Face Your Fears (Fairy Tail Fanfic)

Glimpse Into The Past

{REIKI'S POV}
It feels like a sick joke. Fighting through all that chaos, only to be stuck with an adorable little bunny in the end. This isn't the heroic climax I envisioned.

I'm not stupid. I can tell just by looking at it that it's the S-class monster.

The bunny radiates magic power just like the former master does when he's really angry. But Lexi's Great Grandpa's magic is warm, protective. This magic is far more malevolent. I take a protective stance.

The hairs on the back of my neck tingle. Something's wrong. I remember what Chapati told us when explaining the point value of the S-class. When it's the only monster remaining, it will triple in size and become way more violent.

I've beaten every other monster in the colosseum, so why hasn't it grown bigger yet? Instinctively, I spin.

I turn my back on my opponent and raise my sword horizontally. It clashes with a maw of teeth. I push back a second white bunny that climbed through the hatch while I was staring at the first.

Two S-class monsters? Is this a secret plot devised to make the event different and more interesting than the last time when Mom competed?

Because I'm outside now, I can actually hear Chapati's commentary. "Wha-Wha-Wha-Wha-Wha-What's this?! We've confirmed that Reiki has defeated 99 monsters. Only the S-class should be left. But why are there two? This is unbelievable!"

Maybe a second one snuck into Pandemonium this morning when no one was looking and they didn't check on the monsters first before starting because we were early. The how doesn't really matter now.

A lacrima flies up to me and the panicked pumpkin face of Mato-kun appears. "Reiki-kun, we're going to pull you out of Pandemonium right away-kabo! Due to the unusual circumstances, we'll allow you to keep all the points you've earned so far, so—"

"No!" I reply vehemently. "I said I was going to beat 100 monsters, and that's exactly what I'm going to do! I'm not giving up now!"

Am I a stubborn idiot? Maybe. But hey, I'm a Fairy Tail wizard. Stubborn idiocy is what we do best. If my parents can fight an entire fricking empire, I can fight twin bunnies. Besides, I'm still having fun.

Mato-kun looks conflicted for a second. Then he sighs. "You aren't going to change your mind are you-kabo? Since you have to fight off two, I'm going to bend you the rules and tell you about the S-class monsters you're up against-kabo."

I can accept that much help. I nod.

"They're called Osore Rabbits-kabo. Their saliva contains a potent hallucinogen, one that causes you to relive your worst memory over and over, which is why they're also known as Fear Reapers-kabo. Once they latch their teeth into their prey, they'll continue to pump the hallucinogen into the bloodstream until your heart explodes from fear-kabo. Avoid their teeth and you'll be fine-kabo."

The lacrima flies off. Avoid the mouths. Got it. I ready myself and raise my swords.

The next few minutes are spent with the Fear Reaper rabbits lunging and trying to bite me, and me knocking their mouths away with my swords. It'll take forever at this rate.

A heart-pounding level of adrenaline is no longer enough to mask the splintering pain in my left leg, reminding me that it's broken. Oh yeah, I forgot that bone is totally mulch. Oops.

I collapse with a gasp. So this is what they were waiting for. The rabbits knew I was injured since they've been observing me the whole time.

The leg muscles of both bunnies tense. I know what's about to happen, but I can't dodge or stop it with fiery pain consuming all of my senses.

I know what my worst memory is. Nine years ago, the day Lexi was traumatized and all my magic power got sealed away. The day we met the snake and our terrible fate was stalled.

I raise my arms and beckon them. "Come at me. I'll overcome your hallucinogen."

The rabbits lunge simultaneously. Their jaws lock around my arms and the pinch of their teeth is the last thing I register before swirling into darkness.

I sit up, groggy from sleep. What happened? I was just on the top of the Pandemonium colosseum and now I'm in... is this Magnolia?

It's different from present day. This is the Magnolia of my past. The entire world is murky. I'm able to walk just fine and I have no cuts or burns. I slap myself, but I don't feel any pain. This isn't my real body. I'm inside the Fear Reaper's hallucination.

Two kids race down the street. They run straight through my body without even noticing my existence. Of course, because this is my memory of nine years ago. All of this has already happened.

"We're going to train in the East Forest for a bit!" The girl shouts merrily, waving her arms.

"We'll be back by dinner!" The boy agrees.

They won't be back by then. I wish I could tell them not to go and stop it all from ever happening. How different would our lives be? But I can't. This is a memory of what was, and I'm merely a bystander as my younger self and Lexi run off down the street.

The hallucination compels me to follow us, so I watch as Lexi shocks me with her static electricity and giggles when I yell at her.

"Na na na boo boo! Can't catch me!" Lexi sticks out her tongue as her body dissolves into lightning and she blasts down the road with a thunderous boom, leaving behind the smell of ozone.

"Get back here!" Young Reiki yells playfully. "Oh, you're asking for it! Meteor!"

My young body is surrounded by a snowy glow as the magic that I haven't been able to use since the incident activates. Heavenly body magic requires more magic power to maintain than I have access to even now after my available magic power has grown through years of training. Even when I try, it drains my magic power too quickly to be feasible in battle.

I continue to relive every second as the first few hours of the day go by uneventfully. Lexi and I are going all out, hurling our strongest spells at one another with reckless abandon.

Has it been hours in real life too? How close is my heart to exploding? Will I die soon and be spared from living through this all again?