Sweet Starry Shadows

Sabertooth Escape

Sweet Starry Shadows

Chapter 17: Sabertooth Escape

The boys looked over their shoulders as the thick vegetation returned to normal as if nothing had happened during the previous few seconds of their lives. The large thick trees hiding the destruction behind them, they stayed implanted in their spot as they gave the intruders a hard time on leaving. As if they were truly alive to think for themselves, they held those intruders captive until they were given permission, but sadly, they couldn't do that since the three had escaped magically.

Swaying against the wind, the trees gave out a ghastly whistle where they all turned to look back. With Lucy's ragged breathing, she forced herself to steady her breathing as they all waited for the next train to arrive. Looking at the boys, she raised a brow. "Are you both stalking me now?" she questioned with a whisper where they looked down to her.

"No, the train stopped here, and we saw your spirit collapsing while they were looking for help. We had nothing better to do so we went to see what was going on," Sting bluntly answered where she gave them a look that she didn't believe them. "If that was the case, then how did you find me?" she asked where the wind ran by them again.

"I used my magic to open the path," a voice interrupted.

Their heads turning, they saw Sakura landing as her wings dispelled. Her eyes droop as her skin was ghostly pale, she turned to investigate the woods where she sighed. "This place is no longer safe... It has been intruded, and that means that it'll happen again if you remain here," she stated before smelling the air.

"They're watching us..." she muttered under her breath.

"I... I'm so sorry," Lucy whispered, making them turn to look at her in Rogue's hold. All tattered and bruised, Sakura's heart plummeted to her state. "It's alright Lucy. I should've been clearer about the situation," she replied as she turned her attention to Rogue. "Watch over her for me could yo-"

"I'm going to join Sabertooth," Lucy stated as she interrupted the crimson that was going to request Sabertooth for their assistance. She turned her head to look at the blonde in shock as Sting and Rogue widened their eyes to Lucy proclaim of joining their guild in which the wolves all howled in the distance.

Sakura gapping, she closed her mouth. "Are you sure? Because I'm pretty sure that just a few hours ago, you didn't want to join a guild," she questioned to which Lucy nodded.

"There are more of them than there is of me. I don't have the strength to fight them alone... I had to learn that the hard way," she stated, watching the crimson look at her as if she was a deer caught in the headlights.

Her hand reaching out, Sakura frowned as she lifted a hand where an orb of water engulfed hers. Feeling the cooling sensation occur in the hand that the girl happened to step on during battle, she sighed in relief before realising that it was healing her. She looked up to meet a sad smile.

"Would you like me to join Sabertooth too?" Sakura asked.

Lucy looked up to her with bulging eyes. Knowing that Sakura was dead serious, she shrugged her shoulders before remembering that Sakura was doing something important for her former Master. "But you're doing a secret mission for Master Makarov," she whispered as her heart banged to know that her friend couldn't join another guild with her since she's too busy worrying about the other.

Feeling ashamed that she's the decision-maker of Sakura's question, she shook her head with a forced smile. "You're in Fairy Tail... You just can't get up and leave behind everything. You need his permission to leave the guild Sakura..." she said where the crimson smiled.

"Now that's where you're wrong," she said, making the girl look at her in confusion. "I am that force that holds up the guild when Makarov isn't here... Remember, I have what it takes to be a Master..." she continued before showing them her upper thigh.

The Celestial mage widened her eyes as she noticed the missing guild insignia on her. Looking up, she tried to form a few words that were running wild in her mind. "So, you were the one that got rid of mine?" she questioned.

Watching the girl nod, she smiled. "Thank you for releasing me," she thanked to which Sakura nodded her head in reply.

As they patiently waited, the train soon came and they all quickly boarded to which the Dragon Slayers stiffened in their seats. Rogue gently placing her down beside him, he and Sting glanced over to Sakura where her body was still with piercing, deadly eyes. "Don't go causing trouble," Sting scowled where the crimson hissed.

"Fairy Tail..." she seethed before her eyes began to glow which alerted them all that she was boiling in fury.

Lucy paling, she quickly reached over where she hissed in pain. Sakura snapping out of it, she gave her a worried look. "Should I heal you?" she questioned. Shaking her head, Lucy forced her to smile to the girl reassuringly. "Do you want to hide our scents just in case then, Sakura?" she asked.

She watched Sakura shake her head to her surprise. Tipping her head to the side, she watched as Sting elbowed the girl in the hips where she growled lowly as a warning. Sting giving her a pointed look, Sakura grunted before crossing her arms and leaning back onto the plush seats in complaint.

"They're nearby but don’t worry, they’re just not on this carriage," Rogue stated where she turned to look at him with a look that couldn't be explained.

Her head snapping from Sting to Rogue, she bit the inside of her cheeks as she pondered in thought. Rogue catching her, he looked at her confused. "What's wrong?" he questioned where she snapped out of it to look at him as he were to be an alien.

"You both changed so much since Jiemma ran away," she stated before hearing Sakura's quiet snickers.

The Shadow Dragon Slayer faintly blushing, he faked a cough as he quickly looked away to regain his composure. Listening to Sting's movements, he turned to look at his friend that seemed to look conflicted. He knew exactly why, and he knew that neither of them wanted to reply to the girl's keen observation on them.

Watching Sting's eyes glance over to Sakura, they all listened to her sigh. "Sabertooth had to act for their own protection," Sakura said before sinking deeper into the seats. "No one had a choice to refuse a powerful Master..." she continued before clicking her teeth. With one final word escaping through her lips, Lucy regretted her timing.

"So, you're going to join our guild?" Sting asked, quickly changing the topic since he knew that mood was dropping at an alarming rate.

Lucy nodding, she fiddled with her fingers before looking at Sakura. "Yeah... It'll be great for a change," she answered to which Sakura looked up and smiled. "You don't mind us joining right Sting?" Sakura questioned.

Sabertooth's Master shrugged his shoulders as he leaned back. "You want to still do whatever you've been doing?" he asked, looking over to Sakura who widened her eyes.

The crimson-haired girl looking away, she gritted her teeth before nodding her head. "Alright, you can be my assistant then and train our members when they ask," he said where she snapped her head to look at him with a heated glare.

"She can't be controlled like that," Lucy rebutted.

Rogue turning to look at Lucy's determination to release Sakura from Sting's control, he gave her look of admiration for standing up for her friend. Looking over to Sting, he nodded his head knowing what the crimson was capable of if he were to piss her off by throwing his duties onto her shoulders.

Hearing his partner groan, he smiled victoriously as he watched the two girls throw each other knowing looks. Guess the guild's going to be even livelier.

As they all adjusted themselves comfortably, Sakura began to heal Lucy to which she was relieved to free herself from her aching body. Her eyes dropping as she finally felt the aftermath of her earlier battle, she fell asleep just when the crimson had finished.

With a soft smile gracing onto her porcelain face, she felt at ease. Without even knowing, she soon found herself leaning her head onto Rogue's shoulder who smiled down to her.

Sting gruffing at the mere sight of the two, Sakura chuckled as she tiredly rested her head against the wall beside her.

The room being cold, Sting moved to the other side of the carriage where he crossed his arms. His head resting against his side of the wall, he adjusted before closing his eyes.

"You really adore her, don't you?"

Rogue turned his attention over to the crimson that was smiling towards their direction. Giving her a confused look, Sakura gave him a tired grin to which he raised a brow to her expressions that he couldn't decipher. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"Without you even knowing, you instinctively adjusted her to rest her head on your lap so her back posture is straight and comfortable," she replied as she looked down to the blonde that was lightly snoring with her lips slightly parted.

Lucy's head was on Rogue's lap as he rested himself against the seat that seemed slightly comfortable to sleep on. Their bodies relaxed as the soft snores from both Lucy and Sting could be heard within the carriage, Sakura snuggled closer against the wall before Yuuto came out of his gate in his wolf form.

"It's going to be a long, cold night… Allow our body heat to warm up the room," Ace quietly said, appearing by the door before shifting into his wolf.

The two Dragon Slayers watching Yuuto lift his head to rest it on Sakura's shoulder, Ace went on his stomach where he placed his head onto his paws. Feeling the carriage room slowly warm up to the wolves' heat, Sakura yawned before hugging her silver-grey wolf as Rogue stretched his back.

Before long, they both fell asleep as the train rattled and screeched through the night as it made its stops...

In three days, they were going to be official Sabertooth mages...