THERE IS SOMETHING IMPORTANT AT THE END OF THIS CHAPTER. HOWEVER IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE STORY. IF YOU'RE NOT INTERESTED, THEN BY ALL MEANS I'M NOT FORCING ANY OF YOU TO READ IT.

Thank you.

- CMO

They had always been together when they were younger. Well, she was always around him. Like a sick puppy who was overly attached to their master. This was because Laxus, as well as Makarov, were some of the first few humans who had interacted with her since her foster dragon had gone missing. Minus the thugs that she had come across before meeting the Dreyars that is. So she was use to whenever the lightning mage would yell at her. She knew at heart, he didn't mean to…most of the time. That's just how he is. He tries to hide everything from her and covers it up with fits of anger and rude remarks.

Like any normal human beings, they have argued before. One argument got so bad to the point where Laxus accidentally used his own magic against his female friend. It was a frightening experience for the both of them, but mostly for Tamaki. The boy immediately regretted what he did and tried apologizing for it. Tamaki, however, learned what Laxus was capable of and grew to fear him.

"Cut it out Laxus! Sulking around and being a pissy little brat won't make Jii-Jii reconsider your father's excommunication!" A teenage girl spat at her male friend who continued to glare at her.

"How about you shut the fuck up and mind your own damn business?!" The angered teen roared back.

"Why don't you understand that your father was trying to harm the guild?! Jii-Jii did what was best for his guild. Our guild!"

"But he's my father." Laxus growled through clenched teeth.

"He doesn't even want to call you his son, Laxus! He considers you a burden! You need to realize that you have your Dragon Slayer magic because your father couldn't stand the fact that you were a weak child! How much time do you even spend with your father, huh? How many times have you even heard him call you son? Jii-Jii is a better father figure to you than you'll ever realize!"

"Don't talk to me like you know my life story! You're nothing but a damn orphan! You wouldn't know the feeling of having a father! Your real family didn't even want you! And even your foster father dragon left your ass! So don't talk down to me like you know me!"

In an instant, a bolt of lightning came crashing from the sky and onto the current position of the teenage girl. She screamed out of immense pain and immediately fell to her knees the moment the lightning disappeared. The boy was panting hard and had the look to kill in his eyes. Upon realizing what he had just done, his shoulders slumped over and his eyes widened at the sight.

"T-Tamaki…I-I…" He paused for a moment before running over to her. "Tamaki! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-" He reached out to grab her shoulder but she instantly pulled away from him.

"S-Stay away from me!" She screamed before pushing him over and getting up as quickly as her slightly damaged body could manage to run away. The teen landed on his rear with a loud thud and watched the girl as she ran away.

He had made a big mistake…he hurt one of the few people he cared for most in this world.

"Idiot!" The young teen cursed himself. He figured the best thing to do would be to make sure she's really alright. He made his way over to his room, well, their room. The door was closed and he could tell she was already in there. "Oi…Tamaki…can we-"

"Beat it, Laxus." Came the voice from within the room.

"Really…?" The boy growled. Refusing to let his temper get the better of him once again, he sighed heavily and knocked on the door again. "Look…as long as I know you can hear me, all I need to say is this: I'm sorry Tamaki. I'm really sorry. I don't blame you if you don't forgive me. But I'm still sorry about what I did. You know I'd never hurt you like that. If it makes you feel better, I promise to never use my magic anywhere near you ever again. When we go on jobs, I'll use my fists and let you handle the magic. Well…that's if you ever want to go on jobs with me anymore." There was no response from the girl so the boy sighed again. "That's it, I guess. Sorry Tamaki." The boy began to make his way away from the door before it opened slowly.

"Terragon always told me: 'Take note of what one says when they're upset, for that is when the true thoughts and feelings come out.'" The girl said softly as she only looked at the ground.

"…" The boy remained silent. He suddenly remembered what he had said during their argument. To her, that could've hurt more than his actual lightning attack. He was certain that nothing could hurt more than remembering the fact that not only did her real family leave her, but her foster parent as well. "I…I was really pissed…I'm sure you knew that…but I guess no matter what I say, I can't take back what's already been said…" He paused for a moment, waiting for a response from her but got nothing. "I know, I'm an ass…but I'm telling the truth when I say that I'm glad you were an orphan…well…not exactly but…mmm…you know, I wouldn't have met you if you were still with your family and stuff…agh!" Becoming frustrated, he ruffled his hair with his hands furiously.

"Stop, I know what you mean…I'm glad I met you too, jerk." The girl let out a small chuckle.

Tamaki couldn't help but smile softly to herself as she reminisced about the past. Laxus had kept true to his word. Never once did he use his magic near her. It wasn't hard to tell that he still had that nasty temper of his though.

Nothing has changed about him.

xXxXxXxXxXx

"God dammit."The lightning mage swore under his breath within the confinements of his room.

At the moment, it was rather easy to determine his current mood as he stood with his fists shaking. The entire situation that had just taken place in his living room with a certain Earth Dragon Slayer left him furious.

Why?

He was aware of the fact that his childhood friend wasn't weak, which is why the girl had stood her ground against the raging lightning mage. And that was something he respected. However, it's because of her that he began to notice his own faults in the way he's been acting previously. He's becoming weak. Something that he hated. His feelings for his old friend is what's triggering this change. He knows too well that if she were any other woman he came across, he would've been over her the same night he found her.

But that wasn't the case.

She had wandered into his guild bearing the same face as…her, someone he thought he had lost years ago.

But it was her.

And upon reuniting with her, old feelings began to stir and turned him into some kind of…kind-hearted monster. He knew he wasn't being himself lately. Mainly…when he was around her.

Disgusting.

He sneered at the thought. The thought of being weak. Or even noticing the fact that he can label himself as weak. He hated how she's the reason he's weak. This reminded him that he was currently a member of a weak guild. One that was nearly destroyed and humiliated by another guild. The same guild whose members were now a part of Fairy Tail.

How pathetic.

A loud thud echoed throughout the room as the Lightning Dragon Slayer's facial features hardened. His right hand had lodged itself into the wall in front of him. It was his only way to relieve a bit of anger at the moment. He pulled his hand out of the wall and glared at his closed fist. He clicked his tongue before swiftly turning away from the wall and retreating to his bed. Anymore time he would spend awake would definitely result in more holes in his house.

xXxXxXxXxXx

The green-eyed earth mage sighed to herself. Perhaps it was time to call it a night. At this rate, she figured she'd end up spending most of her day sleeping. It doesn't help that her head felt about ready to burst. She had been overthinking various things and situations. She was well overdue for some sleep. The only thing that was nagging at her mind was how Laxus had been the only one who actually remembered her existence. None of her other guild mates did. Not even her caretaker, Makarov.

"What did you do to me…Stryker…?" She whispered into the dark, quiet house before closing her eyes for the night.

xXxXxXxXxXx

A certain lightning mage didn't get as much sleep as he would've liked the previous night. This only put the man in a very, very poor mood. The entire night, all he could think about was her…and what she was doing to him.

All it took was a few sleepless hours last night for him to come to a conclusion. Now that she has regained her memories, she doesn't need his help anymore. And most certainly, he didn't need her. He didn't need to look after her like a lost child anymore. He'll continue to let her stay in his house for the time being, but he expects her to move out as soon as she saves up enough money for her own place.

The male Dragon Slayer proceeded with his day by getting himself dressed and making his way out of his room. He was instantly greeted with the sight of the brunette, who was the source of his current headache. From the looks of it, it seems that she had been awake way before him. She sat there on the couch, fiddling with her thumbs, before she turned to look at him.

"Laxus…good morning." She gave him a small, sad smile. Laxus knew the look and greeting was her slow way of apologizing and forgetting what took place last night.

"Tch. Morning." He replied with a single sneer and click of his tongue. Not another word was spoken as he continued to make his way over to the front door. He had originally planned to go look for jobs today and that's exactly what he was going to do.

"Hm?" The girl on the couch hummed with a slightly confused tone. Her eyebrows furrowed at her blonde headed friend before questioning him. "Where are you going?" She asked as she stood up from her sitting position on the couch.

"Out." Laxus replied coldly, without giving Tamaki so much as a passing glance. "I'm going to look for jobs. And you should too." And with a single slam of the door, the lightning mage had already exited the house. Leaving both dragon slayers to their own thoughts.

Laxus knew that he worked too hard to obtain the reputation he already possessed. He wasn't ready to let her take that away from him. He wasn't going to let her drag him down anymore.

Not her. Not Fairy Tail. Not anyone.

xXxXxXxXxXx

Meanwhile, the female dragon slayer continued to stand in the middle of Laxus' living room, staring at the front door.

What the hell was that about? She pondered to herself with a slightly confused, but sad look. "What's biting his ass…?" She said out loud to no one in particular.

Of course it was obvious that he was mostly still upset about what had happened last night. But Laxus' wasn't some sort of immature teenager who liked to hold grudges for silly reasons. She expected him to be over the incident. It didn't seem like that was the case though. He didn't even look her in the eyes once since he emerged from his room.

Was this all still about the argument they had last night?

She wondered in silence. Deciding it was best not to dwell on the subject or to worry about the lightning mage, Tamaki continued on with her day by getting dress. Perhaps even pay the guild a visit as well. She'd be able to see some familiar faces.

Speaking of familiar faces…

She doesn't recall seeing Natsu, Happy, Gray, or Erza when she stumbled into the guild just a few days ago. Usually Natsu and Gray would be causing a ruckus, assuming they haven't changed much in a three year span...or that they didn't kill each other already. Erza or Happy usually aren't far from the other two either.

They became a close bunch of friends that Tamaki didn't mind having around. But this was after she got comfortable with the company of other humans.

"I hope nothing bad happened to them." Worst case scenarios ran through the young mage's mind. With a shake of her head, she instantly got rid of them.

No, they should be fine.

She reassured herself. Certainly Erza wouldn't let anything happen to them and she is more than capable of protecting herself. "Well, only one way to find out. To the guild." The brunette quickly made her way to the front door to start her trek back to her family.

Fairy Tail.

Thank you for being patient with me. College sure is kicking me in the rear, I'll say. Mentally and financially. Which is why I have a very important question for you readers.

Currently, I'm trying to find a way to pay off some of my college textbooks (aren't we all?). Unfortunately, I'm finding it quite difficult to do so. At the moment, I'm only renting my textbooks, because that's the only thing I can afford for now. I would like to purchase them in full by the end of the semester because I will need them for the next few semesters.

I've been desperately trying to find a job on-campus but no one is hiring or there is always someone better suited for the job than I. I've applied to a few places off campus too. I was willing to ride the public bus for an hour if I managed to get hired off-campus. However, no one was willing to work with my class schedule. Sigh.

I mean, I've gotten a decent amount of money back from scholarships and I saved up a bunch from my summer retail job but all that is going towards rent for my apartment and bills. I'm running out of options.

So, my question is: If I were to start taking commissions, for one-shots or drawings, would any of you be interested?

My writing talent isn't great...but perhaps there are ideas that you, the readers, want to see me publish? Side chapters to this story maybe? One-shots for your OC? Self-inserts?

My drawing skills aren't anything to brag about either. But maybe you guys want a drawing for your own story? Or maybe you just want to see your OCs become more than just a mental image stuck in your head?

I'm sure your decisions will most likely depend on prices. I'm willing to make the prices at a reasonable price. Times are hard for everyone, not just me. But I'm willing to go out on a limb and put out some of my skills for sale.

I'm still on a job hunt though but until then, I would like to spend my free time trying to make some sort of money. I definitely wouldn't mind spending that free time making money by drawing or writing.

I'll be making a poll on my profile so let me know what you guys think. Feel free to PM me with any thoughts or perhaps suggestions on the matter. I don't mind any thoughts about this subject being in a review but I rather know everyone's opinion of the story thus far in the reviews. Also, if I follow through with this, I have a separate tumblr account that will hold price information. I'll be sure to let you guys know of any new information regarding this.

Also, for those who are curious about my drawings, you can check out my deviantart profile: CallmeOptimus or FFsGunslingerVincent. I would suggest looking at the first one, which has my newest drawings and my current drawing capabilities.

Thank you all for your time and consideration. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Things are really starting to get heated up between these two dragon slayers. What awaits our Earth Dragon Slayer at Fairy Tail?