A grim shadow crept through the quiet alleyways. It moved in absolute silence, almost like it wasn’t even really there. No footsteps, no rustle of clothing... Not even breathing. A closer look revealed a deathly pale woman in a dark dress that nearly swept the ground. Long, dark hair squirmed messily down her back. Dark circles highlighted a pair of unblinking spiral eyes. She resembled something from beyond the grave. People who caught a glimpse of the eerie specter often did a double take. But by then, it was already gone. She had already wandered elsewhere. Lost... And forgotten...

What a way to start a day.

Mary stopped to caaarefully peek around a corner. No, this street didn’t seem familiar either. She had taken a left and a left and a right... Or was it a right and then a left? Oh, she just couldn’t recall anymore. All these buildings looked the same. Even worse, her dear friend had wandered off and she had lost sight of her. She was already worried sick. Picking up the pace, she hurried down the street and kept looking. Much to her relief, she soon caught a glimpse of a familiar, black tail gliding around the corner. She dashed after it, but quickly backpedaled into hiding. W-wait... Who was that?

Meanwhile, another shadow approached the armored wanderer. This one was much smaller, but equally soundless... On the account that it was flying. Aaaand had no mouth. A small blob of pure darkness in the shape of a bat was gently gliding across the air. It stopped to float in front of the stranger, barely even flapping its wings. White eyes gazed curiously, silently gauging the man’s appearance and reaction. However, at the same time the wanderer might feel the creeping feeling of an icy stare sinking into his back. Someone... something... was watching.

The blob bat tilted its head curiously. Perfect silence was the only answer to the idle chatter. True, it had no idea who this mysterious human was looking for... And even if that hadn’t been the case, it still wouldn’t have been able to say anything. So instead it flew another circle around the interesting stranger. Gently it brushed against his ragged cape and swooped beneath the flowing helmet ornament. If the armored man didn’t shoo the creature away, it would’ve soon perched on top of his head. It was just as light as it appeared, weighing no more than a wisp of cotton candy.

Meanwhile, the staring shadow was peering around the corner. Her keen eyes swept the armored figure up and down. It was... beautiful... The armor was lovely, like a memento dug out of a long-forgotten tomb. Unfortunately, there was something terrifying underneath it... A total stranger! She trembled at the mere thought. However, she had heard his blight... And she just so happened to know Judith Karlinius. Her eyes widened when the familiar guild name was mentioned off-handedly. S-she knew that too! B-b-b-but in order to tell that, she would have to... t-t-t-t-talk! Trembling intensified.

Fortunately, Mary managed to gather the scraps of her courage before the man walked too far. She dashed after him, closing the distance in absolute silence. It wasn’t until she was right behind him that she realized she had to say something. Anything. Her lips parted. A haunting whisper crawled from her throat. “Umbra...” Upon hearing the voice, the blob creature perked up all of a sudden. It flew up and swooped behind the man’s back. If he turned towards the creepy sound, he would find the ghastly woman staring at him. The small bat now sat in her cupped hands, seeming rather content. Silent seconds ticked by, before another creepy mutter slipped into the air.

“Hell... o...”

Beneath the unblinking stare, Mary was suffering a minor panic attack. Her heart was pounding like a hammer against an anvil. Her breathing stopped, getting stuck in the back of her throat. She had approached without thinking, entirely unsure how to proceed. Oh no, the stranger spoke... How was she supposed to respond? What was the polite thing to say? Or should she say nothing at all? Yes, no, maybe? Shehadnoideahowtodealwiththishelp. Umbra, meanwhile, shared none of its master’s anxiety. Rather, it perked up from hearing its name again. The white eyes twisted into happy crescents.

When the armored figure turned around, the ghastly mage inched back with teeny tiny steps. While she wasn’t exactly short herself, she still felt so very small in front of the imposing man. Avoiding his eyes, she shifted her gaze down. ...Lower. A little lower. Perfect. Such a wonderful armor... She would’ve loved to strip it off and...

...!

The sudden question made the lusty daydreamer flinch, snapping her out of any questionable thoughts. Startled, she directed her stare all the way down to the ground. “Um, y-yes... I... I do... know... Fairy Tail... A-and Judith...” The meek muttering didn’t exactly sound convincing. Realizing that herself, she lifted her hand to her turtleneck collar and slooowly pulled it to expose the pale skin beneath. More... And more... Fortunately, before things could get outright scandalous, a tattoo of Fairy Tail was revealed in the center of her chest, just below the throat.

However, one set of questions inspired another. Quietly the creepy woman wondered what this scary stranger wanted of Fairy Tail and Judith. He didn’t exactly seem like a helpless client seeking assistance... Nor did he seem like anyone related to Judith. Too tall. Much too tall. And eerie. Honestly, he looked more like one of her cousins. Worry bubbled in the cauldron of her mind. Still, it was not polite to accuse. Sooo... She wanted to carefully inquire what brought the man all this way. Slowly she lifted her gaze and voiced an eerie question. “Are you... a lost soul...?” He didn’t seem quite as lively as most people, so she kind of... accidentally... got her hopes up once again.

Mary was terrible with countless things. Cooking, socializing... Aaaand names. Only those who had left a deep impression, for better or worse, she managed to remember. So when the stranger mentioned someone called Waylon, she only offered a blank look in return. ...Who? W-wait, was she supposed to know? Cold sweat formed on her brow. Panic already churned in her chest. Fortunately they didn’t linger on the topic. The question about the mother was much better received. She actually nodded meekly. “Y-yes...” There was just one teeny tiny doubt nagging in the back of her head... What was it now...?

Upon hearing that the stranger was only figuratively a lost soul, the ghastly mage sighed heavily. “...Oh.” Her posture and spirit drooped like a wilted flower. She had really wanted to meet a genuine revenant... But it was not meant to be. Naturally she would run into living beings while still walking among them. While lamenting her luck, she almost missed this person’s name as well. Twiddling her fingers together nervously, she hurried to introduce herself. “Uh... M-mary Wraith... N-nice to meet you, Reggie...” Turns out, she did kind of miss the name after all. Oops. Oblivious to her mistake, she gently lifted the blob of darkness resting in her grasp. “A-and this is... Umbra...” The blob raised its wings as a greeting.

Mary carefully stepped past the man. “P-please follow me... I shall lead you... beyond the threshold...” Despite her anxiety, she still intended to keep her promise. Surely Judith would want to meet her son. She looked at the surrounding buildings, quivering with uncertainty. Oh, and that teeny tiny doubt? Well, now she fully realized it. Glancing right, left and back right again, she tried to tell the buildings apart. Yup. She was still totally lost. “Uh... um... T-this way... I think...” She picked a random, shady alleyway and headed off. It would be fine... Right?

Sneaking soundlessly along, the eerie woman seemed to brighten up when the topic shifted to her tiny friend. She had done a little bit of research after the creature had manifested. At first, she sounded confident. “Oh, Umbra is an Eru.” Buuut it was pretty short-lived. “It’s sort of... like... uh... um...” She lifted the blob of darkness to eye-level and inspected it carefully. Several cutesy words sprung to mind, none of them were actual academic facts. Couldn’t quite use the term ‘my little shadow muffin’ in a serious paper. So her head drooped again. “I... don’t... know...” Admitting that was rather shameful for a scholar. Meanwhile, the living shadow simply shrugged its wings. It didn’t know either.

Between the steps, the creepy mage occasionally snuck sly glances at the armored wanderer. Her disappointment deepened when removing the helmet revealed no skull or spectral visage, but rather an ordinary human. She had known, of course, but in a way she had still hoped... Oh well... With a heavy heart she continued leading the way through the shady alleys. As far as places for a walk went, she considered this nice and quiet. Sort of romantic even... Just her and him... A-and Umbra of course. ...Along with a couple of rats here and there. Eh, maybe not all that romantic.

When the imposing man voiced his friendly query, Mary suddenly stiffened. Questionable images flooded the metaphorical floor of her mind, like someone had opened a closet stuffed way too full. Her inner self hurried to shove all those things back into the mental closet. She turned a little pale... er. If such a thing was even possible with her complexion. “I-it’s nothing! I’m f-fine.” She hastily lied. Well, she was many things. Fine was not one of them.

To make matters worse, their walk was soon stopped by a dead end. A fence and several trash cans blocked the path. Upon realizing the mistake, the ghoul recoiled in shock. Getting flustered, she hurriedly looked around. Nope, not through here. But she had been so sure this was the right way...

Lost... The word hit Mary hard. Her gaze turned hollow and a blank, forced smile froze on her features. “Yeah... I... guess so... hah... hahah...” Trying to find the funny side only hurt more. She hadn’t wanted to admit it to herself, but she was completely and utterly lost in a city that was supposed to be her home now. This wasn’t the first time either. Worse yet, she had already failed to keep her promise. Murky depression swirled inside her head, forming dark, little words. Useless. Hopeless. Worthless...

Without even snapping out of self-loathing, the ghastly woman followed after the armored wanderer. Head hanging, she slowly shuffled along, reminiscent of a mindless zombie chasing prey. Now it was Regis’ turn to lead the way. The shadow of grim death would constantly loom a couple of steps behind him...

However, the idle chatter managed to shake the ghoul out of her trance. She poked her fingers together nervously, trying to summon enough courage to speak her mind. A horrible decision, really. Yet she went ahead anyway. “Um... I-if you do find a different set, I... I could take care of your current one...” Realizing how strange that must have sounded, she hurried to clarify. “I... I promise not to do anything weird with it. Like smell it. Or lick it. Or sleep with it or...” With each word of suspiciously specific denial, she just managed to dig herself deeper.

Luckily, a distraction stepped in front of the duo. A shady man in a trenchcoat blocked their path. Smiling with a set of yellow teeth, a couple missing, he doffed his wide-brimmed hat in greeting. “Hello, strangah...” Glancing around, he leaned up to the armored figure for a conspiratorial whisper. “Might I interest you in a rare copy of the Sorcerers Monthly: Uncensored Edition?” He didn’t seem to notice the ghoulish woman stalking in the imposing man’s shadow. She was silently thankful. He seemed like the scariest type of person to wander the streets of this city... A pushy salesman!

Being bluntly rejected didn’t seem to sway the salesman much. A raspy laugh crawled from his throat. “Heh heh heh... Hey now, don’t be so quick to decline a good deal.” He pulled out a copy of the sleazy magazine and flashed the center spread before the wanderer’s face. “Feast your eyes on free sampl... huh?” Now he finally noticed the grim shadow behind the armored figure. After a double take, his eyes widened and his jaw dropped in utter horror. “Holy sh-what is that thing?!” Rhetorical question. He didn’t even stop to wait for an answer before bolting away like a frightened rat. The magazine was left fluttering in his wake, falling onto the dirty street.

Mary, meanwhile, was frozen in equal horror. Unblinking, she stared as the terrified man vanished around the corner. After a moment of awkward silence, a quiet mutter left her lips. “Oh dear... Not again...” Surprisingly, it hurt slightly less than usual. Maybe she was getting used to that reaction. Happened once a day, really.

Fortunately the spooky woman didn’t need to dwell on the thought. When Regis mentioned the offer, she shifted her attention onto him. His solemn words were met with a hesitant stare. The ghostly woman had no idea how to deal with this... Still, she tried her best. “Death... is not the end.” Her haunting words took an eerie echo from the alleyway walls. “So do not stand at their grave and grieve... For they are no longer there...” With soundless steps she moved in front of him. Her hand carefully reached out to touch his chest. “They are with you. Forever.” As usual, her views on death were... different.

When the armored wanderer alluded to something that happened to his loved ones, the ghastly woman listened keenly. ...Er, well, seemed to listen at least. In truth, she got caught up in one specific detail. “They... have... haunted you...?” Quietly she echoed the cute choice of words. Imagination painted a perhaps slightly inaccurate image inside her head. Clasping her hands together, she let out a dreamy sigh. “Oh, how very romantic~” Her eyes twinkled with peculiar madness. Oh how she wished that she could haunt a handsome prince when she died...

Much to Mary’s sudden surprise, however, it turned out Regis didn’t quite share that sentiment. She blinked at the admission, briefly stunned. “W-what? Why??” She couldn’t even fathom why someone wouldn’t want the soul of their beloved haunting them. Hurriedly she shook her head, trying to reject the very idea of moving on. “N-no, you should hang onto that feeling... Treasure the haunting despair...” Creepy honesty chimed in her tone. “People only truly die when they are forgotten... S-so you should remember them... Every single day.” She meant exactly what she said. Needless to say, expecting help from someone like her was a fool’s endeavor.

Unfortunately for everyone involved, the ghastly mage had just been handed a Pandora’s box. Of course she would open it, thinking she was somehow helping. “What happened to your loved ones is the key. You should cling to the memory. Never... let... go...” Terrible advice for anyone recovering from trauma. She twiddled her hands together, as if trying to weave the right words. “I... I know that waiting for the promised day can be hard, but... You need not fret. Just remember... No matter what you do...” Her lips twisted into a disturbing grin. Dark words trailed from her lips.

“Remember that you will die.”

Mary nodded in quiet approval when Regis revealed he didn’t fear death. She was happy to finally find someone who felt the same way. So she thought at least. Perhaps the knight didn’t quite share her... ehm... enthusiasm for the subject. At least until the bomb dropped. Her eyes widened. “Kill... ling...?” It was a mere whisper, unsure if it should even be said. Many questions were answered, many more were created. Naturally, the obvious thought passed through her mind. Now that she knew his secret... Was he going to kill her too...?

Well, she sure hoped so.

However, a certain distraction stopped the nervous wreck from voicing her concerns. Slowly her gaze trailed down, stopping where they were... joined together... Her stare went blank. Something shattered. The realization came creeping. This was... h-h-h-hand holding!!! An intense blush flared across her pale cheeks. Such a bold move meant they were practically on a date! Like... Like... L-lovers! How indecent! A pink tidal wave of daydreams washed over her. Wild scenarios of what-ifs filled her mind, painting an entirely inaccurate picture of the man’s intentions. Such thoughts were not appropriate for any kind of rating.

Eventually the flustered woman managed to snap out of her lusty thoughts. Kind of. Beads of sweat were still rolling down her rosy cheeks. “Um... I-if you meet your father...” She gave him a strange look, filled with longing. “...do you think I would get to see you die today?” Her tone was entirely too nonchalant for such a grim question. “Peaceful, agonizing, natural or violent... Death should be studied from all sides.” It would be a wonderful chance to further her studies. And... Maybe if she asked nicely, his parents would kill her as well. But first they really needed to find them... Hm...

Luckily, the ghoulish mage soon spotted a familiar landmark. From beyond the rooftops, a beautiful bell shone in the sunlight at the top of a tall building. Just beneath it the unmistakable crest of Fairy Tail came to sight. How fortunate that the guild headquarters was quite a big bigger than most buildings around here. Her pace quickened, fueled by new purpose. She moved ahead of the man and tried to pull him along at a brisk pace. “This way...” The haunting words drifted in the air. ...And gave some curious bystanders an entirely wrong idea about the poor man’s situation.

In a running theme today, Mary’s hopes were raised to the skies. ...Aaand immediately brought back down to the mud. At first she was excited to hear the kind knight didn’t mind sharing his sacred moment. Unfortunately, he soon brought up a good point. The motherly mage’s image flashed through the grim woman’s mind. Immediately her pace slowed down to a crawl. “Ah... You’re right, she would...” A deep sigh escaped her lips, yet a small smile still found its way onto her features. “It’s in her soul.” Judith was kind enough to watch over people, even ghosts and murderers. She would definitely stop her husband before the situation escalated.

Oh well... Maybe some other time then...

As the duo passed by the grand guild building, the ghastly guide regained some of her confidence. A rare treat indeed. While she hadn’t been a member for long, the guild still felt... familiar. Safe. Almost like a home... Her gaze scanned the surrounding buildings. Hm, yes, she remembered that Judith’s home was quite close to the guild. “Not far now... Just beyond the threshold...” She managed to sound almost reassuring. Ah, this street seemed familiar... Which meant... That way, yes? Quite so. This time she was rather certain.

However, suddenly the grim ghoul stopped dead on her tracks. She pulled her hand away from the armored wanderer and pointed ahead. “Down the street that way... Until you see a quaint home with a big, beautiful garden. You can’t miss it.” The garden was an impressive landmark around here. She shifted nervously, twiddling her hands together. “I... can’t come any further...” Well, won’t, more like. Since no one would be dying today, she had no excuse to intrude upon a family affair. It would’ve been quite rude, actually. Furthermore, the events of the cooking night were still fresh in her mind. She had been such a bother to the gracious host... No, she couldn’t possibly risk repeating that. Staying away was the best solution.

A simple poke was enough to send shivers down the ghastly woman’s spine. Utter horror washed over her. Twitching with a soundless scream, she went completely stiff. S-she recognized that voice! J-j-j-j-judith...! And she didn’t even have any kind of gift or payment prepared! Now she looked like a thankless clod and Judith would hate her and and and... Luckily the sudden hug silenced the nasty doubts swirling inside her head. Returning the hug, or rather awkwardly patting the short woman, she nodded. “U-um... Yes... Randy came to see you...” She managed to accidentally mangle the poor man’s name even further.

However, despite the warm welcome by Judith and the assurance by Regis, Mary still started inching away while they discussed. Step by step... Without a sound, like some manner of ghost. Or a particularly silent mouse. Contrary to what some may have believed, she had plenty of reason to fear them. Both of them. The dark doubts seeped back into her mind... This seemed like a delicate situation. The whole matter of murder and a potential revenge or redemption was beyond her limited expertise. She didn’t like to pry into private affairs... It felt like opening someone else’s tomb. That was simply rude.

Growing uncomfortable in the self-imposed silence, the ghoulish mage finally managed to utter an excuse. Sort of. “Um... I just... remembered I really need to.. uh... water the skeletons and dust the flowers, so... um... g-goodbye!” Lying had never been her strong point, not even little, white lies. She turned tail and ran away. For someone who looked so sickly and weak, she was surprisingly quick. As if carried by some supernatural force... Maybe one day she would dare to visit Judith again. But today would not be that day. As soon as she got home, she would hide under the blankets until the shivering stopped.