Different-colored eyes

The Fairy Tail guild hall was a mess.

Broken barrels lay scattered everywhere, shards of ice gleamed coldly in the sunlight, and overturned storage chests had spilled their magic items across the floor. A faint smell of alcohol still lingered in the air.

Makarov's enlarged palm pressed down hard in the middle of the hall, leaving several fine cracks in the solid stone floor. His eyes were wide with anger.

(ﾒ ﾟ皿ﾟ)ﾒ

"You little brats! Do you think the guild is a place where you can run wild? There's a limit to fooling around! Don't throw all the guild's rules out the window!"

No one had expected that Riyao, who had been caught up in the brawl moments ago, had slipped over to Makarov's side at some point. Arms folded, he glanced disdainfully at the people around him rubbing their arms and crying out in pain, and voiced his wholehearted agreement.

"Exactly, Master. Those guys were fighting like headless flies just now. Good thing I ran fast and got out of the way, or I would've been dragged into it too. I'm embarrassed to be associated with them."

As he spoke, he secretly winked at Gray. His expression said, "I saw right through you all," and he made no effort to hide his scheming side.

"Quit playing innocent!"

Gray clenched his fists, tiny shards of ice forming at his fingertips as ice-blue magic swirled around him.

"Riyao, you jerk! That bunch of icicles you threw nearly poked holes in my coat! You were more fired up than anyone when you were chasing Wakaba, and you've got the nerve to pretend you were just watching?"

Macao rubbed his lower back, his face a little pale, and added through gritted teeth:

"Yeah! That flying kick of yours landed right in the small of my back. I still can't bend over to tie my belt! You hit harder than anyone, and now look at you, pretending to be a good guy!"

Wakaba patted his backside and sucked in a sharp breath of pain.

"Don't even get me started! During the brawl, you guys shoved me so hard I went headfirst into an iron training rack, and my backside still hurts like hell! Don't any of you know how to hold back?"

Cana leaned against a pillar in the hall with her arms folded, her lips pursed in a pronounced pout and her face full of displeasure.

"And you, Riyao, you scheming jerk! While I was trading punches with Gray, you took the handle of an ice pick and whacked me hard on the back of the head. It still hurts! You bastard, you just can't stand seeing other people happy!"

With that, she started forward to grab him by the collar.

Levy clutched a thick tome on magic and peeked out from beside a bookshelf in the corner, muttering in a voice as thin as a mosquito's buzz.

"Riyao threw quite a few punches himself, and he even snatched Macao's dried meat... Now he's criticizing everyone else. He really is getting more and more devious."

She covered her mouth and giggled, then quickly buried her face in her book, afraid someone would catch her laughing.

"You're so damn loud. I was going to get some rest and catch up on sleep here."

Laxus Dreyar leaned against the wall, tiny sparks of lightning dancing at his fingertips as he rolled his eyes impatiently.

"But all that noise shook apart the lightning element I'd just gathered. And Riyao, that icicle you threw just grazed my ear. If you want a beating, just say so. Don't pull that kind of stunt in the guild."

Warren Rocko, who had just run over from the guild's back courtyard, still clutched a copper watering can in his hand. Fresh dirt clung to his pant legs; he had clearly been tending the flower bed.

"When you were chasing each other around, you trampled the three sunflowers I'd just planted! Those seeds came from my hometown, and they only just sprouted after making it through the winter! You have to help me turn over the whole flower bed and plant ten more to make up for them!"

Riyao suddenly took a solid knock to the back of the head. It was Makarov.

He had just pulled back the giant hand that had cracked the stone floor, only to bring his large, knobby hand down hard on the crown of Riyao's head. His white mustache bristled like a pair of little flags in his anger.

"You little brat, you've barely behaved yourself for two minutes and you're already pushing your luck? You run your mouth and take advantage of your juniors right in front of them, and instead of doing anything useful, all you know how to do is show off!"

Just then, Erza came out of the reception room. She walked straight over to Riyao and bowed to thank him.

"Thank you, Riyao."

Riyao held his forehead and said teasingly, "Don't mention it. We're family, so there's no need for thanks. Just call me big brother. I wouldn't mind if you called me dad, either."

Makarov gave him another knock on the head and said, "All you ever think about is taking advantage of your juniors."

Riyao yelped and jumped up, firing back, "Aren't you always trying to get us to call you 'Grandpa' instead of Master?"

As the two bickered, Erza's cheeks grew warm. Sounding a little awkward and shy, she called softly, "Riyao... big brother..."

Riyao perked up instantly. He looked up at her with a mischievous grin, raised a hand over his mouth, and let out a series of strange "oh ho ho" laughs.

Erza could no longer contain her embarrassment and indignation. She raised her hand and punched him hard in the stomach.

Riyao clutched his stomach in pain and cried out dramatically, "Whoa, isn't that thank-you gift a bit too heavy?"

The entire guild burst into laughter.

Gray gloated from the sidelines, "That scheming bastard finally got what was coming to him! Hahahaha!"

Riyao immediately shot back, "Idiot Gray, where are your clothes?"

Gray froze at that and immediately scrambled around the floor looking for his clothes.

Cana laughed too. "That unscrupulous senior Riyao had it coming!"

Riyao struck back again. "Little Cana isn't cute at all anymore. You used to be so good and call me 'Big Brother Riyao.' I'm heartbroken."

Cana's cheeks instantly turned bright red, and she retorted furiously, "That was when I was little! You bastard, Riyao, when my dad gets back, I'll tell him to beat you up!"

Riyao picked his nose, utterly unconcerned.

"Hmph, who knows if that old geezer can even catch me? Little Levy's still cute. She even calls me 'big brother' like a good girl."

Clutching her book, Levy cried out innocently, "I didn't even bother anyone, you idiot... Riyao."

Erza kept a straight face and said solemnly, "Riyao, please don't... pick your nose. It damages the guild's image."

Riyao reluctantly stopped, pulled out a mirror, and held it up to Erza. With a cheerful smile, he said, "Well? Do you like the turquoise eye? One brown and one turquoise. Looks good, doesn't it? Your turquoise eye matches mine."

Erza looked at herself in the mirror. She hadn't looked in one since waking up, so she hadn't known her eye had turned turquoise.

The others had been standing too far away to notice, and even if they had, they would only have assumed it had always been that way.

Erza's mouth fell slightly open. She stared for a moment, then finally accepted the reality with a smile.

"This is fine too. It looks pretty... nice."

"Hey, hey, I can hear how reluctant you sound. Aren't you happy? Isn't having an eye that matches mine something to be proud of?"