Lucy sat on the train, phone in hand. She had done a quick internet search on this 'Wadjet' goddess. What she was finding was insane. Apparently, this goddess had gone through so many changes over the course of the Egyptian empire, that it was ridiculous. She had started out as Wadjet, the local goddess of the city of Dep before becoming the protector and patron of all Lower Egypt. Once Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt unified, she added the protection of kings and women in childbirth to her repertoire. Eventually, she became associated with the Eye of Ra.

Lucy became more and more confused as she continued to read about the evolution of Wadjet throughout history. I'll have to get Levy to help me. As she looked up, she realized she had been so deep into her research, she had missed her stop. Oh well. One more and I'll be at Levy's. Though she might have gone into the city to meander around that massive bookstore Gajeel found last week. Either way, Gajeel will know where she is. Lucy smiled to herself as she tucked her phone into her bra for safekeeping. The interwebz would have to wait.


Knocking on the dark wood and wrought iron door, Lucy shifted nervously. Why am I so anxious? I've been here a million times. Even if it is just Gajeel, it's no big deal. It's not like Gajeel has ever hurt me...right? Lucy waited for an answer. After what seemed like forever, Gajeel opened the door, his eyes barely cracked, his hair in complete disarray. Pulling open the door fully, he stepped back and motioned her in as if she were a queen. His arm out, he bowed deeply as his other hand held the door. "Bunny…"

Lucy giggled. He had always treated her like she was a princess. Just because her parents had been rich didn't mean she had actually been royalty. But Gajeel had insisted that that had been the case all along, and so, he acted like he was now. Bowing, holding doors, being super polite. The only problem with his act was the fact that he called her Bunny. If he was feeling really fancy, he called her Bunny Girl. Lucy patted his head as she entered he and Levy's quaint house. He growled at her as her hand gently thumped the back of his head.

"If you don't want me to pat you like a good dog, then stop acting like an indentured servant." Lucy waited for him to close the door and stand before she spoke again. "Where's-" he cut her off rather quickly. "Shrimp should be back soon. She went to the library for more books. Something about Isfet." He shrugged when Lucy gave him a questioning look before he walked over and flopped down on the couch. Lucy sat in the chair across from Gajeel and his sofa, waiting for Levy's return.


Lucy and Gajeel both jumped up when they heard the heavy thumps of several large books hitting the wooden porch followed by quiet, frustrated mumbling. Beating Gajeel to the punch, Lucy made her way to the porch and began helping Levy gather her books. "Lu-chan! When did you get here?!" Lucy stood with her armful of books, "Only about half an hour ago." Smiling, she turned and made her way to Levy's library/study.

Depositing the books on the center table, Lucy sat and began scanning the covers of the books she had moved from the porch. The gold inlay against the dark leather was beautiful. As Lucy looked closer, she realized that she was looking at Egyptian hieroglyphs. What was more amazing was that she actually understood what they meant. Pulling a book closer, Lucy flipped open the book only to find more hieroglyphs. As her eyes scanned the pages, looking for anything useful, Levy dropped her stack on the table.

"I didn't know you were familiar with ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs!" Lucy smiled nervously. "Actually, it's something I picked up just recently." Like, 15 seconds ago recently. Levy smiled at her. "The culture is so fascinating, isn't it?!" Levy's face beamed as she realized she had someone to actually talk to about the subject with. Lucy nodded. "Actually, I kinda need your help." Levy's head listed to the side as she studied Lucy. "Sure, what's up?!"


After several hours pouring over the texts Levy had borrowed from the library, both girls groaned. "This isn't as helpful as I had hoped it would be." Levy laid her head on the open pages of the tome she had been pouring over. Lucy finished off the last of the lunch Gajeel had made for them before pulling her phone from her bra. "Levy, what about the Internet? Couldn't we look there?"

Levy's head snapped up, her eyes wide. "Yes! The Internet! Why didn't I think of that?!" Levy ran to her desk to retrieve her laptop as Lucy continued her search from earlier. With their pads and pens from their earlier note taking, both women spent the rest of the day buried in the Internet. Gajeel had brought them food and drink as they had absentmindedly finished off the offered food.

The girls had been comparing notes when a very distinctive "Gihihi" filtered in from the door. Lucy cringed as she stretched her stiff muscles. Her neck and back were so sore, having been hunched over Gajeel's laptop all afternoon. Picking her forgotten phone up, her eyes bugged out. "3 am?!" She leveled a glare on Gajeel. "Why didn't you come get us earlier?! I have class in a few hours!" Gajeel just shrugged before walking away.

"You can crash here. You keep spare clothes here anyway." Levy offered. Lucy thought it over before she spoke. "I don't want to put you out. I've already been here all day, eating your food, using your internet." Levy waved off her concerns, "Puh-lease! It's not like I haven't done the same. Except, when I do it, Gajeel usually ends up eating you out of house and home!" Lucy giggled. "True, true. But st-" Lucy never got to finish her sentence. "I've already pulled out the couch and made it for you, Blondie. So shut up and get in bed." Gajeel's crass delivery decided for her. With a sigh, Lucy nodded.

After brushing her teeth and thanking Levy and Gajeel for the millionth time, Lucy laid down. She found that she couldn't sleep, for all the new information, and…memories?, continued to flash behind her eyes. Life after life, death after death. All these lives, long and complicated, swirled around in her head. Lucy grumbled as she aggressively rolled onto her side. Pulling the covers over her ear, she closed her eyes tightly as she focused on her breathing. A technique she found helped her blank her mind and lull her to sleep. Except, it wasn't working and class would be hell. Looks like it's going to be a very long day.