【Re:Freezing】 | Gray Fullbuster x OC

41. X791 Homecoming

Noise.

Shouting.

Crying.

Karissa's eyes opened when the noise wouldn't settle down. Her mind fuzzy from sleep, she squinted and slowly pushed herself up into a sitting position.

What happened?

With a groggy hand, she rubbed her eye and then frowned when the noise got louder. She was noticing how Gray, Erza, Juvia, Gildarts, Gajeel and Levy were around her. They were either coming to or just sitting there in pure confusion.

"What happened?" Cana, who was next to her, wondered as she scratched her head.

"THERE THEY ARE!"

"THANK GOODNESS!"

Lazily, Karissa turned and found several unfamiliar people running towards them all. She was barely able to comprehend what was happening and then found herself being barreled into. She yelped and rolled around with whoever threw themselves at her. Confused and annoyed,  she let out a growl, she pushed their head away from the crook of her neck and barked out, "Who the hell are you, creep?"

The person only laughed merrily and wiped his tears and pointed at his face. He had short straight and slightly wavy hair with a stubble on his chin. There was something familiar about him that her sleepy mind was alerting her about.

"It's me! Max!"

Karissa's paused and squinted her eyes. "... Eh?"

"What happened to your face?!" Max patted her face that had bandages over it.

Around them, members from the Tenrou Island team were getting greeted by similar tearful behaviours. The woman in the group had familiar long green hair and remarking clothing style that reminded her of a certain mage. The others were also beginning to show signs of familiarity as she let the image sink in her brain.

"What's going on...?"

...

...

...

Fairy Sphere.

One of the great spells of Fairy Tail.

In their dire hour, the spirit of Mavis Vermillion, the First Master, came to their aid as they prepared to cast a defensive spell to protect themselves from Acnologia's attack. She converted their power into Fairy Sphere. The sphere is impervious to any attack. However, it acts as a chamber of stasis, keeping everyone sealed away, untouched by the hands of time. It is only after seven years that the spell finally deactivated. She was also the one also revealed Tenrou Island to those who were searching for it, acting as the guardian of the scions of her guild.

Makarov smiled tearfully, grateful for her help. "So then... the First Master protected all of us."

The spirit of the young woman shook her head with a soft smile. "No. I am but a disembodied spirit. It was all I could do to transform all of your magic. Your unwavering trust and strong bonds were what called forth this miracle." Then she beamed a happy smile to everyone was she began fading away in golden light. Her long hair floated around her. "The guild's done well, Third Master!"

Everyone could only watch in awe she completely vanished before their eyes.

"Well, damn." Van finally said.

―

Before leaving Tenrou Island, everyone made a quick search for belongings and were relieved to find them still intact. The Fairy Sphere really protected the whole island. Gray and Karissa were already on the ship and waiting for the others to get on. Juvia, being the love savage that she was, tried hobbling over to them. Even after being sealed away after seven years, her main concern was Gray, again. Karissa could only wonder how she didn't think of her rent at Fairy Hills first, it wasn't exactly cheap. She was currently being healed by Wendy who wanted to help her stop relying on a crutch. For most people, their wounds somehow recovered even while being in stasis while some still had a bit of trouble.