It was time to hit the road once again, and it had been far too long. The blonde locked her front door and was immediately riddled with the sunlight of the sun up above that rained down its brilliance with no mercy while it did so. First thing was first...

Coffee.

The quaint little coffee shop around the corner was still there, much to Tori's delight. After walking in and catching up with some small talk with the barista, she was given her usual black chai latte and went about her way. Thinking back, the Dragon Slayer saw need for work out in Orchidia, which seemed like a nice change of pace. But before heading out, she needed to stop by a couple shops in order to gather supplies for the journey. After filling her bag with snacks and water, and paying the shop clerk, she made way towards the city gate. When she got there, she noticed the familiarity of the setting. This area had been of some importance to Tori since she joined the Fairy Tail guild. Turning her head to the right, she saw the alley where a man once stood that would change her life forever. He was the one who gave her the Frost Dragon Slayer lacrima and implanted in her body and set everything into motion for the blonde woman. She thought back and wondered if she would do it all again, given her present knowledge, and decided she would have it no other way.

Along the way, her body submitted to an autopilot state while her mind wandered. She told Houren that she would fight him for the crown of Dragon Emperor, but he seemed to have left soon after returning from the island, as she somewhat expected from the lone wolf. She was surprised he even stayed at the welcome back party as long as he did. But oh well, the two Dragons would battle again one of these days.

But Tori didn't need to worry about that now. Right now she needed to worry about that, and instead worry about improving her own strength. She had heard whispers of unease throughout Fiore as of late, although she couldn't be certain of their validity. But, as her grandfather always told her: hope for the best, but prepare for the worst. Fiore would be eventually safe and she would help see to it.

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