The drive back from the Heartfilia estate was one of the few quiet, triumphant journeys the group had ever taken.
Natsu, thankfully, had been fed so much at the mansion's feast that he immediately fell asleep, sparing Blake's Urus from another... incident.
Lucy was quiet, staring out the window, a small, velvet bag held tightly in her lap.
Just before they'd left, Layla had given her two celestial keys.
She had pressed two keys into her daughter's hand: the golden keys of Leo the Lion and Cancer. It was the ultimate gesture of trust, a passing of the torch that healed the last of Lucy's wounds.
They returned to Magnolia to a sight that was both heartbreaking and heartwarming: the entire guild, gathered in the smoking ruins of their hall, was already arguing over blueprints.
"It needs more wood! It feels cozier!"
"Idiot! Wood burns! We need stone! More stone!"
"It needs a bigger bar! And a stage for me to sing on!"
Time passed, and the guild hall was being rebuilt with the help of everyone. The war had forged them, and the reconstruction bonded them. Erza became the de facto forewoman, lifting the beams.
Elfman, in his Beast Soul: Full-Body Take Over, was the crane.
Blake also helped in the construction. He didn't just provide funding; he provided S-Class muscle. He used his Advanced Armament Haki to punch 50-foot pylons deep into the bedrock, creating a foundation that could withstand a dragon attack.
But he also served as an architect. He found Makarov one afternoon, poring over the plans.
"Master," Blake said, "if we're starting from scratch, we should aim bigger."
"Bigger?" Makarov mused. "Like... two bars?"
"Bigger," Blake insisted. He unrolled his own schematics, drawn on the back of an old Heartfilia-Corvus Motors blueprint. "I advise we make a gaming area—pool tables, dart boards, different table games for Levy and the intellectuals. We should also build a swimming pool out back. It'll give Natsu and Gray a place to fight. And this. A garage. A real one. For parking guild buses and cars. My Urus, your G-Class, and others... It's time Fairy Tail had an official motor pool."
Makarov's eyes lit up at the thought of a 'Fairy Tail' branded bus. "Ho ho! Blake, my boy, your vision is second only to your power! It shall be done!"
The everyday routine was grueling but joyous. All the members would work till evening, their bodies aching, covered in sawdust and sweat.
And as the sun set, in the evening, they would drink and dance and brawl right there in the half-finished skeleton of their new home, their spirits higher than ever.
After 2 months of construction, the guild building was finally built.
It was magnificent. It was three stories tall, made of reinforced stone and beautiful dark wood, with the new wings Blake had designed seamlessly integrated. The new game room was stocked, the pool was sparkling, and the garage was cavernous.
A sign was hung on the front door: CLOSED FOR PRIVATE GUILD FUNCTION.
Then an opening party was announced, a massive celebration funded entirely by Blake. The new, massive kitchen was put to the test, churning out mountains of meat. The bar was stocked with booze flowing everywhere.
The party was glorious. It was a celebration of their victory, their new home, and their unbreakable family.
When the next day morning everyone woke, it was to a scene of utter, apocalyptic devastation.
They were sprawled all over the lawn, the pool, and the surrounding streets.
Natsu woke up first, his head buried in an empty pie tin. "Ugh... my head... did we... win?"
Gray woke up next, shirtless, hanging upside-down from a new light fixture. "Win what? ...Where's the wall?"
They saw their new guild hall. It was destroyed.
The front doors were gone. The bar was a pile of splinters. The brand-new pool tables were upside-down and on fire. The new swimming pool was filled with what looked like... furniture.
"No..." Erza whispered, waking from a pile of rubble. "Did... did Phantom Lord come back?"
They were confused as to who did this.
"No," Levy said, rubbing her temples, a distinct, boot-print-shaped bruise on her cheek. "I... I'm starting to remember."
But once everyone understood what happened that night, they had a look of realization.
It had all started so well. At night, Makarov, after giving a triumphant, tear-filled speech, was the first to fall asleep, snoring peacefully on his new, custom-built barstool.
His passing out was, as always, the starting gun for the real party.
After he fell asleep, Natsu and Gray were, naturally, fighting.
"This new game room is mine, Ice Princess!"
"In your dreams, Ash-for-brains! The pool table is my territory!"
They clashed, fire and ice exploding over the pristine green felt. Erza, trying to be a responsible S-Class mage, stormed over to stop them. "That's enough! This is a new building! We will not destroy—"
"My, my, Erza," a soft voice chimed in. Mirajane silently mocked Erza from the bar. "Still so uptight. Can't you see they're just... christening it?"
Erza spun around, a vein throbbing in her temple. She responded with her own comeback. "At least I'm not hiding behind a tray of drinks, Mira. Some of us still know how to be proper mages."
The air crackled. The guild went silent. The old S-Class rivalry was back.
"Is that so?" Mira said, her smile turning demonic.
One thing led to another. Mira threw a full beer keg. Erza requipped and sliced it in two, spraying the entire room. The whole guild was involved in the fight.
It was a war. Laxus and Blake, in the new garage, were having a "durability test" on the new guild bus, which Blake had already purchased.
(Laxus: "My lightning is stronger!" Blake: "My Haki can dent it harder!").
Cana was surfing down the main staircase on a shattered dartboard.
Everything was destroyed. And everyone was too drunk to care about it. They fought until the sun threatened to rise, and they finally passed out in the ruins of their own creation.
A dark, terrifying shadow fell over the groaning, hungover guild members.
Makarov was the last to get up. He stood atop the one remaining pillar, his entire body shaking. He was furious when he saw his new guild hall's condition.
"MY... HALL!" he roared, his voice shaking all of Magnolia. "MY BEAUTIFUL, BRAND-NEW, UPGRADED, CUSTOM-BUILT... GUILD HALL! IT DIDN'T LAST ONE NIGHT!"
He began shouting at everyone, his Titan-sized fists waving menacingly. "YOU ARE ALL BANNED FROM QUESTS! FOR A YEAR! NO! A DECADE! I'M GOING TO SELL YOU ALL TO THE CIRCUS!"
He scanned the crowd, his eyes landing on the one person who looked completely unfazed.
Then he singled out Blake.
"BLAKE!" Makarov roared, his giant face looming over the S-Class mage, who was calmly sipping a coffee he'd made on a flaming piece of the bar. "YOU! YOU ARE S-CLASS! YOU PAID FOR THIS! WHY DIDN'T YOU STOP THEM?!"
Blake took a slow, deliberate sip. He looked up at the fuming, giant Guild Master.
"Come on, Master," Blake said, his voice the only calm thing in the county. "It is Fairy Tail. It is a tradition by now."
He gestured to the wreckage. "A guild hall isn't ours until we've destroyed it at least once. Without a fight, when has there been a party here? This just means the new hall is properly christened. Now we can really move in."
Makarov just stared, his giant eye twitching. The logic was so infuriatingly, undeniably Fairy Tail that it broke his rage.
Hearing that, Makarov deflated, shrinking back to his normal size. He landed on the rubble, clutched his head, and pulled his hair. "GAAAAAAAAH! I'm going to die from stress! I'm surrounded by destructive, fight-obsessed lunatics!"
He stood up, brushing plaster dust from his robes. He was defeated.
"Fine! Fine!" he snapped, reprimanding everyone. "You want tradition?! You've got it! Now you get the other tradition!"
He pointed a tiny, shaking finger at the sea of broken mages. "REPAIR EVERYTHING! NOW! AND I WANT IT DONE BY SUNDOWN!"
The guild, groaning, dragged themselves to their feet, grabbing hammers and saws. The grand rebuilding... of the rebuilding... had begun.