VERiTY (Fairy Tail Fanfic)

26. My Name.

"Hey granny, can I really take one?"

Levy, her hair still mostly drenched, walked up to the receptionist. She pointed excitedly at the little reading area by the lobby, where shelves and couches were laid around for customers to have a break outside of their rooms.

It's a free shelf, so people can take any book they want, provided they put it back once they're done or leave another book here in exchange.

"Of course,. But when you get bigger, come back and put in a new book, okay?"

"Thank you, granny!"

Cana rushes out of the baths, towels in her hands. "Wait, Levy! Your hair's not dry yet--" and she slips on a wet spot on the ground.

In an almost comically perfect way, Cana squeaks, towel flying out of her hands and knees crumbling under surprise.

Levy had a second to turn around and realize what was going on before a figure blitzed past them, arms stretched out just in time to catch the girl in a bigger pair of arms.

Cana opened her eyes to a soft blue cardigan, and when she looked up-- the lady smiled back at her.

Hair the shade of snow-- she didn't look much older than Eir, but she was quite a bit taller. 

"That was dangerous, wasn't it?" the lady said, setting Cana back on her feet and helping her feet back into the sandals that slipped off. "Look at you, your hair's all drenched."

And Cana instinctively handed one of the towels in her arm to the lady that draped it over her head, helping her dry off.

Levy hesitated behind the reception counter, staring in surprise.

And the lady looked over and beckoned her toward them. "You too, little lady. You'll catch a cold if you stay like that. You won't want people to slip again, right?"

Cana felt oddly soothed by her presence. Maybe it was the white hair, so similar yet just a shade away, just a crop longer than Eir's. Maybe it was the way she looked at them, like a mother or a big sister, like Enno.

Maybe Levy had similar people to project those impressions into-- because she came over obediently, almost eager to be next in line of her hair drying services.

"I'm Adi," the lady introduced herself. "Oh-- it's spelled with an 'A', but it's read like 'Eddy'. Strange, isn't it?"

Levy giggled at that, but Cana blinked in surprise.

"May I know your names?" the lady asked, draping the towel over Cana's shoulders before moving on to Levy's hair. She was still on her knees, patiently working over them without a single unnatural movement.

Cana smiled, because that's the polite thing to do.

"I'm Cana!" she says, "thanks, Miss Adi!"

"I- I'm Levy!" Levy was quick to follow up on the introduction, "thank you... very much as well, Miss Adi."

"You're welcome," Adi left the towel over the girl's head before standing up and dusting herself off. "It's getting late, so you should return to your room soon. The cafe turns into a bar at night so it's a little dangerous out here."

"It'll be okay!" Cana reached into her pocket and retrieved a small steel emblem in the shape of the Fairy Tail mark, emblazoned with silver, glowing a little blue against the light. "Eir gave us this, so people won't bother us."

Cana then pinned it on the collar of Levy's yukata.

Adi blinked, possibly because she recognized it. That emblem-- the Eir pin, they were unofficially calling it-- was meant as a sort of mark for children under direct protection of the ambassador project.