The first thing Kaia noticed when she woke was that her bones were filing complaints.
The second was the sunlight, stabbing through her curtains with the ruthlessness of a tax collector who'd heard rumors of hidden jewels under her mattress.
She tried to roll over and found that her body refused to obey, as if it had replaced all its joints with wet socks and spite. Every muscle screamed, every limb weighed twice what it should. Even her hair hurt, which she'd previously thought impossible unless someone had set it on fire a possibility she didn't entirely discount after training with Erza and Mirajane.
For a long, groggy moment, Kaia lay still, mentally reviewing her life choices. Perhaps if she stayed very, very quiet, her muscles would forget their vendetta and let her die in peace.
But there was no peace in Fairy Tail, only noise.
She cracked open one eye and whispered, "System? Are you there, or did I hallucinate you during a fever dream?"
[I'm always here. Congratulations: you survived.]
She grimaced. "I'm not sure 'survived' is the word. Is there a magic spell for... I don't know... reversing time and putting my body back to its pre-Erza state?"
A pause. It was always a bad sign when the system paused.
[In theory, with advanced Chrono-Flux, you could revert your own body to a previous, less... pulverized state.]
"In theory?" Kaia croaked, voice rough.
[In practice, with your current control stat, you'd either accidentally regress yourself to infancy, swap your head with a beet, or create a time paradox and delete your breakfast from history.]
Kaia considered this.
"...So you're saying there's a chance?"
[No. I'm saying if you try, I'll enable 'Mandatory Tutorial Mode.']
She shuddered. "Never mind. Not worth it."
Kaia squinted at the ceiling, willing her limbs to work. Eventually, after a series of grunts and a movement that resembled a dying octopus, she managed to sit up.
Her boots, one still slightly charred from yesterday's magical mayhem, lay by the bed. The faint smell of something burning hopefully not her dignity drifted from beneath the door.
She pulled herself up, shuffled toward the mirror, and regarded the mess that was her face. Hair: chaos. Eyes: wild. Expression: regretful but undefeated.
She grinned at herself. "Still got it."
[That's subjective.]
She reached for her clothes and nearly toppled into the wall. "I am going to haunt Erza with ghostly complaints until I get a massage. Or a refund. Or both."
A knock rattled the door, followed immediately by the sound of it opening before she could respond. Erza, looking perfectly composed and as if she had never known fatigue, entered carrying a tray.
"Breakfast," she announced.
Kaia stared in horror at the bowl.
It was... green. And purple. And moving.
"Is it... alive?" Kaia whispered.
Erza arched a brow. "It's a healthy smoothie. I read that young mages need nutrients."
Kaia prodded it with a spoon. "It just blinked at me."
"Drink."
Kaia took a tentative sip, bracing for disaster. The taste hit her like a punch from the universe itself—something between grass, bitter melon, and whatever color 'pain' would be if it had a flavor.
She coughed, wheezing, "Erza, I'm pretty sure this is how you unlock the seventh sense."
Erza crossed her arms. "If you survive my training, you can survive breakfast."
Kaia eyed her suspiciously. "Is this your plan? To toughen me up through culinary trauma?"
"Possibly."
They shared a look a clash of wills, legendary in its silence before Kaia gave in and gulped down the rest, shivering from the taste and the existential dread.
She got dressed slowly, every movement a negotiation with her body. Her Chrono-Flux magic hummed faintly, eager to be used, but her control was still shaky at best. She considered just for a second—trying that time reversal spell anyway.
"System, what are the odds I'll end up in a parallel universe if I try it?"
[Higher than your breakfast's nutritional value.]
"Noted."
She limped down the hall, passing Lisanna and Levy, who were chatting near the staircase.
"Morning, Kaia!" Lisanna called. "You look... alive?"
Levy grinned. "Barely. How's it feel to be Erza's favorite experiment?"
Kaia raised a hand in a feeble wave. "Please write my obituary as 'she died bravely, tragically, and with questionable breakfast choices.'"
They laughed.
She made it to the guild hall just in time to see Natsu and Gray fighting over the last cinnamon roll, Mirajane giggling at the bar, and Happy flying overhead with a banner reading "TODAY'S SPECIAL: SURVIVE."
Kaia slumped into a chair, wincing.
Erza appeared at her side. "You're late."
"I'm early. In some time zone."
Makarov, perched on his favorite barrel, surveyed the scene with an expert's eye.
"Ah, the rookie returns! Ready for your next assignment?"
Kaia glanced at Erza, then at her smoothie-stained shirt, and sighed. "Is it less dangerous than breakfast?"
"That depends," Makarov said, stroking his chin, "on your definition of danger."
A slip of paper floated down in front of her.
"B-Class mission," Erza announced, sounding suspiciously enthusiastic. "Escort a merchant to Onibus Town. Bandits have been spotted on the roads. Routine for Fairy Tail, but a good challenge for you."
Kaia squinted at the paper. "Escort missions... Aren't those cursed?"
"Only if you're incompetent," Erza replied with a hint of a smirk.
Kaia groaned. "If I die, I'm haunting you and replacing all your armor with sequined pajamas."
Makarov roared with laughter. "Now, now, Kaia. Think of it as a learning experience!"
The rest of the guild began to crowd around, eager for gossip. Cana offered her a bottle "for luck," Gray offered to teach her how to ice-slide away from danger, and Natsu just asked if there would be food along the way.
Kaia ignored them all and focused on Erza. "Will you be coming too?"
Erza nodded. "Of course. You're not ready for a solo mission yet."
Kaia managed a weak smile. "Good. At least if I'm mauled by bandits, someone can avenge my breakfast."
As they set out, Kaia's aches faded with every step, adrenaline and the promise of adventure working their own kind of magic. The road to Onibus shimmered in the morning sun, lined with wildflowers and chirping insects. Kaia felt her magic pulsing inside her, the Chrono-Flux eager to stretch and bend reality, if only a little.
The merchant they were to escort a jittery man with a mustache that quivered at the mention of "danger" looked at Erza with awe and at Kaia with something like concern.
"I trust you'll keep me safe?" he stammered.
Erza nodded. "You have nothing to fear."
Kaia grinned. "Except breakfast. But that's behind us now."
The journey was uneventful for at least twenty minutes, which Kaia considered a record. The merchant talked incessantly about trade, onions, and the price of wool, all while clutching his wares with the devotion of a man who had once lost a cart to very angry goats.
Kaia's mind wandered. She found herself watching Erza how the redhead walked with such purpose, every step measured, eyes always scanning, always aware. For all her bluster and sharp edges, there was a kindness there, an unspoken promise that she would always stand between her friends and harm.
Kaia tried to match her stride.
"Erza," she asked, "do you ever get tired of always being the strong one?"
Erza glanced sideways, one eyebrow raised. "It's better than being the weak one."
"Yeah, but..." Kaia trailed off, searching for words. "It's a lot to carry. Even when you're not, you know, literally carrying someone."
Erza's lips twitched. "You think too much."
Kaia shrugged. "You hit too hard."
"Good. That's how you learn."
Kaia snorted. "Not sure my skeleton agrees."
Erza just smiled a small, rare, honest thing and Kaia found herself smiling back despite the soreness in her bones.
They reached a fork in the road. The merchant stopped, suddenly pale.
"That's them! The bandits!" he squeaked, pointing at a cluster of shadows up ahead.
Erza reached for her sword. Kaia felt her magic hum nerves and excitement mingling in her chest.