AN. Here's the next chapter. It is rough. It needs work. The last three chapters need work, too. I'll probably rewrite all four of these prior to chapter five's posting. However, this is up. So... Yay? -Lem
Disclaimer. I still do not own Fairy Tail. I still am not Hiro Mashima.

Lucy and Gray entered Hollizon Tavern, the largest of the three establishments in the town. Immediately, Gray headed towards the bar. Lucy hurried behind him.

"Sir," Gray waved over one of the two bartenders.

"Yes?"

"Would you know of some place for us to sleep tonight? We're traveling through, you see." Gray expertly explained to the short man. When he mentioned that they were travelling through the color drained from the man's face.

"You," he started shakily as his hand raised up to point at Gray and Lucy, "two are new here?"

"Yes." Gray's eyes narrowed at the man. Obviously he was afraid, but of what?

"We're just looking for an inn." Lucy piped up, following Gray's lead with the traveler story.

The dark skinned bartender forcefully shook his head. "There are no inns here. No one visits here."

Yeah. We gathered that. Gray thought grouchily. Tell us something we don't know.

The other man behind the counter walked over to them. "Blynn, is something wrong?"

Blynn gave a subtle nod, his voice closer to a whisper now. "Kane, they aren't from around here."

The other guy, Kane, turned to Gray and Lucy. Ah. It didn't take him long to confirm that indeed the two youths weren't from Hollizon. They didn't look like hooligans, though. There was always a chance they didn't even know where they were. "Well, keep your voice down Blynn. You don't want to disturb the other customers."

Gray's patience was wearing thin. He wanted answers and he wanted them now. No more beating around the bush. Plan A didn't work. Now onto Plan B.

Lucy's eyes grew large when she spotted Gray reaching for the bottom of his shirt. What in the world was running through his mind?! Stripping wasn't going to solve anything!

"Enough." At the commanding tone from Gray, both bartenders shut their mouths. "We are wizards from Fairy Tail." He lifted his shirt and gestured to his guild mark. Oh. That's why he was reaching for his shirt. Boy, did she feel embarrassed now.

Blynn and Kane's eyes grew large at the information. So these two weren't just travelling through as they initially claimed. Blynn spoke up first. "How in the world did an official guild hear about us?" he asked in amazement.

"Us?" Lucy questioned confused.

"Hollizon," supplied Kane.

"Has absolutely zero tourists. We've noticed." Gray cut in, frostily.

Kane glanced down. "There's a reason why no one visits." Right then a customer sitting further down the counter on a stool held their empty mug in the air. "Fill me up, Kane! One ain't gonna do it today!"

"Excuse me." Kane hurried off to deal with the woman's request.

"He'll come right back." Blynn reassured them. His voice was a little less shaky now, Lucy noticed.

"Blynn, right?" At the other man's nod of confirmation Gray continued. "The name is Gray. She's Lucy. We came here on a job request. However, when we started to work on it we found that everyone here were locals. From your reaction at seeing us, I take it you know something about why that is. All we want are answers."

"I understand, but Kane would be better at that." Blynn peered around the bar. No one needed his services at that moment, and so far only him and Kane were aware of the situation. Feeling a little more confidant he returned his attention to the two wizards before him. "You said you came here because of a job request. Did the request happen to mention them?"

The hair on the back of Lucy's neck rose at the way Blynn said them. That was never a good sign. "Who?"

"Rotten Roach."

"Hush!" reprimanded Kane as he rejoined the three of them. "Not here." How foolish could Blynn be? First he carelessly drew attention to the newcomers and then blurted out their name. Kane was going to have to add subtlety to the employee training schedule.

Before Kane could lead Gray and Lucy to the backroom to give them the full story, the tavern's entrance was kicked in. Only a few custromers were sitting by the door and those that were scrambled away to avoid the wreckage.

Standing in the now destroyed door's old place were two men and one woman. All three wore sharp grins and wickedly, gleaming eyes. Okay, so the author in Lucy was getting a little ahead of herself, but one thing was for certain; the three people that just rudely entered the tavern were not nice people.

It didn't take Gray long to put the pieces together. "Let me guess." He said aloud. "Rotten Roach."

The woman stepped forward. "So, you have heard of us."

"Not at all." Gray smirked at the sour look that crossed the woman's face.

"Well, you're in Roach territory, and we don't take kindly to strangers."

Rotten Roach. A dark guild. How had they completely looked over the fact that Hollizon was home to a dark guild?! Lucy's head hurt... a lot.

"Matilda!" called out Kane from his spot still behind the counter. "You said you wouldn't fight in here!"

"Did I? I don't recall." She waved him off as if he were an annoying fly. The magic circle below her increasingly grew larger. It wasn't everyday wizards from an official guild made their way into Hollizon. Now she was going to teach them why that was.

Fight? How had this escalated so quickly?! Lucy did not want to be here anymore. Not at all. Beside her Gray started muttering. "A town with a dark guild wouldn't have any tourists. The guy that sent the job request is still fairly new here. His bed and breakfast is on the outskirts, so it could be possible he has no clue one is even here. As I think about it, we were his only patrons last night."

Matilda eyed the teen who was currently thinking aloud. "Do you have something to say boy?"

Pure, cold fire flashed in Gray's eyes. He boldly stared down the trio's leader. "How long has your guild been controlling this town?"

Shiny teeth caught the tavern's light as Matilda smiled and responded with a mere two words. "Three years."

Gray's hands clenched into fists. "Lucy." She tore her eyes away from the three members of Rotten Roach. "Get your keys ready."

"Gray, we didn't come here to fight a dark guild!"

"We can't fulfill our mission if this guild continues to terrorize the citizens here. They're the reason this place has absolutely no tourists. It sickens me to even think that they've been in charge for three years."

Behind them, Blynn softly spoke up. "They usurped our town's mayor and his council of advisors."

"Lucy. Whether or not we want to fight isn't important. They are going to attack us no matter what. We have to do this."

At that moment she thought she saw Natsu beside her. No. That was wrong. She definitely saw Gray standing next to her. But that look... The determined fierceness that defined his entire being was almost palpable and reminded her of Fairy Tail's Fire Dragon Slayer. This was Gray Fullbuster in all his glory, a powerful, loyal, and noble wizard. Lucy felt honored to be a witness to it all.

With one hand gripping her whip and her other resting on the pouch that held her keys she turned to her friend.

"Let's show them why they shouldn't mess with Fairy Tail."