—Are you ready? —Erza asked, standing on the beach in her armor, sword pointed at Kara, who looked at her seriously.
—I'm ready —Kara replied.
—Hyaaa! —Erza shouted as she lunged forward with her sword.
Kara raised her hand and activated Crash Magic, easily shattering Erza's sword. The redhead looked surprised but quickly summoned another sword and attacked again.
Kara dodged the strike by moving to the right and, taking advantage of the opening, punched Erza in the chest. Her armor shattered into pieces, and she fell to the ground, staring in shock at how easily her defense had been destroyed.
—Damn… Sorry, I didn't mean to break your entire armor —Kara said, quickly approaching.
—No, it's fine. It just means it was weak armor —Erza replied as she stood up, still surprised.
That was when Kara noticed that underneath her armor, Erza was wearing a cute blue and white dress—something she never showed since she was always covered in battle gear.
—Wow… You're really pretty without that armor —Kara commented, stepping closer until they were face-to-face.
—W-what? —Erza stammered, completely flustered by the sudden closeness.
—Mmm… You're really pretty now that I see you up close —Kara continued with her usual serious expression, not looking away from the blushing Erza—. Maybe I like women —she suddenly added, observing how adorable she looked.
—I'll see you later! I-I need to repair my armor! —Erza blurted out hastily, running off in a panic.
—Sure, see you later —Kara responded with a smile that Erza didn't get to see.
A smile she usually only showed at home.
—That was very much like your father… how concerning —Cornelia commented as she approached her daughter. She had come to pick her up and had witnessed the entire interaction with Erza.
—Hello, Mother. What's going on? —Kara asked, smiling at her.
—I just wanted to check on you. But I'm happy to see you made a friend —Cornelia said with a smile—. It's okay to care about your family, but you need to relax a little more.
—I see… The master said the same thing —Kara replied thoughtfully.
After all, when she was reborn into this world, everything felt unreal. In the end, this world came from a comic or an anime.
But over time, living with Cana and Cornelia, feeling like part of their family, she started seeing it all as a real world.
Of course, she still struggled to see the rest of the guild in the same way since they were exactly like in the anime, which gave her a strange sense of unreality.
But maybe… she just needed to go with the flow.
—Then, I'll do my best —Kara said with a smile.
As Kara walked near the guild, thinking about how to befriend the others, she heard something that caught her attention.
—But this will make me stand out even more! —a blonde girl shouted, dressed in a bunny suit.
—Wait… a cat? —Kara asked, spotting a redhead in an equally provocative outfit, but with cat ears and a tail.
—That's right, meow —the redhead replied, moving her hands like cat paws.
—Isn't there more normal clothing? —the blonde complained, feeling embarrassed—. This is so humiliating…
—Sorry, my magic only allows me to have two outfits… Do you prefer the cat one? —the redhead asked.
—No. I prefer my normal clothes —the blonde quickly said.
—Sorry… I threw them away —the redhead responded nonchalantly.
—What?!
—Doesn't matter. This way, people won't recognize you, and we won't change the timeline —the redhead quickly said.
—Yeah, but I haven't even joined Fairy Tail yet in this time —the blonde protested.
—You will in the future. It'd be bad if someone remembers you —the redhead insisted.
—That's not how time works. If you change the past, you'll just create another timeline, while your original one is already written. You'll return to your line without any changes. It's not like that '90s movie… —a young voice suddenly interrupted behind them.
Both of them quickly turned to see who it was.
—Damn, it's Kara! —the redhead exclaimed in shock.
Without hesitation, she grabbed the blonde and took off at full speed.
—Interesting… —Kara said with a wicked smile.
—Why are we running? It seemed like little Kara knew something about time —Lucy quickly asked—. I don't think she'd mind helping us if that's the case —she added, looking at Erza.
—No. The Kara of this time wasn't very friendly, except with her family members —Erza replied seriously—. Now that I think about it, this is around the time she started becoming more carefree… —she murmured, remembering something, but shook her head and dismissed it.
Then she stared at Lucy, her expression turning somber.
—Listen, Lucy, you need to enter the guild and make sure no one recognizes you. And most importantly… stay away from Kara.
—Y-yes! —Lucy responded quickly before running off in search of Natsu and Gray.
Meanwhile, Erza hid inside a tent in a rather… suggestive position while studying the book that had brought them to the past.
—Mmm… I really do like women. Maybe the master was right; I should relax more. After all, my life is here now… —murmured a voice behind her, leaving her completely frozen.
Erza turned her head robotically and found Kara standing at the entrance of the tent, looking at her with a smile full of interest.
—If that's the case, I should have some fun… After all, this is my world now —Kara said, stepping forward slowly.
—I-I don't know what you're talking about… I'm just passing through —Erza replied, trying to pretend she was a stranger.
—Mmm? Is that so? —Kara got even closer until they were face-to-face.
But just then, someone interrupted.
—Excuse me… —A young red-haired girl entered the tent and was surprised to see Kara.
It was young Erza.
—Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt, but… have you seen Gray and Natsu? —she asked hastily, feeling a little embarrassed to be in front of Kara after what had happened earlier.
—Sure, I'll take you to them —Kara replied calmly, stepping forward.
—Are you sure? You were talking to the lady… —young Erza asked, somewhat confused.
—I think she'll be fine… After all, I have to invest in the future —Kara said with a smile.
That smile left young Erza completely frozen. It was the first time she had seen Kara smile like that.
—I have to remember to collect on my investment in the future —she added, casting a mischievous glance at adult Erza, who remained completely still.
Without saying more, Kara naturally took young Erza's hand and led her away.
Erza, still inside the tent, watched the scene in silence.
—So… was I the one who helped change Kara? I don't know if I should feel happy or worried… —she whispered. But in the end, she smiled slightly. Maybe… she was even a little happy.
After the confrontation with Kara, Erza discovered the book's function. So, when she reunited with Lucy, who had just saved a carriage with runaway horses, they both ran quickly in search of Gray and Natsu, arriving just in time to return to the present.
—Ugh… we barely made it… —Lucy murmured as she stood up.
Natsu, on the other hand, was crushed beneath everyone.
—Looks like you had an interesting trip —Kara commented, sitting nearby, holding a book she had just finished reading. She placed it on the table and looked at them with interest.
—Kara! Since when have you been here? —Erza quickly asked.
—From the beginning. I was just waiting… —she replied with a smile as she stood up.
—Waiting? For us? —Happy asked, tilting his head.
—Not you —Kara said with a look of distaste—. I came for the returns on my investment.
Without further ado, she approached Erza and effortlessly lifted her onto her shoulder.
—W-wait, Kara! —Erza shouted, completely flustered.
But Kara didn't stop. She glanced at Lucy, who was still wearing her bunny suit.
—Well, you too —she added, picking her up with her other arm like a sack of potatoes.
—W-wait, why me?! —Lucy exclaimed, kicking her legs in vain.
Ignoring them, Kara left the library with both women in her arms, smiling in satisfaction.
Natsu, Gray, and Happy remained silent, watching the scene in confusion.
—What… just happened? —Natsu asked, his mouth hanging open.
—Impossible to tell… —Gray responded, frowning.
—Well… it's Kara —Happy said, shrugging.
Meanwhile, outside the library, Cornelia watched as her daughter carried away two women dressed in rather… peculiar outfits.
She sighed and covered her face with one hand.
—Looks like I was right… My daughters were corrupted by their father… —she murmured in frustration.
From the dining hall, Cana drank happily with the others, completely oblivious to the scene.
Thanks for Reading
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