For the residents of Magnolia, the past few days had been strangely quiet.
Some curious townsfolk even went to Fairy Tail, only to find the guild's main doors locked tight, a "Closed" sign hanging there like an omen.
Two whole days of silence. For Magnolia, that was practically unnatural.
Then, on the morning of the third day, life began to stir again.
A boatman on the canal saw a blonde Magician walking along the riverside, laughing with a short white-haired girl beside her.
A coachman spotted a blue cat chasing a pink-haired boy down the road.
A shop clerk caught sight of a red-haired armored knight peeking shyly at a wedding-dress display.
And a reporter, wandering for stories, snapped a photo of the Demon Couple, the Duke and Duchess themselves, picking fruit together at a market stall.
Small moments scattered across the town whispered the same thing:Fairy Tail was back.
Though they'd only been gone two days, it somehow felt like years had passed.
Naturally, the guild's favorite tavern grew noisy again.
"Did they all go on an overseas trip? We thought the guild finally went bankrupt from mismanagement!"
"Hahahaha!"
"With their level of chaos, it's only a matter of time!"
The regulars joked without restraint.
Max, sitting among them, didn't get offended, in fact, he nodded gravely. "Honestly, I think so too."
The laughter exploded even louder.
Wendy entered the guild hall holding Carla, glancing around first.Not seeing Asuka, she felt a little let down. But thinking the girl would probably arrive soon, she smiled and stepped inside, greeting everyone politely.
"Wendy, over here!" Rhodes waved from the front desk.
"Good morning, Big Brother Rhodes!"
Wendy broke into a jog, only to hit a loose board on the third step.
"Ah—!"
She tripped, and Carla went flying… straight into Rhodes's chest with a thud.
"Oof," Wendy groaned as she got up, rubbing her knees. Thank goodness Asuka hadn't seen that, her big-sister image might've shattered for good.
She hurried over. "Carla, are you okay?"
Rhodes set the Exceed on the counter, rubbing his chest. "She's fine. Though I didn't expect your head to be that hard, Carla."
Covering her own head, Carla muttered, "I wanted to say your ribs are hard too."
Mira giggled. "Impressive teamwork, you two. It's not easy to ambush Rhodes, but you managed it perfectly."
But Wendy only looked embarrassed. "I'm sorry, Carla, Big Brother Rhodes."
"It's fine, just an accident," Rhodes said, smiling. "Come have some lychees and mangosteens to calm down."
Carla squinted. "You called us over just for that?"
"Exactly. Bought them this morning, they're really sweet."
He peeled a mangosteen, split it neatly, and handed halves to Wendy and Carla.
Wendy wasn't fond of pure sourness, but she adored the balance of sweet and tangy mangosteen.
Beside them, Mira nudged Rhodes with her elbow, eyes glinting playfully.
Rhodes blinked, then obediently peeled a lychee and popped it gently into his wife's mouth.
Mira smiled, the sweetness reflected in her curved lips.
At that moment, Makarov walked into the guild, leaning on his staff. Spotting the mangosteens, his eyes widened.
"Why are you eating garlic so early in the morning?"
Rhodes's hand twitched, he really wanted to throw the peel at the old man's bald head, but he restrained himself.
He took a slow breath. "Master, you've reached the age where you might need reading glasses."
Surprisingly, Makarov nodded cheerfully. "Indeed, indeed. I'm retiring soon anyway. My staff can double as a walking stick."
Rhodes immediately regretted engaging.
Mira, however, clasped her hands in mock concern. "Then I suppose there's no fruit for Master today, to prevent high blood sugar in old age. Hmm… meat and alcohol should be limited too, and also.."
"Hold it right there!" Makarov threw down his staff in outrage. "I haven't reached that stage yet!"
Then, without hesitation, he snatched a few fruits and a jug of wine and scurried upstairs, moving far faster than a man his age should.
Rhodes wrapped an arm around Mira and gave her a loud kiss on the cheek.
"My wife is the best!"
The couple smiled sweetly at each other, leaving Wendy with a face as red as an apple.
Carla groaned. "You two, can you please be a little more restrained?"
Rhodes grinned. "My apologies, I couldn't help myself. But this is just a perfectly normal display of affection. Wendy will grow up someday too."
Carla opened her mouth to retort, then simply sighed in defeat. For a married couple, this really was normal.
After all, she and Wendy had been spending more time taking care of Asuka lately, and they'd seen Alzack and Bisca act the same way whenever their daughter wasn't looking.
So, for Wendy's sake, Carla decided to change the topic.
"As thanks for your hospitality," she said, her tone suddenly mysterious, "I'll show you something."
Mira tilted her head curiously. "What is it?"
Carla flashed a confident smile. "Transform!"
The one-foot-tall white cat jumped gracefully off the counter. Her body shone with brilliant white light, stretching, elongating, shifting.
When she landed, the cat was gone.
Standing there instead was a girl about Wendy's height, with soft white hair reaching her shoulders. She wore a dark blue long-sleeved jacket over a pale green shirt, a tie patterned with little paw prints, and a red miniskirt paired with black tights.
A fluffy tail swayed behind her, tied with a pink ribbon, and atop her head, alongside her human ears, stood a pair of twitching cat ears that looked decorative… but very much weren't.
Mira gasped. "Carla can transform? Since when?!"
"I just learned yesterday." Carla brushed her hair aside, smiling with a mix of pride and elegance. "I don't spend every day just lounging around, you know."
While Wendy had been focusing on refining her Dragon Slayer Magic and developing her Second Magic Source, Carla had been training her own magical abilities.
Her progress had been slow for a while, but after their trip abroad, something suddenly clicked. Maybe it was because she'd heard that the King of Joya shared her mother's surname… or that one of his knights had the exact opposite name of Lily.
Whatever the reason, she'd returned home inspired, and when she tried again, it finally worked.
"Carla has wanted to learn this ever since Lily joined the guild!" Wendy exclaimed joyfully, hugging her transformed partner tightly.
The two girls embraced, pure, heartwarming friendship.
Carla , ever the composed one, hadn't even chosen a flashy combat form. She'd transformed simply to stand beside Wendy as an equal.
Then she noticed Rhodes staring.
"What's with that face?" she asked, tail flicking suspiciously.
Rhodes sighed dramatically. "Don't mind me. I'm just… a little sad."
Carla blinked, puzzled.
Although she'd never admit it aloud, she knew Rhodes was always kind to her and Wendy. So why did he look disappointed?
Rhodes said with a wistful tone,
"When you were a little cat, I could hug you sometimes, pat your head, and see that adorable face of reluctant disgust, it was very entertaining. But now that you've turned into a person, it doesn't feel right anymore."
Carla froze, one paw, no, hand, to her forehead.
"So that's why you used to hug me? You...you can only be described as malicious!"
Wendy, unable to bear Rhodes's mock sadness, gently tried to comfort him.
"Actually… it's okay, Big Brother Rhodes. Even though Carla can transform, she's still the same inside. She's only shy around male cats."
"Wendy!" Carla's ears shot up. "Don't tell him that! It makes it sound like I want to be hugged!"
Rhodes waved her off with a lazy smile. "Never mind, never mind. I already have one at home."