Raven: Yo~ That was the longest time it took for me to update! Sorry… hehe and just to clear things up, I'm going back to school next week so I might end up not updating for a while… gomenasai!

Anyway, I present to you CHAPTER EIGHT! Which is just a filler since I'm still thinking up the next battle and twist to the story… have fun!


Normal POV


Lucy and Edo-Natsu were strolling along the streets of Magnolia, paying not much attention to their surroundings. Most of the people stared at them in awe. It wasn't everyday in Magnolia that you'd get to see beautiful people as them, not counting Erza and Mirajane of Fairy Tail. They were new faces in Magnolia and new people are always the source of gossip for them.

"Who do you think they are?" The owner of an open café shop wondered aloud, watching the two approaching figures.

"Look at the girl's shoulder, she's from Fairy Tail" One of his customer's answered, curious as well.

"Oh? A new member?" Another person joined in on their conversation. People began huddling around the owner, discussing the two new faces in Magnolia.

"What about the guy? He's so hot!" A girl squealed. Many women and some men nodded their heads, observing the two who stopped right in front of the café.

"Look! Look! They're coming this way!" The same girl screeched. All of them panicked and rushed to their seats, eyes still on the two new comers. Lucy quirked an eyebrow when she saw how all of them reacted, but shrugged it off.

"Well, aren't you hungry?" She asked Edo-Natsu, pulling out one of the chairs under the table. Her companion did the same and they both began looking through the menu.

"Why didn't you just take me back to your guild? I'm curious to see them" He said, referring to the Earthland counterparts of his friends.

"Well curiosity killed the cat." Lucy answered coolly. Edo-Natsu chuckled and searched for something good to eat.

"Obviously, I'm not a cat." He said, finding something that he unexpectedly wanted to eat.

"No duh… that was just a saying." Lucy smirked, picking something to her liking. She raised her hand and called a waiter over. The bunch of people that were gawking at them watched in jealousy as the waiter headed over to the cool pair.

"I'll take your special and a beer." Lucy said, handing him the menu. She looked over to Edo-Natsu and raised her eyebrows.

"Fire chicken and fire whiskey please…" He ordered. Lucy choked on her spit and stared at him for a while.

"You serious?" She asked, very much surprised. Edo-Natsu nodded, wondering why she was surprised.

"Yeah, why?"

"You can't eat fire food… that's just plain crazy." She still stared at him.

"Well my stomach says otherwise."

"Maybe it's cause of your magic…" Lucy wondered. Edo-Natsu thought too and they both came to that conclusion.

"Well then, that's all. Thanks." Lucy told the waiter and smiled at him. The man blushed, walking towards the building. When inside, the bunch of curious people pulled him aside and raided him with questions.

"Well? How were they?"

"A pair of nice people," He grinned, remembering the girl's smile.

"What did they order?"

"Fire chicken and fire whiskey for the male. The special and beer for the lady," He answered.

"So the guy's a fire mage like the Dragneel kid?"

"I guess so…"

"Well then go tell the chef" The owner said, pushing the guy slightly.

"Yes boss." He saluted, chuckling at the people's curiosity.


Meanwhile, at Lucy's side…


"Where are you staying now?" Lucy asked Edo-Natsu. They were waiting for their order and so they decided to continue where they left off.

"I don't know actually. I just got here yesterday and it just so happened that I came across your guild and saw you…" He answered, suddenly realizing this fact himself.

"Well, I'm also looking for a place to stay. Wanna search with me later on?" She offered. Edo-Natsu grinned and nodded.

"Sure. Well, how's being back home?" He asked, curious to know why she changed everything about her.

"Fine. I'm actually glad they forgot about me. It would be a pain to explain everything…" Lucy chuckled, even though she actually felt sad inside.

"Wait, they forgot about you?" He asked, shocked.

"Wasn't it obvious? Natsu even asked you who Lucy was." She answered, noticing someone watching them from behind the bushes in front of the open café.

"Oh… riiight… But how? Didn't you say all of you were like family?"

"Yeah~ But I guess even family forget about each other sometimes. Anyway, just ignore that fact… I've moved on and this is for the best… I think." She waved her hand to his face. Edo-Natsu watched her, searching for any sign that she wasn't fine. But she didn't have any, or rather, she hid any she had.

"Fine… but why did you decide to join them again? Wouldn't that just hurt you more?"

"I thought that too. But someone actually remembered me and he convinced me to go back. He also told me that some other people still know who I am."

"Who?"

"Gajeel. He's my-" Lucy suddenly stood up and peered at the bushes. "Wait a moment please…" She raised a finger and strode over to the bushes. Edo-Natsu and the others watched as she pulled out a tuft of pink hair revealing the Dragneel kid.

"Pinky- what're you doing stalking me?" She exclaimed, placing her hands on her hips. Natsu glared at her, rubbing his head.

"Ow! Why'd ya have to pull my hair that hard? I might end up bald because of you!" He exclaimed. Lucy smirked.

"It'll suit you, I'm sure. Well? Aren't you gonna answer my question?" She asked, tapping her foot impatiently on the ground.

"Who's that guy?" Natsu questioned, pointing to Edo-Natsu who was watching them. Lucy raised her eyebrows.

"Why do you care? You're just my slave; you have no right to ask questions to your master." She said calmly, earning a deadly glare from the pink haired idiot.

"Anyway, answer my question."

"What question?" Natsu asked. Lucy's eyes twitched in irritation. How stupid can he get? She thought.

"Why were you stalking me?" His eyes widened and then he looked at the ground.

"I wanna know why that guy called you Lucy when you're not Lucy." He answered, earning a wide-eyed Lucy. He knows who Lucy is? What the hell?

"Name's Kourin idiot… he mistook me for someone." She answered as calmly as she could. Natsu's head snapped to the direction of Edo-Natsu.

"Wait. He knows the blond haired girl named Lucy?" He exclaimed, eyes intent on the red haired guy watching them.

"I dunno…" She shrugged; praying to the Lord's of the heaven's that Natsu would be too stupid to figure out who she was right when she was getting settled. And then suddenly, Natsu rushed towards Edo-Natsu.

"You know who Lucy is?" He exclaimed, both hands on the table. Lucy sighed and jogged to their table. Edo-Natsu glanced at Lucy and saw her shake her head. He looked back to Natsu and raised his eyebrows.

The people who were watching them were now huddled together again, curious to know why the Dragneel kid suddenly "attacked" the handsome red haired boy.

"Who's Lucy?" Edo-Natsu asked, earning a glare from Natsu.

"Don't lie. I heard you call Gajeel's cousin Lucy." Natsu persisted, leaning closer to his Edolas counterpart.

"Well I mistook her for Lucinda okay! Why? You friend's with Lucinda or something?" Edo-Natsu acted. Lucy gave him two thumbs up but returned to her emotionless mask when Natsu glanced at her.

"L-Lucinda? You mean…"

"Lucy's the nickname I gave her. She's a friend from Pergrande Kingdom…" Edo-Natsu lied further. Lucy told her all about her back story and they even came up with his own.

"Oh…" Natsu frowned, scratching his hair in disappointment. Lucy grinned at Edo-Natsu and took her seat.

"If you're done disturbing our dinner, you can leave now slave…" Lucy narrowed her eyes at him. Natsu looked at her and then to Edo-Natsu. He sighed and nodded, taking a step forward. But then, he smelled something that sent his stomach grumbling. It was the smell of his favorite food… Lucy caught on this and frowned.

Just at that moment, the waiter came with a two separate trays holding their orders. Lucy groaned, seeing the drooling face of Natsu.

"Leave." She said, her voice laced with venom. Natsu stared at the fire chicken and then at Lucy who was glaring at him. He was contemplating on grabbing the food and being beat by Gajeel's cousin, or leaving and ordering food at the guild. He knew that the last option was better, but he just couldn't take his eyes off of the fire chicken right in front of him. Lucy eyed him, waiting for his next move while Edo-Natsu thanked the waiter and placed their food on the table.

"Mmmm~ smells good…" He moaned in delight as he took in the wonderful scent of the food in front of him. But he couldn't eat yet. Not when Natsu was staring at his food like a poor street kid.

"Leave now pinky, or else…" Lucy warned him. Natsu gulped hard and frowned.

"Fine." He growled, but before he left, he grabbed a chicken leg and ran off.

"Idiot!" Lucy yelled after him. Edo-Natsu ended up laughing at his counterpart's antics. Really. They were so different in so many ways.

"Argh! He's so irritating… I wonder why I even made him my slave…" Lucy wondered, reaching for her beer. "Oh right, he's the one who offered."

"I can see why you liked him…" Edo-Natsu smiled at her. Lucy's eyes bulged out of their sockets and she almost choked on her drink.

"I don't like him! Where did that come from all of a sudden?" She glared at him, wiping the sides of her mouth rashly.

"I said liked. Emphasis on the –ed" He chuckled, finding this side of Lucy cute. The denying frustrated kind.

"I never liked him. He's an idiot. He doesn't know a thing about love. He-He's-" Lucy tried coming up with other negative things about Natsu but nothing else came. Edo-Natsu wore a satisfied smirk, but he was actually a little bit sad inside. Too bad I'm just the opposite of him…

"I know… so just forget about it and eat." He told her, taking a bite out of his fire chicken. Lucy glared at him while drinking her beer but then let it go and began eating her food.

"So, who's Gajeel?" Edo-Natsu asked again. Lucy sipped some of the soup from her order and let out a contented sigh.

"He's the person I told you about, the one who challenged me to a fight. Now he's acting as my cousin, cool right?" She grinned, grabbing the bowl filled with rice and shoving some in her mouth. It was obvious that her eating habits changed, maybe because of the influence of her Edolas counterpart.

"Ahhh… the metal-faced idiot who was stupid enough to challenge you when you were in a bad mood?" He asked, referring to what she called Gajeel when she told him her story. Lucy nodded and began wolfing down all of the remaining food. Edo-Natsu's eyes twitched in somewhat surprise and a little irritation since some of the food went flying towards him.

"Seriously? Couldn't you eat a little less wildly? I mean, you're a girl!" He scolded her. He sighed when another piece of meat hit him on the forehead. Edo-Natsu decided to just give up and concentrate on his own food, glancing at Lucy from time to time. He chuckled when he saw the satisfied glint in her eyes as she slumped down her seat and leaned back onto her chair.

"You ate like a pig." He informed her, finishing off his fire whiskey. He never knew fire food tasted that delicious and he probably never would have if he didn't take up the magic of his counterpart.

"At least I don't look like one." Lucy countered, burping out loud. They looked at each other for a moment before laughing with each other and sighing in ease. It was just like before, when Lucy was still at Edolas. Now it was the other way around, he was the one in her world… the only difference was that he wanted to be here.

"So, are you gonna take me to your guild now?" Edo-Natsu asked, really wanting to see Earthland Fairy Tail with his own eyes. Lucy's already told stories all about them but he wanted to see them with his own two eyes.

"Nope. I need to find a place to stay, remember?" She pointed out, raising her hand. The same waiter who took their order and served them appeared moments later with the bill in his hand. Lucy glanced at the receipt and unzipped a small hidden pouch on her shorts, pulling out 2,000 jewels.

"Here…" She smiled at the waiter and then stood up, motioning for Edo-Natsu to follow her. They were almost out of the café when the waiter called them.

"Miss! Your change!" He said, handing out a wad of cash. Lucy glanced at the money and then at the waiter before smirking and shaking her head.

"Tip." She merely stated before pulling Edo-Natsu's hand and stalking out of the place. The waiter stood there, staring at the 1,234 worth of jewels she left as a tip. Grinning, he yelled out a thanks and bowed before going back inside.

"That was generous of you…" Edo-Natsu commented as they searched for a place where she could stay. Looking at the time now, it was already 7:56 so she probably won't find an apartment but rent a room at an inn instead.

"I feel like being a good girl today." Lucy answered, realizing the same thing as Edo-Natsu.

"Hey. I guess I need to go back to the guild after all. I'll just ask Gajeel if I can bunk with him for tonight. You can some too." She offered, changing directions. Now they were walking on the way they came from earlier.

"Really? And is Gajeel gonna want a stranger like me stay in his house?" He asked, a little bit uncomfortable with the thought. Besides, from her description of him, the guy didn't seem like a hospitable kind of person.

"Of course he will, I'm gonna ask him for you. If he dare say no, he'd be the one searching for a place to stay for tonight. I'll just tell him that you're my best friend from Pergrande and that you want to join Fairy Tail too." She assured him. Edo-Natsu pitied Gajeel somehow. He knew that once Lucy made up her mind, it'd take arms and limbs to refuse her decision. Nodding in agreement, they proceeded to Fairy Tail in silence.

He noticed that Earthland wasn't that different from Edolas after all. All that's missing were the floating islands and the weird buildings and animals. The people seemed the same and so did the atmosphere. It just felt a little different since the place was filled with infinite magic and he too felt himself a lot more powerful now that he acquired his counterpart's abilities.

Half an hour later, they reached a large building with wide wooden doors and the words FAIRY TAIL formed across the top of the entrance. Edo-Natsu beamed at it since it looked almost like his own guild, the resemblance was utterly shocking. Lucy noticed his ecstatic expression and smirked.

"Come on Kaizen, we gotta hurry. I'm not even sure if Gajeel's still here." She grinned, using his pseudo name for the first time. Edo-Natsu grinned as well and followed her inside. Surprisingly, the guild was still full and noisy as ever.

They went silent though when Lucy entered with a new guy who looked like he just stepped out of the Sorcerer Weekly Front page. Cana whistled lowly, Laki readjusted her glasses, Erza (who was sitting in a table beside Jellal) raised her eyebrows in approval, and the other females just openly stared.

He got a little uncomfortable at the attention so he stuck closer to Lucy who chuckled at his child-like behavior. She looked around and saw Gajeel talking animatedly with Levy.

"Yo! Gajeel! Gotta talk to you for a sec" Lucy called the iron dragonslayer. Said man turned around and smirked when he saw bunny-girl but then frowned when he caught the guy standing ever so closely to his cousin. Stalking forward to meet them, he eyed the man behind her. He was a good head taller than Lucy with blazing red hair, cool green eyes, and a serious face.

Right at that moment, Mirajane got out of the kitchen and saw the guy who was with Lucy. Her jaw dropped and she instantly squealed in delight. Everyone gave her a confused look whilst she ignored them all.

"Kourin-san! You didn't tell us you had a boy friend!" She exclaimed catching all of them, including Lucy and Edo-Natsu, off guard. Cana frowned, disappointed that he already got himself a woman, Laki readjusted her glasses, while Erza remained unfazed (she already deduced their relationship when she saw how close he was to her) and the other women gave up entirely.

"B-boyfriend!" Lucy whispered out loud, a little bit flustered and shocked. Edo-Natsu was blushing madly, but hid it discretely with the collar of his coat and stepped a little closer to Lucy. Gajeel raised an eyebrow while he eyed the guy thought to be his cousin's boy friend.

"C-clear it up already Lucy…" Edo-Natsu whispered to her ear. Everyone caught the gesture and thought that he was whispering something soothing to calm his girlfriend.

"I-I know… h-hey! We… we're n-" She was about to do just that when Gajeel suddenly appeared right in front of them and clutched Edo-Natsu's collar. The whole guild fell silent, feeling the demonic aura the iron dragonslayer was emitting.

"You the boyfriend of Kourin?" He hissed, leaning closer towards Edo-Natsu's unfazed gaze. Outside, he was calm and collected but inside, he was just the exact opposite. Gulping and mustering all the courage he could get, he clasped Gajeel's fists and glared at him.

"Let go of me, metal faced freak." Edo-Natsu jeered, pushing Gajeel away from himself and smoothening (A/N: smoothening or smoothing? That is the question) his crumpled coat. Everyone in the guild remained silent, pitying the poor guy who dared talk back to Gajeel. Gajeel smirked, a little pleased that the boy had some guts to talk back to him.

"Kourin, he your boyfriend?" Gajeel began, facing Lucy. She was about to retaliate when her supposed cousin continued. "I like him." Gajeel grinned, which resembled a beast baring its fangs. The guild was shocked. Gajeel wasn't one for liking people, nor was he the sort of person to say it out loud. But maybe it was fine, since this was his cousin's boyfriend they were talking about.

"Y-you do?" Lucy couldn't help but blurt out. Edo-Natsu blushed harder, but continued to maintain his serious mask. Mirajane squealed, Erza nodded approvingly again, Laki readjusted her glasses with a smile, while all the other girls were pleased even though they were disappointed that the new guy was already taken (most especially Cana).

"Sure. The guys got balls. So, mind telling me who he is?" Gajeel asked, a little gentler at speaking when with Lucy. He wondered who the guy was. She never told him anything about a friend and more importantly, a boyfriend.

"He's Kaizen." Lucy answered nonchalantly, deciding to just ignore their accusations of her and Edo-Natsu being together. "And we gotta talk outside." She continued, pulling Gajeel and Edo-Natsu's wrists towards the guild doors.

"What about?" The iron dragonslayer asked, curious. The guild began whispering, thinking that maybe Kourin-san was pregnant and that the red haired guy named Kaizen was gonna take responsibility and since Gajeel was her cousin he needed to approve of their relationship. But then Gajeel would disapprove so Kourin-san would have to take care of the baby on her own and she'd end up hating Gajeel to the ends of the worlds.

But then again, the Kaizen guy might love Kourin-san so much that he would challenge Gajeel in a fight and end up dying so Kourin-san would die from depression and the baby would never have been born. And then Gajeel will blame himself for the death of his beloved cousin and commit suicide so Levy-chan would be depressed as well and kill herself too.

Yep. Fairy Tail was too crazy for their own good.


Outside…


Lucy faced the two men and folded her arms over her chest.

"Gajeel, I need a favor." She said, turning her gaze to the iron dragonslayer who was looking intently at the flame haired guy named Kaizen. He grunted in response, indicating for her to go on. Lucy let out a breath.

"I don't have a place to stay for the night. I was wondering if I could sleep over at your place for just tonight. Him too." Lucy said, nodding her chin towards Edo-Natsu who was silent all the while. Gajeel choked on his spit and stared wide-eyed at Lucy. Was she f-in serious? It would've been alright with him if it was just her, they were playing cousins after all… but for her to bring along that flame haired guy? The hell?

"Silence means yes. Thanks, cousin…" Lucy smiled at him evilly. Edo-Natsu sweat dropped, knowing that evil smile of hers. It was a sign that she knew that she was getting her way, no matter what.

"Wait. Wait. Wait. Wait! Let me get this straight. You want to stay over at my place with your boyfriend?" Gajeel cleared, already knowing that he was going to lose the argument anyway.

"Yep, just for tonight." Lucy agreed, not really bothering to clear that Edo-Natsu was just a friend. It was just a drag to explain it to everyone in the guild. She already knew that they'd think otherwise even when she told them no. Edo-Natsu on the other hand was silently blushing, but he also understood where Lucy was going with this. Besides, he liked the thought.

"I have only one room available." Gajeel tried to get her to change her mind, but when Lucy smirked, he knew that all was lost.

"Then sleep with Kaizen in your room. I'll take the extra.'' She smiled at him and then walked away, leaving Gajeel and Edo-Natsu alone outside the guild. When Lucy was gone, Gajeel faced Edo-Natsu and glared at him.

"Sorry for this inconvenience, but it'll just be for one night." Edo-Natsu apologized, bowing his head.

"I sure as hell hope so. What's your name again?" Gajeel asked, leaning forward and staring at him right in the eye.

"Kaizen Haven-Farrow… nice to meet you, cousin of Kourin." Edo-Natsu smiled, getting a little bit used to the terrifying demeanor of the man in front of him.

"Name's Gajeel Redfox… 'sit true that you're together?" Gajeel pushed, stepping backwards and leaning onto the wall of the guild.

"Yeah…" Edo-Natsu answered. He'd have to clarify that part to Lucy, but he was sure she'd agree anyway.

"For how long now?" The older mage continued with his questions. This time, however, Edo-Natsu didn't answer.

"Five months. If you want to know that badly, why don't you just ask me?" Lucy answered for him. Both males snapped their heads towards her a little surprised that they didn't notice her appearance.

"I figured you'd deny." Gajeel shrugged. Lucy shook her head and walked towards Edo-Natsu.

"Why would I do such a thing as deny my relationship with this handsome young man?" Lucy asked, feigning shock and hurt. Edo-Natsu shook his head in amusement while Gajeel actually smirked.

"Whatever. What happened in there?" He asked. Lucy sighed this time.

"They were terrifying. The girl's surrounded me like monkeys and treated me like I was the last banana on earth. They kept asking if I was pregnant or something… and they accused you of being a terrible cousin, while they kept insisting that Kaizen loved me and would fight for me to the death. I don't freaking know where they all got those stuff, but it was inhuman I tell you. Inhuman!" Lucy declared, revealing only this side of her to Gajeel and Edo-Natsu. The two males chuckled and shook their heads.

"Them people's got some screw loose I tell ya…" Gajeel grinned, a little amused at how crazy his nakama were. It's taken him a whole year to adjust and wouldn't deny that he truly treasured them all. He wasn't quite used to their silly antics yet though (even when he was the silly one at times).

"I suppose." Edo-Natsu nodded his head in agreement, wearing a funny smile that Lucy noted was somehow approving of Gajeel's statement.

"I see the both of you are in good terms?" Lucy smirked, raising an eyebrow and folded her arms across her chest. Gajeel and Edo-Natsu glanced at each other and at the same time snapped their heads towards a different direction indignantly. Lucy grinned and shook her head.

"Well then, it's getting late. Why don't we call it a night?" Lucy suggested as she leaned forward and took a step beside Edo-Natsu.

"Guess so. Let's get going then. I ain't gonna be slowing down, so I don't care if you get lost. You can just sleep in the streets for all I care."Gajeel sneered while he started to walk off in a random direction.

"Yeah, it's just like you to treat your cousin like trash." Lucy muttered grinning. Edo-Natsu shrugged and began walking beside Lucy all the way.

So for the next few minutes, they walked the dark street-lit lanes of Magnolia in silence. Lucy and Edo-Natsu would whisper things at each other sometimes, but otherwise, everything was completely quiet… until Gajeel decided to play Sherlock Holmes and ask them questions…

"So, how did you two meet?" he said, glancing over his shoulder at Lucy. The mage in question glanced at Edo-Natsu and smiled. It was time to put her writing skills to use.

"I met him for the first time a few weeks into the day I just got back from Edolas." Lucy acted like she was replaying that memory in her mind, when in fact; she was actually procuring the next scene to add. Gajeel stopped in his tracks and stared at Edo-Natsu questioningly.

"Oh don't pee your pants Gajeel, he knows that I was trapped in Edolas for over a year and a half. He knows everything about me, about the guild, and about you acting as my cousin." Lucy informed him. The iron dragonslayer was still frozen in his place.

"Plus, he knows that your precious bookworm is… how shall I say this? Loaded?" Lucy taunted him, earning an almost punch on the face from Gajeel but was able to dodge it in time.

"Calm down, I'm just ruffling your tail feathers. Besides, I'm sure everyone's gonna notice in a little while. Didn't you say she was two months already? I'm sure that little bump's gonna pop out of her dresses sooner or later." Lucy said nonchalantly, causing Gajeel to blush at her obvious attempt at making him embarrassed. Edo-Natsu was slightly amused at the terrifying man's discomfort and thanked the God's that he wasn't in Gajeel's shoes. Lucy could be very straight forward when she wanted to.

"How'd the conversation get from you to me?" The older man asked, turning away from Lucy. The ebony-haired woman shrugged and placed a hand on her cousin's shoulder.

"I'm just that good. Anyway, are we there yet? We've been walking for half an hour now." She asked, looking around the area they were currently in. There were trees all around them, and the stone pavement slowly disappeared until it was just pure earthen ground.

"We're almost there. Just a few more minutes… What? Tired already?" Gajeel tried to tease back, but failed anyway when Lucy began walking ahead of them.

"How can you even have thought of asking Kourin out? Much less end up being together?" The iron dragonslayer murmured, a dark aura emitting from his back. Edo-Natsu smiled and decided to continue walking. He was about to answer when Lucy suddenly appeared beside him and rested her elbow on his shoulder.

"I'm an awesome person. Now shut up and bring us to your house already…" Lucy snapped at him. She was feeling a little tired now, the effects of her battle earlier this morning surfacing all of a sudden.

"You're so impatient for a person who's staying in someone else's house." Gajeel mumbled to himself, sulking and leading them quicker to his house. Edo-Natsu grinned at their seemingly brother-sister relationship and quickened his pace to match the two other mages. When they reached a clearing with a house standing there surrounded by trees, the two visitors stopped dead on their tracks.

What Lucy saw, she didn't expect. Gajeel's house was a huge two-storey glass and metal building with an iron fence and a large gate. The front lawn was dark but it was obvious it had flowers and that it was tended to everyday. Under the moon and stars light there wasn't much she could see, but she knew that when it was day the place would be astounding.

"You sure this is your house?" Lucy couldn't stop herself from asking. Gajeel glared at her but continued walking forward to open the gate.

"Shut up." He grumbled, continuing forward to unlock the door now leading the way inside. Lucy noted that there was a very familiar pair of brown boots cast aside at the entry way. Obviously, Gajeel didn't own it, so she'd have to remember hard who it belonged to just so she could tease him later on. But she had an inkling suspicion that a certain blue haired solid script mage was missing a pair of russet boots.

"Follow me, no detours. Sleep for the night and leave in the morning. Rules: Stay in the room you're sleeping at, no prowling. If you gotta go, hold it in. Disturb me in my sleep, die. In the morning, fix up your stuff and leave as soon as you're done." Gajeel said, directing them towards the second floor not even bothering to turn on the lights.

"Hardcore rules…" Edo-Natsu and Lucy mumbled at the same time, following the owner of the house.

"This is the extra room. Flame head, follow me." Gajeel instructed, leaving Lucy alone to scout her bedroom for the night. Sliding the iron door open, wincing at the metal screeching against metal and groaning when she realized that the room she was in seemed just like a prison cell, she pulled out her key pouch from under her skirt and plucked Aries' key from the bunch.

"Open!" Lucy said, not minding to complete the chant. She's already mastered the art of calling out her spirits without needing to say their gates, but she still needs to hold the key though.

In a puff of pink fluff (ooh, that rhymes), the spirit of the zodiac of the ram appeared. The shy female spirit bowed to Lucy before placing a rather bashful hand over her mouth.

"G-good-evening, master…" The pink haired young woman greeted the ebony haired lady in front of her before looking around.

"Good evening too Aries and didn't I tell you to call me Lucy already?" Lucy grinned, looking around the room while she searched for a bed.

"I-I'm sorry… please forgive me… L-Lucy-san." Aries stuttered, apologizing again. Lucy rolled her eyes heavenwards but smiled at the spirit anyway.

"I'd prefer it if you removed the –san at the end, but it's a start. So, can I ask a favor?" The celestial mage asked, a little disappointed for finding that there wasn't a bed or anything to sleep on in this room.

"Of-ofcourse Lucy-san… what is it?" Aries asks. Lucy turns to face her spirit and pointed to the floor.

"Would you mind making me a sort of futon to sleep on?" She raised her eyebrows in question.

"N-no, I wouldn't… anything for y-you Lucy-san…" The zodiac spirit smiles, stretching her arms out in front of her…

"Wool Cushion!" She exclaimed, as spirals of pink fluffy wool shot out from her hands. Lucy grinned and patted Aries on the shoulder.

"Thanks a bunch Aries, you can go back now." She said. "Oh, and tell the others that I'm sorry for not calling them for a while… especially Leo, I'm sure he's angry." Lucy added. Aries nodded her head and waved before breaking down into little pink shining particles.

After Aries was gone, Lucy fiddled with the bunch of keys in her hand before ending at a golden key with the sign of the heavenly scales drawn in dark purple ink across the ivory key face.

"Open." She whispered, pointing the key on the floor. A violet seal opens and the spirit of scales materialized in front of her soon after.

"Good-evening Master…" A deep and justified voice rang out inside the room. Lucy grinned at the spirit in front of her before sitting onto the wool cushion Aries conjured for her.

"Yo, Libra. Been a while right?" Lucy asked casually. She found Libra's keys in the hand of a dark guild member and gained it right after she defeated Libra's old master.

"I suppose. I see that you've returned to your guild?" The woman asked, standing statuesquely in front of Lucy with both arms dangling on her sides with the scales hanging below her hands.

"Yeah… it's kind of nice being back." Lucy answered patting the space next to her, indicating that she wanted Libra to sit next to her.

"That's good. But why didn't you show them that you're truly Lucy Heartfilia and not just some made up character named Kourin Redfox?" Libra asked, obliging to Lucy's offer. Her owner shrugged, lying on her back while she sat at the foot of the bed.

"I don't know. Do you think I did the right thing Libra?" Lucy asked, placing her twin swords beside the cushion and within her reach.

"It is said that one's true intentions lie within their eyes and what I see in yours are of confusion, anger, and self-pity. Master, in my opinion, what you did was right in the sense that you wanted to protect yourself. From what? I do not know…" The spirit of the scales answered, presenting her own opinion.

"I'm confused, yes. A little angry too and I admit that I pity myself for being forgotten by what I called my family. But me trying to protect myself?" Lucy wondered, resting her right arm over her forehead and glancing at Libra.

"That is simply what I can see, master. But believe in me when I say that you have nothing to fear just as long as you trust in yourself… and you trust in us." The spirit answered, placing a comforting hand on Lucy's thigh. The spirit mage sighed and nodded her head, thankful that she found Libra's key.

"Thanks Libra." She smiled. The spirit squeezed Lucy's thigh before starting to dematerialize of her own accord, knowing that Lucy was going to release her anyway.

"Anytime, master…" She bowed before completely disappearing. Lucy let out a breath and stared at the ceiling, closing her eyes moments later as she dozed off.


Meanwhile… at Gajeel's room…


The two males already reached Gajeel's room and were about to enter when they heard a loud puffing sound from the room Lucy was in. Gajeel made a move to go to her when Edo-Natsu stopped him.

"That's just her and her spirit." He informed. Gajeel stared at the corridor, waiting for a girl to scream when he heard nothing. He turned his head to face Edo-Natsu and glared at the boy before pushing the door to his room open.

Edo-Natsu shrugged and followed suit, gawking at the room once he entered. It was a wide one, with a large king sized bed made of iron and surprisingly soft looking mattresses and covers at the center. There was a book shelf and a writing table next to a closed window and Edo-Natsu wondered if Gajeel really owned that or if it belonged to someone else. A white door stood beside a large dresser, seemingly like a private bathroom or a walk-in closet.

"You sleep on the couch." Gajeel pointed out a set of divan's at the corner room with a television set at the middle. He nodded and proceeded to go there when he felt something thrown on his head. Pulling it off him, he saw that he was holding a thin black blanket with skulls and everything on it. Edo-Natsu glanced up and caught Gajeel strewn on his bed, the man's back facing him.

"Thanks." He muttered before turning back to walk towards the longest couch. Edo-Natsu was all settled and comfortable, and he was about to close his eyes to get some sleep when Gajeel spoke.

"You know all about Kourin, right?" He asked, his back still facing Edo-Natsu.

"Yeah, why?" The latter replied facing Gajeel's back.

"So you know what her real name is?"

"Uhuh, Lucy Heartfilia."

"And why she changed her appearance?"

"Yeah, she just explained it to me earlier today. The last time I saw her, she was blond."

"So you know that we really aren't cousins?"

"Yep. She called you the metal-faced idiot who was stupid enough to challenge you when you were in a bad mood…" At this answer, Gajeel sat straight up and glared at Edo-Natsu.

"What? I'm just telling you what she told me." Edo-Natsu defended himself, donning a slight smile.

"Tsk."

A moment of silence went between the two before Gajeel laid back down and stared at the ceiling.

"Do you really love Lucy?" He asked, peeking at the other male through his peripheral vision. Edo-Natsu's face snapped to the side to stare at Gajeel, his whole face burning with embarrassment.

"I-I…" Edo-Natsu stuttered, thinking of a way out of it, but gave up anyway. "Yes." He sighed, staring at the ceiling too.

"That's good to hear…" Gajeel muttered before pulling at his covers. "Now sleep or I'm gonna have to punch you to sleep." The iron dragonslayer threatened. Edo-Natsu shivered at the risk of the older man doing just that to him and so he closed his eyes and dozed off into a dream filled with chocolate brown eyes smiling at him, and blond hair intertwined with his.

"Night Gajeel..." He whispered, cuddling the pillow.

"G'night, Kaizen…" Gajeel smirked, taking a liking to the flame haired guy. Aside from that, he would respect their relationship with Lucy and treat him like a real man would to his cousin's boyfriend. Satisfied with his thoughts, he too fell prey to sleep and dreamt of a blue haired bookworm and a small bundle laughing in his arms…


Raven: So how was it? I think it was kinda boring though, since it was long and stuff. Besides, this really was just a filler like I mentioned earlier. And wow! This is my longest chapter ever! Teehee...

Any questions and corrections? Suggestions and ideas? Go ahead and leave a review! It will be very much appreciated...

THANKS A BUNCH!