tough Mama."

"What part about you is tough? You're nothing but a crybaby, metal mouth!" said another little kid with long red hair, swinging a sword.

The black haired little girl turned and grinded her forehead onto the red head's. "What did you say, you momma's pet?"

"You heard me, iron face!"

Laughter was heard in the corner, amongst all of the other noises and voices. "This reminds Juvia of something," said another blue headed woman, who was rocking a child in her arms.

A male with short black hair approached her and scuffed. "Yeah. Reminds me of Erza and Mirajane back in the day. I guess Erza's preparing her little mini-me."

Laughter erupted, until an older version of the red headed girl appeared, glaring at the man who said the comment. "I wouldn't prepare my child for such nonsense. Besides, a little harmless rivalry is healthy for kids their age."

"Oh cut the bull. You and Mira used to go at it," the man said.

Another woman with long white hair appeared, laughing. "That is true. We were bad. Thank god my two boys didn't grow up to be that way."

The people started laughing.

Then the second blue headed woman shook her head. "No. Juvia wasn't here for that. I meant Gray-sama and Na−"

The woman knocked on the door, gaining everyone's attention. "Oh, sorry for intruding but I was sent here."

The white haired woman approached the woman at the door. "Hello. Are you here to see someone?"

The woman shook her head. "Actually, I was sent by someone to join your guild. I don't know his name, but he gave me this to give to you guys upon my entry."

The woman pulled out the scarf from her bag and handed it to the white haired woman. She could hear a collection of gasps, especially from the woman she was handing the scarf to. "This can't be…" the white haired woman said, and then fell to her knees.

"Mira!" a collection of voices said, as they rushed to the fallen woman's side. They all saw the scarf and knew what it meant.

The man with the short black hair approached her next. "Do you know the person who gave this to you?"

The phoenix shook her head. "I guess we never got to where he told me who he was. He just told me to come here, since I had nowhere else to go. But maybe this was a mistake."

"Or maybe it was a blessing." Everyone turned their heads towards the voice, and the phoenix saw that an older, much shorter man was approaching them. She could feel power radiate off of him, and she instantly knew that he was the leader. "If the person who I know it is sent you here, than it cannot be a mistake."

Even though she could see the shock and surprise on everyone's face after showing the scarf to them, they all nodded and agreed with the short old man, which confused her. Why were they so trusting? Since she was reborn, all she ever knew was deceit, but then again, she trusted the mysterious man in the forest to come to this guild. What was wrong with her?

"Come. I would like to get to know your story," the old man said.

She shook her head. "That won't be necessary. I don't have a story."

The old man turned and walked away. "Everyone has a story."

Eyes turned back to her, and she knew that she would follow this man. Why? She still didn't have the answer.

(*****)

The old man sat Indian style on his desk, his eyes closed, arms crossed, and he was in deep thought. "To think that your story was this. In all of my young years of living, of course I heard of a phoenix, but I have never seen one myself. They're rare, but the fact that you are here before me is truly magical."

"I assure you, I'm nothing special," the woman countered.

The old man shook his head and opened his eyes. "You're ancient magic, something that should be treasured, but something that should be able to fly freely, which is why Fairy Tail is perfect for you. You said that you don't remember your old family. Well, why not try to make a new one?"

The woman thought about his offer. She knew what the word family was, but she never knew what it meant. In the little memories that she had, her old guild was technically family, but they all died so easily, and if she thought about it, they died because of her. Did she want to risk that with this guild, a guild she knew nothing about? Did she want to taint them with her presence?

The old man chuckled, which brought her up. "Whatever happened in your past, we will never judge you. And being here will not taint us."

Her eyes widened. Could he read minds too?

He laughed again. "Your face."

She smiled. Smiled. He made her smile. In all her months after being reborn, she never smiled, and this little old man, made her smile. Would life be like this from now on if she decided to join them?

The old man got off of his desk and approached the woman's side. "Fairy Tail will welcome you, whenever you're ready."

"But I don't even have a name. How can you want a person like me to join you? A person with no name?"

The old man thought for a second. "Well, even if you remember a little bit of your old life, what you've given me is enough to know that you were a defender. You wanted to protect those around you no matter what, even if you were weak. Alyx, the defender. It's an honorable name, fit for an honorable person like you."

She didn't know if she agreed that she was honorable, but she did like that name.

(*****)

Four months later, Alyx was a proud member of Fairy Tail. After introducing herself, and letting everyone know about her short life after being reborn, especially about her being a phoenix, the guild welcomed her with open arms.

And the children especially adored her, following her everywhere she went, which hindered her when she wanted to take missions. They all thought that she was 'cool', following her hoping that she would be able to teach them her magic. She often told them that she was not a good teacher. It didn't stop the little buggers.

Alyx took a trip to a town called Ryvers, a place that was the supposed birthplace of the first phoenix. She never stopped trying to find out about her life, and being in Fairy Tail gave her resources she needed. The town was a two-day trip on a train, far from her guild.

Which made her shocked anger understandable when she turned at a café to see the buggers right behind her. "Are you guys crazy!? Do you know how far we've come? Your parents must be out of their minds right now wondering where you are?"

Livia grinned. "As if our parents don't know where we are. They know that we've been attached to your hip since day one. Why would they stop us?"

Alyx walked over to the black haired girl and grabbed the opened knapsack she was carrying. Inside was Livia's four-month-old baby brother. Alyx picked the baby up, who was smiling and looking like he was having a jolly old good time. "I don't know, this might be a great reason to stop you. Tetsuo belongs home with his mother, not traveling with the lot of you." Then Alyx looked at Scarlet and Creed, who were trying to shelter little JoJo behind them. "And JoJo belongs with her parents. Lord knows Juvia must be going crazy."

"She wanted to come," Scarlet defended.

"She's two. I doubt she knows what you're up to."

Law approached Alyx next, with Demon, who was covered from head to toe in his usual cloak and bandana, behind him. "Look, no matter what you say, we're gonna follow you."

Alyx sighed, it was true. They'd follow her to the ends of the world until she caved in. She admired them for that. "I have to take you back."

The protests were loud and strong, every one of them, even baby Tetsuo in her arms squirmed. "Why? We just want to get strong," Livia yelled.

"You have all your life to get strong, and from many teachers."

"But we want you to teach us," Scarlet said with a serious tone.

"I don't know how to teach."

"We'll help you," Livia said, very determined.

Alyx had to laugh. They were stubborn, which was a product of Fairy Tail. She sighed. "I'll think about it, but not here. Let's go back home. I don't want your parents killing me, especially Juvia."

The kids cheered, feeling good that Alyx caved in, and they all headed back to return home to Fairy Tail. The journey was long, but it gave the kids time to pester Alyx some more.

…

What they returned to was like something out of their worst nightmare.

The building was in ruins, some parts flamed, some parts torn apart. It looked like a war zone. Alyx stopped the children from going inside to look for their parents, and told them to wait in the forest. She ran like hell into the building, but wished she hadn't.

Everyone she knew, everyone she grew to admire and respect, everyone who welcomed her with open arms, were slaughtered. The scene reminded her of when she walked into White Phoenix and saw nothing but blood splattering the walls and bodies lying everywhere.

Alyx ran to a corner and threw up. She cried so loudly that she almost missed the scream Livia ripped out. The kids ignored her and followed her inside. She didn't want them to witness this.

"Get out of here. All of you!" she yelled, trying to push them away.

"No! No! Mom! Dad! No!" Law screamed. He fought and struggled against Alyx's grip trying to get to his parents, who were on the floor, dead. All of the other kids followed suit, and Alyx had no choice.

In all her time being in Fairy Tail, she never showed her guild mates her true powers, scared that they might find her too intimidating to stay, which was pretty ridiculous since everyone showed themselves off on a regular basis. She closed her eyes, inhaled deeply and then exhaled, opening her eyes to reveal pitch black irises. She expanded her arms, and her body was engulfed in flames. Fire wings spread from her back, and she engulfed the children in them, picking them up and flying them away.

Of course they protested, but they calmed down after witnessing Alyx's powers. She made sure that the fire she engulfed them in were comforting, nothing that would harm them. She flew two neighboring towns away, and settled them in a cave she found in the forest.

They broke her already broken heart, huddling together and crying, while trying to soothe and comfort each other. She wanted to break down and cry too, but she had to be strong for them. When she assured herself that they would be fine, she turned and began strolling away.

"Wait!" Livia yelled after. Alyx turned to her and saw her swollen red face with tear marks down her cheeks. "You're not going alone. I want to go too. They were my parents, and I want to find the bastards that did this too!"

Alyx knew this was coming. The other kids agreed and refused to let her go back alone. So she said the only thing that would allow her to leave without them. "I'm not taking revenge. I'm just going back to collect their memories of what happened. And if it's revealed who did this, then I promise you that I will come back here, and we will devise a plan to take action together. Right now, my job is to keep you alive, because who ever targeted them, was after all Fairy Tail mages. Which means you're not safe there."

"Swear that you'll come right back," Scarlet demanded.

Alyx nodded. "I swear." And then she took flight.

…

Two days.

The attack happened right after she left for Ryvers. And although she wanted to be surprised, she wasn't in the least shocked to find out that the assailants were Shadows. What she gathered from her comrades memories were that Shadow King found out that Alyx was now in Fairy Tail, and he demanded her. When the Fairies refused, he went to war. Fairy Tail put up one hell of a fight, but they ultimately fell… even Master.

Before he left, he turned and looked the master in his eyes and said, "I know you will see what took place here today. I advise you to return to me willingly before I destroy this world that you know of, which will commence real soon, my sweet phoenix."

Then him and his lackeys left. She recognized Prince, who didn't get his hands dirtied, and the black haired purple eyed man she fought the day she was reborn. He was guarding Prince, not joining in. He wore that grin she hated so much, and before she knew it, she was breaking down. She cried blood rain that hit the floor and created sparks.

This was her fault. She knew that this might happen, yet Makarov…

She stood up, extended her arms, palms up and created a wind fire, incinerating her dear comrades, and collected their ashes when she was finished. She wanted to take the building with her and put it somewhere else, but she didn't have the time. She had to return to the children.

…

She found them right where she left them. They rushed her when she returned and hugged her closely. They all cried heavily that night, Alyx turning back to her blue eyed self, and being the kids' wall to lean on.

(********)

Normal POV:

"Days later, the Shadows were destroying everything. Magnolia was wiped away, and we just kept moving. That's when we stumbled on DJ. He didn't even ask what happened. He just took us in. He told us his intention to fight the Shadows and he warned that preparing could take years. We didn't have years. The Shadows were destroying everything, so years didn't please us. Then DJ explained the whole 'jumping back in time' bit.

"Before we left, I carried Fairy Tail here to this time with us, and DJ hid it here. I didn't tell the kids. It was something I needed to do. I was attached, especially since it was my first real home as Alyx. I couldn't let it go, and I needed them focused. We've been preparing for four years now to fight the Shadows, learning Shade magic mixed with our own, and I couldn't be more proud of them all. Now is the time. I can feel them coming. Which is why I needed to tell you about myself."

Alyx looked down at the Fairies. Natsu held Lucy, who couldn't stop crying, and neither could Lisanna. "How awful…" she let escape.

Alyx sighed and held baby Tenjin tighter. "Yeah, it was. And you can imagine how terrible I felt knowing that it was all my fault."

"It was not your fault!" Natsu said sharply. He looked Alyx dead in her eyes, and he was serious. "That was not your fault. Fairy Tail was protecting you, something we would do again and again. It was those bastards' fault, and I swear to you they'll pay for what they did."

Alyx looked at him for a minute, and then she smiled. She stared at his scarf that was wrapped around his neck and her grin widened. "You were a lot cooler, or I should say calmer, in those days." Her words barely registered to Natsu, and Alyx stood up and urged for the others to do so. She walked over to Lucy and placed Tenjin in her arms. Then she wiped Lucy's tears. "I didn't tell you this to make you cry. I told you because I need you to understand the situation. Whatever Prince is after, it deals with you and your kids, and I refuse to hand you over."

Lucy nodded, still tearing, and cuddled Tenjin to her cheek. Alyx's backstory was nothing but pain and heartache, and Lucy didn't know which was worse, knowing Alyx's suffering or knowing that her future son had a hand in it. She just wanted to cry for days, but if Alyx could be strong, so could she.

"So what's the plan?" Natsu asked. He didn't want to waste anytime, and wanted to prepare for the upcoming battle.

Alyx turned to him and then pointed at his family. "The plan is for you all to stay here and guard these babies and Lucy. You can't afford to risk them finding this place." Alyx could see Natsu's protest, but she cut him off. "I don't want to hear it. Your family should be your only concern. It might be the toughest job yet."

Natsu wanted to say 'fuck that', but Alyx was right. His first and only priority was to Lucy and the twins. "Damn it!" it yelled anyway. He wasn't angry that he wasn't going to be apart of the fight, but he was annoyed that he could slug the person responsible, even if it was his own son.

Elliot walked over to Natsu and placed Blaez in his arms. "We're going back. Don't worry. I fixed up the guild so that it's comfortable enough to stay in. There's food and a place for you all to sleep. When everything is over, we'll come back for you. Please stay here." That was Elliot. To the point. She walked away knowing Alyx probably had more to say.

Alyx smiled. She turned to Lisanna, glanced at Happy and then back. "I want you to stay here too. I can't stop you if you want to follow me, but I'd be more comfortable if you stayed."

Lisanna thought about it. She wanted to help in the fight, but she knew her place was here with Lucy and Natsu, protecting the babies. And she hated the part of herself that worried about seeing the family together, especially in a time of war.

Alyx put her hands on Lisanna's shoulders in comfort. "I know it's a lot I'm asking you, but we both know that it's best if you're here."

Lisanna nodded without saying a word, and agreed.

Alyx smiled and nudged her. "Besides, you have nothing to worry. One of the kids I brought with me is your son," she said for only the white haired mage to hear.

Lisanna's eyes grew with shock as Alyx walked away. Talk about dropping bombshells.

Alyx walked over to Lucy and Natsu and touched both their shoulders. "I can't promise that the fight won't come this way, but we will fight our damn hardest to make sure it doesn't." She looked Natsu in the face. "I leave them to you. Don't piss me off, or I'll show you what being a phoenix is all about."

Natsu scuffed and grinned a toothy grin. "As if a dragon could be scared of a damn bird."

Alyx kissed Lucy's cheek, and then each of the twins before walking away. "If you're a dragon, then I'm a damn pigeon and we both know that's bullshit."

Lucy smiled at Alyx's comment and Natsu reaction. She watched as her guardian walked away from them. Natsu put his arm around her shoulder and she burrowed into him. "It's gonna be okay, Luce. I'm not letting anyone take my family away from me."

"That's right," Lisanna said, coming up on them and carrying Happy. "We'll protect you guys no matter what."

Lucy nodded, a fresh batch of tears threatening to escape, and they walked into the future guild of Fairy Tail.

AN: I hoped you liked it. Please leave a review. Also, the war starts after this chapter, so look forward to that, and it might take me awhile to update my story, so I hope you stay patient with me. I love you all! Until next time :) Oh and P.S. I know this chapter seemed long, and it was, but the site also adds invisible words to my word count, so you didn't read as much as you thought ;)