5/5

Bambietta focused once more, tugging at even more energy this time. Her momentum continued as she focused on the empty void beneath her once more ready to meet it. Then she hit the much larger barrier, gasping as she did so. Bambietta lay on her side then, breathing deeply as she all but hovered in midair.

"Oh, wouldn't Robert be proud of me," Bambietta whimpered. "I swear, if I get back home I'm so making him hold up his promise of telling me what his epithet does. Maybe it was the Nag? That would make sense."

Bambietta began to crawl back on to her feet, her body enveloping in the approaching fog. She could see it slight then, the telltale traces of energy beneath her feet becoming slightly visible under the moisture.

"Well now," Bambietta said with a smirk crossing her face, slowly looking back up, "it's time for round two, you faux shinigami!"

"It's almost time."

Erigor was once more making his way to his objective, the assassin's flight taking him ever closer to the end of Clover Canyon.

Then it happened. Once more did an arrow suddenly pierce the space before him, putting a stop to his movement. However, unlike last time, this one had not ascended but descended. "What?"

"You know," a voice called out from above, "gravity can be a real bitch!"

Erigor turned his attentions skyward then, taking note of his Fairy Tail opponent hovering high above him. Yet it was not quite like his own technique. It was almost as if she was simply standing on the air itself.

"But now," Bambietta said with a grin, "gravity is my bitch!"

Erigor only grew enraged. "You damned fly."

"And don't even think of sneaking a peak up my skirt!" Bambietta said as she pointed a judgmental finger at Erigor. Then did she take a deep breath. "Oh yeah, I got black tights on now, so I've got nothing to worry about. Hey, wait a minute." Bambietta's face suddenly went red. "Oh, I hope no Soul Reapers were looking up at me while I was fighting the Doggie!"

"You," Erigor began to say, "you're completely insane."

"So says the half-naked death god who's willing to throw his life away on some insignificant little revenge scheme! You'll pardon me if I don't take your opinion on what makes someone insane seriously. Though yeah, I probably am crazy as hell. That turn you on or something? Because, well, no offense, but you're not my type."

Erigor simply stared up at Bambietta in disbelief. "Insignificant?"

"That's what you took from that? Bambietta shrugged. "Yes, I said it. Don't like it? Oh well."

Erigor began to become enraged then. "My guild, my comrades, they have had to live in the darkness! All because of those who could not accept us for what we were and exiled us there! They will pay for their sins even if it costs me my life!"

Bambietta grew cold in response, her expression losing its luster as she began to walk down to Erigor one step at a time. "I get it."

Erigor was taken back. "What?"

"My old... guild... was forced to live in the shadows as well," Bambietta said. "All thanks to those who considered themselves are betters."

"Don't you dare!" Erigor began to curse. "Don't you dare speak as if you understand me!"

Bambietta felt it in herself, the conflict. There was a part of her that almost wanted to let Erigor do as he pleased, to see his plan come to fruition, but there were things holding her back.

"There's just one problem," Bambietta said. "One difference. My... guild... was cast aside because we protected ourselves when those in power wouldn't. And all you people did was kill for money!

"Silence!" Erigor snapped then, swinging his scythe forward.

Bambietta simply vanished, leaving the blade to tear threw nothing but thin air. She appeared behind Erigor then, once more standing atop thin air.

"But I guess," Bambietta said softly, her voice losing its composure for a moment, "I'm even worse than you. I've- I've-"

"Shut up!" Erigor swung his weapon around again, yet once more did Bambietta evade the attack with Hirenkyaku.

"We're both worthless monsters," Bambietta said, appearing near Erigor once more. "The only difference is I fought my hardest to live, while you're intent on sacrificing your life. I guess that must be a shinigami thing."

Erigor flinched. "You..."

"I wanted to live, you want to die." Bambietta shrugged. "In the end I didn't quite get my wish fulfilled. And I'll be damned sure that you don't either!"

"Die, you damned Fairy Tail fly!" Erigor lost it completely then, swinging his scythe out with such ferocity that even Bambietta was surprised by it.

Surprised, but not prepared. She allowed Blut Arterie to overtake her body, sacrificing any and all defense for simple power. It mattered not, her sword coming into being within her right hand. Then she swung the blade out, allowing it to meet the scythe head on.

"No." Erigor watched in complete shock and awe as his weapon was cut in half, the shattered remains of his blade plummeting into the ravine. "It can't be."

"So sad, too bad," Bambietta said without a hint of hidden ego. She glanced down towards the abyss and waved. "Bye, Mister Scythe."

"You witch!" Erigor began to scream then. "This isn't over yet!"

"Wow," Bambietta said with a sigh. "Talk about lousy lines."

"Storm Mail!" Erigor continued to yell, bringing his arms in a cross shape in front of his torso. A magical circle appeared for an instant, wind suddenly coming into existence and encircling the man.

"Well now," Bambietta said, not allowing herself to show any fear. "You're just full of surprises. At least this will keep things interesting."

The wind began to fade then, leaving nothing but a vortex surrounding Erigor's entire body. All Bambietta could see within it was the darkened shade of the man's body, his eyes glowing directly through the magical wind.

"Oh my, how intimidating." Bambietta could not help but sneer in contempt. "Please, I walked through your last wind barrier like it was nothing. This'll be a piece of cake!"

Allowing Blut Vene to flow through her very being once more, Bambietta charged, her right fist propelling forward.

Yet then did she cry out in equal parts surprise and pain, Erigor's winds forcing her flying back. She was quick to recover, however, her feet skidding across a makeshift invisible platform.

"What's the matter, fly?" Erigor asked, his voice howling alongside the vortex that covered him from head to toe. "This barrier is much more compact than the last! All this power condensed into a much smaller surface area! I don't know or care how you penetrated my last barrier, because you'll never be able to pierce this veil!"

Bambietta's eyes simply narrowed in response to the challenge. "I'll just have to try harder."

"By all means," Erigor replied. "Try."

"You asked for it!" Bambietta's bow ignited within her hand again and she took aim. "Don't say I didn't warn you!"

An arrow of light shot forward then, aimed directly for Erigor's torso. Bambietta knew this shot would take him down if it hit and she was confident that it would. Yet when the arrow make contact with the swirling mass of winds it began to shift off course. Then did it fly off into the distance, leaving Erigor unharmed.

"Well this blows," Bambietta said to herself. "Huh, I'm not sure if that pun was intended. Let's just say it was, okay?"

Bambietta kept her eyes locked on Erigor then, waiting for him to make the next move. She could only hope that she had the means to counter it.

"We've got you now, Erigor!"

"What?" Bambietta glanced over Erigor's shoulder then, the Eisenwald wizard glancing back as well. They both were then able to see Natsu Dragneel fast approaching, hanging on to Happy for dear life. The cat's wings were flapping wildly, a rather enraged expression on his face. Bambietta could not help but laugh. "Oh, Happy looks so mad..."

"I bet you didn't know my little buddy could go Mach speed, did you?" Natsu let go of Happy then, allowing his momentum to propel him towards Erigor. The Dragon Slayer's foot became lit up with flames then. "Fire Dragon's Claw!"

It was an impressive, if unique, entrance, that much Bambietta had to admit. Unfortunately it amounted to very little. Natsu's flames completely faded away on the spot, leaving him to harmlessly bounce off of Erigor's wind shield.

To Natsu's credit, however, he managed to land on the train tracks with his feet and was quick to catch Happy. Bambietta glanced down then and could see that the blue cat was exhausted, no doubt having pushed himself too hard to achieve the speed he had used to get here. The Quincy did not want to admit it, but it did tug at her heart. "The poor little guy is all tuckered out."

"You okay, Happy?" Natsu asked, gently cradling his friend.

"Yeah," Happy replied, closing his eyes for a moment. "I'm just... so tired..."

"Don't worry," Natsu said as he lay Happy down softly to the platform, "I can handle everything from here."

"You again," Erigor said, glaring down at Natsu. "Foolish Dragon Slayer. My powers can smother your power with ease! Fire can never hope to defeat wind!"

"I guess we won't really know that for sure until I try!" Natsu began to slam his fists together, activating his flames once more. "I've got a fire in my belly and- Wow, Bambi, you can fly?"

Natsu's powered faded then and there, the Dragon Slayer glancing up towards Bambietta, keeping a hand above his eyes to block any rays from the sun.

"Well not exactly," Bambietta said simply. "Still awesome looking though, right?"

"Yeah!" Natsu answered. "But how about you sit this one out? I want a shot at-"

"Hell no!" Bambietta suddenly appeared in front of Natsu with the power of Hirenkyaku. "If he beats me, then take your best shot! Until then you can stand here, watch and wait your turn!"

Natsu could only sulk. "That's no fun."

"Wait," Bambietta suddenly said, the Quincy showing signs of confusion. "How the heck did you get out here? I thought the wind barrier had you all locked up tight?"

"Oh, we had an idea after you left actually," Natsu explained. "See, Lucy remembered that some maid in her employ could dig holes. So she dug us a tunnel underneath the building and to the outside. Pretty cool, right?"

"Oh, yeah, Virgo," Bambietta replied. "And where's everyone else?"

"I guess they're coming here in the magicmobile," Natsu explained. "I'm not sure really. Me and Happy just kind of took off on our own."

"Of course you did." Bambietta sighed. "Wait, I walked through that barrier for nothing?"

"Well you looked pretty cool overcoming it," Natsu said with a smile.

"Okay, so I scored some bad ass points. Yay me. Now watch me go score some more." Bambietta turned her back on Natsu then. As she began to walk towards Erigor, the Quincy started to whisper to herself. "This is a fight reserved for monsters after all. You don't have a place in it."

Erigor continued to look down at Bambietta, his bemusement catching up to him. "You are truly a fool. Two flies, no matter how weak, would have better chances at dealing with the spider before you."

"You just had to go and say something like that again, didn't you?" Bambietta leapt upwards then, standing atop an invisible platform of her making. "Creepy bastard, I hate spiders! They freak me out!"

Bambietta lunged then, letting her emotions flow into her power. She had gotten through the barrier using Blut Vene and Hirenkyaku and she was determined to do the same here despite Erigor's boasting. Her fist hit the windy shield with incredible speed and the Quincy grit her teeth in response.

She could feel it, the wind tearing at her knuckles, shredding her white glove as she continued to push forward. Her arm was screaming at her, begging for her to pull back, to cease her attack, but she was unwilling to listen. All she did then was scream with all her might, trying to push forward. Yet it was simply proving to be a hopeless strategy, the wind barrier proving Erigor's earlier claim correct.

The dark wizard simply sighed, knowing that the advantage was his and his alone now. It was a welcome relief, yes, but also a sad fact that this battle was going to be so very easy now. "Storm Bringer!"

Bambietta braced herself then, prepared to be pushed away by Erigor's attack as punishment for her own defiance. Yet this time did the tornado come from below, enveloping her body. The Quincy was thrown about then, having trouble maintaining her position underneath the cruel maelstrom.

"Natsu," Happy groaned, trying to lift himself up off the tracks, "aren't you going to help her?"

"She's got this," Natsu said with the utmost confidence. "Trust me."

The Dragon Slayer watched then as Bambietta was buffeted around by the force of the attack but he was not worried in the least. He had fought her before and he could see she had already grown since their brief scuffle. That was a fact that left the Dragon Slayer curious about a rematch. Though first he would have to contend with Erza in the promised battle they had agreed upon.

Erigor, meanwhile, knew he could no longer play around at all. He had to finish this Quincy quickly, then take care of the young man with the pink hair. No doubt if these two had been freed from his barrier, then the others would be here soon as well. He could not dare to fight all of them in rapid succession, especially not Erza Scarlet. Weakened or not, she was a foe worthy of his admiration and fear, and he too would be in a weakened state if he had to deal with her after all these other flies.

To that end he cut off the power to his Storm Bringer spell then, allowing the winds to die down. It was a potent spell but not one he could count on to end this fight. No, to bring this to a close he would have to activate a spell of much more destructive potential, one that he could only use when his Storm Mail skill was in full effect.

Bambietta, meanwhile, simply created a platform to stand on, her legs wobbling, her eyes all but spinning. "I think I'm going to hurl..."

The Quincy glanced down towards Natsu then, an inkling in mind.

"Turnabout's fair play," she began to say, "but that'd be too mean. Hold it in, Bambi. Puking in mid-battle would so not be cool."

Erigor, meanwhile, simply brought his hands together. "Storm Shred!"

Bambietta saw it then, several dozen strands of wind moving away from a large magic circle in front of Erigor. They held such power within them that the very magic was lighting the sky with each blade of wind, leaving Bambietta to seize up with fear. She began to move then, relying on the power of Hirenkyaku. The barrage of the Storm Shred continued yet Bambietta managed to keep herself free from further harm, crisscrossing through the open sky, from spiritual platform to spiritual platform, never staying in one place for long as she approached Erigor. She had a different plan for action now, the Quincy reaching into her coat pocket.

Erigor, meanwhile, simply grew irritated with the lack of success that was his current attack strategy. "You've pushed me too far, fly!" he screamed, as he flew up away from Bambietta, gaining altitude above her as he did so. The wizard then began to draw upon his powers with erratic arm movements. "Allow me then to grant you a death worthy of the displeasure you've forced on me!"

Bambietta drew closer, hoping to finish her plan of attack before Erigor did his. She could see him raising his wind covered arms into the sky before suddenly pushing them towards her. "Oh damn it all."

"Behold a magic that can rend the very heavens themselves!" A magic circle appeared before Erigor, the violent emblem crackling with raw power. "Emera Baram!"

A massive gust of wind suddenly surged forward. It's concentrated strength slammed directly into Bambietta, its magical properties ripping and tearing at her body. She tried to stand up to it, yes, but it was to no avail. The Quincy simply fell back, her body hitting the train tracks with incredible force. Yet the magic of Erigor's attack was not done, the wind slicing directly through the support structure, leaving shards of metal and wood to fall into the canyon.

"Now it's your turn, Dragon Slayer," Erigor said as he lowered his body down until his feet came into contact with the bridge. "I wonder if you'll fare any better than your friend."

"My turn?" Natsu said smugly. "I wish but I don't think your fight with Bambi is just over yet."

Erigor's eyes widened. "What?"

"The bad guy's seem to say that a lot if you ask me," Bambietta said as simply lay battered on the train tracks, Blut Vene having held up tremendously under the pressure it had just been subjected to. "I guess I should know."

"That's not possible!" Erigor screamed. "You should be nothing but a bloody smear!"

"Whatever," Bambietta said as she forced herself to sit up. "You could leave me a fine red paste on the wall and I'd still keep coming back to fight you, got it?"

"You damned fly," Erigor hissed. "Why won't you Fairy Tail flies fall?"

"Oh, I fall a lot," Bambietta said as she made it to one knee. "But you know what the best thing about it is?"

"Damn you," Erigor began to draw on his powers once more.

Bambietta forced herself to stand then, breathing heavily. "It just gives me the chance to rise back up and try again!"

Bambietta lunged for Erigor then, Hirenkyaku taking her forward as she screamed in defiance of both the dark wizard's power and ambition. She pulled back her right hand, once more allowing it to become a fist that glowed with the energy of Blut.

"This again?" Erigor could not hide his contempt. "How pitiful."

"We'll see about that!" Bambietta's punch connected suddenly with Erigor's barrier once more, the Quincy's scream of rage changing to one born out of absolute agony. The cloth of her white glove began to tear away completely into the wind, blood ripping away from her hand as well. It was decidedly different from before, Erigor could tell that much. The last time his shield had kept Bambietta at bay, yet it had not caused her any lasting harm. Now however was the flesh of her hand being torn apart.

"Try as you might, you cannot succeed! You're just wasting your time!"

Erigor held his position firm, yet the wizard was content in the knowledge that his wind barrier concealed his face from those before him. He was confident in his power yes, but this woman was pushing his buttons in so many ways, both in terms of his strength of body and character. She had no hope, no chance to break through his barrier, yet she was pushing against it nonetheless.

"I'll do with my time as I damn well please, you dumbass!" Bambietta grit her teeth then as she began to push harder. "Scum who would sacrifice the lives of their subordinates don't deserve to get what they feel they deserve!"

Erigor could see it, then the wind of his barrier shifting, Bambietta's continued raving filling his ears. He knew what she was saying, yet he had no idea what exactly had provoked such ire on her part.

"Not you..."

Then did the Eisenwald wizard beginning to see the bloody knuckles of her fist piercing through the currents.

"And not me!"

Bambietta had been willing to sacrifice it all to get through Erigor's barrier, casting off the protection of Blut Vene for the pure power of Blut Arterie. Now her hand was a bloody mess, flesh shredded, but it was worth it if she could land one empowered blow now that she had pierced Erigor's shield. Yet the agony coursing through her right arm was too much for her to bear.

Her bloodied fist stopped mere centimeters away from Erigor's face.

The dark wizard gasped for a moment, seeing how close he had come to defeat. Yet then did he grin. "Nice try, fly, but now it's-"

Then did Erigor hold his tongue, watching as Bambietta opened her ravaged hand. Several small magical capsules fell from it, no doubt having been gripped tightly in the palm of her fist. The lids on the capsules were loose, a strange liquid that glowed with power spilling out.

Bambietta pulled her hand out from Erigor's Storm Mail, a trail of blood dancing in the wind as she did so. She stepped back then, mumbling a Quincy chant as she did so. Then did she stare forward, her voice booming. "It's time you reap what you sow, Erigor!"

Bambietta smiled, having held that line in the since the moment this battle had started. Her Quincy spell long since complete, the makeshift Ginto capsules she had left in the wind barrier suddenly burst forth with explosions. She could hear Erigor cry out in pain within his own defenses, bursts of light echoing forth so greatly that they shone right through the dark matter of the Storm Mail.

Then did it fade, leaving a battered and broken Erigor, his eyes white and wide with shock, to simply fall to the ground. From his robes fell Lullaby, the flute rolling away on the tracks.

"Bambi," Natsu said, repeating what he had said back in Oshibana, "you all right?"

"Me?" the Quincy said, looking back to him. "I'm just dandy! Kicked his ass and-"

She took note of the Dragon Slayer and Happy both not staring at her face but her right hand. Bambietta raised it up then, staring at the shredded, bloody mess that it had become. She cringed slightly, a strange and repulsive memory suddenly playing out in her mind. She could picture it for a moment, a man in black robes slicing the arm off completely, only for it to be reattached and healed by another.

Then did the Quincy shake her head slightly, closing her eyes for a moment as if she was trying to shake off the past. It did not matter in the slightest. "Don't worry about it, Natsu. My little Ginto capsules can do more than just blow up jerk ass wind assassins!"

With her good hand did Bambietta produce another capsule from her coat pocket. She undid the lid with her mouth and began to pour the spiritual liquid onto the damaged flesh that composed her right hand. It stung horribly but she pressed on, her whispers forcing the liquid to glow and infuse itself into her flesh. Ravaged skin and scarred tissue began to fade then, leaving behind only dried blood as a sign of the damage that had been done by her reckless attack.

"See?" Bambietta said as she rose the hand once more, moving her fingers about without even a momentary trace of pain. "Good as new!"

"That's pretty cool," Natsu said. "Maybe with you around I can fight more carelessly all the time!"

Happy simply sighed. "That's doesn't seem like such a good idea, Natsu."

"Aye, sir," Bambietta added on, smirking slightly. "Now then, about this stupid flute that's caused us all so much troub-"

"Natsu! Bambi!"

Both Fairy Tail members turned in response to their names, Happy growing distraught that no one called out to him, and they took noticed of Erza driving the magicmobile across the train tracks. Lucy, meanwhile, was poking her head out the window, waving towards them.

"Well, well," Bambietta simply said. "The gang's all here. Shame the party just came to a close. My bad."

Erza slowed the magicmobile then, bringing it to a complete stop. "Natsu," she began to say. "You defeated Erigor?"

"I wish!" the Dragon Slayer answered. "But I just kind of had to sit this one out!"

Erza glanced toward Bambietta then. "You deliberately disobeyed me."

The Quincy's eyes went wide. "Hey now, I was so totally heading to Clover to warn the guild masters. But, you know, me and Erigor were on the same path, so we kind of bumped into each other and-"

"Damn it, Bambietta."

Erza pulled herself away from the magicmobile, her legs shaking slightly. Lucy was quick to her side, trying to help the S-Class wizard remain on her feet. All who watched could tell that supplying the magicmobile with the vast amounts of power it had needed to perform as well as it had this day had taken quite the toll on the wizard.

For that one brief moment did Bambietta feel guilty, though that only irritated her deep down. "Erza, I-"

"Enough." The armored mage simply looked at Bambietta with a worn expression upon her face. "I'm just content to see that you survived."

"Survived?" Bambietta said with a smile of renewed confidence. "I totally wrecked this guy! Eventually."

Gray was the next to exit the vehicle, staring at the results of the battle. "Nice work, rookie."

Bambietta could not help but continue to smirk. "Well thanks, I- you left your coat and shirt back in Oshibana, didn't you?"

"No, I-" Gray glanced back towards the seating of the magicmobile and sighed in defeat. "Yeah, I guess I did."

Then did Bambietta take notice of a bandaged young man exiting the vehicle. She recognized him quickly as the shadow wizard that had been all but betrayed by his group. "You joining Fairy Tail now or something? Well then, rookie, let me explain to you the pecking order that's in place."

"You defeated Erigor?" Kageyama asked simply, his face consumed with shock. "That's... impossible!"

"Possible and kind of easy," Bambietta said, waving her right hand towards Kageyama. "See? Not a scratch on me!"

"Now that this is settled," Erza began to say, "I suggest that we all go to Clover and report to Master Makarov and the others what has transpired."

"Oh, we get to meet the other guild masters?" Bambietta asked, a little glee in her voice. "That could be fun!"

"Yeah, I don't know about that," Natsu said with a sigh. "It's just a big stuffy event. Hardly my kind of party."

Gray looked towards Bambietta then. "Don't listen to him. It can't be that bad. Though just brace yourself for some oddballs."

"Oh yeah," Bambietta said with a raised eyebrow, "like we're a bunch of normal folks."

"That's right," Natsu suddenly whispered towards Gray. "She hasn't met Master Bob of Blue Pegasus yet."

"Yeah, that should be interesting," Gray replied. "He always makes a big first impression."

Then did it happen. While the members of Fairy Tail were lost in conversation, Kageyama made up his mind. The Eisenwald wizard slipped into the driver seat of the magicmobile and slipped on the SE-plug. Without any fear or hesitation he propelled the vehicle forward, driving right past the Fairy Tail guild members.

"Erigor!" Kageyama began to shout. "What you started I'll finish!"

His shadow powers came alive then, a tendril whipping out and snatching the discarded Lullaby and bringing it into the young man's possession.

"Watch and weep, you flies!" Kageyama screamed as he began to drive towards Clover. "I'm going to massacre those cretins in power!"

"Hey!" Natsu shouted in return. "What the heck, man? We saved your life and this is how you repay us?"

Bambietta simply watched in shock, the Quincy quick to get irritated. "That idiot!"

She ran forward then, Hirenkyaku taking hold of her feet. One step after another and soon was the Quincy catching up with the vehicle. She leapt for all she was worth then, her feet touching down in the driver's section up front.

"What the hell?" Kageyama stared in shock at Bambietta's presence. "How did you-"

"Give me the damn Lullaby!" Bambietta reached out, intent on taking it from Kageyama by force, yet then did she notice the young man's fear suddenly growing. It was simply not just her he was afraid of this instant. It did not take long for the Quincy to realize what may have just happened. She could feel the wind in her hair and she was quick to look over her shoulder.

Sure enough, Kageyama had lost control of the magicmobile in his panic and driven it right off the tracks. Now it was plummeting into Clover Canyon.

Kageyama simply screamed while Bambietta only sighed. "Don't go pissing your pants, you moron."

She grabbed Kageyama by the shoulders and quickly leapt away from the falling vehicle and landed atop a spiritual platform. Bambietta did not say a word then, simply bounding from one foothold to another until at last she was back atop the train tracks. She took from the shocked Kageyama the Lullaby then, throwing the young man harshly to the ground.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Bambietta screamed, her temper flaring. "Those Eisenwald bastard tried to kill you and you still want to go through with their plan? How dumb can you-"

Bambietta paused then, the Quincy's rambling suddenly dragging from the depths of her own soul desires she possessed as well. Did she not want to return to the Vandenreich despite what had happened?

"Damn it." The Quincy simply sat down then, letting her legs dangle over the edge of the bridge. "We're both idiots I guess."

Kageyama simply pulled himself up, staring at Bambietta's back. He thought of it then, to push her off, to take back Lullaby, but then she spoke once more.

"Don't even try it, kid," the Quincy said simply. "When I'm around jerks like you, I just seem to feel like I'm walking on air. Literally, I mean. And as for this creepy little thing..."

Bambietta pulled Lullaby before her, staring at the three eyed skull that adorned its craftsmanship. She had considered wanting this power for herself, if only to give her leverage over the world around her, but now she was beginning to reconsider it. Then did the eyes of the skull suddenly glow, a strange power within them. In disgust, Bambietta threw the flute out into the open air. Then did she summon her bow to her.

"What are you doing?" Kageyama screamed. "That's-"

"A waste of all our damn time." Bambietta let loose an arrow then and its aim was true. The weapon of light quickly collided with the Lullaby flute, reducing it to nothing but ash. A burst of violet energy erupted then but it too quickly faded away, leaving behind no trace of the magical artifact's existence. "There. Done."

"What am I supposed to do now?" Kageyama continued to scream. "Eisenwald lost everything because of people like you and now-"

"Just shut up," Bambietta interjected. "You think you've lost everything? Look, I hate to play the victim card here, but... I'm pretty sure I've had it much worse than you. And look at me, moving forward." Then did Bambietta frown. "No, I was just trying to move backwards."

"What are you talking about?"

"Like I said," Bambietta answered, "we're both utter fools."

Bambietta stood then and looked down at Kageyama, her face cold and showing little sign of emotion for the moment.

"People like us need to move forward, even if it hurts. The Doggie, Erigor, you, me... We can't be throwing our lives away for such worthless pursuits. After all, what's the point in winning if you end up dying?"

"Bambi!"

The Quincy turned then, taking notice of Lucy and the others fast approaching on foot. The Quincy could not help herself, smiling broadly as she watched them approach.

"Yeah, I just need to move forward," she said softly, becoming lost in the moment. "And if I fall in the process, I'll just have to stand back up and try again."

Time moved on, the weary members of Fairy Tail having made their way to the town of Clover on foot. They had been welcomed into the meeting place of the Fiore guild masters with open arms and once the events of the day had been recalled and discussed, the Magic Council had been contacted so that the military could be sent to apprehend those from Eisenwald.

It was a cause for a celebration and several wizards were doing just that. Natsu, Gray, Erza, Lucy and Happy were partaking with conversation with the guild masters present.

Bambietta, meanwhile, was standing away in the distance of the massive room. It was not that she had no interest in conversing, that was far from it. There was just one in particular she want to talk to and she was biding her time.

"Finally."

The Quincy sighed in relief as she watched Makarov end his conversation with one of the guild masters, a gaunt older man wearing sunglasses, and thus did Bambietta make her move. She approached quickly.

"Master Makarov."

"Ah, Bambietta," the old man said as she looked up at her. "How are you holding up?"

"Fine," the Quincy answered before asking a question all her own. "Why did you ask Erza to watch over me?"

"My child, whatever are you talking about?"

Bambietta raised an eyebrow in response to her question being greeted with another. "She said you told her specifically to keep an eye on me."

"Now that's peculiar," the older man replied. "I haven't seen Erza since she left for her S-Class mission some time ago. That was right before you showed up at the guild hall, actually."

Bambietta was only more confused then. Still the Quincy would not let that become irritation, not here of all places. "Oh well," she said with a shrug. "Maybe I just misheard her."

"Whatever the case may be," Makarov said, "you did an exemplary job today, Bambietta. There's no telling how much devastation could have been caused if Lullaby made it to Clover."

Bambietta could not help but go red in the face. "Well, that's nice of you to say and all, but-" She lowered her head slightly then, her facial expression growing somber. "Thank you, Master Makarov."

"It does an old man proud," Makarov continued, "knowing that he won't have to worry about dealing with the Magic Council over this incident."

It was true enough, Makarov having very nearly gone into shock when he had known that some of his most troublesome wizards had banded together. Yet now he was simply at ease, the possible crisis having been averted by the most unlikely of individuals.

"Well don't think this means I'm the type to play nice," Bambietta said. "I did kind of wreck a fair portion of Oak Town while you were-" Bambietta caught herself then, trying to smile as she changed the topic. "Oh, I'm just so happy we were able to save you and the other guild masters!"

Makarov simply let the subject go for now. "Well then, I suggest you mingle among the crowd. Have some fun, live a little."

"Oh," Bambietta said with a smile, "I plan to live a whole lot actually. As for mingling..."

The Quincy began to turn then, her eyes settling on Erza Scarlet. The woman was talking with Lucy, yet the Quincy was quite intent on entering that conversation herself. She had questions she needed to ask of Erza, ones she hoped would be answered honestly this time.

"It's time I get a straight ans-"

"Oh my, aren't you just precious!"

Bambietta's eyes suddenly widened, her spiritual powers alerting her to a rather interesting presence behind her. The Quincy began to turn, only to find herself suddenly hugged by a rather overweight and bald individual who was very clearly wearing lipstick and a necklace.

"Well now," Bambietta squeaked out, feeling as if her life was very nearly being hugged right out of her, "aren't you friendly."

"Ah, Bambietta," Makarov suddenly said. "Allow me to introduce you to Bob, the guild master of Blue Pegasus."

Bambietta's eyes widened. "Bob?"

"Oh, Makarov, you do seem to get the real lookers in your guild, though I guess this one can't compare to those fire and ice users."

"Lucy, Erza, Natsu," Bambietta whimpered. "He's too close... I can feel the stubble on his chin... Somebody... Anybody... Help..."

And so, the Lullaby arc concludes. The end result was very fun, at least I hope so. We figured we stretched this arc out as much as it is, so we decided to just destroy the flute outright. Besides...It seems like the kind of thin she would do anyways. XD

I do hope you all liked the Flashback with Robert. Poor guy had the potential to be a real badass, but for some reason, he didn't get a real fight. Its my head cannon that he more or less acted like the "teacher" to the rookie sternritter, or new quincys in general. Just made sense to me.

But as you can see, the likes of Erigor are only a slight challenge to her. Fact is, in terms of power, shes 7th in all of fairy tail (the guild)

Also, I do hope you enjoyed her whole reaction to how a dark guild can treat one of their own. What happened in cannon was going to hit a sore spot without a doubt. At least here, she can see that the life in the dark side of this universe wouldn't serve her any better here.

Once again however, I want to remind you all that we have a poll regarding our pairing. We have only ONE vote so far. So there is still a huge chance for you to get the pairing you want...Or no pairing. Thats also a choice in the poll. As of right now, Levy is winning, so if you want to change that, vote.

Anyways, please feel free to leave a review, its VERY appreciated.