---

The sun covered the city in its warm glow. A cool breeze would brush past the many pedestrians of Crocus, walking to and fro in their daily lives. Whenever there was a bright, sunny day like this the city would be bustling from dawn til dusk. Peddlers took to the streets, shoppers perused the many stores, even the Kingdom soldiers that would patrol the capitol seemed to be smiling and jovial. All seemed well in Fiore on fair weather days, though today that may not be the case. Hidden away in the alleys of this labyrinth city is a guild that very few even know exists. A small band of heroes, though they don't know it yet, just waiting to be noticed by the world. And on this peaceful day, without any warning, that opportunity they have been waiting for will appear and forever change the course of history. The time of tradition, friendship, and family will soon begin anew in this world that has moved on from the old ways. Fenixtear is about to shine.

---

The beautiful morning sun made for the perfect company while the tall, tan woman watered the plants of her garden. Many exotic and magical trees, flowers, and fruits decorated her large greenhouse though not a human soul wandered beside her. Grasidia always enjoyed sharing her garden with the public but never personally lingered among them, making sure to only open her garden after she finished watering the plants every morning. There were a few regular visitors among the humans that she knew of but she couldn't tell you their names; she never spoke to them even once. And as she finished tending to her colorful, silent friends she noticed that one of the regular visitors was waiting patiently by the greenhouse door. A single sigh escaped her as she replaced the watering can on the table next to the clear door and opened it inward. Her face showed no emotion as she looked down on the teenage girl before her, though the human gave her a smile in return. "Thank you, ma'am," the girl spoke, giving a polite bow to Grasidia before entering the greenhouse.

Yet, Grasidia said nothing in return. She simply watched the human mosey past and approach the nearby Firelily flowers. Grasidia let out another sigh before pulling the front door as open as it could go, holding it in place with a latch on the wall so that the door would remain open while she stepped out into the street. Her garden was ready for the day so now it was time to head back to the guild. Many would stop and stare at the striking figure walking among them but Grasidia had grown used to the gazes of the humans. Their lust for her form was always a mystery to her but so long as none approached then it didn't bother her. The walk was brief anyways. As she turned right into a shaded alley the bustling crowd from the street was replaced by an empty walkway. People didn't often come through this alley except for the occasional shortcut or to actually see the mage guild that called it home. The latter was more rare.

She stepped into the guild hall, the front door creaking to announce her entry to all that were inside. A quick glance around confirmed Grasidia's suspicions: there were no customers for the tavern. Only her guildmates were present among the tables and the bar. She also noted that Torys, her master, was nowhere to be seen. The most important thing missing, more than customers and the guild master, were the quest papers on the job board. The corkboard on the back wall was completely empty, easy to see from the entrance. That makes eight days, Grasidia thought to herself, lightly shaking her head in disappointment. Eight days in a row with nothing to do. Turning back and staying at her garden would be worse than just staying here, as at least she knew her guildmates and could tolerate their presence much better than the random humans that would surely pester her if she returned. Of course there were some that wouldn't handle having nothing to do as well as Grasidia would, her guildmates are mostly young and immature. It would only be a matter of time before they tried to find other ways to occupy themselves. But with Torys nowhere in sight it would fall upon Grasidia to keep the guild hall in one piece, so with a defeated sigh she let the door close behind her and simply took a seat at the nearest table. Another one of these days...

The absolute desolate wasteland that was Fenixtear's job board had Lavinia secretly grinning with delight. Ha ha! This guild was on the verge of collapse! Not a few months into working here, and already her mere presence was driving them all to ruin! Just a little longer now, and her 'fellow mages' would have no choice but to seek out less legitimate work, taking on nastier and dirtier jobs until they lost all their humanity and became corrupted hollows of their former selves. Yes yes, it was only a matter of time...

For the moment, though, the lack of work conferred some even more important benefits. For one: nobody could accuse her of slacking off anymore. Oho, you say that I'm just lounging about on the sofa with my book all day? Why yes... but that's only because there is NOTHING ELSE AT ALL TO DO! AHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAAAA!

Her epic internal cackling escaped into the world as a tiny giggle, unbeknownst to the villainous mage immersed in her own cruel schemes. It was hard to catch her attention at all when she was like this; she could happily spend hours reading in her comfy seat without even noticing if the whole building was crashing down around her. As it happened, though, Grasidia managed to open the door at just the right angle that a flash of sunlight bounced off the doorknob and reflected in turn through Lavinia's glasses. She hissed with irritation, blinking rapidly and removing her spectacles to rub at her eyes with one hand.

"What's this, then?" Now that the monster had been roused, Grasidia's deflated state did not escape her notice, and she spoke loud enough to be heard across the tavern. "Has something managed to bring low even the great S-Class mage?"

Curious, she closed the sinister forbidden tome she'd been perusing (which incidentally contained some very useful tips on home cooking) and replaced her glasses, staring balefully over at the guild's resident gardener. Grasidia might be a bit hard to talk to sometimes, but that didn't mean Lavinia was just going to sit idly and watch her be miserable like this. "Come now, don't just keep it to yourself. Speak your darkest thoughts, let loose all your suffering and despair!" Maybe talking about it would cheer her up a little.

---

Sitting on a chair and staring at the barren job board became Luke's most common pastime during during the week. His eyes were bereft of any negative or positive feelings as he blankly sat in a chair as still as a lake. For someone like him, this kind of activity that resembles watching paint dry is possible as serving as entertainment. His already weak critical thinking skills aren't required and he's not mentally challenged in the slightest.

But it would probably be a lie if he said he was perfectly okay with the stagnation in the guild. He missed out on an hour of sleep because he was woken up by some strangers. Since more and more people are coming around to his place, he's going to have to look for another place to crash. with his living arrangements being more unstable than a shack in the middle of a storm, he can move whenever he feels like it.

He yawned. It's a shame he missed an hour he very much needed. Only twelve hours... Maybe he can catch up on that right now?

He turned up the music playing through his headset just a smidge before shutting his eyes. His head leaned back in the chair slowly, and then his breathing began to even out. The moment he was about to drift into dreamland, he heard the sound of a door opening through his headset and opened his eyes to see one of his guild mates enter.

He turned down the volume of his headset and stared straight at the newcomer, Grasidia. One of his other guild mates who resembled a super villain grabbed his attention with her boisterous words. With the decibels of the music playing currently matching that of a low hum, he could hear her tone.

He thinks she was a little annoyed, but doesn't know why.

It would be nice to have a job. His head almost unnoticeably bobbed to the beat of the music with those thoughts streaming in his head.

---

While some might have been restless because of the lack of jobs, Ria managed to keep herself busy just fine. The guild may not have hosted all that many as customers of either their talents or their food, but that didn't meant there weren't chores to do. Things needed to be kept tidy - just in case. One could not simply overlook chairs out of place, dust on tables, or dirt on the floor. It didn't matter if the tasks were completed the other day - fresh particulate would come whether the guild was a bustling place of business or not. She hoped it would be the former sometime soon, if only for the sake of getting at least one or two of their mages out of the hall and helping others. Until then, though, there would be other things more pressing.

Like running errands around town. She'd already finished her shift as guild cook, and cleaned the pots and pans she'd used to make breakfast for the guild members that came in earlier in the day. The errands weren't truly necessary - mostly window shopping after her telling herself she was looking for something other than the selection of flowers she chose to grow in planters around the guildhall to give the place more color - but they helped her get her face out there. Her name and her little business of helping people connect with just the right others were becoming well known - at least, when compared to the name Fenixtear. Enough people knew about it, and used it, to help pay the bills and keep the guild fed. That was what counted, right? Eventually people would know more about Fenixtear, be looking for a guild of talented individuals to help them with their problem...a guild that didn't charge the insane rates of more widely known guilds.

Today wasn't really much of a chatty day with the town proper though. It'd been a few days since she slept any significant amount of time, and she was starting to feel it. The bounce wasn't quite in her step the way it usually was. Her natural smile felt a bit heavier on the edges, though it grew dazzling every time she saw someone looking at her. So after only an hour out of the guildhall, and with having put a few more fliers up on notice boards that significantly lacked ads for her business, Ria walked back to the guildhall. Before turning down the alley to the entrance, she paused to give herself a moment to breath and collect herself before putting her usual bright smile in place.

Armful of forms and leaflets in hand, she opened the door and walked into the guildhall. Her gaze landed on one of their most senior members first. "Oh Grasidia, you're here." That was about all the consideration she gave the small hall. She closed the door and headed for the bar counter as she continued, "Do you want me to see if Zenith is in the kitchen to get you something to eat?" It wasn't so much to take up her usual spot, but because she liked to keep the registration forms handy during the day. If someone saw her flyer and wanted to enlist her services, she wanted to have them close by instead of having to head to her lodging to get them.

"Or a drink?" She didn't cast her gaze around the guildhall as she set to organizing the liquor and glasses. "Sorry if anyone was looking for me while I was out, but I'm back now." That was when she finally did glance up, to offer her guild mates a cheerful smile. Her mind was already going over other things that she could do to keep her energy level up. The liquor was organized, but perhaps the tables needed cleaning again? Or maybe she could reorganize the planters; the ones over by the eastern window had been there an awful long time and maybe could do better near the western window, and vice versa. There was always reviewing registrations for her business. Baybern and Melody made such a lovely couple, and their recommendation to a few of their friends had certainly helped.

She blinked a few times quickly to get her mind back on task. "So if there's anything I can get anyone, just let me know. 'Kay?" Her smile flared up for a second before settling into its natural chipper state.

In the kitchen, the smell of butter sizzling could be heard. Of course, there were no customers to cook for; there were hardly any customers in general considering how barren the quest board has been for the last week and so. No, the only ones that he was cooking for were his guild mates, figuring that at least food could at least take their attention way from the fact that if they don't get any requests soon, they are going to belly up. Nothing like a good sandwich to take the edge off; multiple slices of bread with ham and cheese were in the process of toasting in the sizzling butter while a pot had bechamel being kept warm over a low heat. What he was making was a Croque Madame; a toasted grilled cheese with ham, white sauce, and a poached egg served on top.

The sandwiches were almost done toasting so he transferred the sandwiches onto a baking sheet leaking freshly melted cheese onto them. He ladled over the sandwiches with bechamel and topped it with more cheese before he placed them under the broiler to finish browning. A few cracked eggs went in a simmering pot of water and vinegar and killed the heat to let them poach. They would be ready in the next five minutes, but he would be ready to serve by then.

"And done!" Zenith smiled to himself as he admired a rather handsome row of sandwiches. He placed them on a tray and walked out of the kitchen back into the common area to see that Grasidia was back looking rather forlorn and Lavina, being Lavina. Luke was just lazing about, but he couldn't blame him with the lack of excitement going on. "I come bearing gifts!" He said as he placed down the tray, handing each mage a plate.

There was Lavina with her dramatics again. Zenith rolled his eyes playfully as he grabbed his serving and plopped down on a nearby chair."Can't despair over an empty stomach." The ex-knight cut into his sandwich and tucked in. Of course he could take a very accurate stab in the dark on why Grasilda would be upset; it's all been on their mind that they have had no work so it would not be that surprising for their to be some sense of impending doom, but he was not going to put words into her mouth. She was not exactly someone who opens up easily, or really talks much at all, so he wanted to hear what she thought about it.

There was still one thing that was bothering him.

"Has anyone seen the guild master?"

Tip. Tap. Tip. Tap.

The tip of his cane clacked quite audible on the floor of the guild as he walked towards his comrades gathered about the bar. The old man had just gotten up from slumber himself. He found himself sleeping longer and longer hours these days. He'd like to attribute it to age, though it might also be from the lack of activity going around. There hasn't really been much going on, the past week. He kept himself busy when he could of course, keeping house and generally watching the door, but such activities didn't really get the blood pumping, not to mention dear Ria (bless her heart) did her fair share of chores, which lessened the amount of work he had to do.

He considered asking her to leave a bit more to him. With how things were, he may just end up sleeping all day, then he'd be an old man in mind and in body!

"I see you're all up and about," he chuckled as he came into view. He heard them before he saw them, and nodded to them all. "A good morning to everyone. I hope haven't missed anything. Sometimes it feels like I sleep for days on end, ha!"

The old man pulled a seat next Lavinia, letting his cane hang off the backrest. The girl was being her usual self, which was to say amusingly evil, and Marduk gave her thumbs up. "So how goes your hostile take over of our unfortunate guild? Not well I hope, I quite like it as it is."

---

"Rise and Shine!, Felix had just woken up and had already realized that he had overslept. "It's already 10, I'm such a dolt, I hate being late to training especially on days like today." Felix rose up from bed, and begin to quickly dress as he could not afford any delays in his training. Once Felix had fully dressed, he bolted down the steps and into the first floor. Felix took a look around the room to identify his guildmates and saw Old man Marduk who he calls "Gramps", Ria, Grasidia, Lavinia, Zenith, and Luke. Wait a minute, did Old Man Marduk just wake up earlier him? Now he really has to go to sleep early, or else he might not even wake up at all! He jogged his way to the Job Board in the hope there was another opportunity to finally get out of this boring old Tavern and have some fun, and train his blast magic so he could finally meet his dad. As it had become the norm across the new guild, the jobs were far too hard to come by and the Guild Master had seemingly disappeared again.

Felix then proceeded to smell sandwiches coming from the direction most of his guildmates were, and even though he was hungry he could not lose sight of the goal in his mind, to finally meet his father. So, he willed himself to ignore the delicious smells and went up to the group of mages. Hiya, guys! Have any of you seen the Guild Master around?

"I'll see you soon..." Gwen finished praying in the monument of heroes, she leave them a bouquet of flowers and made her way back to the guild. As she entered the guild hall, she's caught up with her peers looking for their Guild Master which got her curiosity but simply brushed it off. She saw the faces of her peers once more and smirked, faces that she haven't seen in a month.

The undercover mission in Era University was assigned to Gwen by their Guild Master and collaborated with the 5th ranked Wizard Saint who's also E.U's Dean. If indication had to go by, most of her peers already knew about her mission, they were a small guild after all. For Gwen, it's refreshing to dwell in a non-toxic environment again.

"There's nothing unfortunate about our guild, Grandpa Marduk." Gwen made her flashy entrance with her usual stripping off of her clothes. She sounded a bit condescending but more like with pride and nonchalantly continued her chatter about her trip but she's exhausted.

Without warning, she heard the energetic friend of hers and yapped at him. "No dipshit, don't ask a question of a question within a question from a question. We're all looking for her."

---

The cheerful Astoria crashing into the guild with energy stole Luke's attention for just a second. He looked at her then went back to staring at the mission board while doing nothing.

It was Zenith coming out with food that finally awakened something within Luke. His gluttonous appetite made itself known with the grumbling of his stomach. "Ah, thank you," he slowly said while receiving a plate filled with food. It made no difference what he received for food as long as there was something to put in his stomach. Luke vigorously stuffed the sandwich in his mouth and took only 2 chews before swallowing each large bite he took. He finished the meal in record pace.

"Master...isn't here." He said that like he was just realizing the guild was devoid of her presence. He looked at the people who were currently here. There's Marduk... The cane tapping the ground was audible and recognizable due to only being one person who would carry that around.

Now there's Felix. Shortly after acknowledging the child's presence, another's was made known. Now the guild is starting to become a bit livelier with more members starting to converse.

Luke saw the moment Gwendolyn stripped herself, which was a surprisingly common sight. He felt nothing looking at her body. "Your clothes and please don't be so mean."

Perhaps the only glimpse that anyone could get of Holly was when she was at home. Her windows were shuttered, with an additional layer of curtains over them not just for paranoid security against anyone peeking through but to keep the inside of her home warmer. However, every morning, Holly took a peek through the upper story windows, and allowed a thin strip of the morning light to touch her face through the small gap as she looked down to the garden below. She did so because her bedroom window had a perfect view of a flower bush sapling that she had planted in front of her home, and every day she peeked, she could see it grow. However much she enjoyed watching the sapling grow, waiting for the day that it would bloom, Holly believed that if things carried on the way that they were she would have to stop. She only took the risk of peeking because she did so irregularly - today marked the eighth morning that she peeked, because it was the eighth morning in a row that she didn't have a quest to partake in.

It took some time before Holly left her home, not just because it took a while to prepare but because she knew that today was not going to be any different for the rest. Even if there was a job on the board today, it was likely that someone else had already snatched it up, so there was no need for her to rush her washing, eating nor putting on her armour. The only chance she could get is if an S-Class job popped up, with her only challenger there being Grasidia - though she half expected that someone else would try and take even one of those, if they knew they could get away with it. By the time Holly was ready to go, over an hour and a half had passed since she had woken up, though she wasn't too concerned about the time; it was still early.

Those that worked on Holly's regular route to the guild never stared. Sometimes she could hear them talk a little about her whenever she walked the street, she was a figurepiece for a conversation starter, however they had grown too used to her to have their eyes set upon her every time she strolled past their shops and homes. It was the others that walked the street like her that gave her a variety of reactions in their gazes - a few feared her, most were curious as to if there was something happening that required such an armoured individual to be strolling through, and a rare couple had even questioned if she was some kind of special guardswoman. Those that spoke to her received equal conversation back, and each time, Holly made sure to mention Fenixtear, in the hopes that she would attract some kind of business to the Guild. It never really amounted to much, however.

The guild was exactly as Holly had predicted it to be - jobless. Unfortunate, though at least it was jobless in maintenance as well, thanks to the efforts of her guildmates, who were already within the Guild. She briefly took a silent count of the members who were present, noticing both visually and from the conversation that the Guild Master wasn't around. Holly was not worried, as she knew Torys had a reason to be away from the Guild if she had to be, and instead took private amusement in the worries of her guildmates - an amusement that vanished as she saw Gwen stripping and then snapping at Felix.

"Gwen, put your clothes back on and shush, the only thing you should be looking for is some modesty. There is no need for your rudeness this morning," Holly states, agreeing with Luke whilst frowning to herself beneath her helmet. Shaking her head, she made her way to a table of her own to sit down, and just observe the guild. She made sure to address Felix, mostly to ensure he didn't charge down Torys whenever she returned. "Felix, she is most likely out and busy right now. She will most likely be back soon."

The enticing aroma of smoked ham, caramelized cheese and butter roused Leon from slumber. Startling awake, he blinked a couple times whilst trying to adjust to his surroundings. Had he fallen asleep in the Guild Hall again? Peering down his nose to the mess of textbooks and parchment confirmed his suspicion. Clad in a white button up and trousers, he scratched the back of his head whilst taking note of the dishevelled mess that was his hair. A cursory sniff of his garments proved them to be not quite ripe enough to change out of just yet - all the better for snatching up a serving of Zenith’s cooking before it was scoffed up by other equally hungry guildmates.

First, he would need to call upon his friend.

“Good Morning Lorelai” Leon mumbled, pressing his palm to the open pages of his codex. Lifting a sphere of warm, amber light from the tome, Leon held his hand open and watched the orb unfurl into a pair of delicate, gossamer wings. Curled up in a tiny ball was his pixie companion. He silently begrudged that his own capabilities limited him to summoning only one Fae at a time - Melia would no doubt be upset that he had chosen to call upon Lorelai first. The fae stretched out her wings before greeting her conjurer with an elegant twirl. Her inhumane squeals of delight were always a comfort.

“You can play just for a little bit, okay?” Leon didn’t quite have the stamina to sustain his summons for extended periods of time - even if they weren’t using any magic.

He gazed up at the bar, only to see quite the gathering. Instincts immediately kicked in as he began to worry he’d miss out on a feed. Quick to his feet, Leon stumbled over his own footing to make his way over to a stool. Just as Zenith placed a plate down in front of him.

Smooth.

“Thanks man, I’m starved.” Careful not to burn himself, Leon pulled off a small piece and placed it to the side of his plate. Lorelai eyed it off, fluttering down beside the plate with an eagerness that faded almost immediately. Upon closer inspection the pixie had realised what Leon had offered her. Displeased with her meal, the petulant fae lifted her piece of croque madame and flung it straight into the bar shelves. She looked up at him and began mouthing off in a series of high pitched squeaks and jingles. Only one word caught Leon’s attention.

“Ah, that’s ‘sweet’ isn’t it?” He’d come to know that word pretty quick. “You want something sweet.” Before he could feel too proud of his realization, Lorelai had taken Leon’s understanding as somewhat of an invitation and taken wing through the kitchen window. No doubt on her way to investigate the pantry for some form of confection.

Looks like I’ll be cleaning the kitchen again. The clatter of a stray pot affirmed his worries.

Turning to the rest of his guildmates, Leon caught the tail end of Felix’s inquiry as to the whereabouts of the Guildmaster. He bit into his sandwich whilst watching the conversation unfold - trying not to blush at the sight of Gwen’s apparent overconfidence. Even after so many weeks, he still found it extremely uncomfortable. Thankfully Holly arrived just in time to tell her off. The sternness in her tone even sent a shiver up his spine - were all S Class Mages so intimidating? Based on his interactions with both Holly and Grasidia, the only S Class Mages Leon had ever talked to, he conclusively deemed that yes, they were.

The clang of another kitchen utensil falling to the floor made Leon tense up, hoping not to draw Holly’s ire while she was still fired up over Gwen’s misconduct.

---

Felix didn't really have a reaction to Gwen's..... confidence. One because he did not really know what a "dipshit" was, and her later comment had gone completely over his head. However, even he did couldn't help but smile when Holly told her off, this was quite possibly the simple order of the universe. However, Felix did not have the time nor the motivation to try and listen to the bickering pair. "I get that she might be up and about, but what reason would she have to go and leave the guild?", suddenly a little light bulb went off in his head,"Oh I know, she could be getting us a new job since it has been eight days since we got one, and even for our guild like ours it's concerning". Felix then began to look for more people, because Felix was not the type of guy to only do one thing at one time.

Felix then briefly turned to Leon and asked him if he had any theories on Torys's whereabouts, "Yo, Leon do you have any theories on where Torys could be?".Felix had noticed Lavinia playing her usual antics, but targeting Grasidia was a bold move for sure, but thankfully Marduk had approached Lavinia and prevented her from making a fatal mistake. Then he noticed Ria, a person who had been more than helpful to Felix in the past few days. Even though often her attempts to help were ignored by Felix, the effort was greatly appreciated. Felix quickly remembered that he was running out of Training Partners for him to spar, it was not like the guild was too weak, it was quite the contrary, that most people were out of Felix's league in Fenix tear. "Ria, I'm running out of sparring partners do you want to spar with me after I finish talking to Holly and Leon?"

---

There hadn't really even been much of a beat between her offer and the production of the sandwiches. That was perfect. Zenith seemed to be on the same page. "Thank you, Zen. I'll help with the dishes after I finish tidying up." She moved from behind the counter anyway, making sure to pass out the sandwiches.

"Welcome back, Gwen," Ria cherped as her sister headed straight for the food. Luke and Holly both beat her to telling her twin to put on some kind of clothing, so she redirected. She was about to ask her sister where Lilliana was, until the other slayer entered the hall - and assisted with the clothing predicament. "Welcome back, Liliana. How was the mission?" It was customary for her to try to engage the guild's resident dragon slayer whenever the girl made an appearance. Given the state of the girl, she wasn't surprised to not receive a response. Surely the older mage wasn't going to be coming back down to eat anytime soon. She'd make sure the girl had food. Well, perhaps they could just make her something else when she woke up. This sandwich wasn't particularly good cold.

Instead, the water mage served up three more sandwiches, and expertly carried them with her as she walked toward Lavinia and Marduk. She didn't interrupt the conversation, but placed a plate before each of them on the small table near the couch. She turned to Felix before he addressed her, intending to hand him the last plate.

To say his request surprised her was an understatement. Her brows shot up and her mouth even dropped open in a soft 'o' for a moment. A quick blink, and the look vanished behind her standard cheerful smile. She offered him the sandwich. "Here, you should have something to eat before you start training. But, unfortunately, Sweetie, I have quite a bit of chores to do left today. Maybe some other time?"

"Morning Markduk! Do you need anything? A cup of coffee, tea?" He offered to the most senior mage in the guild, next to Torys. Looks like things were starting to get a bit more lively this morning! Everyone was starting to gather around whether it was because they were beckoned by the smell of breakfast like Leon or it was simply time to start their day. Either way, things were just a bit less gloomy with everyone conversing about. Well, some less conversational than others.

Luke had savagely gulped down the sandwich in two bites, a sandwich that had been broiling in the oven with a hot egg on top of it. What the hell was the guy's mouth made out of, leather? Then there was the fae that Leon summoned that lobbed a piece of the croque madame at the bar shelves and threw an hissy fit in a tongue far beyond Zenith's comprehension. Those damn pixies were the most picky eaters that he had the displeasure to meet; this was not the first time nor will it ever be the last time that those little monsters tossed his food around.

Now there was Gwen who had decided to strip out of habit and he glanced away with a slight blush. Dammit, a month and a half and he still hasn't gotten used to her exhibiting herself for all the guild to see. It wasn't like he's never seen a woman like that before; it's just he's not used to turning around and getting way too much of a view on a daily basis. "Gwen put some clothes on, please."

At least the second twin was a bit more normal; Ria was a sweet girl, a bit of an airhead, but she means well. She is a rather helpful person and probably does the majority of chores around the guild, heck, she helps him with the cooking and cleaning sometimes. "Oh, thanks Ria. That would be-" Zenith winced from the sudden clattering of pots and pans being knocked about from the kitchen. God dammit, not again. "Never mind, Leon is on clean up duty again." He stated with a deadpan expression, the kind that had just generally accepted that he had no control over the situation.

It looked like Felix was at it again. Zenith rolled his eyes at this teens obsession for strength and said, Felix, chill. A soldier is no good they aren't rested and nourished. This was his more discrete way of telling him to shut up, sit down, and eat.

Marduk's little comment drew a sharp look from the blood mage, her mind racing at the implications. Did this geezer mean to stand in her way? She didn't want to have to hurt an old man, but she definitely would it if came down to it! Most definitely.

"Don't think that being aware of my aims makes them any less inevitable," she shot back, careful to keep her voice low and not to let any anxiety slip into her tone. "The guild master is sharp, I'll admit it; she's thwarted all of my efforts thus far. But it's only a matter of time until her underlings succumb to my charms. Only a matter of time..."

She trailed off, suddenly distracted by the naked Gwen waltzing around the room. Lavinia's cheeks flushed a deep red, and she quickly adjusted her glasses, trying to hide the fact that her eyes had lingered a second or two too long upon the ice mage's bare skin. Not charmed at all, nope nope nope. Seeking another target, she turned towards Grasidia, glaring daggers across the room at the quiet gardener.

Despite her entreaty, the S-class mage still hadn't spoken a single word. Is she deliberately ignoring me? Well that's... She can't just... DO that! Scowling, Lavinia made a mental note to draw up an elaborate plan for vengeance against this horrible slight. Maybe she could buy Grasidia a really, really smelly plant as a surprise gift, and then guilt-trip her into taking care of it forever. That'd teach her!

Then a more pleasant smell alighted on a nearby table, and Lavinia put her vindictive plotting aside for a moment to give Ria an appreciative nod. See, THAT one knows how to treat me with respect... When she became the Dark Empress of Fiore, she'd made Ria the Mayor of Crocus, and shower her with gold and accolades. And Grasidia could go shovel manure on some dingy farm in the boonies.

"See?" she said, glancing back to Marduk and gesturing triumphantly at her sandwich. "Already they scurry to obey my every whim! I didn't even have to tell her I was hungry." The moment didn't quite merit an evil laugh, so she settled for an ominous chuckle before happily digging in.

Holly couldn't help but feel a little saddened by Felix's reasoning for their Guild Master being missing. Yes, she could be getting us a new job, Holly thought to herself in agreement, though she knew that Felix did not need to say it out loud. He was only a kid though, so she had to give him some kind of lenience, even if his words were a little demoralising for the rest of the guild - concerning even. She didn't want him to go out and find jobs on his own, he may have been able to - somewhat - handle himself, but he was still young. Perhaps it was not him that she was worried about. Though her thoughts were a little worrying, a smile touched on her face as he asked Astoria if she would be a sparring partner, already knowing what the girl would answer.

Not sure what to do next other than relax, she did just that - leaning back in her seat to rest her back and allowing her eyes to roam the room once more. She was tempted to chase up Lilliana, who she had spotted retreating up to what Holly was guessing was her room, however she figured that she would want some time to rest after such a lengthy time away from the guild: That was something that Holly could both appreciate and respect, having needed the same a few times.

There was something that caught her attention, though. The clattering of tools and pans from the kitchen, the fault of the Pixie in the kitchen which was, by extension, the fault of Leon. Well, it wasn't exactly his fault, Holly needed someone to blame for it, at least for some amusement. She decided to have a little fun with it, getting up from where she was sitting to walk her way over to Leon. She wasn't just doing this because she wanted to harass people at random, she felt it part of her duties to interact with the lower ranked mages, in order to get to know them and to help them along. Leon was someone who interested her a lot, as his magic was certainly something special. She walked her way past him, as if he wasn't her target, but then turns, placing her hands on both of his shoulders from behind him.

"Enjoying your meal?" Holly asks, from behind. She releases his shoulders, taking a peek down to the mess of textbooks that the Fae Scholar had obviously been reading at some point. "You know, sparring would do some good for you to get some practice instead of theory - especially if it stops your Pixies from destroying the kitchen. How about a match, one on one?" She went quiet, letting him dwell on that as if she was serious. Then, she let him off the hook a little. "I'm kidding. But I'm almost certain you don't want to have to tidy up after your Pixie, hm?" She gave him a pat on the shoulder, as if just to underline what she was saying. She was grinning beneath her helmet nonetheless.

Turning to Zenith, the old man acknowledged him with a nod just as Gwen arrived. "A good morning to you as well, Zenith m'boy. A mug of coffee would be fine, extra cream and sugar, please."

Like a rumble of granite, Marduk laughed for a moment as the elder Ria displaced her clothes, much to the dismay of her peers and to his amusement. Really, the girl ought to turn it down a little; dear little Vin looked as though she'd eaten a chili! As for himself, well, Leons arrival proved much more distracting. The poor boy was a bit of a klutz and his 'friends' were not so helpful in that regard. He frowned as the pixie made her displeasure known in a manner he rather disapproved of - there's disliking food, then there's wasting it.

He was just about to offer the boy sweets to help him out when Lilliana arrived and promptly defused the bomb known as Gwen by throwing a robe over her head. It looked like their Guild members were arriving one after the other now. Now Lilliana was a member he wasn't well acquainted with, which, while regrettable, was also unavoidable. The girl had scarcely been here for 4 months, and a forth of that time was spent away on a mission. Not to mention the girl was hardly the most social creature - case in point, she'd just disappeared into her room without another word. Even the times when she was at the guild she spent socially isolated. He really ought think of a way for her to open up to the others.

Marduk would rather not be too intrusive, but well, he felt it might do her a little good. On a more personal level, Fenixtear was founded on the old ways - where the guild was more a home and its members more like family, sometimes more so than the real thing. It didn't feel right to have any member stand apart from the rest, even if it was of their own volition. It would be a bad joke to say he wanted to change the way the council, and magic society as a whole, worked if he couldn't enact the those same changes in his very own guild.

"Well, at least Felix exists," he thought jokingly as he watched the boys efforts to grow stronger manifest in the form of asking for Ria's hand in sparring. The younger Ria sibling declined, of course, but he was certain that wouldn't dissuade Felix in the slightest. The boy would probably turn his attention to Leon or himself next. He'd be glad to help of course, but first things first...

"Ah dear Vin, the effects of your diabolical machinations on this guild bring this old man to tears," of laughter, "I suppose I must resolve myself to a life in your service. Woes me." He sighed dramatically and took a delicate bite of his sandwich. Turning to Zenith once again, he said: "These are really quite good Zenith. Nicely done."

---

The tan woman had barely a moment of quiet before the girl that liked to pretend she was evil approached. Grasidia looked over as Lavinia approached, questioning about her mood the moment she sat down. Suffering and despair? she thought to herself, only giving Lavinia a raised eyebrow in response to her interrogation. This young woman often perplexed Grasidia with her grandiose posturing of her supposed evil. If the girl was gonna be evil she surely wouldn't be in a place like this. Though, I suppose I'm here too...

"No th-" she began, before being interrupted (or saved, pending perspective) by Ria. Surely someone as chatty as Ria would draw Lavinia's attention and inquiries away. "No," Grasidia settled on, serving as an answer to Ria's offer as well as Lavinia's questioning. She then glanced over to Zenith as he delivered her a sandwich anyways. He surely didn't hear her reject the offer of food but it still drew a sigh from her. She almost regretted coming back to the guild hall since all the young humans were bustling about in here with their odd ways. Between taking off their clothes, yelling, and challenging each other, Grasidia often found the most tolerable humans to be the elder ones with less energy and nonsense. Marduk, for example, was already placating the younger ones and attempting to calm them down in a gentle manner. He behaved almost like he was their father, but they clearly weren't his children because they never listened.

Grasidia quietly and subtly pushed the tray in front of her several inches further, distancing herself from the sandwich while she assumed nobody was quite paying attention. Torys is too ambitious, this guild won't survive much longer with this many mages and this few jobs. They'll all follow the money like humans usually do. Her eyes looked over the band of misfits that had gathered, surveying the room to see who was missing. That was when she noticed the new kid sitting by himself away in the corner. Her eyes narrowed, her piercing gaze resting on him for several seconds before continuing her sweep for a headcount. It seemed that most everyone was here now that Gwen and Lilliana returned from their long quest. For all her talk of family... Grasidia's gaze returned to Lavinia, who was now boasting to Marduk over the sandwich she was given. She couldn't help but roll her eyes at all these antics but no sooner than she was finished she suddenly felt an odd presence behind her.

She turned her head to find no other than Torys staring right back at her. The deceptively youthful guild master was simply standing there silently, her usual smile and bright eyes radiating an unusual amount of glee. Grasidia had hardly a second to ponder how Torys snuck up on her before the guild master's smile turned into a cheeky grin. "Gras, Holly, could I have a word with you two please?" she spoke up, revealing her presence to the rest of the guild hall. Obvious confusion covered Grasidia's previous expression as Torys then walked past, snatching up the sandwich from the table and taking a bite as she walked past. The guild master gave a wave to the rest of the guild before turning to Holly and motioning for the armored girl to follow. Huh... Grasidia thought to herself, taking a second to recompose herself before standing from her seat and walking after Torys, who continued eating the sandwich and using her free hand to pat everyone on the head once whenever she passed close by on her way to the back of the hall.

Torys stopped by the job board and waited for her two S-class mages to approach, continuing to chow down on the sandwich. "Oh, this is good. Whoever made this should make some more," she remarked aloud before Grasidia finally reached an appropriate conversation distance. "What is it?" Grasidia asked curtly, leaning against the nearby table and crossing her arms over her chest as Holly arrived. Torys raised a finger, shushing Grasidia as she finished chewing her most recent bite from the sandwich. This pause continued for a few seconds before the master gulped down her food and let out a pleased sigh. "Ahhh... So I have something important and we have very little time," she finally spoke at a normal volume, surely loud enough for everyone in the guild hall to listen in. It was clear that Torys wasn't trying to be secretive.

"I have intercepted an emergency call from the Magic Council headquarters in Era." Immediately Grasidia perked up and gave her full attention to Torys. "It just went out a minute ago. They are saying a dragon is in the city and about to lay siege to the Council's headquarters. The Council is panicking and sent out emergency summons to everyone they can, the Rune Knights, the Saints, the guilds, you name it." Despite what she was saying sounding like horrible news, Grasidia couldn't help but be suspicious about her master's continuing grin. "Of course, we haven't been formally invited to go and save the day. Buuuuuut... what I need you two to do is take everyone you can to Era and slay that dragon for me." To cap this off she gave Holly and Grasidia a big smile.

She wants us to slay a dragon!? Even the stone cold Grasidia couldn't hide her look of shock, though her back was turned to the majority of her guildmates so only Torys and Holly could see the slip. "With Grasidia's magic you all should be able to fly to Era and arrive before anyone else can!" Torys continued, holding out her free hand in front of her and clenching a fist. "This is the opportunity we have been waiting for! I believe that if you all worked together you could save the day without a sweat! And right on the Council's doorstep! Before all the world to see! This is our chance to make our name known and to upstage everyone. But we don't have a moment to waste!" Torys shoved the rest of her sandwich in her mouth, allowing her to use both her free hands to grab Holly and Grasidia by the shoulder to give them a light shove towards the door for emphasis. "If we wait too long, shomeone elshe will take cwedit!" She took a strained gulp to finish her food before continuing her orders. "Fenixtear! I have a job for all of you!"



"Now go!" She gave one last, light shove to Holly and Grasidia before taking her hands off them. As Grasidia regained her balance she looked back to Torys, shocked to see Torys still smiling. She really believes we can kill a dragon, Grasidia concluded, quickly composing herself and turning away from Torys. "Yes, master." With her conviction clear she marched towards the front door of the guild, raising her hand towards it as she approached. It opened entirely on its own as the tiniest sprout reached through the floor and held it open for Grasidia, saving her even a few seconds to get outside.

Once outside in the shaded, empty alleyway she stood in the center and raised both her hands from her sides, the palms facing down. Two leaves, one on each side of her, breached the cobblestone and began to grow in size. These would be the guild's vehicles for flying to Era but to make them big enough it would take Grasidia a moment to prepare them. Which was fortunate, because Torys surely would only give everyone a moment to prepare as well. "Today is the day, Fenixtear!" Torys continued shouting, now jumping onto the nearest empty table. "I believe in all of you!"