I decided to update a little sooner since the last chapter was so short. Hopefully this will make up for it. Also, a quick thanks to all of you who reviewed and favorited the story. It makes me happy! :)


VII. Rapunzel

Natsu paced the forest vigorously, turning what Lucy had said over and over in his mind. Everything, from the fact that this Jose guy had locked her up in a tower all of her life to the part about her magical powers, seemed pretty fishy. Natsu could sense that there was something missing from the equation, and he had a feeling that Lucy could too; she just didn't want to accept it.

"This is the opportunity of a lifetime," she'd said to him coldly after he'd expressed his suspicion. "You don't know how long I've wanted to get out of this tower, and you can't fathom how much I want to be a mage. Now that I finally get the opportunity to accomplish both, you're telling me that you think something's wrong?"

"C'mon, Lucy, you can't be that stupid!" Natsu had cried.

She'd narrowed her eyes chillingly, and Natsu knew he'd done something to offend her. "I think you'd better leave now," she'd suggested, turning her back and giving her undivided attention to braiding the rest of her hair.

Natsu shook his head to clear it. He knew that Lucy wouldn't accept anything without proof, so he was going to get her some proof. And the only place to do that: Phantom Lord Castle, where Sir Jose Porla lived.

"I don't like this," said Happy when the huge castle popped into view out of the ominous mist that had settled onto the forest floor with the setting of the sun. Natsu's jaw dropped; Phantom Lord was enormous! Why on earth would someone build a gigantic castle like this in the middle of the forest?

"Something's not right with Lucy's story," Natsu whispered as they drew nearer. There were even wrought-iron gates surrounding the territory around the castle, rising up into the treetops in glistening black spikes.

"Still, why do we have to break into his house?"

"What if it's something serious? There's something fishy going on here, and I'm going to get to the bottom of it."

Happy consented begrudgingly, most likely due to the inclusion of the word 'fishy' in the explanation. He unleashed his wings and flew up beside the hazardous spikes that capped the iron fence, scanning the grounds for anyone's presence. He swooped back down for Natsu when he confirmed that the coast was clear, and set him down neatly on the other side of the fence.

"See, that wasn't so hard," Natsu whispered.

"HEY! What're you doing here, punks?"

A bald, dark-skinned man with strange glasses - one lens was tinted, the other was not - came running up to them, looking outraged. Natsu and Happy exchanged a look, and before the man could do anything he was sprawled on the ground, knocked out by a fiery punch from Natsu.

"Sorry, but I've got somewhere to b - "

Natsu was suddenly flying through the air, landing with a solid thump on the cobblestones. A loud screeching rang in his ears, vibrating throughout his skull. He turned to see the man standing up, baring down on him.

"Weren't expecting that, were you?" he taunted, flexing his fingers. "Nobody gets into Phantom Lord Castle while Bozo's on duty. Who are you, and what are you doing here?"

"Like I'm telling you," Natsu scoffed. He leapt up and went to punch Bozo again, but screeched to a halt and had to cover his ears against the noise that assaulted him, grating against his ears like nails on a chalkboard. Bozo closed a fist, and the noise stopped.

"Super-sensitive hearing, I see," Bozo assessed, pondering Natsu curiously. "You must be an extraordinary mage. You work with fire...Totomaru would have fun with you."

"I don't have time for this," Natsu said irritably, cracking his knuckles. "I tried to go easy on you, but now it's time for me to get serious. Fire Dragon's Roar!"

Bozo, stunned by the sheer temperature of the flame that Natsu shot from his mouth, was soon consumed by it and lay, defeated, on the ground. Feeling triumphant, Natsu clapped his hands together and started sneaking his way to the castle, Happy at his heels.

Little did he know that Bozo was still clinging to the edge of consciousness. Using the last of his energy, he mumbled, "Howling."

A sound like an alarm blared throughout the courtyard, alerting everyone of the emergency at hand. Natsu heard voices shouting over the alarm and ran in the opposite direction, not wanting to bring too much attention to himself for once. He knew this was supposed to be a covert mission.

"Happy, this way!" he yelled, directing the blue cat towards what looked like the back entrance to the kitchens. They barged in and waited in silence for a moment, looking around. It was, indeed, the entrance to some dark, dank kitchens that looked very much in disrepair. Natsu peeked around the corner and motioned for Happy to follow him.

The corridors of Phantom Lord were silent and echoed horribly. It gave Natsu an deep, ominous feeling in the pit of his stomach, but still he pressed on. Whatever he found out here could help Lucy; maybe even save her life.

Eventually he came to a winding, crumbling stairwell. Figuring that Jose's quarters would probably be located in the upper floors of the castle, he fearlessly clambered up the rickety stairs and on to the next level.

There were a lot of doors. Natsu didn't know where to start looking. If he risked peering into each room, then he was bound to run in to a Phantom Lord employee. And by the looks of it, a lot of them knew magic. That would be almost too reckless, even for him.

Then it hit him: smell! He could track down Jose's rooms using the sinister black licorice scent that he now knew as Jose's distinct aroma. The whole castle faintly stank of it, but Jose's rooms would probably reek.

Following his nose led him deeper and deeper into the castle, away from the safety of the empty back corridors and into the handsome front halls. He went up another flight of stairs, but these were polished and quite sturdy.

He stopped at a pair of glossy black doors nearly identical except in size to the front entrance. The smell wafting from the crack between the floor and the door made Natsu's stomach twist with the sickly-sweetness of it. This had to be it.

Setting his mouth, he opened the door.

The room was empty. It was a study, not a bedroom like Natsu had been expecting. There was a mahogany desk near the back center of the room, littered with stacks and stacks of papers, ink wells, quills, and clinking mechanical objects that looked delicate and sadistic at the same time. There was finery everywhere, from the threadbare Persian rug on the floor to the rich colorful tapestries hanging on the walls, most depicting what Natsu assumed as the Phantom Lord crest, a swirly thing with an orb settled between two slim appendages. The small stone fireplace was crackling with warm, orange flames, casting an inviting glow over the premises and giving off the alluring scent of cedar. The elegant windows were fogged with evening mist; Natsu swiped his hand across the cool glass to see that people were bustling around the paths in the bizarre gardens like ants.

Natsu decided that speed was the most important thing right then, as people already knew he was there. It wouldn't take long for them to deduce where he'd gone. So, after making a quick snack of the cedar wood fire - a delicacy you appreciated after being raised for ten years by a Fire Dragon - he attacked the desk, shifting through the papers for any mention of Lucy.

"There's nothing here!" he hissed, tossing the papers around in frustration.

"Wait!" Happy said, his round eyes growing ever wider as he opened a drawer in Jose's desk and pulled out a file. "Look at this, Natsu!"

"What's that?" Natsu inquired, taking the file. "'Project Rapunzel'? That name sounds familiar...where have I heard it before...?"

"You know, Rapunzel Heartphilia? The Lost Princess?" urged Happy. You see, Natsu had been born the same year as Lucy and had no recollection of the kidnapping, nor did Happy. After Layla's death, the kingdom had grown so accustomed to addressing the princess as "Rapunzel" instead of her proper name that people soon forgot what her name was at all. Therefore, children such as Natsu and Happy knew the Lost Princess as Rapunzel Heartphilia, not Lucy Heartphilia.

"Right!" Natsu said, snapping his fingers. "Let's see what's in here..."

He began to read, "'Project Rapunzel, an extensive research on the forgotten magic known as Celestial Magic, which is rumored to give its user the power to enslave any human or object she touches by binding contracts with them and sending them to another world, known as the Celestial Spirit World, until called upon with a key by the owner...the only known carriers of this genetically-transmitted magic are the women of the ancient Hart clan, the last descendants of which are rumored to be Karen Lilica,' - hey, he scribbled a note here that says she's deceased - 'a woman by the alias of Angel, and none other than Queen Layla Heartphilia and her daughter, Princess Lucy Heartphilia.' Wait, I thought the Lost Princess's name was Rapunzel?"

"Keep reading!"

Natsu shook his head and continued. "'The magic is dormant as of now, however research suggests that it can be triggered by stressful emotional situations. For example, a decorative lyre in my office was transformed into one of these enslaved people, known as Celestial Spirits, when Lucy's pet bunny died. Distraught, she began crying and blindly ran into the lyre, which sprang to life and announced that she was the Lyre Celestial Spirit. Lucy, being four at the time, promptly named her Lyra and suddenly came in possession of a silver key. Lyra then disappeared from my office and into the Celestial Spirit world, but she would not come out unless Lucy summoned her. I confiscated the key and Lucy is unaware of the event ever taking place. There hasn't been an event akin to this since, leading me to believe that the magic does not present itself spontaneously as I had hoped...' Happy, it goes on like this for five pages. There's no way I can read all of it."

"Go to the most recent stuff," Happy ordered. Natsu did and skimmed, frowning as his eyes made his way down the page.

"Shit! Happy, listen to this - "

Suddenly, the door to the office burst open and there stood Jose, looking absolutely infuriated. There was a moment of utter shock as the men assessed each other, and then Natsu gathered the papers in his arms and shot a fireball at Jose.

He deflected it with a wave of his hand. "Foolish boy," he hissed. "No one trespasses on Phantom Lord property and lives without the consequences. Shade Entangle!"

Natsu found himself surrounded by a cold, ghostly aura, and he couldn't move. Talons gripped at his neck and squeezed mercilessly, cutting off his air supply. The more he struggled, the worse the pain became. He saw that Jose had yet to notice Happy, who stood behind the desk with horror-struck eyes.

"Happy!" Natsu rasped, using the last of his strength to toss the cat the file. He caught it and whizzed around the room, avoiding a baffled Jose's attacks. "Bring it to Lucy!" Natsu commanded, feeling a wave of strength growing in his core as the cold hands released him. "I'll meet you at the tower! Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Natsu erupted from Jose's Shades and leapt forward with a courageous cry. His fist collided solidly with Jose's face. They tumbled into a heap of metal objects, attacking each other in a blur of bright light and dark shadows. Finally a wave of pure, cold fury sucked the warmth from the room, and Jose snarled, "Enough!"

Shades grabbed Natsu's arms and yanked him away from Jose; no matter how much he struggled, the Shades would not loosen their grip. They seemed unpredictably strong, their faces masked under the hoods of their ethereal cloaks.

"You think that a little brat like you can defeat me?" Jose said, smoothing out his hair and pacing the office while Natsu observed furiously. "You are terribly mistaken. I had a feeling that Lucy had visitors, but I never guessed they would dare trespass here. Aria!"

A huge, blindfolded man appeared in the room, walking right up to Jose. Natsu was uneasy about him, but didn't show it.

"Aria, there is a flying blue cat who just stole some very important documents," Jose said, turning to the blindfolded man. "I want you to find him and bring him here for me to handle."

"There's no need!"

Happy zoomed into the room, a blue blur heading straight for Jose at maximum speed. He collided effortlessly with Jose's head and immediately the Shades holding Natsu back vanished in a wisp of smoke. Natsu grinned recklessly at Aria, shouting, "Fire Dragon's Roar!" and shooting flame at the blindfolded man before he could process anything. Aria used his airspace magic to make the fire disappear, but by then Happy had already grabbed Natsu and was flying out of the shattered window into the chaotic forest night.

Natsu let out a whoop as they sailed through the sky, Aria's frustrated shout echoing in their ears. "That was awesome, Happy!"

"Aye," Happy agreed, looking quite surprised himself. "I felt wrong about leaving you, Natsu, so I doubled back. Also, I found this in the file." He held up a silver key, flashing like a blade in the moonlight. "It must be Lyra, that Celestial Spirit."

Natsu took the key and turned it around in his hands, running his finger along the inscriptions. "You know what this means, right?" he said quietly, pocketing the silver key. "That Jose kidnapped Lucy, and she's actually the Lost - "

He was interrupted by a jet of hot red flame, which made him yelp in surprise. Looking down, he saw a man shooting another fireball at him and Happy, this one icy blue. Natsu opened his mouth wide and consumed it before it could hit them, shivering soon afterward. "C-cold," he said, rubbing the goosebumps on his arms.

"Natsu!" Happy cried, veering. Orange fire shot forward, but Natsu had turned his nose away in disgust; the stuff smelled horrible. The silver key slipped from Natsu's pocket, twirling in the air as it plummeted to the ground.

"No!" Natsu said, trying to grab it. "I dropped Lyra! Happy, fly down so we can get her!"

"No problem," Happy said sardonically as the time limit on his wings suddenly went out, and they disappeared with a dismal pop.

Screaming in terror, Natsu and Happy flailed as they followed the key straight for the hard, unforgiving earth, doing their best to dodge the streamers of orange fire that seemed to be coming at them from all directions.