Friend

"So, what do you think we should do with these guys?" Alex asked Mira quietly.

"I'm not really sure. We could turn them in to the council as they are all criminals, but something about that doesn't sit well with me after hearing about their childhood and previous situations" Mira responded.

"Yeah, that's kinda my thoughts on it as well" Alex agreed still in thought. 'Probably wouldn't turn them over to the council anyway' Alex thought lightly.

"So.. We just let them go?" Mira asked, her tone tinged with uncertainty. Alex shrugged, If they couldn't come up with anything better, then that was probably the best choice. They were all adults, and clearly had an entirely different view on life than they did previously.

Turning to Wendy, Alex asked for her thoughts on the matter as well. "Um, I'm not really sure either. They don't seem like bad people and they have been through a lot recently. So I don't think we should make them suffer anymore than they have." She replied quietly after giving it a little thought.

"That is an excellent point," Alex said. "Alright, we will release this merry band of misfits, though I will be warning them not to pull a stunt like this again" he continued. Wendy and Mira nodded to his words, they too didn't want something like this to happen again.

The trio approached the quietly chatting group of bound wizards and Jellal, the talking died down as they did so. "So. We have decided to release you lot unharmed, though I will warn you. Pull a stunt like this again and you will not be getting off with just your magic being sealed." Alex said, his voice getting low and dark at the end.

Alex used {Mana Manipulation} to put pressure on the group less Mira n' Wendy. He wanted to drive the point into their skulls. This was a one time deal and they shouldn't take liberties with him or those he cared about. It had the intended effect.

In the eyes of Jellal and his group, Alex was shrouded in dark mana and they could see an Illusion of a Demon with cold Green eyes, flashing over his form every couple seconds. The pressure itself was also making it hard to breathe. Thankfully for the now very terrified group, it didn't last long.

They were all staring at Alex with pale faces, their bodies drenched with sweat. Alex didn't say anything else to the group but he did glare at them until they all nodded vigorously, letting him know the message was received.

Alex left them to collect their thoughts and he approached Mira and Wendy. "So shall we get out of here? As much as I love caves, my house is a bit more comfortable." Alex said in a lite tone.

Wendy chuckled, "Yeah but our other cave was pretty sweet, It had all the comforts of home" she said smiling, seemingly lost in thought.

"Other cave?" Mira asked with a small chuckle.

"Yeah, we were cavemen for a while. But in my defense, It was a very nice cave!" Alex said lightheartedly.

"Yeah it was!" Wendy agreed, Mira just laughed lightly at the two.

"So... Can you untie them?" Jellal asked, interrupting the trio.

Alex hummed lightly, "Fine, I guess I can" he conceded before releasing the bound wizards.

"Our magic is still sealed" Midnight commented.

"And it will remain so until we are ready to leave. Sorry, but I trust you lot about as far as Wendy could throw you." Alex said with narrowed eyes. He still hadn't quite forgave them for kidnapping Wendy. It was petty but this was a way he could make them suffer a little longer.

"What did you do to Cubellios?" Eric asked again, he was concerned about his friend and was getting annoyed that people kept ignoring him.

"Hm? You mean the cursed girl? She is fine, I just hit her with a sleep spell" Alex replied casually. Everyone in the cave, Mira and Wendy included, stared at him uncomprehendingly.

'What is he talking about?' was the collective unasked question.

"Uhh, I'm talking about my familiar, the snake." Erik said as he pointed to the limp form of said snake.

Alex quirked an eyebrow at him "So was I" he said in an amused tone.

"Alex, What are you talking about?" Mira asked lightly, just as confused as the rest of the group.

"You mean you guys didn't know?" Alex asked the recently freed group. "The snake is a human who has been cursed. The curse was well done, but it's clear the one who put it on was just starting to dabble in curses." He said as he approached and studied the prone snake.

"I had no idea. Cubellios has been my companion since the tower of heaven, how could it be possible she's human" Erik said, conflicting emotions crossing his face constantly.

"That would actually make more sense." Alex chimed in. "The people that took all the children to the towers were a cult of dark mages that worshipped Zeref, it makes sense there would be those of their number who were dabbling with curses" He said as a follow up.

Alex studied the Snake for a while, examining her with both mana sight and {Mana Manipulation}, he could easily undo the curse but wanted to study how it did the transformation.

Not only would the curse change the body completely but it would give the cursed the ability to use magic or abilities relative to the change. Cubellios could freely generate wings to fly, had enhanced strength and access to poison magic.

When changed back to her human form, Kinana, she had no access to any magic and it took her a long time to be able to recreate her magic, known as 'poison aura'. Alex was checking for anything that might let him make this 'curse' beneficial, like turning it into a transformation or a take-over type magic.

Doing this would not only open up another way for him to increase someone's strength but it would also give him a better understanding of Curses and the changes they bring. As an added benefit, Kinana would have access to magic even in her human form and would have a way to protect herself.

Alex knew she wouldn't have her memories as a snake right away, but he hoped having access to her magic and being near Erik from the start would allow her memories to come back quicker.

'If this does work out, the chances of her becoming a fairytail member are very low' Alex thought as he snuck a glance to Erik. Erik was watching Alex's every move, making sure he didn't hurt his friend, though he still had many conflicting emotions crossing his face all the time.

When Alex was done learning all he could from the curse in its current state, he turned to Erik. "I can reverse the curse and turn her back into a human, though I have no idea what kind of mental state she will be in" He said honestly.

Erik hesitated for a few moments before simply nodding. Alex got to work modifying the Curse, he started by changing the energy from curse energy to ethernano since he didn't think someone with Kinana's personality would willingly cultivate curse energy, the negative emotions alone would probably make her drop this magic.

Then he used {Mana Manipulation} to give the 'form' part of the curse the ability to swap between human and snake instead of being stuck on just snake. He also made the human form the dominant one, if she ever ran out of magic power she would revert back to human.

Finally he used {Mana Manipulation} on her brain in the same way he assumed 'Archive Magic' allowed for quick mastery of spells, planting the knowledge of her magic and how to use it. After all his changes were done he pulled the remaining curse energy from her body allowing the newly modified 'curse' to start working off ethernano.

Since Kinana had been unconscious, the new transformation magic wanted to go back to it's 'Base' form and she started changing from snake to human. The giant purple snake started shrinking rapidly while glowing until it eventually turned into a young naked girl curled up in the fetal position.

Alex pulled a big cloth out of his inventory to cover the naked form of the sleeping girl. Once she was covered he took a look at her, she was short, had eye catching violet hair with a round face and while Alex couldn't see them he knew she had green eyes.

Alex nodded to himself before turning to face the group. "See, I told you she was human" he said casually to the very stunned group of people.

"Why isn't she moving?" Erik asked with a concerned tone, he had already made it over to her side to check on her.

"Hmm? Oh! Right. Sorry about that, my spell is still active on her" Alex said, just remembering that she was still under the effect of magical sleep.

The girl started stirring a few moments after Alex removed his spell. He didn't know what to expect when she woke up but was a little surprised when a sleepy looking girl sat up and started looking around the room curiously.

Her eyes stopped on Erik, he was the closest to her but she was more interested in his vacant look and beat red face. Following his line of sight let her realize she was naked and her blanket had fallen down, uncovering her chest.

She stared at herself for an impossibly long second before simply letting out a soft "Oh", before covering herself back up and continuing to look around blankly.

'I don't know what I was expecting, but a complete lack of reaction wasn't it' Alex thought blankly.

Everyone except Kinana, were in different states of stunned stupor for the next couple minutes before Kinana addressed the group. "Who are you people, and where am I?" she asked calmly.

"That might take a while to explain, but before that can you tell us the last thing you remember?" Alex asked his own question instead of answering.

"Hmm? What? I-I. What's going on? My memories are fuzzy, but I keep hearing a voice calling me a friend, It asks for my name, but I can't put a face to the voice. I Also think I used to be a snake?" Kinana said, very confused and unsure about her own memories.

"Hmm, well guess you are just going to have to wait for your memories to settle down. It should take some time, but I think they should all come back." Alex spoke calmly to the confused girl, trying to drive home that her confusion should be temporary. Kinana nodded to him after she processed his words.

"Well, she's in your capable hands now. All your magics will return in two hours, and Jellal you should probably track down Erza and apologize to her at some point soon. Red can be scary when she wants to be." Alex addressed the group one last time before Mira, Wendy and himself left the cave.

Since Alex didn't need to rely on his senses to make it back to magnolia. He pulled out his jet-plane and gave Mira and Wendy a ride in the supersonic vehicle. The trip back to the guild took no time at all.

They didn't land right away and circled Magnolia at a relaxed pace, taking in the sights and having casual conversation about everything that had happened today. Wendy wanted to go check on Carla so as they were making their second circle around the city and were just above their house she had Alex slow down enough that she could jump out.

Alex and Mira continued making small talk, enjoying the view and each other's company. Alex officially asked Mira out to which she happily agreed, they then headed back towards the center of town while making plans for a small dinner date.

Dinner was a quiet and pleasant affair filled with light laughter as they got to know each other better. It wasn't a real date and didn't last too long, both wanting to get back and check in with the guild about the events that took place, though they were noticeably closer as they walked the streets.

Both wizards were in good spirits as they entered the guild, their good mood only increased with the lively atmosphere in the guild. Wendy had met up with Carla and they both had told the Master and the guild members that had been preparing to come after them, everything that had happened.

The guild was now celebrating Wendy's safe return. Alex and Mira joined the festivities and answered questions about their own involvement in todays events. The night ended fairytail style with everyone in high spirits.

(A/N. There it is ladies and Gents! We are all caught up. Unfortunately that means shit (releases) are going to slow right down. I will try for 1 a week minimum but if this week has been anything to go off, even that might not be possible. :| This story is not being dropped. )