Phoenix Fire || Fairy Tail [1]

𝐱𝐱𝐱𝐢. 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭

𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙜: 𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙤𝙧 𝙖 𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙗𝙮 𝙨𝙖𝙢 𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙯 𝙛𝙩. 𝙯𝙖𝙮𝙙𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙡𝙛
❛ 𝘮𝘺 𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘢𝘬 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴 𝘳𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶. ❜

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Rose leant back against the trunk of the tree she was perched in. She was seated comfortably in the fork between two branches. They were sturdy enough to support her weight and then some. She relaxed and looked around her surroundings lazily. The bright foliage came in shades of red and gold. Autumn was definitely her favourite season.

A leaf spiralled through the air and landed on top of her head. Rose picked it up and twirled the item between her fingers, eventually losing interest in it and allowing it to continue its journey to reach the ground.

There was a rustling movement in the dense foliage above her. Rose flinched as a bird took off from the branch above her, showering her in droplets of water which had condensed when the temperature changed.

"Damnit..." Rose wrinkled her nose at the cold sensation and shook her head. The movement expelled a few droplets, though it wasn't as effective as she'd thought it would be. "Kou? You done yet?"

"Y—yeah!"

Rose checked below the tree before leaping off the branch and landing subtly on the ground. Dead leaves crunched beneath her boots. She could feel that the dampness of the bark had saturated her clothes. Her skin heated up at the girl's command, effectively eliminating any remaining water.

Rose turned just as Kou emerged from the undergrowth. A new set of clothes and a dip in the freshwater creek had gotten rid of the dirt that clung to his skin previously. He definitely fit the description that his grandmother had given – around ten, with black hair and green eyes.

"Let's go." Rose beckoned. Kou's teeth were chattering, and even Rose felt a little bit cold. "I'll set a fire up for you. Adell's already started making dinner."

Invigorated by the idea of a warm campfire and food, Kou immediately bounded ahead of her with an enviable amount of energy. Rose smiled, though it was barely noticeable.

She, Adell and Kou were travelling straight to Kou's village from the place they'd found the children. They had called the guards in charge of Fiore's border to return the children to their families, but there wasn't much space in the carriages. Rose and Adell had volunteered to stay behind and travel by foot to Kou's village since it was the closest.

Kou and Adell hadn't really taken to each other. Rose found it strange since Adell was infinitely more likeable than her, but she decided not to question the boy. Some people just didn't like each other.

They entered the clearing with their camping supplies. Two tents had already been pitched in the small area. Adell was in a different set of clothing, slicing various ingredients up in preparation for dinner. A spot for the fire had been prepared, so all Rose really needed to do was light it.

Rose grinned mischievously when she realised that Adell had his back turned – and he hadn't noticed her yet. Putting a finger to her lips, she gestured for Kou to stay still before creeping closer to the innocent requip mage.

She poised herself to strike.

"Are you trying to sneak up on me?"

"Eh?"

Adell turned around, a knife in his hand. Rose withered beneath the look he sent her.

"Maybe..."