Elior POV
The next morning, I woke up earlier than usual.
Not because I had training.
Not because Irene had called me.
And definitely not because I was particularly responsible.
I simply couldn't sleep.
'Something feels different.'
I sat up in bed and looked around my room.
Nothing had changed.
Same room.
Same furniture.
Same window.
Same sunlight coming through the curtains.
But somehow, knowing Cana and Cornelia were now living with us made the house feel different.
Our family had gotten bigger again.
I smiled and got out of bed.
After changing clothes, I headed downstairs.
The moment I entered the hall, I saw Cana sitting at the table with Luna in her lap.
"Good morning, Brother El!"
"Morning."
Luna looked up.
"Kyuu!"
"Morning to you too."
I walked over and rubbed her head.
"Where's Aunt Cornelia?"
"She's helping Nina and Yuna in the kitchen."
"Already?"
Cana nodded.
"She said she wanted to help since we're staying here."
That sounded exactly like her.
Before I could say anything else, Erza came running down the stairs.
"Brother!"
She stopped when she saw Cana.
"You're awake!"
"Good morning, Erza."
"Good morning!"
The two immediately started talking.
I smiled and walked toward the kitchen.
Sure enough, Cornelia was there helping Nina and Yuna prepare breakfast.
"I thought guests were supposed to rest."
Cornelia smiled.
"I'm not exactly a guest anymore, am I?"
"Fair point."
Yuna placed a plate on the table.
"Breakfast is ready!"
Everyone gathered around.
I took my seat beside Erza while Cana sat opposite me with Luna.
The food smelled amazing.
I took one bite.
"Perfect."
Yuna beamed.
"Of course it is."
Nina laughed.
"She's been bragging about breakfast since she woke up."
"It's important to be confident in your cooking."
I nodded seriously.
"She's right."
Erza looked at me.
"You always agree with Yuna."
"Because Yuna feeds me."
"That isn't a good reason."
"It's an excellent reason."
Everyone laughed.
After breakfast, I decided to head to the guild.
Cana immediately asked if she could come.
"Of course."
Erza jumped up too.
"I'm coming!"
"You have training with Mom later."
"I know."
"Then you can come for a while."
She smiled.
"Yay!"
Cornelia also decided to accompany us.
Luna climbed onto my shoulder, as usual.
We left the house together.
The walk to Fairy Tail was peaceful.
Cana stayed beside me while Erza walked slightly ahead.
After a few minutes, Cana suddenly looked up.
"Brother El?"
"Hm?"
"Do you go on missions every day?"
"No."
"How often?"
"Depends."
"Can I go with you someday?"
I looked at her.
"Eventually."
Her face lit up.
"Really?"
"You're still young."
"So are you."
"That's different."
"How?"
"I'm me."
Cana stared at me.
"That doesn't make sense."
"It doesn't need to."
Erza laughed.
Cana pouted.
"That's unfair."
"You'll get your chance."
She nodded happily.
When we reached the guild, the usual noise could already be heard from outside.
I opened the door.
"Morning!"
"ELIOR!"
A mug came flying toward my face.
I caught it.
"Good morning to you too."
The guild laughed.
Cana stared at the mug in my hand.
"Did someone just throw that?"
"Yep."
"Why?"
"Probably because they missed me."
"That's not normal."
"You're learning quickly."
We walked inside.
Laxus was already sitting at the bar.
He looked over.
"You're late."
I raised an eyebrow.
"Late for what?"
"Nothing."
"Then I'm not late."
He shrugged.
"Fair."
I sat beside him.
Cana took the seat on my other side while Erza sat beside her.
Luna curled up on my shoulder.
Laxus looked at Cana.
"You settling in?"
Cana nodded.
"Yeah."
"Good."
Then he looked at Cornelia.
"And you?"
"I'm doing well. Everyone has been very welcoming."
Laxus nodded.
"That's Fairy Tail."
I smiled.
"Look at you acting like a proper guild member."
"Someone has to."
"You sound like Gramps."
"Don't insult me."
I laughed.
Cana giggled.
A few minutes later, Makarov entered the hall.
He immediately spotted me.
"Elior."
"Gramps."
"How are you feeling after your first mission?"
"Great."
"No injuries?"
"None."
"Good."
He looked toward Cana and Cornelia.
"And you two?"
Cana smiled.
"I'm happy."
Cornelia nodded.
"Very."
Makarov smiled.
"That's all I wanted to hear."
Then his expression changed.
"However…"
I knew that tone.
"What?"
"You are not going on another dangerous mission immediately."
I blinked.
"Why?"
"You've just returned from your first mission."
"I completed it."
"That doesn't mean you need to immediately run off again."
I crossed my arms.
"But I'm fine."
"You're seven."
"So?"
"So you should occasionally behave like a seven-year-old."
Laxus started laughing.
I looked at him.
"Don't encourage him."
"I'm not."
"You are literally laughing."
"Because he's right."
I sighed.
"Fine."
Makarov smiled.
"Good."
I leaned back.
Maybe he had a point.
I had spent the last several days traveling alone, fighting bandits, killing a demon, rescuing an entire village and purifying a town.
Perhaps taking a break wasn't the worst idea.
Then Cana looked at me.
"What do you do when you're not on missions?"
I thought about it.
"Train."
She stared.
"That's it?"
"Pretty much."
Erza nodded.
"Brother trains every day."
Laxus added, "He's obsessed."
I looked at him.
"You train every day too."
"That's different."
"How?"
"I'm me."
I stared at him.
"You're stealing my line."
He grinned.
Cana burst out laughing.
For the next few hours, I actually did almost nothing.
And it was surprisingly enjoyable.
I talked with Cana.
I trained lightly with Laxus.
Erza watched us and occasionally shouted advice despite being five.
Cornelia spoke with several guild members.
Luna spent most of the morning being passed around because apparently everyone in Fairy Tail wanted to pet her.
At one point, she ended up sitting on Makarov's head.
"Kyuu!"
Makarov froze.
I tried not to laugh.
"Luna…"
"Kyuu."
"Get down."
She stayed.
Makarov sighed.
"I see how it is."
Cana was laughing so hard she nearly fell off her chair.
Even Laxus couldn't hold back.
Eventually Luna jumped down and returned to me.
I picked her up.
"You caused trouble."
"Kyuu."
"Don't look so proud."
She looked even more proud.
I sighed.
Around noon, Cana suddenly pulled something from her pocket.
A deck of cards.
She looked at me.
"Brother El?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you know how to play cards?"
I smiled.
"I know a few games."
Her eyes lit up.
"Really?"
"Really."
"Then play with me."
"Sure."
We sat at a table while Cana shuffled the cards.
Erza watched curiously.
"What are you playing?"
"Cards."
"I know that."
I looked at her.
"Then why ask?"
"I wanted to know what game."
"Fair."
Cana explained the rules.
We started playing.
She was actually pretty good.
Better than I expected.
But unfortunately for her…
I had excellent perception.
Not only could I read magical fluctuations, but years of observation and my ridiculous processing speed made it difficult to hide anything from me.
Cana narrowed her eyes.
"You keep winning."
"I'm talented."
"You're cheating."
"I'm not."
"You are!"
"Prove it."
She puffed her cheeks.
Erza leaned over the table.
"Brother is cheating."
I looked at my little sister in disbelief.
"You're supposed to support me."
"I'm supporting Cana."
"Betrayal."
Cana laughed.
Laxus walked past and glanced at the cards.
"He's probably cheating."
"See?"
"Thanks."
"I wasn't defending you."
I sighed.
Everyone was against me.
Eventually I deliberately lost a round.
Cana immediately celebrated.
"I won!"
"Congratulations."
She looked suspicious.
"Did you let me win?"
"No."
She stared at me.
"You did."
"No."
"Brother El!"
"Okay, maybe a little."
She crossed her arms.
"That's not fair!"
"I was being nice."
"I don't need you to be nice!"
I smiled.
"Good."
She blinked.
"Because next round I'm winning properly."
Her eyes lit up.
"Deal!"
I smiled.
Watching her laugh, I realized something.
This was the kind of thing I had wanted.
Not battles.
Not power.
Not defeating monsters.
Just moments like this.
A normal day.
A family.
Friends.
A guild full of idiots.
I looked around the hall.
Fairy Tail was noisy as ever.
Someone was arguing.
Someone else was laughing.
A table had somehow been broken.
Makarov was yelling at whoever did it.
Luna was sleeping on my lap.
Cana was shuffling her cards.
Erza was watching closely.
Laxus was pretending not to listen.
I smiled.
'Yeah.'
'This is what I wanted.'
For once, I didn't need to worry about the future.
I didn't need to think about Zeref.
Or demons.
Or dragons.
Or the countless tragedies I remembered from the story.
Today, I could simply enjoy being here.
I looked down at Luna.
She opened one eye.
"Kyuu…"
I smiled.
"Yeah, Luna."
I gently scratched her head.
"Let's enjoy today."
And for the first time since arriving in this world…
I did.