Fairy Tail: The Faint Smile in Earthland

📍 Location: Sacred Graveyard → Infinity Clock Ruins → Magnolia

📅 June, X791

The uneasy calm after the battle felt strangely loud. Dust drifted in the stale air, and the stone beneath their feet still vibrated faintly, a recent reminder of violence. It was as though the ruins themselves remembered things none of them wanted to relive.

Natsu leaned against a cracked wall, dragging his boots along the floor. He picked up a small pebble and flicked it at Happy, who caught it mid-air with a lazy paw.

"I'm starving," Natsu mumbled. "Can we eat yet?"

Happy stretched and yawned.

"Aye! I need fish soon or I'll faint!"

Lucy shook her head with a tired smile.

"We just finished a brutal fight, and you're thinking about lunch?"

Gray, leaning nonchalantly nearby, chuckled softly.

"Is it a surprise? That guy was terrifying, remember?"

Near the center of the chamber, Michelle knelt, her hand brushing across the cracked surface of an old pedestal. She traced the fine lines of a carved star, reverently.

"This map... it points right to the next piece of the Infinity Clock," she said quietly.

Lucy crouched beside her, peering at the design.

"So close… I can almost feel it."

Romeo stayed at the edge of the group, his flame sword resting against his back like a familiar shadow. His eyes were locked on the far corridor, alert and steady. He wasn't tense—just fully aware that any moment could bring danger again.

Lucy noticed and stepped closer.

"Romeo?"

He didn't stop looking ahead, but responded without turning.

"I'm focused. That's all."

She nodded and added softly,

"You've been focused and quiet since we left Magnolia."

His fingers brushed the hilt of his sword.

"Teresa taught me that sometimes walking the path alone is the only way to protect what's important."

Lucy studied him, eyes soft.

"Even the sharpest blade can use a scabbard sometimes."

Romeo finally looked at her, a brief sparkle in his eyes before it vanished.

"Maybe. But not today."

A few hours later, they entered a massive substructure beneath a ruined cathedral. Gears—some as tall as buildings—interlocked with rusted teeth. Steam hissed from cracked pipes, filling the air with the scent of oil, machinery, and long-abandoned enchantments.

Happy clung to Natsu's scarf, voice small.

"This place is creepy."

Michelle's breath caught in her throat.

"It feels like time forgot this place," she said.

Romeo stepped onto a narrow bridge of gears, each movement measured and deliberate. His cloak snapped in the silent air behind him. His sword hummed with a faint violet glow.

Gray appeared beside him, his fingertips flickering with frost.

"Anything wrong?" he asked.

"We're not alone," Romeo answered without breaking pace.

A beat later, a figure emerged—tall, pale, and desperate.

It was Imitatia.

Her eyes locked on Lucy. Hurt and madness trembled in their depths.

"Lucy… come back to me," she whispered. "Lucy…"

Lucy recoiled, confusion twisting her features.

"Imitatia?" she asked quietly.

No words came back. Instead, Imitatia's hand materialized a swirling blade of white magic. She lunged at Lucy, eyes wild.

Romeo reacted before thought caught up. He slid in front of Lucy, flame dancing along his sword's edge.

"Move!" he cried. "She's not the same!"

Imitatia's blade slammed into Romeo's shield of flame. A brilliant burst of light flashed through the hall.

"You! You took her from me!" Imitatia screamed.

Romeo's voice rang clear.

"She chose her path. Don't chase echoes that hurt her."

The battle erupted in shining fury. Romeo ducked under Imitatia's slash. His sword cut lightning-fast arcs in mid-air—no flash of flame, just slices of violet heat. Every movement was precise, with no wasted motion.

Natsu surged forward, his flame fists colliding with Imitatia's.

"Don't you dare mess with Lucy!" he roared.

Gray followed, winding frost magic around his arms like living armor.

"She's not yours to claim!"

Their teamwork forced Imitatia back. Romeo pushed through, eyes sharp as winter. He watched her pattern—like a song being repeated too many times.

"Now!" he yelled.

He executed his move perfectly.

"Flame Echo Control!"

A slash of purple flame extended from Romeo's blade—accurate and silent. Two beats later, a second wave flickered and struck Imitatia from behind. Before she could regroup, Natsu caught her with a flaming uppercut while Gray trapped her in an ice barrier. She crashed to the ground.

Lucy rushed to her, voice shaking.

"I… Imitatia…"

Imitatia looked up with tears brimming.

"I was supposed to give her everything she wanted… What am I without that?"

Romeo stepped back, voice calm.

"You were meant for her, but she chose more. You don't have to fade because you changed."

Imitatia's magic shimmered, then vanished in stardust. The echoes of ancient pain evaporated with her.

Once the team secured the clock piece, a sense of relief rippled through them. Michelle carefully tucked it inside a reinforced bag. Lucy held Imitatia's hand for a moment before letting her go, quietly fierce.

Natsu stretched, a playful grin returning.

"That fight was insane. Who's hungry?"

Gray snorted.

"You can shove that sword aside for now, bowhead."

Romeo turned to the corridor exit.

"I'll go first."

Lucy reached out, calling after him.

"Romeo… wait."

He paused, not turning immediately.

She came up beside him.

"You saved me back there. Again."

He didn't smile, but his tone softened.

"I didn't do it for thanks. I chose to."

Lucy stepped closer, her voice soft but resolute.

"Then walk with us. When you can. You don't have to be alone just to prove you're strong."

Romeo stood silent. Then a small smile broke through—no pride, just warmth.

He nodded once.

Return to Magnolia

By dusk, the skyline of Magnolia appeared, amber light dancing on its rooftops. Lanterns blinked on, and smoke drifted from chimneys.

Romeo paused on a small hill above the town. His flame sword hung at his back. He watched a silver streak flash through the sky—

The Edge.

He murmured, more to himself than anyone else.

"You saw that, didn't you?"

Behind him, Natsu and Gray argued loudly about dinner. Happy drifted between them, singing. Lucy and Michelle walked together in quiet conversation.

Romeo inhaled deeply—each breath filled with home, grass, and embers.

He straightened his shoulders and took his first step downhill.

He wasn't a boy anymore. He wasn't merely an echo of someone else's lessons.

He was a blade forged by his flame.

And he carried a fire that would light the darkest path—even if he walked it alone.