VERiTY (Fairy Tail Fanfic)

34. Regathering Will.

Eir woke up with a jolt.

He's sweaty. Disorientation came with the nightmare-- he was vaguely aware of it, but he couldn't for the life of him remember what the dream was about.

Sitting up, he breathed out, slowly. Then he took a breath again.

Instinctively, he reached a hand-- oh, Cana's laying on his right arm-- toward his guild mark, resting the warmth against the gently pulsing magic from the guild insignia.

"Are you sure you want it here?" Master had asked, once upon a time. "It will cover the scars, but it won't erase what's left behind."

Eir had nodded. "I'm sure."

He didn't want to see it again. They will remain on his skin forever, but at least behind the guild mark, he can link it to better things forward.

Even now, he could feel the bumps in the skin over his side, a thin trail of holes, followed by hastily scratched out patterns of what used to be numbers and letters.

His mind drifted back to Adi, to the gruesome dig of a wound on her side. Had she cut it out with her skin? Is that what her scars were?

He shook his head from the thought.

There was no point in thinking of that and them and there. That was just another part of what used to be him-- like his previous life, it's just a part and parcel of humanity-- but it is no longer part of him. He could just forget it, and no one would even care.

Because if he told no one, no one would ever know.

That's how it should be.

-

He spent the rest of his time watching the birds on the tree.

Cana was sleeping soundly, and Levy was a little further out, against the couch and Bickslow. Gray was asleep on the floor, curled up like a kitten. His shirt was nowhere to be seen (Eir soon made the connection that it was draped over Levy over there). 

Laxus wasn't around, but Eir knew he was nearby.

He enjoyed it-- being beside them like this, somewhere so close. He only wished they were all within arm's reach, but that would be too clingy, wouldn't it?

The sun was slowly rising over the edge of the mountain, and he could faintly hear the clatter of a town getting ready for the day. They were in the capital, after all-- there's much more life here than back in Magnolia.

There's a shutter of tents being set up for morning markets. A man hollers at another to bring a box of something, somewhere. People chat. Carriages are being drawn by horses. People were waking up with the world, and everything was coated in a thin layer of slowly dissipating mist.

It was a nice, peaceful cacophony.

Eir felt himself coming back into the world, and with each breath, he felt like he could go on again. Leave yesterday behind him, like every other day.

He'll be fine. He's always been fine, after all.

He lay back down, pulling his other arm around Cana-- and went back to sleep.

-