Vengeance

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Edgesquire
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Genres
Urban fantasy, cyberpunk.
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Name: Raphael Levitas
Age: 18
Guild: The late Fairy Tail
Magic: Take Over: Angelic Soul Currently, it masquerades as Light Magic.
History:

Raphael was part of Fairy Tail as long as he remembered - What he learnt over the years in there was that he was the child of a respected member of Fairy Tail. Raphael's father wasn't a powerhouse, but he wasn't someone to be messed with, either. You could consider the man on the tier of Elfman, maybe a little lower. What Raphael knew was that one day his father died during a mission, wrapping his own body around that of a child to save her from an explosion. The child survived with minor burns, cuts and bruises but Raphael's father, who had taken the brunt of the impact, didn't.

Raphael literally treated Fairy Tail as his home. While the other members had houses outside of Fairy Tail, Raphael lived in a small room that was supposed to be a cupboard under the staircase to the second level of Fairy Tail. All in all, Raphael treated Fairy Tail as his life. Fairy Tail was everything to him - And so you can imagine how he felt when Fairy Tail was .. Massacred. In a bid to save Raphael, the Guild Master of Fairy Tail at that time had used Teleportation Magic to transport Raphael away, when the attack happened. By the time Raphael got back to Fairy Tail, all had been razed to the ground.
Click to expand...

Empty.

That was how he felt.

Raphael looked around the area with shell-shocked eyes, at the destruction that was scattered all around him. The spot where Raphael was was where the greatest guild in all of Fiore, Fairy Tail once stood, tall and regal.

Powerful and indomitable.

Until now.

He could make out brief shapes in the rubble - Bodies that were burnt, mutilated to the point where one could barely recognize them as human anymore. Some, Raphael could tell, had been mutilated before they were burnt. Most of the bodies weren't whole. The entire scene was such a monstrous show of carnage that Raphael couldn't help but weep. He wasn't one to weep, or show much sadness but this .. Fairy Tail had been his life. Literally. He grew up, worked, lived, learnt, fought, laughed, befriended there. He didn't know much of a world outside of Fairy Tail.

And now Fairy Tail was gone.

All because of some bastards that thought that they could get away with the destruction of Fairy Tail.

Raphael unclenched his fist and by doing so, let go of the member of Grimoire Heart he had found skulking around the ruins. He must've been looking for anything valuable left behind to pillage. And for that, Raphael had beaten him within an inch of his life. The man's face was so heavily bruised and deformed that even the best doctors would cover their eyes and look away. The man's knees were bent at an impossible angle; the result of what had happened when the man had tried to sucker punch Raphael and run. Numbly, Raphael touched the grazes on his knuckles and he clenched them once again, his skin growing white.

"Lord, grant me strength." Raphael mumbled, clasping the cross that he wore over his neck within his hands, a prayer of hope.
 
Zakuro had just finished a mission. One that had gained her 300,000 jewel. It was a meager job, yet it would pay the rent for a month. She usually just hung out at Lucy's place to eat, that or did odd jobs around town to earn a little more jewel to get something to eat. She wasn't a picky eater so she ate just about anything that was edible. She was on her way back to the guild when she saw what had happened to the guild.

The building she had been so familiar with, the one she had always gone to if she was feeling down or out. The one that had always made her feel it was her second home, it now was in shambles. The place was in rubble, the bodies of familiar people scattered all over where the building used to be. Zakuro's fur on her tail stood on end. Who would do such a horrible thing? But she remembered that was a dumb question to ask. There were still Dark Guilds, namely Grimoire Heart. They had reorganized themselves after Master Hades death and now had a new leader. She had heard he was even stronger than Master Hades. Not to mention the thought of the 7 kin of purgatory still being there made her skin crawl.

She stepped slowly foward, her heart pounding in her chest. There layed her friends, the ones she had known for 2 years. They lay dead. Even Natsu. She had hoped that at least he would survive, but not even he drew a living breath. But the one that made tears well up in Zakuro's eyes, Gray Fullbuster. They had promised each other they would marry when they turned 20. She walked over to the rubble that covered his charred body. She moved it aside, tears blurring her vision. She placed a hand on his face. What pain he must have gone through. She kissed Gray's head and stood up, anger rising to the surface. She had to track down Grimoire Heart. They had to pay for this injustice! And if it wasn't them, then she would beat them within an inch of their life until they told her who had done this to her beloved Fairy Tail.

As she turned to start on her quest, she could see a boy, still in shock over the wreckage. She recognized the boy. She ran over to him, himself gripping the cross that he wore around his neck.

"Raphael..."
 
"And deliver us from evil. Amen."

Raphael uttered the last line of the prayer for the Guild underneath his breath. He wasn't exactly sure of his faith, his belief in God yet but he had been told that Christianity was his father's faith. Raphael wasn't one to consider himself filial, since he never had a father to be filial to but he had thought that it was the least he could so in remembrance of his faith; adopt the man's faith. Opening his eyes from the prayer, Raphael took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Prayer always calmed him down. Reading the Bible, too. In his opinion, God's existence was disputed but the customs his followers adopted was a good way for him to relax. Raphael removed his glasses from his face and he wiped the lone tear that had fallen from his eye.

He should have died fighting with them: Elfman, Natsu, Gray, Lucy, Mirajane. But he didn't.

He survived, and the Balam Alliance did not know that.

The Balam Alliance wouldn't know what was coming for them.

And Raphael liked that.

Hearing the voice behind him, Raphael, on instinct had gathered a ball of light in his hand, ready to unleash its power on his assailant but - Oh. No. It wasn't an assailant. Wait.

Does that mean that he .. Wasn't alone?

No matter how good a set of news that was, Raphael couldn't fond it within him to smile. The survivor .. Raphael remembered her as the lover of Gray. He remembered how they had proclaimed to the Guild that they were going to be married when they got to the age of twenty. Sadly, it wasn't going to happen anymore - Not with what had just happened to the Guild.

Raphael tried to talk, but all that came out was a croak. Wetting his lips once again, Raphael quietly said. "My condolences." Those two words, Raphael knew would drive the message home. There wasn't more that needed to be said, or should be said. Clenching his fiat, Raphael turned back to look coldly at the man at his feet, who had just begun to stir. This man wasnt going to walk, not ever again but Raphael knew he deserved more. With a contemptous kick, the man's hand soared into the air and was caught at the wrist by Raphael. Pulling the arm taut, Raphael kicked the elbow in forcefully and bent the entire arm at a ninety degree angle.

"Do you know what they say about the archangels?" There was no friendliness in his tone. Just a cold, calculating anger that challenged those who would stand in Its way.
 
Zakuro remembered Raphael. He had always been a bit quiet. As far as she remembered, she had only talked to the guy once. She wouldn't even consider it a talk because he never said a word back to her. He had never been one to smile either. She could see that he would never smile. Not again. Not since Fairy Tail was gone. As Far as she knew, this was home to everyone that joined. So losing Fairy Tail must have hit him very hard. She didn't blame him a bit. It hit her just as hard. So hard that only anger remained where love and laughs used to be. This shouldn't be the way she should be feeling. She wanted her friends. She wanted so much for them to go get back up and say everything was alright.

Zakuro knew in her heart that that would never happen again. Tears still fell down the wolf-girl's cheeks. Raphael was wrong though if he thought it hurt him more than it hurt her. That wasn't true at all. It hurt to her just as much as it hurt him. She could hear him say something to her...."My condolences."

Condolences? She didn't need those. Gray wouldn't want her living in pity and self blame. He would tell her to keep on moving forward. To treasure the memory of your friends lost and hold the ones still living closer. That is what made a guild like a family. She walked over to Raphael, tears still running down her face. No matter how much Gray told her not to cry if he ever died, she still couldn't help but cry. She would never get a chance to be with Gray forever, like she had planned. Guess life had that wierd way of saying, "wake up and smell the roses of reality, because they don't smell as good as the one in your dreams..."

She could see a man at Raphael's feet, waking up. Raphael began torturing the man, breaking his arm. Even if he was in a dark guild, there was absolutely no reason for him to do that. Mad as he may be, there was no reason to resort going as low as a dark guild member would. That wasn't how Fairy Tail ran things. She ran over to Raphael, stopping his arm from doing any more damage to the man. Fairy Tail would not stoop to their level to get revenge. She looked at him, tears still flowing down her cheeks, but with a little bit of anger showing through.

"STOP IT RAPHAEL! Don't stoop to their level! I understand your angry...But don't you think I am angry too? Everyone meant as much to me as they did to you! Fairy Tail was my family....NO....Fairy Tail IS my family and as a family member, I will not allow you to hurt another through your blind fury. Open your eyes Raphael! Your the only one I have left in this family! If you leave me all alone, I will have no one left! Stop this madness and let's regroup somewhere...We need to calm down and figure out what our next move will be! Please...." Tears fell faster than before. It hurt her to see him hurting so much, but sitting here and torturing dark guild members wouldn't get them anywhere.
 
Raphael clenched the both of his fists, the anger rising up within him when Zakuro suddenly stepped forward and stopped his arm from doing what it was going to do. Raphael grit his teeth. There wasn't a point falling out with Zakuro now - Not with someone who also wanted revenge. He knew that he couldn't do this alone; even one of the Ten Wizard Saints wouldn't pick a fight with the entire Balam Alliance, and he was definitely far, far away from being a Wizard Saint. Raphael took a deep breath once again, trying to ignore the anger within him and suppress it, painting himself a picture of serenity and bliss.

He wanted vengeance. He was sure of it. He was going to take on the Balam Alliance, and he was going to win. Or at least, he was going to die trying. Raphael didn't have a plan, yet - But he knew what he had to do to take on the Balam Alliance.

Become stronger.

And he would begin to take on the Balam Alliance, Guild by Guild. He knew that the entire Balam Alliance was made up of a network of minor dark guilds and gravitates around the main, major dark guilds. Taking down the smaller guilds would essentially be training for him, gaining more and more power before he started to move up the tiers and start fighting the more powerful guild. He knew that if he played all of his cards right, he would eventually be powerful enough to get even the Balam Alliance worried.

Finally calming down enough to talk to Zakuro without snapping at her, Raphael said in a smooth, controlled voice and at a low volume.

"I'm going to destroy the Balam Alliance. They were the ones who did this. I was here to watch them charge at us. Whether you are with me or not, it doesn't matter."
 
Zakuro hated this about Raphael. She didn't know him well, but she knew him enough to know that it was hard for him to work on a team. He could do it, but if he had the choice, he'd choose to work on his own. That was just the way he seemed to her. But this was something that couldn't be done alone. He couldn't possibly take out all the dark guilds and the Baram Alliance without her help and some help from other wizards. She knew though. She knew he wouldn't want help from other guilds. But now wasn't the time to be picky. It didn't hurt to ask. She would ask him later though. He was in no mood to talk, it seemed.

She hated using this on her own team mates, but Raphael needed it now. He looked worn out, angry and flustered. He needed to calmly think up a strategy before charging in at full speed, but he wouldn't be able to do that if he wasn't thinking rationally and that would only get him killed. Zakuro gathered her magical power around her, stepping closer and closer to Raphael. She began singing, a lullaby her mother sang to her when she was little. She used this to put her enemies or whoever her target was to sleep for several hours. That should be enough time to get him somewhere safe and plan something out before he woke up. For the more powerful wizards who heard this melody, they didn't fall asleep, but they couldn't move for several hours, their body too lethargic to move anywhere. Either one would work as long as he didn't go anywhere right now. Letting her sleeping magic melody do it's thing, she walked over to Gray's body, taking the necklace that adorned his neck. She placed it around hers, grasping it firmly.

"I will avenge you Gray...You can count on that!" She walked over to Raphael, picking him up. Unconcious or no, he shouldn't be able to move. She ran as fast as she could with him in her arms. She had to devise a counter attack before Raphael came to. She had to or else, if he woke from his state, he would run off without her and she couldn't have that. She wanted to help him anyway she could. The Baram Alliance would soon know the wrath of the remnants of the Fairy Tail Guild.
 
Raphael listened to Zakuro sing - He didn't see, or feel anything wrong with it first, until he felt the fatigue begin to hit him like a shock wave. Only then did Raphael remember stories about Zakuro, about how she resolved many a situation peacefully just by putting her enemies to sleep with a song that had sounded innocent and in the end captured them, or went about completing her objective if it did not involve their capture or harm. Raphael tried to resist the fatigue inducing powers of the song but he knew that it was futile, his eyelids already felt like they were made of lead, bent on moving down and making contact with the flesh on the other side.

Furthermore, he was in no way powerful enough to just shrug off the effects of this song. He wasn't a powerful mage - Most of his missions rarely involved combat, and even those that involved combat didn't have much to do with magical combatants. This song was said to even affect many powerful mages, therefore it's notoriety so Raphael knew that he was going to be helpless against it. If something could take down something stronger than he was .. That thing most definitely could take him down too.

Before he fell asleep, Raphael could remember the rage rising up within him. How dare her try- do this to him?! However, his thoughts were cut off, as through sheer will he tried to fire a blast of light energy at Zakuro, which simmered out when he fell forward on his face. In the deep sleep that had been caused by the song Raphael dreamt of Fairy Tail. He dreamt of the time before Fairy Tail had been destroyed - He dreamt of the battles that Raphael had been apart of, although in snippets. He remembered fighting against the Shades of Phantom Lord, he remembered fighting so many other Guilds, minions and such. He remembered one particular time .. When there was a brilliance that shone from within him that empowered him when the situation was dire, but he was never able to pinpoint what that ability was.

A tear wound it's way down Raphael's cheek and landed on the ground.
 
Zakuro ran back to the place she had been renting out for the time being. She had paid rent this month and she had enough to pay just a little more. At least however long it took them to devise a plan against the Baram Alliance. Although, she knew that Raphael probably wasn't keen on staying here over a few days. He was already ready to go out and take them down, guild by guild. That was a bad sign. She sighed, setting Raphael down on her bed and covering him with a blanket. All the men in Fairy Tail were like that...stubborn and reckless. That even counted for Gray. He was the same way. She clutched the necklace that once adorned Gray firmly. It brought back many warm memories of her and Gray. Memories she would now never forget. The spell should give her 48 hours to figure things out.


That night, she planned the first guilds they would attack. It was better if they took out a couple of the newer dark guilds. Not one of them would be cared about or missed in the Baram Alliance. Once those guilds were taken out, then the ones above them were next. And after them, there was one more set of guilds until the ring set of the Baram Alliance. The second to last and last guilds would be the hardest to destroy. Her and Raphael would need to be at the power of a Saint Mage, at least, in order to have any hope of beating them...Thinking, Zakuro tried to recall all the mages that wouldn't have been at the guild hall at the time of the attack. Laxus was sure not to be there because he was banished. Mystogan had gone back to Edolas a while ago and she hadn't seen her friend Xina or Freed anywhere recently so she hoped they were all alive. She sent out dark magic in the shape of birds, a letter written to Laxus, Freed and Xina. Whether they came or not, Zakuro didn't care. All she wanted to do for them is let them know what happened to their Guild. Her dark magic honing in on their magic energies, they flew off towards their respective powers. This power took concentration and would only last for 2 days. Just enough time to get the letters to the others before it ran out.

For now, Zakuro concentrated on getting the letters to their owners while Raphael slept. That is, if their owners could be found....
 
After a while, Raphael had woken up - But his body was still under the effects of the spell. No matter how much he struggled to move, he couldn't move at all. The spell was like a rubber barrier between him and his control over his body. No matter how much he threw himself, how hard he threw himself at it he still bounced back. He was conscious of what was going on around him; he had seen the birds formed from the darkness magic fly off with what he believed was letters. Who was she calling for back-up? Whoever was out there .. Raphael doubt that they would come back. Gildartz would be off in some faraway land and he doubt that he had even heard of the destruction of Fairy Tail. Mystogan, Edolas. Laxus, fuck him. He doesn't give a shit about the Guild. Not much, anyway.

Once again struggling to break his bonds enforced by the spell, Raphael let out an exasperated grunt - In his head anyway and relaxed back onto the bed. He might as well get some rest now, and then start up a plan whenever he was awake. If they were going to take down the Balam Alliance, they would definitely have to get stronger. And to get stronger, you need to train.

The weakest of the Dark Guilds sounded like a good start.

(Sorry, not much to write about when asleep.)
 
(It's ok. Didn't give you much to work with. Sorry ^^;)

Zakuro had hit the second day and she had felt that her messages were recieved cause the magic wore off earlier than expected. Good, so they were still alive. Even if no one came to help her and Raphael, she felt they still needed to know about the Guild's destruction. They were, after all, part of her family which was now close knit. Still having some power left, she got back up and decided to rejuvinate herself with some breakfast and a quick shower. She left Raphael in her bed, the effects of her magic spell now starting to wear off. He would soon be able to wake up so she had to hurry herself and get ready quickly just in case of him waking up soon.

Zakuro hopped into the shower, the hot water feeling good on her sweat covered brow. The hot water seemed to melt away any worry she had about the Guild and their new crisis. Fairy Tail would pull through. Even if they didn't have Makarov or anyone else in the guild, her, Raphael and whoever was left would start Fairy Tail anew. Make them stronger than they ever were. But completely reforming it would have to wait till the threat was out of the way. The Baram Alliance had to be destroyed before Fairy Tail could start over again. Finishing up, she quickly dried off and got dressed in her usual, a black tank top and a pair of jeans. Pulling on her socks, she headed for the bathroom to straighten out her hair and put on a little bit of make up.

As she finished doing her hair and putting on make up, she put on the necklace that Gray once owned. It was the only piece of Gray she had now. She would have liked to give him a proper burial, but the spot where the guild hall once sat seemed a fitting grave for all of her family now. She would have to make that spot their grave. Burying the whole land the guild hall sat on sounded like the best bet. It would also be the land where their graves sat. It would now be a sacred site for Fairy Tail. But the only problem was that she had no power left to bury the whole guild hall with her magic. She could cave the land in around it with her song of the land, but she barely had enough energy to walk around and get ready. Burying her family would have to wait. At least for a day until her magic power returned.

Zakuro's magic focused basically on her voice since her father was a wolf and her dark magic, which her mother knew well. She mastered just about every song there was to know for singing magic, except there were a few strong spells she was still learning. The song of the land made the ground underneath their target sink. Kind of like quick sand. She thought, maybe, this would be a better grave site than the site for a new guild hall. They would have to make a new guild hall themselves. Cause once she used that song to soften the sand and sink the land, it couldn't be raised back up. It only sunk the land and then the sand that would be made would be what buried it. Not the burial she had in mind, but that was all she could do for her family. Maybe Raphael would be able to help bury them. It would be a good practice anyway. Good practice for them to be able to concentrate a bunch of magical energy on one specific spot. Zakuro finished getting rest and then took a chair and sat by Raphael's bed, waiting for him to wake up. The spell should just about be gone by now.
 
No matter how much Raphael tossed and turned - figuratively, of course, he couldn't sleep. His mind was just far too active. He even tried to employ a few meditation tricks he had learnt from some of the mages at the Guild but no, it only worsened what was causing his insomnia. Thinking about the meditation techniques alone had already caused him to think about em and whatever else was associated with them - the opposite of what meditation was supposed to help him do. So, the next few hours Raphael found himself lying there staring at the ceiling, thinking about anything and everything that came to mind.

He heard Zakuro enter the shower and exit the shower. He heard the sound of her doing her makeup - all the bottles and boxes thumping against the makeup table and all. By this time, his anger for Zakudo had already begun to fade. What Raphael had wanted to do was charge right over to the closest known dark guild and declare immediate war on them. Raphael was in fact thankful towards Zakuro for putting him to sleep. At his current standard and mindset at that time, his mission for revenge would have ended even before it truly started. Control over his body returned to him over the spam of a few minutes.

Initially all he had been managing to do was a few minor twitches here and there, but he could move more and more as time passed and eroded away the effects of the spell that had been placed on him. For some time now he had been aware of Zakuro's presence beside jhim, and when he fully woke up he sat up in the bed, despite the protests of his aching body. The first thing Raphael did was bow his head towards Zakuro apologetically. In a polite tone, Raphael said, "I'm sorry. I acted rashly." He was already beginning to blush, apologizing to someone he didn't really know like that. However, such things had to be kept aorta and sweet at times like this.

His tone and facial expression changing to become more business like and serious, Raphael asked the wolf girl before him. "Do you have a plan as to how we should combat the Balam Alliance? The guilds that we should go after first, and how."
 
Zakuro's face brightened as Raphael sat up and apologized. She laughed a little.

"It's ok. No worries...I just didn't want to lose you as well. We have to be smart when it comes to fighting the Baram Alliance" She could see his face had flushed a little. Raphael was blushing? That was rare to see, even for her.Then his face turned serious as he asked her how they would go about starting a war with the Baram Alliance. Clearing her throat, she gave her perspective on the matter.

"Well, first off, we have to remember that the Council will come after us for the "conflict between guilds" policy they set up. So it's not only the dark guilds we have to watch out for, but the council as well. If we are set on destroying the Baram Alliance, then we will be enemies of the Council and will probably be arrested and tried in court. But I am willing to bet they won't prosecute us because of the reasons why we started the Dark and Light Guild War. So for that, I can't ignore them. I sent them a letter telling them of our intentions and why we are doing it. If they decide to go against us or help us, it is their decision. At least they can't prosecute us if they decide against. I only did it because I wish to set up Fairy Tail once more and want the council to allow us to do that without the worry of them coming after us. As for the dark guilds, we will start off with the weakest of the guilds first, which would be the newly organized ones. Attacking them won't provoke the Baram Alliance so that is why, after we attack those weak guilds, we go after the next strongest guilds. That surely will get their attention and they will be getting ready their best mages to await us for last. By then we would have destroyed the last of the minor guilds and moved onto the Baram Alliance Couple themselves, the newly formed Grimoire Heart and Tartaros. That sound good to you? Oh and before we go, we need to bury our guild so no one defiles their resting place...I need your help in doing that tomorrow, before we leave..."

Zakuro didn't like the word war, but that was what it was now. A war between Light and Dark guilds. The Light and Dark Guild War. Except this war wouldn't endanger the civilian's lives. This war was purely between mages and needed to be settled in lands far from any civilian city.
 
( Hey, sorry but could you cut down a little on your word count next time? It's hard to keep up with it using a mobile, and I feel bad when I don't. Sorry! )

Raphael bowed his head, the shadows from the light above them casting his face into darkness once again. He had retrieved his glasses from the bed side table and put them on, so the only hint of light was the reflection of his glasses. Raphael listened to Zakuro's plan patiently - it was essentially what he had wanted to do, except that it was much more detailed and well-planned out. Raphael, because of this definitely did not regret having Zakuro around as a partner in his plans for vengeance. He was going to put the sadness behind him. All that he was going to allow himself was that brief window of sadness he was going to experience at the burial of the guild tomorrow.

That was all he was going to allow. He couldn't let anything like sadness invade his thoughts and distract him from his mission for now. It wasn't only because Raphael wanted vengeance for the entire guild but it was also because he wasn't the only person in this plan any more. If he had gone solo and failed and died alone, at least no one would be around to feel the guilt. However, if Zakuro died during this mission Raphael would feel it, too. Not only due to the fact that they had been bonded by the same desire for revenge but also because Raphael felt that he had somehow dragged her into this. And for that, he could let her that.

So they must destroy the Balam Alliance, or they themselves will be the ones that were destroyed.

"That is a sound plan, Zakuro." Raphael nodded when he said that, before he realized that he was on the woman's bed, still. It wasn't as if he was too injured to stand up or anything. Staying on someone whom you barely knew's bed was rude. Plain rude, in Raphael's books anyway. Scrambling, he got off the bed and just stood beside Zakuro.

"Sorry about that. You can have your bed back now." The fading blush once again returned when Raphael said it. Apologizing wasn't something that he commonly did. In order to break the awkwardness between them, he added another question.

"What do you plan to do for the rest of the day .. ?"
 
(Sure thing! Sorry! I just get caught up in the moment and want to write a lot. I'm in a Fairy Tail mood and this is the only outlet I have to vent it. Forgive me ^^; )

Zakuro giggled a bit as Raphael got out of her bed in a fluster, her tail swishing back and forth out of pure happiness. His blush was adorable, almost as adorable as when she first saw Gray's.

"Nah, your fine. I'm the one who put you there in the first place. Besides, this will be the last night I sleep on this bed. I am telling the landlord tonight that I will be putting it back up for rent. I won't need this place anymore if we will be traveling constantly...So I think I'll be doing some cleaning and packing today. But I don't plan on doing that all day. I'm free in the evening. If you want, we can go get some dinner together! I haven't gotten to know you very well since I joined the guild. This would be a great time for me to do so, so I know what to do and what not to do, you catch my drift?"

Zakuro stood up, putting a hand on Raphael's shoulder, her ears perking up.

"Raphael, what we plan on doing isn't going to be easy, but with you on my side, I'm sure we can do it! But just fighting lower dark guilds will not bring our power up to where we need it for Grimoire Heart and Tartaros. We must train extensively between each guild we destroy, that way our magic power can grow to the point where beating Grimoire Heart and Tartaros would be nothing more than child's play..."

Zakuro pulled out a bag, a relitively small one where she would pack all her belongings and sat it on her bed. She looked over at Raphael, smiling.

"Unless you want to help me pack, I'll see you tonight! Super Express in Hosenka, k? 7 pm." With that, she began to clean out the room she had lived in for 2 years...
 
Raphael glanced to one side, at the hand that was on her shoulder before he nodded, albeit a little stonily, once. "Sure. I think we can have a proper sit down dinner before we start doing something that would get us put into an asylum if it had been said out loud in public." Raphael grinned at her once, though it didn't exactly reach his eyes. His lip curled up on one side and remained the same on the other, while he continued to look around the apartment that Zakuro had rented, and was going to leave the very next day. All because of what he had proposed; revenge. He did feel a bit bad - But selfishly he liked the company that Zakuro would provide. So far, she proved to be rather good company to be around. And even though Raphael wouldn't admit it, she found Zakuro quite pretty, in a more .. Weird manner.

The smirk grew further on Raphael's face when Zakuro talked about the extensive training that they would undergo, aside from fighting all those dark guilds that they had to fight on the way. Even under all the training that they would do, Raphael doubt that beating those major dark guilds would be child's play. "I don't think so, Zakuro. From what we've heard from them .. And the work that they've done. These guilds, their masters and their strongest members have powers that normal humans would label them gods. I think it'd give the both of us a run for our money but, we'll do it. I believe in you."

Raphael flashed Zakuro a small, before he glanced pointedly at the bag that Zakuro had pulled out. He shook his head when Zakuro said that she was going to see him tonight. He didn't really mind helping her pack - There wasn't anything he could pack, after all. The last of his worldly possessions are on his body. The rest had been destroyed when Fairy Tail went down.

He walked over to the other side of the room and leaned against the wall, crossing his arms and gazing over the room from where he stood.

"I could help you pack, if you like. I've got nothing to pack."
 
Zakuro's ears went back as she looked over at Raphael. All he had left was the clothes on his back? How sad...

"If you really wish to, then be my guest. If there are pictures in a frame, please remove them from the frame and set them next to me please...All my stuffed animals can stay. I'll handle my clothing since there are some things in there I do not wish for you to see...." Zakuro blushed a bit. She didn't want Raphael taking peeks at her under clothing. Not that she suspected him to be a perv or anything, but most men wouldn't mind seeing female under clothing.

"Also, if you don't mind, Placing my hygiene items in a bag I have left in the kitchen, that would be a big help" Zakuro hurriedly packed her under clothing into her bag. She hoped to high heaven he had not seen anything she didn't want him to see. While she was packing, memories of Gray came back to her. Especially with some of the clothing she had packed, some especially reminded her of when they were dating. Tears started to well up in her eyes as she packed them away.

This apartment held many memories as well. Especially the memory of Gray promising to marry her in the future, when he was older and more ready for her. The many memories they held together would remain here. The only thing she would have to remind her of her beloved Gray was the necklace she wore around her neck. That necklace would remind her not only of Gray, but of the promise she said at his grave. "I will avenge you Gray, you can count on that!" She wiped away her tears, packing the remaining of her clothing which comprised of mostly just a couple pairs of jeans, some under clothing and her tank tops.
 
Raphael smiled in an amused manner and arched an eyebrow when Zakuro agreed to let him help her pack - But told him to stay away from her clothing. Maybe she just had some special stuff she wore for Gray, and Gray only so she didn't want him to look. People are odd, and they can do whatever they want. Raphael shrugged and nodded his head at her before he started work, picking up separate photo frames from all over the house to put them down on the bed, so that he could take out the photos from inside them later on, after he was done with the rest of the things he was supposed to help her with.

After that, Raphael proceeded to the toilet once he retrieved the bag that she had left in the kitchen. In the toilet, Raphael studied each product curiously. Why did women use so much product? It's not as if most of the effects are noticeable anyway. Raphael put the essentials - Toothbrush, toothpaste and other miscellaneous stuff into the ziplock bag before he pressed it shut and walked back out to the main area where he left the bag with the photo frames.

It took Raphael less than five minutes to take out the photos from inside the frames and put them in one smile together - And that was when he noticed the moisture in Zakuro's eyes. He understood how she felt. After all, she had been living here for quite some time and he was sure she and Gray had had some memories with each other here, too. Without saying anything, Raphael put a comforting hand on the woman's shoulder and he squeezed it gently and reassuringly.
 
As Zakuro put the last of her clothing into the bag, she felt a reassuring hand on her shoulder. Her ears still back, she looked back at Raphael. She couldn't keep the tears from falling any longer. She turned and cried into Raphael's shirt. She cried so hard that it felt like she might suffocate between the tears. She couldn't help herself though. She had kept it together until now. She just couldn't do it anymore. She didn't like being the pillar of strength. Humans had tears to shed, especially when people so close to you die. So she wasn't going to hold back any more.

She clung onto Raphael's shirt, tears flowing down her face like a waterfall down a mountain side. She missed everyone so much, but Gray most of all. She had loved that man more than she loved herself and now, he was gone. In the past, she had never pictured a day when so many of her comrades would fall at the Dark Guilds hands.

She had always thought they would be together forever, friends in Fairy Tail living a life of happiness and joy. One of pure bliss is what it felt like, especially after she started dating Gray. Sure he had been 2 years younger than her, but he was honest, sincere and caring, not to mention good looking. But it wasn't his looks that drew her to him. It was his unconditional love of his friends that kept him going. But now it was her job to do that in his place since he was gone. Her heart ached and she clenched it as she wrapped her other arm around his torso.


"Raphael, it hurts...It hurts so much...I miss Gray...I miss him so much...."
 
Initially, Raphael was taken aback by how Zakuro hugged him all of a sudden. He didn't really think that this would happen - After all, all Raphael did was put a hand on her shoulder. Overcoming his initial surprise, Raphael didn't really know how to act in a situation. Thinking back, Raphael remembered stuff that he had read from books so Raphael just .. Wrapped his arms around Zakuro too, running a hand down her back and patting it comfortingly as she cried against his shoulder.

Raphael placed a hand on the back of Zakuro's neck, holding her against him - He too was sad but no, he wasn't about to cry too. Raphael had to stay strong and help Zakuro stay strong too. If the both of them cried nothing would ever be able to get down. He missed everyone at Fairy Tail dearly, too, but that was all he could do - Miss them.

Raphael missed the overall turmoil and pandemonium the guild was constantly in. They were constantly fighting and making up, partying, going crazy, doing stupid stuff. Stuff that bonded them together and stuff that identified them as Fairy Tail. Raphael held his cheek against Zakuro, silently grieving but not showing it outwards.

"I miss him too, Zakuro - All of them."
 
Zakuro cried for a little longer. She then pulled away, looking up at Raphael with a smile and eyes still a little watery.

"Thank you Raphael. It felt good to let it all out...I'm done with crying now..." She picked up the pictures and put them into her back. She also packed her hygiene items, not caring if Raphael left anything. She was now packed, thanks to Raphael's help. She slung her bag over her back and looked over at Raphael, giving him thumbs up.

"You ready? Let's go to Hosenka and relax a bit before we have something to eat! You in?" Zakuro blushed a little before running out of the house. She stopped at the desk, informing the lady that she would not be coming back. She said her goodbyes and headed off to Hosenka, the resort village in Magnolia. Once she arrived, she headed straight for the hot tubs, ready to relax.

She stripped quickly and stepped into the woman's hot tub. Her worries and burdens seemed to melt away. While she thought of everyone at Fairy Tail and the wonderful things, she found her thoughts wandering between Gray and Raphael. He seemed nice, but he was a bit rash. He was, also, not that bad looking. She couldn't help but blush at the thought of him. She had never thought she would get over Gray and she still was a bit attached to him, but why was Raphael now starting to race through her brain? She shook her head. She was overthinking things. She soaked for an hour or so and then got out and got ready to go to the restaurant.
 
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