Control

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Rin jumped down the rails that tracked down through the cave with Leese and Pantherlily in tow. The two Exceeds made comments about how unsafe this setup was and how the arena could've collapsed with all of these intricate tunnels underneath. The brunette ignored the two as her anger for her mate resurfaced. She wanted nothing more than to head back up there and smash his face in while he was defenseless.

    However, she pushed forward and ended up in a large cavern with a smell that made her stomach wrench. Thousands of enormous bones littered the area and she could only connect the scent to that of death. Sweat began beading up on her forehead and her movement ceased. Leese walked up to her still form and placed a paw on the back of her calf.

    "Are you okay?" The brunette held a hand over her mouth to keep from vomiting on the spot and looked at her partner with wide eyes of horror. She swallowed thickly and breathed heavily as she looked back at the cat.

    "They're all dragons..." The Exceed's expression softened as she stared back at the female. Rin took a deep breath and moved forward carefully. With slow steps, she walked past skeletons, examining each as she passed them. The sudden rattle of bones made the group jump and shake, terrified of something being down here with them. The appearance of Gajeel washed away their worries as they regrouped and joined him.

    "This is-"

    "Horrifying," Rin cut it. "Now that we found you and know you're alive, I'm leaving." She covered up her nose the best she could. "It makes me want to puke." The male nodded and spun around, taking one last glance.

    "How could Crocus cover these up like this?"

    "I don't know, but-" she stopped mid-sentence. Her chin tilted up and she began sniffing away at the air. She trailed away from the group and further into the cave toward another dragon skeleton. This time, her eyes widened in true terror. Her knees trembled and her hands were starting to go numb.

    Without hesitation, she sprinted away and toward the exit. Her three comrades called after her, all racing to catch up. She jumped out of the cave as quickly as she could and dropped to her knees. Her forehead met the ground as her hands clasped around her mouth and tears spilled from her eyes.

    "Rin?" Sting was just picking himself up when he saw her resurface from the cave in distress. A scream released from her throat but was trapped in her palms while her body shook like an earthquake. "Rin!" The blonde went running towards her but Gajeel and the two Exceeds were by her side in seconds. Gajeel rested a hand on her back while Leese panicked in front of her.

    "What happened?!"

    "Rin, you have to talk to us!" She pushed everyone away from her.

    "Leese, get me away from here!" Said cat didn't move a muscle but stared at her partner in concern. "Now!" The Exceed hesitated and looked toward the other two who just nodded. She summoned her Aera and flew the two out of the area and toward their inn where she could calm her best friend down.

    Upon arrival, Rin laid down with her face buried in her pillows, muffling her choked sobs.

    "Rin... Are you okay?" The Exceed pawed her side gently. After a few seconds, with no response, Leese decided that comfort was the best thing she could do for now. She snuggled up next to her and wrapped her arms as far around as she could manage. "If you want to talk about it, I'm right here." Rin's breathing evened out and it became apparent to the cat that she was asleep. She sighed heavily and joined her partner.

    竜

    Leese awoke to the stroking of her fur. She yawned tiredly and looked up with blurry eyes to see Rin looking at her.

    "Come on. Let's go to the bar and hang out with the guild." Leese stretched and followed her partner out the door and into the streets to Bar Sun where the rest of Fairy Tail spent the evening. As they walked in, Gajeel shot up and walked toward her. She dodged him and went to the bar and ordered a pint, taking it back to where Natsu and the others sat. She slid into a seat and took a swig of her beer, setting it on the table and facing the group.

    "Are you gonna tell us what happened?" She glanced at Gajeel and sighed, taking another sip before preparing her thoughts.

    "When I was a child, I was raised and taught magic by my dragon, Masumi: The Ethereal Queen, second only to Igneel. In fact, they were good friends from what she told me. She also had followers of her type, much like how Igneel was the Fire King, followed by those who were fire types. I had met one, a close subordinate of hers... The dragon Shinpi. I had met him on a couple occasions, enough for me to memorize his scent...

"His skeleton was down there. That's why I ran away. I smelled him and realized that he was another one of the dead dragons that rested in that damn cave." Rin gripped the handle of her glass tightly before shaking her head and downing the rest of the liquid. She slammed it back on the table and summoned the bartender for a refill with the snap of her fingers. "I'm not going back down there. If you guys want to go explore, be my guest. But know what you're getting yourselves into....

    "You never know," she locked eyes with Natsu's oddly serious ones. "Igneel could be down there as well." He growled at her but didn't retort, knowing she wasn't in the best place. She took her newly delivered pint and moved to sit with Cana who drank from a barrel of wine. "Let's waste ourselves away tonight. You down?"

    "Of course," the Alberona slurred. "You want a competition?"

    "Let's do it." Leese watched her friend from afar, terribly worried about her mental state. At least they had the day off tomorrow, so whatever the female Dragon Slayer did to herself would have time to fade.

    Rin watched as the group left the bar, probably to go back to the arena. She shook her head and drowned her sorrows in liquor and watched as the night became blurry.

    What she hadn't expected was the group barging back into the bar loudly with an ill-looking Natsu and a missing Lucy. They explained what had occurred with the palace officials and how they had taken Lucy into captivity for being a Celestial Wizard. Rin sobered up as much as she could but she knew she would have to have Leese relay the information to her tomorrow when she was getting through her hangover.

    By the end of the night, a plan was devised for the next few days. Rin sat staring at the table, Cana having passed out an hour ago from too much alcohol, naming Rin the new alcohol champ of Fairy Tail. Not that it mattered to her.

    The next day would be absolute hell for her as she dug herself a deeper hole. Only this time, there was a chance she wouldn't be able to crawl out of it.