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CHAPTER START---
---January 5th, X770, 8 PM…
"Raise!" Oberon yells as he slides a stack of Jewels into the middle of the table.
Across from him, Gildarts glares at the cards in his hand, to his right Wakaba winces as he counts his remaining Jewels, and to his left Macao takes a large mouthful of his rum before sliding his Jewels forward.
"Matched," Macao says.
Gildarts eyes Macao wearily, then focuses on Oberon who still has a stone-cold facade on display.
"Alright, let's see what you've got," Gildarts takes out another stack of Jewels and places it on the table, then slides it all forward into the pot.
"That's the limit for the pot," Wakaba says. "Yeah, I'm out, I've got rent to pay."
"If you win you won't have to worry about rent, come on."
"Ha, no way, I'm taking my Millgana to Akane Resort this weekend, it's her birthday," Wakaba says. "You'd understand if you ever manage to get a girlfriend."
"Now that was just mean," Macao says as he slides more Jewels into the pot, parting with his last stack of cash.
"You guys ready?" Gildarts asks.
All around them, Guild members were anxiously waiting to see who'd win this game, holding their breaths in anticipation.
"Show 'em," Oberon says as he drops his cards on the table, revealing three shining gold stars and a blue heart.
"Fuck!" Gildarts yells as he holds his head, looking at his three skulls and a blue heart.
Macao doesn't make a sound, just drops his cards and walks over to the bar, allowing everyone to see his pink skull, blue star, rainbow, and pirate ship cards.
"What can I say, the cards and Magic both love me," Oberon gloats as he takes out one of his storage cards and collects his winnings.
"Clearly," Gildarts groans and the crowd stops their cheering and returns to their usual seats. "1 in what, 40,000?"
"1 in 53,000 chances actually," Oberon says. "Your hand wasn't that bad, just not as good as mine."
"If you ever want an easy life, quit being a Wizard and just be a professional gambler, clearly you were born for it."
"Quit being such a baby, let me buy you a drink," Oberon says. "And Macao, and Wakaba."
Across the bar, both men raise a glass to Oberon.
"You could have covered our tabs for tonight, would have been a better gesture," Gildarts says.
"Ha, all the money I have couldn't do that, especially not with the way you drink," Oberon laughs at the man's annoyed look. "Honestly, not sure what's more impressive, your Magic Energy or your liver."
"Honestly, you should use some of that cash and invest in an apartment that isn't complete trash," Gildarts says. "Seriously, how'd you even survive in there during winter?"
"I grew up in a snow-covered mountain village," Oberon says. "But honestly, I do need more space."
"Oh, for what?"
"Magicycle," Oberon says.
"You aren't old enough to drive one of those yet, you need to be fourteen, anything else?"
"Library," Oberon says. "I bought a lot of books since I got my Gate Key, even managed to figure out which key it is, Caelum: The Chisel, he's some kind of canon-sword thing."
"Wow, that sounds awesome, hurry up and become S-Class so I can see it!"
"Tch, I'm trying to do that, obviously."
"As for the library space, does the Guildhall library not work for you?"
"Have you ever been in there?" Oberon asks.
"Uh," Gildarts thinks about it for a moment. "Actually, now that you mention it, I've never been in there."
"It's one room with more books than shelf space," Oberon says. "Plus the Guildhall closes at 10, and I prefer to read at night."
"Huh," Gildarts thinks about it for a moment. "You know, there is this nice place down by the river. More space than that closet you live in, cheap rent, and you'll have enough space for your books. No place for a Magicycle though, but that won't be a problem for a few years."
"Stupid license nonsense," Oberon mutters. "Anyway, can you introduce me to the landlady you mentioned, I kind of ordered some new books from Gran' and don't have any space for them, so I've actually been keeping them in Master Makarov's office."
"Wait, those are yours?" Gildarts asks. "Some of those look like pretty advanced stuff, and some of them were really gross too, you're into some weird stuff kid."
Oberon rolls his eyes at the older man, "Understanding how the human body works will help me understand why my Magic works the way it does."
"Normally yeah–but you're kind of a freak, so I doubt your body is normal like the ones in those books."
Oberon snaps his fingers, "You're right! I should order more books on Magic Creatures!"
Two tables away Master Makarov chokes on his drink while playing a friendly game of checkers with Laxus.
'Oh please, no! I barely have any space in my office for me because of how many books he keeps buying!' Makarov thinks. 'I definitely need to help that boy get a bigger apartment.'
After a few more minutes of talking to Gildarts, and buying him, Macao, and Wakaba a bottle of wine each, Oberon quietly slips out of the main hall and into the library.
"Magic creatures, honestly I should have thought of that myself," he says while floating up to the higher shelves, carefully reading the titles of monster encyclopedias.
After a minute of searching, he finds the exact book he's looking for.
"The Lizardman Bestiary and Research Findings," Oberon reads the title as he unconsciously sits on the ceiling, reading the book.
After a few minutes of reading and taking notes, Oberon is lying on the ceiling reading about the intricacies of Lizardmen's biology.
"Hyper Metabolization of organic matter into Magic Energy via Ethernano conversion, followed by circulation across the body…huh," he closes his eyes and focuses on the Magic Energy flowing through his body.
He feels his energy flowing, then focuses on his stomach, and just barely feels his dinner affecting the flow of Magic Energy.
"I see. So the same way Wizards can use their Life Force to amplify or even replace their Magic Energy, food sustains us so it acts as part of that entire process, but for Lizardmen they can make it happen a lot faster with more obvious results, I see…"
"It really isn't as complicated as you're making it sound," Master Makarov says as he draws Oberon's attention away from the book, down to the man who's just entered the library.
"Food becomes energy, right?" Oberon asks as he floats down to the man. "But I'm more concerned about the finer details, those are the things people often overlook, the things books usually don't have."
"Yes I suppose that is more beneficial to you," Makarov says. "But there is something rather important I need to discuss with you."
"I just got done talking to Gildarts, he agreed to help me get a bigger apartment, so I'll be able to get my books out of the Guildhall, you don't have to worry about it for much longer."
"Well that is a relief," Makarov says. "I was mostly talking about the fact that today is your birthday."
Oberon flattens his lips and slumps his shoulders.
"The first birthday without them, I can't imagine how difficult that must be," Makarov says. "But if you ever need to talk about it, or anything for that matter, we're always here for you."
"Yeah, it just feels…wrong," Oberon says. "Mom would always make a cake, dad would get me a new book to keep studying Magic, and now, I just…"
"Now you have all the cake and books you could want, but it all feels empty without them, yes?" Makarov asks.
"Yeah, is it wrong that I'd give it all up to have one more dinner with them?"
"Not at all, that's perfectly normal," Makarov pats his shoulder. "The ones we truly love can never be replaced, and that is certainly not what Fairy Tail is meant to do. But the heart can grow–to love more, and to accept more love. That is what Fairy Tail is for."
"Yeah," Oberon mutters. "I like it here, and I know they'd be happy to know I'm here now, doing what I've always dreamed about."
"But?"
Oberon sighs, "But, I don't think birthdays will ever be the same without them."
"That's quite alright," Makarov says. "I'm just glad to know you aren't even tempted by the darkness such unfortunate events can leave on a person."
"Yeah well," Oberon creates a small glowing mote of light in his hand. "Darkness really isn't our thing, right?"
Makarov smiles, "My feelings exactly, now, I'll let you get back to your research."
"Thank you, Master."
As Master Makrov is about to open the door he turns back to look at Oberon, who is already lying on the ceiling reading another book.
"Whatever apartment you're getting, I recommend getting one with a few more rooms, at the rate you're going you'll need a second house just for your books!"
Oberon casually waves away Master Makarov's words as the man leaves the library.
END CHAPTER---
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