"Do you really have to go?"
A young girl with wavy blue hair asked this question with saddened eyes, firmly grasping the hand of the pink-haired boy in front of her. He offered her a smile, albeit a small one.
"Igneel's out there somewhere. I gotta find him." He said.
"Let me go with you! We can find him together!"
"I have to do this on my own." The boy insisted. "But I'll come visit. I promise."
"When?" The girl was fighting back her tears now.
The boy thought for a moment. "How about… in four years?"
"Four years?" The girl didn't seem to like this answer. "That's a long time."
"Igneel probably won't be easy to find so I'll need a lot of time, and besides I'll be training while I'm gone too so I'll be much stronger the next time you see me."
Accepting his reasoning, the girl reluctantly let go of his hand. "How do I know you're not lying? How do I know you'll really come back?"
The boy thought once again. He was then struck with a bolt of inspiration. "I know how!" he unwrapped the white-scaled scarf from around his neck and ripped off a piece with his bare hands. This shocked the girl.
He handed her the piece he ripped. "I'll come back for this. So take care of it for me."
The girl took the scarf and hugged it tight to her body.
"See you in four years, Levy."
The boy smiled wide and gave her a final goodbye before exiting the door of the guild hall.
The calm chirping of birds outside of her window brought Levy McGarden into the waking world. Her eyes focusing to the light, she was greeted by the sight of a blown out candle, as well as a stack of books.
"Morning already? I must have dozed off again."
She slowly sat up, stretching her back and arms against the back of her chair with a slight groan before going to the bathroom and getting ready for the day.
Coming down the stairs roughly an hour or so later, Levy entered the common area of the Fairy Hills dormitory. It was empty, but she did see dirty dishes piled in the sink.
"Everyone must have went to the guild hall already."
After washing the dishes Levy exited the dorm, locking the door behind her. The morning breeze blowing through her wavy blue locks, she proceeded down the hill and into the city of Magnolia.
Magnolia was a harbor town located on the beautiful waters of Lake Sciliora. While not the biggest city in the kingdom, it was large enough to house sixty-thousand of the Kingdom of Fiore's citizens quite comfortably. Though the beautiful architecture and and friendly people weren't all the city had to offer, for in the heart of it all was its most prized possession, the Fairy Tail guild.
Standing tall for nearly a century, Fairy Tail had been a beacon of hope for Magnolia back when the town was littered with famine and ruin. Over the years the once modest building had grown to considerable size, becoming one of the strongest – as well as most popular – guilds in the entire kingdom.
Levy entered the front doors of the guild from the main road. It was still quite early so not many people had arrived, but she knew that would change in just a couple of hours.
"Good morning, Levy. Did you sleep well?"
Levy was greeted from the bar by a girl with short, snow white hair wearing a light blue and white dress. Her smile was warm and infectious.
Levy yawned in response. "Good morning, Lisanna."
Lisanna Strauss was Fairy Tail's resident barmaid and assistant to the guild master. A wizard in her own right, she was a practitioner of Take Over magic. Take Over allowed one to assume the abilities of any being the caster wanted whether they living or dead. As far as Lisanna's was concerned, her power - known as Animal Soul - extended to animals.
"Another all-nighter?" Lisanna joked as Levy sat on the stool.
"Yeah. I was trying to finish translating this spell book I got a while back, but I'm not having any luck. The language it's written it is as complex as it is dead."
The barmaid giggled. "I'm sure you'll get it eventually. Coffee?"
"Please."
"Coming right up." Lisanna promptly began making the weary wizard's morning beverage. A few minutes later she returned with a fresh mug in hand. "Here you go. Cream and sugar?"
"No that's ok. This will wake me up quicker." Levy blew on the mug and took a quick sip. "Is the Master in?"
"He had a meeting with the council this morning. Something about paying for the damages in Oshibana. He should be back this afternoon."
"Oh right. Whose fault was that again?"
"Elfman's." Lisanna sighed. "I warned him not to get carried away, but he just doesn't listen to me."
Levy chuckled. "Well I'm sure he'd say it was the "manly" thing to do."
"I didn't know that being a man meant causing so much destruction."
Elfman was Lisanna's older brother. Like her he also practiced Take Over magic, but his was known as Beast Soul. This allowed him to possess the characteristics and abilities of various monsters across the land. Obsessed with "being a real man" his boisterous antics and tendency for roughhousing were usually cause for concern in the guild.
"Levy!" A voice called.
"I guess that's my cue." she finished her drink. "Thanks again for the coffee, Lisanna."
"Anytime. Have a good day."
"You too."
Levy left the bar and went off to meet the voice that called out to her. Her journey lead her to a table a few steps away from the bar. Sitting there were two young men.
One had spiked brown hair hidden beneath a very tall hat that matched his brown trench coat, and the other had black hair with a cowlick that resembled a seed pod, as well as what appeared to belts crossing over his chest. They were known as Jet and Droy respectively. Together they along with Levy made up Shadow Gear, one of many smaller teams within the Fairy Tail guild.
"You're here early." Droy noted.
"We were waiting for you outside of Fairy Hills but you never came out. When we tried to look for you the old lady shooed us away." Jet added.
"You know guys aren't allowed near the dormitory." Levy reminded.
"We were worried. You said you haven't been getting much sleep lately." Droy said.
"I was more worried." Jet interjected. "I was the one who decided to go wait for you."
"What are you talking about, you jerk?! I was more worried!" Droy argued.
"No! I was!"
"Guys…"
The boys ignored Levy.
"You wanna go right now?"
"Bring it."
"Guys."
Jet and Droy pressed their foreheads together, each daring the other to throw the first punch. Levy sighed.
SOLID SCRIPT: WATER
With a wave of her hand, the word WATER appeared over the heads of the hot-headed young men. The liquid dumped onto Jet and Droy's heads, effectively stopping their argument.
"What was that for?" Jet demanded.
"Yeah. We could have drowned."
Levy rolled her eyes. "Hopefully that cooled you two hot heads down. Come on, let's look for a job."
"Yes, Ma'am."
Jet and Droy followed their leader to the request board.
Levy's magic of choice was known as Solid Script. A form of Letter Magic, Solid Script allowed it's wielder to create anything they wanted by simply writing the words in air. In Levy's case the words she wrote took on the properties of the substance. For example, if she wrote the word Metal, the letters would be made of metal. Due to Levy's love for languages this was the perfect magic for her.
The trio looked over the jobs posted on the request board. They had been somewhat scarce lately. Most of the high paying jobs had already been taken, or were upstairs for the S-Class wizards to take.
"What about this one?" Jet pointed to a paper on the board. It detailed hunting a monster in the East Forest.
"Sounds a little too dangerous." Droy voiced.
"Yeah. You're probably right."
"Actually, guys. I don't-"
"Oh this one is good!" Droy unwittingly ignored Levy and pulled down a job. He looked over it with Jet. It entailed escorting a wealthy debutante to the port city of Hargeon.
"Look at all those zeros." Jet marveled with widened eyes. "What do you think, Levy? Wanna do this one?"
The two practically forced the paper into her face. With a small smile Levy accepted.
"Sure. Let's do it."
Shadow Gear was a team that didn't get involved in many combat oriented jobs. This was mostly by design. The three of them were not the strongest members of the guild, so Levy thought it best they take jobs that relied on brains rather than brawn.
Even though they had made this rule as a unit, Levy couldn't help the urge to break routine every once in a while. Though Jet and Droy wouldn't hear of it.
To them she was a flower that needed to be protected and while they respected her as a wizard, they would sooner die than let actual harm come to her. She appreciated the gesture, but it was still frustrating.
After presenting the job to Lisanna, the group set off.
Shadow Gear stood in awe before a massive mansion in the countryside. The land it stood on stretched for miles, rivaling even Magnolia in just how expansive it was. It was also surrounded by lush green fields, a beautiful garden, and lots of animals.
"I knew these people were rich, but not this rich." Jet said. Droy nodded in agreement.
"This land belongs to the Heartfilia Konzern." Levy explained. "They're a huge company that has a hand in pretty much every business in the kingdom in one form or another."
"Whoa." Jet and Droy said unison.
Shadow Gear walked the smooth dirt path to the mansion proper. They were greeted at the front gates by a short elderly woman.
"Welcome to the Heartfilia Estate. My name is Spetto, a maid here at the grounds." she introduced. "You must be the wizards from the Fairy Tail guild."
"We are." Levy answered. "My name is Levy McGarden, and these are my friends Jet and Droy."
"A pleasure to meet you all. If you'll please follow me, I'll escort you to the Master's study."
"We will. Thank you."
Shadow Gear followed after the maid and entered the mansion. It was even more magnificent on the outside than it was on the inside. Elegant pictures on the walls, beautifully crafted statues, and spotless floors. They saw servants diligently working. Cleaning the house from top to bottom and cooking meals for the day.
"Man, that smells good." Droy said as the aromas from the kitchen wafted into his nose.
"I bet it tastes even better." Jet added.
The group ascended a long rack of stairs to the second level of the mansion. They turned into the west wing of the house, passing more pictures along the way.
Levy suddenly stopped in front of portrait of a woman wearing a stunning red dress. Her beautiful blonde hair seemed to radiate from the portrait, and her smile was filled with warmth and kindness.
"That is Miss Layla Heartfilia." Spetto said. "She and Master Jude both built the Heartfilia Konzern from the ground up with their bare hands. It was hard, but eventually they managed to make the company a name known throughout the entire kingdom."
Despite her smile Levy could hear the sadness in Spetto's voice.
"…What happened to her?" she was almost too afraid to ask.
"Miss Layla…died seven years ago. Magical Deficiency Disease."
"She was a wizard?"
Spetto nodded. "Miss Layla was a Celestial Wizard, and a very good one at that. She even possessed three of the twelve zodiac keys."
Levy's eyes began to widen. She had read about Celestial Magic in many books and each one spoke at length about how powerful the Zodiac keys were. To be in possession of one was something to marvel at, but three of them at once was simply astonishing.
The group's journey finally ended when Spetto stopped at large door at the end of the hall. She opened the door, revealing a somewhat simple study with paintings on the wall and a desk in front of a rather large window.
Seated at the desk was a rather imposing looking man with clean cut blonde hair and bushy mustache. He was going over what appeared to be financial documents.
"Master Jude, the Fairy Tail wizards have arrived."
He briefly looked up from his papers. "Thank you, Spetto. Please tell Lucy to get ready."
"As you wish." Spetto bowed and left the study, closing the door behind Shadow Gear.
"Hello, Sir. We're Shadow Gear and we've come to accept the-"
"Is this the best your guild could do?"
Levy was taken aback by his sudden question. "I-I'm sorry?"
Jude took off his glasses a finally took a good look at the wizards before him. His gaze was an intimidating one.
"I'd heard Fairy tail was filled with strong wizards, that's why I contracted them, but looking at the three of you makes me feel that I was sorely mistaken. You look like you could barely handle a forest Vulcan."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Jet demanded.
"You tryna pick a fight?" Droy challenged.
"Calm down, guys." Levy said. "I apologize if you think we deceived you, but rest assured my friends and I can handle the job. Your daughter is safe with us."
"She better be." Jude put his glasses back on and resumed looking over his papers. "You will leave within the hour. Spetto and the others will provide you with anything you may need to get the job. We've already secured an inn downtown. You are to wait there with her until I arrive in the morning, upon which you will receive your payment."
Levy nodded. "Understood. Thank you for trusting us, sir."
"Yes I am trusting you. If anything happens to my daughter I will buy and sell your guild faster than you can blink, and I will make it my mission to see that none of you finds work again."
The threat sent a chill down the spines of Shadow Gear.
"Y-yes, sir."
Some few minutes after their conversation with Jude Shadow Gear waited for their "cargo" in front a carriage outside of the mansion . The sun was beginning to set, which meant that they wouldn't reach Hargeon until the middle of the night.
"Do you really think he has enough money to buy the guild?" Droy asked about Jude.
"Probably." Jet answered. "I don't want to find out though."
"Yeah me either."
"Don't worry, guys." Levy said. "It's just an escort job, right? It shouldn't be that hard."
The mansion doors opened. Lead by Spetto, a young woman with long blonde hair and fair skin approached the group. She was the spitting image of the portrait of Layla Heartfilia.
"I'm sorry for the wait. I had to gather some more things." The girl bowed apologetically. "My name is Lucy Heartfilia. It's nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too." Levy returned. "I'm Levy and these two are Jet and Droy. We'll be escorting you to Hargeon. Say hi, you two."
Jet and Droy were at a loss for words. Utterly stunned by Lucy's beauty – more specifically her chest – they were both elbowed back into reality by an irritated Levy.
"Guys."
"S-sorry." They apologized. "Nice to meet you."
The group entered the carriage and were off to Hargeon.
"I hope my dad didn't scare you guys too much." Lucy said. "He can be a little overprotective at times."
"It's no worry." Levy said with an uneasy smile. "He didn't scare us at all."
Lucy knew the girl before her was lying, but she pressed on. "You're Fairy Tail wizards right? Spetto told me when you arrived."
When the trio nodded Lucy's eyes lit up.
"That is awesome!" she exclaimed. "Sorry for gushing, but I'm kind of a huge fan of your guild."
"Really?" Levy questioned.
"Yeah!" Lucy reached into her bag and pulled out a copy of Sorcerer Weekly – a publication detailing everything happening in the world of wizards across the continent. On the cover was a picture of Fairy Tail's resident gravure model, Jenny Realight. "I've been following you guys ever since I was a little girl. Dad always gets upset though, he's not the biggest fan of wizards."
Shadow Gear was surprised at just how much Lucy's demeanor changed when she talked about Fairy Tail. She seemed so proper and elegant before, but the way she explained her love for the guild painted her in a completely different light.
"If you don't mind me asking what kind of magic do you guys use?"
"My magic is High Speed." Jet boasted. "It lets me move really fast."
Lucy giggled. "I kinda guessed that from the name."
Jet sulked. Droy took this opportunity to one up his friend and impress Lucy. He reached into one of the pouches of the belts on his chest and pulled out a single seed.
"My magic is called Plant." The seed in his hand began to glow. It split opened and out sprouted a hand made of vines. "I can pretty much make these special seeds sprout whatever plant I want." The hand waved to Lucy.
"Wow." she gasped.
Droy flashed Jet a cocky a grin. He had seemingly won their little competition.
Lucy turned to Levy. "What's your magic, Levy?"
Levy opened her hands.
SOLID SCRIPT: ICE
In her palms appeared the word made of solid ice.
"I use Solid Script magic." she explained. "I can basically make anything based on the word I use to write it. It's not the most dynamic magic but-"
"That's amazing!"
Lucy's exclamation caught Shadow Gear off-guard. She touched the sculpture in Levy's hands. It was cold just like its namesake.
"You must be really smart if you're able to master a magic like this."
Levy blushed. "I'm wouldn't say I'm a master. There's still a lot I have to learn."
"What else can you make?"
Jet and Droy accepted their defeat as they watched Levy and Lucy talk. They had once again been upstaged by their leader.
The comfortable ride came to an abrupt end when the carriage suddenly stopped.
"Why did we stop?" Lucy asked. "Are we in Hargeon already?"
"I don't know. I don't think so."
Levy looked to Jet and Droy, they were peeking out of the screen behind the carriage driver. From the looks on their faces there was trouble ahead.
"Guys?"
Jet motioned for her to come to their side. Levy peeked through the screen, in front of the carriage were a group of bandits.
"Let's see what's going on." Levy suggested.
"Right." The boys agreed.
Shadow Gear exited the carriage.
"Levy?" Lucy called.
"Don't worry." She smiled. "We'll handle this."
As Shadow Gear approached the brigands Levy surveyed the nearby trees that dotted the path, she could see more men hiding behind them, each one carrying either a bladed weapon or a magical staff. Judging by the group's numbers it would be risky to try and face them all head on, especially with a civilian in the carriage. They would have to approach this civilly.
They stood face to face with a rather large man with a scar over his nose and an eyepatch over his left eye. This was no doubt the bandit group's leader.
"What do we have here?" he smirked. "You guys own this nice carriage?"
Levy nodded. "We're on our way to Hargeon."
"Well like I was explaining to your driver a little earlier, this area belongs to the Silver Falcon gang. We can't let ya pass for free. Gotta pay a toll."
"Why you-" Droy started to move, but Levy stopped him.
"That's fine. It's our fault for trespassing." She smiled and reached into her satchel. "How much is the toll?"
"Well normally we charge a modest fee of fifty-thousand jewel." the man replied.
"Fifty-thousand?" Droy whispered. "How is that 'modest'?"
"This guy is full of it." Jet sniped. "But I shouldn't expect anything less from a bandit."
"I'm afraid we don't have that much." Levy replied with an apologetic smile. "Could we somehow get a discount?"
"You're actually in luck." The bandit leader said. "I'm in a really good mood today, so instead of paying with money we'll take...your carriage as payment."
"Our carriage? Why would you want that old thing?"
"The emblem on the front is the Heartfilia Konzern's right? That alone will fetch us a pretty penny when we flip it on the market."
"I'm sorry but I can't do that."
Levy could feel the tension rise in the air. She wanted to avoid fighting at all costs, but she could tell by the smirk on the bandits that that was the only option left.
The brigand leader shrugged his shoulders. "Well I tried to do this peacefully. Get 'em, boys."
"Jet!"
At Levy's call Jet rushed into the forest and took out the bandits hiding in the trees.
"Droy!"
Droy reached into his belt pouches and threw seeds at the brigands charging towards them.
KNUCKLE PLANT
From the seeds sprouted numerous fists made of vines that knocked out multiple bandits.
"Dammit! They're wizards! Take them out! Leave the girl to me."
While Jet and Droy took care of the mobs, Levy was stuck facing the leader on her own. She knew the logical thing would be to take Lucy and make a run for it, but she couldn't leave Jet and Droy behind. Her knees shaking, she chose to stand her ground and face her much larger foe.
"You really think you're up for this, little girl?" the leader taunted. "I can practically smell your fear from here."
"That might just be your body odor." Levy's attempt at a joke only succeeded in angering her foe. Why did I say that? Quips were always his thing.
"You asked for it!"
When the man drew closer, Levy raised her arm.
SOLID SCRPIT: HOLE
With the swipe of her hand a small hole appeared in the leader's path. He stepped right in, his foot getting stuck.
"What the hell?"
As he tried to free himself Levy readied another spell.
SOLID SCRIPT: FIRE
A torrent of blue flames appeared and raced to the bandit leader. Within seconds he was engulfed.
Hopefully that did the trick.
When the flames dispersed Levy was shocked to see that not only was the bandit leader gone, but the hole he stepped had somehow gotten bigger.
"What happened to-"
"Behind you!"
Lucy's sudden shout forced Levy to turn around and come face to face with the bandit leader.
"Surprise!"
How did he get behind me?! Did he travel underground somehow?
"You aren't the only one with tricks up their sleeves." The bandit pulled back his fist.
SOLID SCRIPT: WALL
Levy created a wall of dirt and rock between herself and the enemy. The massive bandit's fist crashed through the structure, the impact sent Levy rolling in the dirt.
"Levy!" Jet and Droy shouted. They tried to help her, but they were blocked by their own opponents.
The bandit leader rushed Levy with a full head of steam and an evil grin on his chapped lips. Levy didn't have time to evade. She braced herself for impact when suddenly a figure just as big as her opponent collided with the bandit, knocking him into the ground with loud crash.
Speechless at what just happened Levy looked up to her savior. At first she thought it was Jet and Droy that had come to her rescue, but that notion was quickly thrown away when she realized that she was saved by a humanoid cow wielding a giant axe.
"What in the world is-"
"Levy!"
Levy turned her head and saw Lucy running to her side. The debutante helped her to her feet and checked her over. "You're not hurt are you?"
"Lucy? What's going on? What is that thing?" she pointed to the cow-man.
"That's Taurus. He's one of my celestial spirits."
Levy's eyes went wide with disbelief. "That's a celestial spirit?! Wait you're a celestial wizard?!"
"I was going to tell you in the carriage, but we kinda got interrupted."
"It's ru~de to hit a lady, pal." Taurus tightened the grip on his axe. "Looks I'm gonna have to teach you a lesson in manners."
"Bring it. You overgrown heifer." The bandit taunted. "I was in the mood for steak tonight."
"He's a bit of a pervert, but Taurus is one of the strongest spirits I have a contract with." Lucy revealed. "He'll take care of that guy in no time. Are you alright?"
"Yeah. I'm ok."
Levy watched in awe as and the bandit leader battled fiercely in front of her and Lucy. Despite the size, Taurus swung the axe around like it weighed next to nothing. Within seconds he had the advantage over his foe just as Lucy predicted. However the tables turned when the bandit suddenly sunk underground.
"Where did he go?!" Taurus shouted.
So he is able to travel underground! Levy thought.
She saw a trail of distressed dirt speeds towards her and Lucy. She pushed Lucy out it's path just as the bandit sprang from the dirt.
"Levy!" Lucy called.
The bandit grabbed the petite wizard by the collar of her dress and hoisted her into the air. Taurus charged, but he wouldn't make it in time before the brigand did something to her.
"Say goodnight!"
His fist raced forward. That's when Levy's eyes started to glow red and she placed her hand on the forearm of the arm that grabbed her.
STOP
The bandit leader's fist stopped an inch away from Levy's face.
"W-what's…this? I can't move." He saw what appeared to be ancient markings on his arm. "What the hell did you do to?!" He struggled to move his body, but he was completely frozen in place.
RELEASE
More markings appeared and the bandit let go of Levy.
Her eyes returned to normal and the bandit regained his senses.
"What the hell was that?!" he demanded.
"Moo~!"
He prepared to strike once more when he heard Taurus' shout behind him. He turned around just in time to see Taurus swinging his axe. The side slammed into his abdomen like a bat, sending the bandit flying high into the sky and back down with a crash. He was defeated.
"You did it, Taurus!" Lucy cheered. "Great job!"
"How about you thank me with a smoo~ch?" the bull spirit puckered his lips and inched closer to his master. Lucy recoiled.
"Not on your life." She held up Taurus' key and it started to glow, sending him back to the spirit world.
"Levy!" Jet and Droy ran over to the girls, all of the bandits had been defeated.
"Are you ok?!" Jet panicked.
"Did that guy hurt you?!" Droy asked hurriedly. The two began fighting for position.
"Get out of my way, you idiot!"
"I was here first, jerk!"
"Guys, I'm fine." Levy assured, calming them both. "What about you?"
Both Jet and Droy puffed out their chests in triumph.
"Those guys didn't stand a chance." Jet boasted.
"Yeah. They made a big mistake messing with Shadow Gear." Droy added.
Levy giggled at their attempts to be tough. "They'll think twice before messing with us again."
"How did you beat the leader?" Jet asked.
"We would have helped you, but we were stuck fighting the grunts." Droy said.
"You guys should have seen it!" Lucy exclaimed. "Levy-"
"It was all Lucy." The scribe interrupted. "She's a celestial wizard. If it wasn't for her spirit I would have been in serious trouble."
Jet and Droy looked to the blonde in amazement.
"Whoa. I didn't know you were a wizard."
"Thanks for the assist."
"What? But I didn't-"
"You don't have to be modest." Levy smiled.
"O-ok." Lucy replied, her voice racked with confusion.
"We should head back to the carriage and head to Hargeon. There could be more bandits if we stick around her to long."
"Right." The others agreed.
The room at the inn was as luxurious as one would expect from the caliber of guest that had paid for it. Two king size beds, a full kitchen, and a bathroom big enough to fit at least three people comfortably.
The moon was shining high in the night sky, Jet and Droy slept on the floor while Levy rested in one of the beds. Lucy however was staring out into the starry sky above with her keys in hand. It was the first time she ever used them outside of her own home training. It was a little nerve wracking, but at the same time she felt excited. It felt good to help people. Hearing a ruffling of sheets, Lucy turned around to see Levy rising from bed with a yawn.
"Hello."
"Hi." Levy stretched her arms overhead. "Bad dream?"
Lucy shook her head. "I couldn't sleep. Guess I'm still a little restless after what happened earlier. I've never used my spirits in an actual battle before."
"Well for what it's worth it didn't seem like it. You seemed to handle it well."
"Thank you."
"I wanted to ask before, but Taurus is a Zodiac spirit, right?"
Lucy nodded. "Yes. I found his key in a shop on one of my Dad's business trips. I bought him on the spot."
"How many keys do you have in all?"
"Including Taurus? Eight. Three gold and five silver."
Levy was impressed. "That's a lot."
Lucy chuckled. "You could say I'm a bit of a collector."
"Did you buy all of them?"
"I bought all of the silver keys and Taurus, yes. My other two gold keys…were left to me by my mother after she passed away."
"Oh." Levy bowed her head in shame. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up a bad memory."
"No. No. It's fine. Really." Lucy waved off. "It's my fault for bringing down the room."
"Have you ever thought of joining a guild?"
Lucy smiled ruefully. "There was a time when i did. In all honesty I wanted to join Fairy Tail...but I can't."
"Why not?"
Lucy's refusal was baffling to say the least. Levy saw firsthand that the debutante was a fairly skilled wizard, especially if she managed to gather three of the twelve zodiac keys. She even had very keen knowledge of the guilds in the kingdom and how they worked.
"It's my dad." Lucy admitted. "Ever since mom died he's been doing his best to keep everything together. He works day and night and rarely takes any breaks. I can't tell you how many times I've seen him sleeping at his desk in the middle of the night. As much as I might want to be a full-time wizard, I have to watch over him. Without me around to force him to take breaks, he's probably work himself to death."
Levy was slightly saddened by Lucy's explanation. She had no doubt that she would like being apart of Fairy tail, but she understood her decision. "I understand."
"Thank you. I have a question."
"Shoot."
"Why did you tell Jet and Droy that I stopped the bandit? I mean if you didn't do what you did Taurus might not have got to him in time. Why not take the credit?"
Levy fell silent for a moment. "…the magic I used on that bandit isn't one that I really like to use that much. To be honest it kind of scares me when i do."
Lucy could see the look of concern on Levy's face. "Is it that bad?"
Levy nodded. "It's an eye magic called 'Dark Ecriture'. A strong wizard in our guild taught it to me. I was tired of holding my friends back, so I wanted to try and get stronger. When I use it I can cause people pain or make them do what I want with a simple word. Sort of like setting a rule they have to follow."
"That is scary."
Levy tightly clutched her knees to her body. "Yeah. The first time I used it...I almost killed someone."
"Do Jet and Droy know?"
Levy shook her head. "Including the Master, only a handful of people in the guild know I can do it. If those found out they might not want to be around me anymore. So I choose to keep it a secret and only use it when I have to."
"Oh." That was all Lucy could say in response. She could tell Levy was frightened just talking about it the magic, and for good reason. That kind of power would be terrifying in the wrong hands. "Are you sure it's ok sharing a secret like that with me?"
Levy's smile slowly returned and she nodded. "You're a good person so I think I can trust you with that knowledge."
The debutante mirrored the scribe's smile. "You're right. Your secret is safe with me."
"I knew I could count on you."
The pair shared a laugh and Levy saw something poking from out of Lucy's bag. When the moon shined on it she saw that it was the corner of a book.
"You read?"
"Of course I do. I'll have you know I'm not just some airheaded rich girl." Lucy pulled out the book. "I only just found this in our family library yesterday. It's Kemu Zaleon's first ever book."
Levy's eyes widened. "You read Kemu Zaleon?!"
"Yeah. I love his work."
"Me too! Do you mind if I take a look at it?"
"Sure." Lucy handed the book over and Levy carefully examined it. It was in near perfect condition. One would be hard pressed to believe that it was over half a century old.
"This book is extremely rare." Levy marveled as she rubbed her fingers over the slightly worn pages inside. "I'm surprised you have a copy."
"I was too when I saw it. Apparently my dad tracked it down years ago because my mom wanted to read it. At least that's what Spetto told me."
"He must have really loved her."
Lucy smiled sadly. "He did. They both used to read his books to me before I went to bed." She looked back out to the stars. "Kemu Zaleon used to be a wizard as well."
"I know." Levy nodded. "They say that all of his books are tales based on his times as a travelling across the continent."
"I wanted to be like that. I wanted to travel around the country and write books about my adventures that people can enjoy reading, just like Zaleon did. To be honest I've already started writing a book, but it's not very good. There is only so much I can write about from the comfort of a stuffy old mansion."
Levy sat next to Lucy and gave the book back. "At least you have a goal. I don't really know what I want to do. I love to read, but I don't know if I could devote enough time to write a book on my own. If it's ok, I'd be glad to read over your novel and give you tips."
"I'd like that. It's always nice to have a second opinion." Lucy smiled and held out her hand to Levy. "In exchange you can tell me about your adventures in the guild and I could write about them. I could be your biographer. Deal?"
Levy shook her new friend's hand with a smile of her own.
"Deal."
After saying their farewells to Lucy and her father the next morning, Shadow Gear took the first train back to Magnolia. After splitting the reward money three ways - as they always did - the group wandered into town.
"That went better than I thought it was going to." Jet said, stretching his arms overhead.
"Yeah." Droy agreed. "I thought the old guy was going tear us a new one when he heard about the bandit attack. I've never seen Celestial spirit magic before."
"That bull spirit was weird, but pretty awesome too."
While the boys talked Levy thought to herself. She looked at the clock before she exited the station. Judging by the guild was most likely open now. She could head there and report on the success of the job to Lisanna, but she felt there something else she had to do first.
"It's been a couple of days. Maybe I should head there instead. I think it's my turn to clean anyway." She muttered to herself.
"You say something, Levy?"
She turned to Jet and Droy. Both were looking at her with concern.
"Something up?" Droy asked.
"We were going to head to the guild to report on the job." Jet said. "You coming?"
"You guys go on ahead." Levy smiled. "I'll catch up."
"You sure?" Droy asked.
Levy nodded. "There's something I have to take care of first."
"We can go with you." Jet offered.
"It's fine. This is something I can handle on my own." She started to push them down the path to the guild. "Seriously, you guys, go. I'll see you later."
After a moment of contemplation Jet and Droy accepted Levy's proposal and headed for the guild. When they were gone she proceeded to the outskirts of town.
Following a barely visible path on the side of the main road outside of town, Levy ventured through a small thicket and came across a field surrounded by trees and a couple of small rock formations. In the middle of this tranquil plain was a modest sized house made of wood and stone.
Walking the somewhat crude steps to the hill the house sat on, Levy used the key in her satchel to open the door. The hinges creaked and bits of dust fell from the doorway and onto her head. She quickly brushed them off.
The interior of the home was relatively small, but it was kept as neatly as it could with all of the things inside it. A hammock suspended over homemade workout equipment, a small pink bed that looked like it belonged to a cat or some other animal on the floor, a short table that was no doubt used to eat on, and various other amenities.
Thanks to Levy – with aid every now and again from Lisanna – this house was usually well maintained, but that didn't stop it from getting dusty, or from animals in the surrounding forest to run amok. Thankfully Levy only had to worry about the former today and not the latter.
She reached for the broom that set against the wall and used her magic to create an apron and mask. She could tell that she was going to be here for a while.
"Oh I almost forgot!"
Levy rushed outside and to a post covered in moss further down the hill. She wiped away some of the moss, revealing a sign that said "Natsu & Carla's House." A warming smile tugged at Levy's lips.
"Come home soon."
Introduction number two is Levy! Explained more of the world's changes in this chapter. For example, Jude isn't a dick (at least not to his house staff and daughter) and Lucy doesn't join Fairy Tail! (At least not yet, but who knows? I do, but that could always change later depending on my mood.) Lisanna is also the bar maid in place of Mirajane, and Jenny is the guild centerfold.
Those of you who followed "Shifting Exceed" will remember that I said I was going to keep Natsu and Carla as a duo when I wrote this story. As for where they are, you're just going to have to wait and see.
As always leave a comment/review letting me know what you think. Thanks for reading! :)
