Chapter 53

A fire all but manifested with the frustration that burned under Archer's flesh. That blue-haired bastard is too ċȯċky around her, too sure of himself to not have some fiendish plan. She knows Jellal and she knows his created self. She knows them well enough to know that they would be smart enough to be very careful around someone who could kill them with the flick of their wrist. He should be sweating bullets whenever he's in her presence, instead, he smiles this ċȯċky thing and has the balls to make Erza anxious. There are only two reasons he would be this careless around her, this confident and ċȯċky when it came to her. Either he was very stupid or he had something up his sleeve. He must have something he thought he could hang above her head as a threat, a danger and that thought - realization - did not sit well with Archer.

She releases a long sigh, hand running through her hair as her eyes find Erza who sat almost motionless on their sofa. Silver sat just as motionless and quietly in her ŀȧp, for a moment not knowing what to do to help her.

"Erza"

At being addressed she released an almost strangled breath, shaking hands moving to gently hold Silver in her ŀȧp, letting the warmth and softness of her fur settle her nerves. She shouldn't be this disturbed, shouldn't be this anxious, this frightened. Siegrain is not the one he resembles, she had told herself that countless times. Still, her brain refuses to accept this as it forces all those terrible memories to the surface whenever she laid eyes on him. Every time he smiles she could only remember that little boy and that terrible wrong smile he held when she had found him. When he spoke he could only remember the cruel words that fell from his counterpart's mouth, words that hurt her to her core. She hated the way he affected her when he had no right.

"Will you be alright?" The question is followed by gentle hands cradling her face as she's made to meet red eyes full of concern. She held that particular warmth that Erza could only ȧssociate with her, one that had her almost nuzzling her hands as all tension retreated almost immediately.

"Yes, I'll be alright" even if that were a lie Archer makes it a truth one way or another. Erza sometimes found it quite adorable how Archer goes above and beyond just to make her happy whenever she's upset, even if she has to go to another town to do so.

Archer considers her for a moment, searching for any identification that would suggest otherwise. It takes almost a full minute for her to be satisfied, smiling in relief as she let her worry slink away

"I was ready to kill him," she says bluntly after a moment of thought. She's always ready to kill him when he made Erza that anxious. Any sign of discomfort caused by him warranted his instant demise. It is only by some miracle that Archer has not acted on her instinct yet.

"I know" Erza rubs Silver's fur more thoroughly, scratching at her ears and chin, earning a very audible purr from the feline creature.

"I do not like him"

"I know"

Her dislike for the man is as clear as day, even when she hides her expressions behind that mask of hers. Erza isn't entirely sure why she hates him, only ȧssuming that she simply dislikes him because of the way Erza gets around him. She wouldn't put it past her. Though she has a feeling there's another reason she has such a strong dislike towards him.

He's a judas, Silver had decided. She has met him in a total of three times and each time he just felt off. There was something about him that wasn't right, something Silver couldn't understand. It was something that practically pulled at her whenever he's around. It had her as curious as she is apprehensive, watching him carefully whenever in eyesight, uncomfortable whenever he smiled or spoke so nicely. Perhaps it's the way his magic feels. It felt synthetic yet so very real at the same time. It's harder still to understand how it fluxes, sometimes grows when in the presence of that woman - the one with the crystal.

"Yes, I've said so" she's fine, she's going to be okay, Archer shouldn't worry.

"I'll make you some cake" she promises as if she had to. "And those cookies you like and some milkshake as well"

Before Erza could even try to stop her, Archer leaves her with a kiss to the cheek and a quick pet to Silver's head. She's in the kitchen before they know it, apron already tied around her body and chef's hat already pulled onto her head.

"Okay" is all Erza could then say.

The sound of the door slamming absurdly loud disturbs the peaceful silence of the house. The sound is then followed by an equally loud shout that had Silver's ears twitching. The exceed took one look at the door and the people standing in it before simply disappearing without a word.

"You went on a cool mission without me!?" Natsu shouts as he practically stomps into the house. Lisanna follows after him with multiple apologies already spilling from her lips.

Archer simply spares him a single glance, not even stopping her stride in the kitchen. She has a bowl full of cake mix in her hand already, strawberries spread over the counter as well as an ȧssortment of ingredients as she sets out to keep her word.

"Natsu you don't have to yell, you know" Lisanna scolds, grabbing the boy by the scarf, forcing him to stop his stomping. The action also worked to shut him up as that scarf got too tight around his neck, cutting off his airway and making it that much harder to speak, let alone shout.

"You guys always go on cool missions when I'm not here" Natsu whɨnės when he loosens the scarf around his neck, this time speaking a lot less louder than before.

"See, I told you we shouldn't go on so many missions Natsu, but nooo, you wanna go almost every day" Happy circles Natsu's head as he says this, his high-pitched voice even higher as he teases the boy.

Happy's aim was to tease the already disappointed Natsu, but what he got was a grin in return. That wasn't the plan in the slightest which just made him suspicious. Making a distance from Natsu, Happy eyes him with very curious yet untrusting eyes as the boy's grin only grows.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing" Natsu shrugs too casually as he lays himself down on one of the sofas present, his smile still in place, though not as toothy. "It's just that I planned on getting you a nice fishy treat with all this money we earned on our daily mission, but since you're so against it, I don't know anymore...."

"Natsu that's not nice"

"Yeah, Lisanna's right, that's not nice"

~~~~~~~

Later that day Archer was at the guild with the rest, suċkɨnġ on some lemonade while pointedly ignoring her older sister as she spoke of one thing or another. Gray had gotten into a fight with Natsu as soon as he stepped into the door, insulting him about his pink hair, and things spiraled after that. Archer likes to think that fighting is their love language, she likes to believe that Gray starts a fight as soon as Natsu arrives because he missed him but would never admit to it. Those two are close friends even though they hate it.

"What do you prefer; smoothie or milkshake?" Nero's asking as she presents a glass of each to an occupied Lucy. The blonde had her nose in one of the books Nero had righteously stolen from Everloo mansion and she had been reading that same book since she walked into the guild an hour or so ago.

"What exactly are you reading?" Curious, Asher takes a glance over her shoulder, leaning closer to do so. Lucy does nothing, either not caring or not noticing. "The science behind Magic?"

"There's a science behind magic?" Wendy never heard nor considered that before. Though now that she's thinking about it, she supposed it would make sense. There is science behind everything, at least that is what Epis had told her once. That dragon sure loves following that logic, despite her magic being one of the purest, or perhaps it is because of that, that she thinks that way. It's hard to tell with her.

"Well, maybe, I mean, there's a science behind most if not everything, right?"

"Magic is the combination of the spirit as well as the flow of nature, both forming a connection and creating what we all know and love. Looking at it that way it's hard to find any scientific connection between the two because it begs the question that is hard to answer. How does one's spirit connect with the spiritual flow of nature?" Starting off very casually Archer found herself very curious now she talked about it, wanting to find a way to explain it scientifically now. "Huh, but I do think it can be explained with science, just don't know how at the moment"

Erza wonders if this will lead to experiments in the backyard just like that one time Levy got Archer curious about explosives and other destructive things. Those two had the backyard completely wrecked, not even a trace of the beautiful green grass left behind.

"I do believe Natsu's use of fire is the easiest to explain," Asher says to Archer, the both of them watching said boy light himself on fire. "It's simply chemical reactions, amongst others. Think of combustion reaction when he prepares for a roar"

"Combustion reaction" red eyes stare intently, as if trying to see the explanation in the flames itself. "A Sublevel of an oxidation reaction which is when oxygen is combined chemically with something else in the environment. Natsu would be using his own body heat to release energy, or an exothermic process, which when combined with oxygen - oxygen he gathers when he prepares for that roar of his - creates fire"

Erza was thankful that Levy was not present at the moment because that would have led them down a rabbit hole of more theories that the redhead could not deal with. She also hoped Archer didn't plan on demonstrating anything she just explained, because she would feel so sorry for the backyard. And Demeter would not be very happy with such destruction, having chewed both Archer and Levy out for destroying nature.

"And with Gray it would simply have to be taking away the heat from his environment, causing the water particles to crystalize and create his ice" Asher said matter of factly, shrugging and leaning back comfortably. "It would explain why he likes being without clothes so often"

"That would involve space and time talk as well as the creation and access of a different dimension"

Erza magic does work with a pocket dimension she can so easily access, not needing to think too hard about it or put in too much effort. Levy could probably explain it if they give her time, that girl can explain almost anything.

"Awe I was really hoping you could explain that....that .....wait why am-..."

Nero quirks as brow as Lucy struggles to keep her eyes open, suddenly noticing that most of the guild were practically asleep already. Even Erza had to blink herself back into focus when the magic's effect tried to take her.

"Oh, he's back already" with a chuckle Nero takes hold of Lucy, holding her around the waist snugly and allowing her to rest against her shoulder. "Very dramatic, that one"

"Why does he always do this?" Wendy yawned, but did not have to fight much. His magic affected her, but never as strongly as it did most.

"His identity and all that"Asher replies with a shrug.

"Hello Mystogan" Archer greets as soon as the veiled man steps foot into the guild, her greeting earning an almost bashful wave in return.

He's always been quite shy around people, though many wouldn't know when he acts so indifferent and constantly puts the guild to sleep whenever he appears.

"Back for another mission?"

"The usual" Is his reply as he continues to the second floor and gets himself another long mission to occupy himself with for the time. The mission sheet is placed before Makarov for approval, the old man bȧrėly awake as it is.

"I would appreciate it if you let up a little bit on the sleeping spell" the old man requests as he stamps his approval and is not at all surprised when he gets no answer to his words. He's watching the boy leave soon, reminding him to undo the spell, as last time they had slept their entire day away when he either forgot or simply did not care to undo the spell. Sadly for them on that day, neither of the Phoenix siblings were present as well as Nero or Wendy, all of which could undo the spell that had been set upon them.

"You should visit more!"Wendy calls after his retreating form.

"I will"

"That's a lie" Wendy all but scoffs. "He never visits"

"Maybe he will this time, you never know" Erza offers some hope to Wendy, who considers her words for a small moment.

Once he's completely out of sight, the spell's effect begins to wear off as the guild members rouse out of their state of sleep as if being shocked out of a dream.

"Damn you!"Natsu's on his feet immediately, fire spilling out of his mouth in a roar as he announces his annoyance for having been knocked out once more. "I'll stay awake next time, you'll see you stupid Mystogan!"

"Seems you're not very happy about being put to sleep"Nero muses and its then Lucy realizes her situation and quickly scoots away from Nero, only to end up pressed right into Asher's side, the phoenix smirking down at her when she groans.

"If you find the need to be in my arms, you could have just asked, sweetheart"

Nothing is said in reply and Lucy simply returns to her book, knowing that saying anything at all would result in some banter that she likely would end up losing due to Asher's use of dirty tactics.

"So this Mystogan figure" She inquiries, gazing over her book to meet Archer's eyes. "Never heard of him"

"That's the point," says Archer. "No one has ever seen his face, well, safe for us and the Master. I'm almost jealous that he far outclasses me in the mystery department"

Erza rolls her eyes, because of course Archer would be concerned about who's more mysterious. And she's right when she says that Mystogan outclasses her as not even the guild has seen his face and the media knows not of his existence.

"You forget that I've seen his face as well" A voice from the second floor alerts the others to Laxus' presence in the guild, which comes as a surprise to most. "He's just very shy, so don't question it too much"

As if he would know

"Laxus fight me!" Natsu immediately declares, his body engulfed in flames as he has already forgotten the number of times he had been beaten by Archer for attempting such reckless things. The last time he attempted to fight Laxus the guild almost burned down.

Laxus' only reply is a scoff as he bȧrėly regards Natsu, not because he deems him weak, no, he knows what Natsu is capable of after all these years of training under his dragon. He'll never admit that he sometimes worries he'll lose to the fire boy and he'll never admit that he's wary of fighting him because of the two Phoenix women that watch over the boy.

"Laxus!" With a shout, Natsu shoots himself up to the second floor, fists lit in a fire and teeth bȧrėd in a grin as he appears right in front of Laxus, who was a bit surprised by this.

The explosion that results in this collision is deafening and has those of sėnsɨtɨvė hearing flinching. Makarov sighs as smoke fills the air, already regretting not stopping Natsu when the boy went for the attack. He was sure Archer would stop him, but these days she has been very lenient with Natsu when it comes to Laxus. She would only watch these fights unfold until she sees the need to intervene and at the moment she doesn't seem bothered in the slightest.

The smoke clears to reveal the clashing mages. Electricity sparks in the air around them both as flames mingle in the mix. Natsu is grinning, his fist blocked by Laxus arms and the latter appearing very much displeased by the fact he had to block and was still moved back a step or two.

"You dare lay your dirty han-"

"Keep your mouth shut Freed," Said a casual Archer, who appeared behind the green-haired man within an instant, a hand placed on his shoulder in an almost friendly gesture. "You know better than to interfere, don't you?"

He's silent under her gaze, immediately relenting and allowing himself to relax. He does know better than to get in the middle of it. Laxus wouldn't be pleased and Natsu would want to fight him next, neither have good outcomes.

"Thought so" Satisfied, Archer turns on her heels to regard Evergreen and Bicslow. "Hello Evergreen"

With her greeting, a pair of glasses appears in her hand as she presents them to the mage.

"I have acquired some new glasses for you," she says with a bright smile. "I think they would look quite good on you"

Archer can be very antagonizing towards Laxus, however, she has long since shown that she has no issues with the other three as she regards them as friends and often brings them gifts from her missions. It is why none of them take much offense to her actions anymore. And Evergreen never cared much from the very beginning.

The presented glasses have green-rimmed, the color a theme when it comes to the gifts Archer brings her. She seems to enjoy the fact that green is literally in her name. They resemble the ones she already has, safe for the rims and maybe even the shape of the lenses. The difference in lenses is slight, however.

"Any reason for the gift?" She has to ask as she always does.

"Any reason for the others?" Archer asks in turn.

"Fair enough"

Before Bicslow can ask if he too gets a gift a tiki doll is thrown at him and he is satisfied for the moment.

"Awesome"

"You're welcome"

She's gone as soon as she appeared, but she made sure to slap Laxus and grab Natsu on her way. While she would enjoy a fight, she doubts it's a good idea for the moment. Some other time, maybe.

"Archer, let's go on an S-class mission" Natsu suggests as he is dragged along by the scarf. Laxus had been spouting some nonsense after Archer hit him,but did not dare challenge her.

"I'm taking a break Natsu, some other time"

"Please?"

"I said no"

"Fine, I'll go myself"

"Feel free, the second floor is right there"