[EVENT] Fairy Festival Cherry Blossom Viewing! [OPEN TO ALL]

Wearing her green-and-gold outfit with backpack, Argent Gloves, and Nightshade Machete, Leona walked into Magnolia Town for only the second time in her mage career. She was here to experience the end of the Fairy Festival in which she had dueled Aven of Fairy Tail and won in an unexpected way. She saw the stands with figurines of the participants and noted that all of the figurines were selling rather well.

"Hey Leona! Nice job the other day!" A brown-haired teenage male called out. Leona politely waved at him as others took notice that the Silver Wolf Guild Master was in town.

"You turned Aven's own magic against him! Having your summons stand on those circles was a clever strategy!" An older man complimented her. Leona was not sure how to feel about that praise. Part of her was not proud of how the match ended... Aven gave everything he had to keep the match from having the sort of explosive finish the crowd would not have wanted to see.

"I got lucky. Aven's a really good mage." Leona replied modestly. She had nothing to crow about. Aven was handing Leona her backside on a platter until the latter's hastily conceived plan turned the tables. Even then the Fairy Tail mage proved that Earthland's most famous guild was not a paper tiger. Leona also proved that Silver Wolf was not to be underestimated just because they were the new kids on the block.

Leona carefully walked through an adoring crowd until she reached the steps of the Fairy Tail guild hall. Once she could come to a stop, she carefully put the Nightshade Machete into her backpack to avoid giving the appearance of hostile intent by openly carrying a weapon. Fairy Tail was a steadfast ally of Silver Wolf and the blonde did not want to jeopardize that.

-Inside Fairy Tail guild hall-

Leona walked in and picked a seat at the bar. Other patrons were mingling about, talking excitedly about the duels from a few days ago and discussing the upcoming fireworks show that was going to happen tonight. The bartender sauntered over to her and spoke.

"Well, if it isn't Leona Jarnefeldt!" The bartender loudly declared. Leona did not like how he said that. To magnify the awkward feeling, other people turned to look at her. It sounded like he was upset that she defeated Aven in the duel and it might have something to do with how she defeated the hometown hero.

"Don't worry, Leona. No one's mad at you. They were pleasantly surprised that you made a comeback win by thinking outside the box. So relax and have fun!" The bartender assured her. Once she knew that she was not going to be beaten up or chased out of town, the blonde relaxed.

"So, what will you have?" The man inquired, leaning on the bar.

"Water." Leona stated calmly. She did not drink alcohol on the job. She did not struggle with the temptation to drink alcohol because she never drank any.

"All right then. I'll be back in a minute!" He replied, walking off to get the beverage. Leona sat back and listened to the patrons chatter. It was a rare day when she was not working. Soon she would be on yet another job, but for today she could take a break. She idly wondered who else in the magic community would put in an appearance at the Fairy Tail guild hall.

Little Arcadia:

Little Arcadia followed Master Sorano back to the guild hall from the parade stand. It had been a long and fun festivals o far. She was tempted to head back to her room in Fairy Hills across the way, but she very much did not want to miss any of the light show. Patting the softly glowing crystal rose worn behind her left ear, she ordered herself her favorite mix of juice, watermelon-strawberry. After taking a seat at the bar, she sat stirring and chilling her juice into a slushie. With a colorful flash overhead, Arcadia glanced up from the opened up lobby to watch the fireworks.

She also pulled her iLac free from her dress pocket, pulling up and giving a quick perusal of sales of merch so far. She was pleased enough, hoping they'd improve with the night still young. At the same time she realized most sales would be shifting to drinks and refreshments. She decided , this accounting stuff could wait 'til later. She'd have plenty paper work to hand in later to Nessa and Master Sorano.

For now she put her iLac away in its pocket, and setlted in to watch the rest of the fireworks and lights. Spying Silver Wolf guildmaster Leona down the bar, Arcadia climbed up ontothe counter, and walked down it to take a seat on the edge of bar closer to Leona. She holds up her watermelon-strawberry slushie to toast and greet the Silver Wolf guildmaster. "Hey there! Congrats on your win! Aven is my teammate, so of course I was rooting for him, but after that whole Eternal Night thing... I was rooting for you too! That was halla scary at the end. I'm just glad you both were okkay."

Arcadia's face fell a little remembering the sight from the judge's booth. She smiled again soon enough, "On the bright side, it hella boosted the sales both you and Aven's merch. Which remeinds me..as Fairy Tai's new Executive Manager, if you ever need any merch made for Silver Wolf, I got coporate contacts to have it made. Can probably even get you agood neighbor's discout for a friend and ally. Or if you need any PR videos, I can help with that. Lacrima-net reaches a lot of people."

The pale blonde slayer back out at the glowing trees and fireworks, laughing and oooing and aahing with the rest of the crowd. Pulling her iLac back from its pocket, "Would you mind taking a picture with me? I like to take hem with all my friends. I even still have one I took with Mahdude Johann before that pumpkin tower."

Man, did that fight end all sparkly and boom-boom or what? Satisfied to have brought such a performance to the wild audience, Mura shook off the post-battle exhaustion with a quick sip of juice. Screw it all, Fairy Tail’s fruit juices were in a league of their own. Something enchanting was with the delicious taste and refreshing rush that cleared his throat and stomach. Although, he was getting kind of hungry too, so stopping by the guild would be preferable.

And it was also now that Sorano’s face popped up on the screens. That meant that the cherry trees would bloom soon… yeah, it was clear that Sorano too was of Midian heritage, because cherry blossoms was very traditional down in Midi. Ah, he would have to hurry over to the guild hall before the fireworks started raining.

Surprisingly, it was only then when Kyuken emerged from Mura’s chest and reformed into his original form. The shaman had even managed to buy some of the merch from the booth on his way here - consisting of an action figure of him and Johann. “They look funny, don’t they?” he casually asked both Arcadia and Leona on the counter, showing off his action figures.

“… HOW DID WE SURVIVE THAT BATTLE?”
“When the likes of you asks such a question, it really does make the battle more authentic than it already is.”
“I’ve cut off some of Minamoto’s butt cheek, but I’d rather avoid that powerbomb of an Ishgar God lad than go through a whole other phase with my samurai friend…”
“He does remind me of you in a sense… you both rock bright hair colors.”
“…”
“And you even lost to him back-“
“D-Don’t say that out loud, Arcadia’s here!”

The samurai ghost worryingly pointed over to the small Ice Dragon Slayer in fright, while Mura couldn’t help but laugh. This had been quite the experience for a duelist, and he hoped to return back to the battlefield again in the future.

“… Heh, mahladies. Are you eager to see the fireworks?” he asked them both in a merry spirit. Slowly turning his face up to the open screen at the roof, he prompted the beginning of the fireworks being shot out - bright colors and awesome themes such as the previous duelists' faces as well as the staple Fairy Tail Logo towering above the rest.

"Hmmh... watching all the battles at once was a hard task, pals," a visitor commented to the previous bartender, "... I wanna say I was amazed by your battle, Leona, but I also did enjoy the battle between the fox lady and the Water Dragon Slayer the most."

"And I enjoyed every gallon of wine you poured down your poor throat before, listen to yourself..."

"... W-What?"

A beautiful night... It was the kind of sight that would normally inspire a soliloquy, maybe a quaint limerick. Instead, Aven sat on the roof of the Guild Hall, among the brilliant hues of Magnolia, his feet dangling hopelessly off the back. For him, it wasn't the time for new composures, or beginnings. No, he was stuck tackling old inhibitions, enemies he thought he'd conquered long ago: melancholy, inadequacy, weakness. It was the same story over and over, like a nightmare he just couldn't shake. How could he, when he seemed to fail at every turn? He could still feel that dreadful omen, the sense of his control slipping, the Seeker Circles going berserk. If he'd only paid more attention, if he'd predicted Leona's tactics better...

Wait. He ran the scene through his mind once more, painful as it was. That makes no sense... He'd had time to calm down, regain a small portion of composure. Why had the Seeker Circles adjusted to full power? Warning signals were firing off in his mind, and he scoured through his memory for the coding of Seeker Circles. They had a variable in the matrix which could be manually set anywhere from zero to twenty, but the variable was just that: manual. If he'd lost his connection to the Circles, say by being out of range, the Seeker Circles should always repeat the last variabl imput, since their Repetition Glyph caused them to reappear identical to how they were before they triggered. That meant... no, that was impossible. He would have sensed if someon interfere with his Circles with a foreign magic! But it was unexplainable otherwise: someone, somehow, had set the Seeker Circles to maximum, without him even realizing it. His loss of control, by that logic, might also have been caused by an outside source, rather than his surprise at Leona's strategy.

What would be the motive, though? There were many things Aven was unsure of, but he'd built his Circles from the ground up, Glyph by Glyph: it would either incredible skill and preparation, or serious inside knowledge of the Circles themselves to wrestle control of them from Aven so flawlessly and smoothly. Had it not been for the inconsistency he'd found in the situation, Aven would have been none the wiser, it was executed so perfectly. The trouble was, even if they were modified by someone else, they wouldn't have struck anything but Leona and her summons... which left a jarring set of possibilities. It could have been an attempt on Leona's life, though he found that option the least likely, as there wasn't any real precident to predict that would be ahead in the fight to take advantage of his Circles in such a way, which, again, would have required ample foreknowledge to prepare. It could also have been targeted at himself, perhaps an ploy to have him convicted of Leona's murder, but again, this fell through for the same reason as before. The most likely alternative was a plot to break up the Alliance, cause infighting between the guilds. That would allow any number of Dark organizations to move freely without detection, a harrowing thought.

Aven's analysis didn't improve his mood much. He'd been hoodwinked, nearly used as a pawn in someone else's game, and that didn't sit well with him. Still, whatever it was had failed, and he could be satisfied with the knowledge that everyone was safe and sound. He reached out, trying once more to conjure a Circle, and with a smile, he watched as a Sound Circle emerged in front of him. Music would fit a night like that around him, and with a small wave of his hand, the Circle emenated the soft melody of a piano, a piece he'd composed himself at the banquet hall in his home. If someone was listening closely, they might hear the rise and fall of chords, as Aven began to sing to the stars, the ghost of a smile on his face:

Can you hear me?
As we walk along, our footsteps sing a melody: hearts in harmony.
Just a theory, that in time, we could be something more than tragedy; would you weep for me?

Can you see me?
Putting on a smile, to soothe an aching misery? What I fear to be;
That I'll get weary, waiting here for you, while you give me the third degree,
Like I'm nobody...

It's a pain that's building up inside,
Only part of me I try to hide.
I'd throw everything I have away,
If the heart in me could hear you say:

"Boy, take my hand, let's fly;
To a place where we can watch the world pass us by,
You can be the one to wipe my tears as they dry,"
'Cause I'd never ask for more, than the wings I need to soar:
Just you, and I.

Can you hear me,
When my soul cries out a soft and tender symphony,
Yours, the harmony:
It's a feeling, that can drive away the sadness and cacophony.
Will you sing with me?

So, girl, take my hand, let's fly;
To a place where we can watch the world pass us by,
You can be the one to wipe my tears as they dry,"
And you'll never ask for more, than the wings you need to soar:
Just you, and I!

No sooner than Leona had made her drink order did a pair of Fairy Tail notables appear. One was Arcadia Fairchilde, the mage from the Celestial Sanctum incident who could transform into an ice wyrmling at will. The other was Mura Kensho, a mage Leona knew very little about other than he was a big player in Fairy Tail and that he was one of the newly minted Wizard Saints. She greeted both of them with a wave of a gloved hand.

"Hi there, Arcadia. Hi Mura." The Silver Wolf Guild Master casually greeted the new arrivals. Maybe such a gesture and tone of voice were too casual considering the importance of the individuals she was dealing with.. If it was, someone would be certain to let her know.

Leona was surprised by the stream of compliments about the duel between her and Aven. No one appeared to hold a grudge against her for what could have happened had Aven not put everything into controlling his magic. Leona was still surprised that her desperate gamble had resulted in a win.

Aven was skillfully using his magic to keep her at arm's length while hurling spells of increasing power that were wearing her down. Not wanting to go down without at least trying to turn the tables, Leona threw over half of the spells in her magic book at him before summoning her harpies to keep him from teleporting out of harm's way by standing on the circles. What was meant to be the prelude to a bigger play turned out to be the match-winning move for her. Aven himself did not hold any ill will against her. He seemed surprised that someone would have the guts to try such a risky move and had complimented her for thinking on her feet.

Leona listened to Arcadia say that the match boosted sales of mage-themed merchandise like figurines of both Leona and Aven. She also learned that the small mage had contacts in the commercial sector that could get Silver Wolf merchandise made if Leona ever wanted some made. The Guild Master would have to remember that.

"Aven's a talented mage, Arcadia. He has a great command of magic and has a knack for timing things just right. He's a mage who shouldn't be overlooked." Leona complimented Aven to Arcadia. He was certainly a good mage who had a flair for showmanship and possibly limited precognitive abilities that gave him an incredible sense of timing. He pushed her to the limits of her endurance and intellect in one of the toughest fights of her already eventful mage career. Had she not taken such a big chance when she did, he could have very easily won the duel with his skillful command of magic.

"Althea's another talented Fairy Tail mage, Mister. She's quick and hits like a freight train. She also doesn't quit just because things look bad for her. She's really good at thinking on her feet, which makes her hard to predict. She's another mage to watch." Leona said to the man when he brought up the Althea/Kumi duel. Althea had all but carried Leona through the toughest part of the fight against the Shirotsume ninja clan because she refused to quit and had some moments where a outside-the-box thought turned things around. She also revealed the hidden ninja hideout with her Water magic. Most of all, Althea was a good team player. Fairy Tail was lucky to have her as a member.

"Fireworks? Oh yeah, I'm looking forward to them. It'll be the first time I've ever seen any. Well, the second time. The first time was on the day of the duel." Leona quickly said to Mura. Her thoughts were everywhere but in the present. The blonde had come so far... it was only yesterday that she was yet another hopeful no-name mage looking to make it in the world. Now she led a guild, was building a reputation in Desierto, and was on good terms with influential Guild Masters and Wizard Saints. She was lost in thought, so she was surprised when Arcadia requested a picture with her.

"A picture with me? Sure, Arcadia. Whenever you're ready!" Leona gave consent for a picture to the small blonde.

Just now leaving the arena the good of Ishgar adjusted his jacket, something that he couldn't replace on the spot, unfortunately, the white uniform of the West Fiore Trading Company singed slightly on one side, one of the sleeves burned away up to the elbow. There was no fixing this thing anymore. Another one to add to the metaphorical mountain of ruined uniforms that had formed over the past year. He'd just have to get a new one back on Tolgalen, but ... for now, he was here in Magnolia. It seemed like after the ... rather eventful fights, Johann had learned of the other ones after his own had ended rather abruptly, that Fairy Tail had more events planned for the slowly approaching evening, the streets now once again filled to the brim with people, bustling with life between the various stands that sold all manners of food, drink and ... wait, was that a little figure with his face on it? "Buy your official Fairy Tail merchandise here!", the man behind the counter proclaimed, "Something to commemorate the mighty "Battle of Saints"? Mura Kensho and Johann "Mahdude" van Weiss figures, available here !". Johann's eyebrow twitched with every word he spoke as he turned towards the shopkeeper, breaking off from the road to the Fairy Tail guildhall to make his way over to him. "VON Weiss", he couldn't help but bellow out. "Johann VON Weiss, and please, for the god's sake leave that awful nickname out from the name of my fa-", the man lighting up with a bright smile before interrupting Johann mid-sentence. "Hey, you're the God of Ishgar ... in flesh and blood! Come here, people of Magnolia! The only God of Ishgar has come to tell you all about the fight! Come to buy his official merch". Immediately, dozens of heads turned for the Vice President of the WFTC, whose face went from angry to expressionless, sighing in a deep breath before taking off once more, many a gaze following him.

Would that horrible nickname ever go away? He kinda did regret ever coming to this Festival ...

Anyway, with hastened steps and somewhat disturbed temper he would finally find his way through the crowd and to the guild hall of the mages guild that called Magnolia its home, Fairy Tail. He had heard that there was some sort of continuation to this Festival happening, but more importantly ... he had also perceived that the drinks in this fine establishment currently ran for half their original price. An offer the man simply couldn't let go, not after this day. Well, he couldn't really get drunk anyway, but ... he'd find something. Stepping into the lushly decorated building, his first impulse was promptly acted upon as he turned straight for the bar. Much to his ... surprise, it just so happened that his fellow duelist had also found himself here, as well as a few other familiar faces. "Good to see you again, Leona. I heard you have emerged victorious from your duel? Congratulations", he addressed the familiar guild master of one of the allied guilds, Silver Wolf, with a slight grin before giving Arcadia a nod. "Good day, young dragon. It has been a while ...", carefully trying to avoid the whole "van" and "mahdude" debacle, lest he would lose his already nerves once again, before finally speaking to Mura. "That was quite the fight, friend.", he said that, yet he was sure that the Lord of War had only been toying with the other. Still, it had been quite impressive. The Second Seal hadn't said anything since the duel had been ended with a draw, seemingly rather ... disappointed with the fact that he couldn't claim a victory of dominance for himself, and yet Johann was surprised his pride was injured over a game set up by mere mortals. "You held yourself well. Say, you up for a drink? Round or two on me?" he asked simply, not waiting for a response, pulling a small stack of banknotes from one of his pockets. Being the Vice President of one of the richest businesses in Earthland did have its advantages. He would turn to the person behind the bar, his lips curling into a smile as he spoke "Tonight these people ...", pointing at the ones around him "... all drink on me".

She smiled and snapped a selfie or two with Leona, she'd pick the one to keep later. While she was on a roll, she went and greeted Zirconis and Kyuken with a selfie with each of them. She giggled, the little slayer hopping about the bar.  She'd greet Mura with a selfie too! "Don't say what, huh? Huh? I dun think hou shoulda said my name out loud, 'cuz now I'm all curious! Except you dun gotta eay of you don't wanna."

She giggled and snapped another selfie, "Besides, that was an awesome Battle of Saints, you had! You and Mahdude! He was like FWOOSH and you were like SHING!" Arcadia held tight to her iLac and threw her arms straight up to help illustrate the flames that went with her fwoosh and effect, and swung her free arm with an open palm to act like the swing of a sword with her shing sound effect.  

Turning back to Leona, Arcadia climbed back up into the counter and smiled, "You can say that again about Aven. He's one of my teammates. I may has said that already. But I totes styled a lot of my own spells after watching him. It sorta all mingled in with everything I've been learning from Nessa and everything my mom ever taught me. Someday I'll even use what I'm learning as well as they do. I even learned a couple things watching Mura around the guild hall. "  

She sipped at her slushie, absently kicking her feet over the counter's edge, and getting a few pictures of the fireworks on her iLac. She paused for a moment,  "Kyuken! Is that you in my head again?"

While she sat trying to figure that out, Johann entered and greeted them all. When he greeted her, she stood on the counter to offer a return greeting, "Mahduuuude! Hella boss match you had with Mura. I was watching in the judge's booth, my job was just commentary. I-"

Whatever else she was gonna say was lost when she slipped, one foot slipping over the edge of the bar. The rest of her quickly followed, and the counter was dangerously low. High enough to be a minor hazard, low enough to prevent any reaction time. She landed face down on the floor.

She was back on her feet almost immediately, if momentarily stunned. First thing, she made she sure her iLac was alright and her slushie was still on the counter. Assured those were intact or unspilled, she took belated note of her nose oozing a little blood. Reflexively, she touched a hand to her nose, and that was a mistake. Soon as she touched her nose, she winced at the dull ache it highlighted. It kinda snuck up on her, and now she couldn't help bit notice it.

Arcadia kept her nose covered with her hand a moment longer, applying the numbing chill of the one healing spell in her repertoire. She wiped the blood away on the back of her hand.

More thoroughly embarrassed than actually hurt, Arcadia was decidedly more subdued. She quietly climbed back onto the bar to remain seated, and pretend that whole fall didn't just happen.  She picked up her slushie glass and offered a toast of sorts, "Anyway, y'all were amazin' today. Thanks for helping to make this festival a memorable one."

Arcadia sipped her slushie, and spotted Nessa over the top of her glass. She set her glass down, offering her mentor and adopted big sister a smile and wave.  "Hey, Nessa."

Slipping her iLac back from its pocket, she did her best to frame a group selfie of those around the bar. Then she went back to taking pictures of the ongoing fireworks. Arcadia patted the glowing crystal rose she wore behind her right ear. It also was thankfully unharmed by her fall. She glanced up to Johann, "How's Ruvel?"