Ugh, it's been such a long day and it's really late...but I'll post this chapter for you guys as a thanks for the reviews you've all posted, they make me very happy because I have no social life and don't get out much :) Anyway, hope you enjoy the next step in Fae's adventure, thank you for sticking with her this far! Also...we finally get to see what Fae's main source of magic is!


The moment I got inside I slammed the door behind me and pressed my back to it, partially collapsing against it as I panted for breath. That was too close. I need to be more careful if I'm to go out and about with Loke alone. Those girls probably want my head on a silver platter.

"Wow, what happened to you?" Levy asked as she walked in from the living room, blinking at me as I recovered my breath.

"Loke's lackeys tried to run me down." I answered, rubbing the back of my head as I stood upright. "But I managed to escape them before they could catch me. They kinda saw me out on a walk with Loke and…may have seen me kiss his cheek." I admitted with a deep blush as Levy gasped, hands jumping to her mouth.

"What? No way! You kissed Loke? Tell me everything!" Levy commanded, grabbing my hand and pulling me into the living room and sat me down on the sofa where she eagerly waited for me to start spilling, so I exhaled then started from the beginning, explaining about Romeo and how Loke found us at the ice cream parlour, Macao's return and then about the walk.

"He just suddenly changed into a totally different person. He became all distant and kind of morose and I just wanted to comfort him so I gave him a hug and…kissed him on the cheek." I blushed heavily again as Levy's smile widened at me. "Yeah, so that's when I realised Loke's girlfriends were watching us and they started chasing me through the city. I swear, those girls are scarier than Erza."

"Wow, that's some story. I can't believe you kissed Loke though!"

"It was only on the cheek!" I protested with a whine, shaking my head into my fists as I turned beetroot red. "There's no law against that, we're just friends!" Levy's eyes twinkled prettily at me as she leaned closer, chin resting on her palms.

"But you like him, don't you? I know you do Fae, don't try and hide it from me." She teased, starting to poke me until I was in a fit of giggles, squirming away from her until finally I caved in, unable to take anymore.

"Alright! Okay! I admit it, I like Loke. I like him." Suddenly I stopped and blinked, staring in front of me, mouth completely agape. "I like Loke. Oh hell! I like him! What do I do Levy? I've never had a crush on anyone before!" I gripped her arms and shook her in a panic, eyes wide at the sudden realisation.

"Calm down! There's nothing to panic about. The first and most important step in starting a relationship is to admit to yourself that you like someone more than just a friend." Levy said to me studiously, giving me a wink as she rested her hands on my arms. "Which you've just done. Congrats!"

"But I'm not like Loke's stupid fan girls Levy, I'm not that shallow, am I?"

"Heck no, you have far more substance than any of them and Loke would be lucky to have you. Do you know how he feels about you?" She questioned me and I thought for a moment. Sure he flirts with me whenever he gets the opportunity and never takes no for an answer but he's like that with every pretty girl he meets. In all honesty, he treats me no differently to them. The only exception is when we're out on a quest, he always looks out for me but that's acceptable because we're most likely doing highly dangerous things and it's necessary for us to take care of one another.

"We're just friends and he sees me as a sister, he told me so himself today." I said, growing despondent and looked down at my hands as they lay limply in my lap. Levy touched my shoulder comfortingly, lifting my chin to look at her as she gave an encouraging smile.

"Hey, don't give up so easy okay? Maybe Loke just said that to not give anything away, it could all be a façade. You should test the waters a little, weed it out of him then tell him how you feel, and when you do I want a full report." She gave me a grin and a thumbs up, making me chuckle.

"Okay, but only on the condition you promise to tell me the moment you have a crush on someone, and I want reports too!"

"Deal." She agreed and we shook hands over the agreement, both of us smiling like idiots though I could feel the butterflies in my belly. Would things be different now between Loke and I now that I knew what I felt towards him? It had been so gradual that I probably would have never noticed had Levy not been so quick witted and attentive.

All I could do was wait and see.


To refill some of my coffers with money to pay the rent I had had to take on another quest, choosing one in that involved slaying a demon that had been terrorising a town for months and stealing all of their livestock. Since Makarov was away at a council meeting Mira cleared me to take the quest, however Natsu and Gray seemed pretty reluctant to let me go on my own.

"You can't slay a demon all by yourself, that's something only Erza can do!" Natsu was saying, blocking my way to the exit as I stood there impatiently, narrowing my eyes at them both as they stood with their arms folded like statues as they stood before me. "You're not going and that's that."

"The hothead is right Fae, this is way beyond you." Gray agreed stoically, making me grit my teeth as I took a deep breath. "Your magic isn't offensive, you'll be like a sitting duck!"

"Or a fish out of water!" Happy piped up unhelpfully as I folded my arms in front of me, glaring at them both.

"You know very little about my magic so there's no way I'm going to stand here and let you two tell me that I'm useless. Now get out of my way!"

"We didn't say that." Natsu argued, shoulders slacking slightly as Lucy walked over, glancing between us.

"What's going on?" She questioned as she stood to the side, confused as to why I was having a standoff with both Gray and Natsu, who for once were in agreement over something. Unfortunately that agreement was over me not going to earn myself my next months' rent.

"Fae has it in her head that she can go and slay a demon on her own." Gray informed her simply. "Which is, of course, a stupid idea but she doesn't want anyone going with her."

"Natsu gets motion sickness and you're still recovering from your last mission Gray, so neither of you are coming with me." I told them sternly. "Besides, it's a minor demon! Hardly anything to worry about and I need the money. There's no way I'm going to let you two be stubborn idiots and force me to stay when I know I can handle this!"

"We're just concerned for you that's all. How do we know you can take on this demon when we haven't really seen you take on anything more than a handful of mercenaries and one shadow mage? In fact, you didn't even beat her. Natsu did." Gray countered as I clenched my fingers into fists at my side, glaring at them heatedly.

"She was a psycho and I made a simple mistake in underestimating her. It won't happen again. Just let me pass before I force my way through!" Gray and Natsu looked at one another then back at me, neither of them saying anything but their faces told me everything. They weren't budging one inch. If Erza were here she would knock some sense into them but she was out on her own quest, so I was on my own this time.

Taking a deep breath I lowered my head, casting a shadow over my eyes then started to walk forwards. Natsu and Gray lifted their hands and held out their palms in unison, their faces grave and obstinate as I walked into their hands and stopped. I didn't want to hurt them, I really didn't. I couldn't bring myself to do it. With a firm push I felt them send me a step backwards and I did not retaliate, feeling time slow as I stepped back away from them and let the poster fall from my fingers, floating silently to the ground with a rocking motion as I kept my head bowed.

"It's for your own good Fae. You'll thank us later." Gray said to me in a condescending tone which made me angry inside.

"You're not ready." Natsu agreed. Everything was silent in the hall and I could feel everyone watching us as I trembled slightly, forcing myself to keep from crying. Lucy looked at me sadly, her eyes slightly pitying as everyone else kept their silence.

Unable to take anymore I walked forwards and pushed them both aside and this time they let me go, moving out of my way as I walked dejectedly out of the guild hall. They didn't believe in me. I thought by now they would trust me to take on a mission like this by myself, it's not like I haven't done so before. I'd helped them take down other monsters and even Loke's bandit group he'd attempted to take on alone previously. That poison mage had been a problem but I'd manage to subdue him with my superior speed, avoiding his attacks and knocking him out cold. Had they forgotten about that too?

My head remained bowed as I walked, my feet carrying me unconsciously as my mind was filled with a torrent of thoughts. I felt admittedly hurt and slightly betrayed. Surely they would have more faith in me? I expected such concern from Mirajane and perhaps Levy, but for Natsu and Gray to actually disallow me to go on a solo quest just because they thought it was too dangerous? That speaks volumes.

Lifting my head finally I was surprised to find that it was dusk and twilight had arrived and my feet had carried me out of the city to the beach, walking along the surf where the salty waves lapped over the sand with a frothy foam.

My eyes turned to the cliffs so I set my course for climbing them, winding my way up the cliff paths and continued to walk until I felt the wind rise with the altitude, causing my head to spin slightly with a euphoric dizziness until I became accustomed to it.

For some reason I felt myself being drawn closer and closer to the cliff edge, the wind snapping at my skirt and hair as I fixed my eyes upwards towards the stars. I know what I need. I need to let go of the earth and feel the wind in my hair, to reach upwards to the heavens and sing among the stars. My mother had always told me that the sky was never the limit, that if I ever wanted to reach beyond the stars then I only had to try.

As I reached the edge of the cliff I paused, lifting my hands to spread them wide whilst I trained my eyes on the stars still, watching as the sky became inky black until finally they all bloomed into life, radiant and pure in their countless multitude. So with a deep breath I closed my eyes and tipped forwards.

"Fae! No don't do it! NO!" A sudden yell shouted with a tone of anguish, making me start in shock and look over my shoulder as I fell too far forwards to pull back and fell over the edge, seeing a flash of Loke's horror stricken face as he watched me fall. "FAE!" Loke! What was he doing here?!

The wind rushed through my hair and I looked downward as I plummeted head first straight for the ocean. No time to think about that now, it's now or never. Closing my eyes I felt a surge of energy rush through my body and a golden light swirled around me, instilling with me with a greater strength and power as I felt an extension of my body form on my back, stretching out as I continued to plummet for the water.

At the last moment the light disappeared and I flapped my wings, their powerful capacity easily straightening me out just a hair's breadth above the water to then soar forwards. They were brilliant white and feathered like that of a typical angel, making me smile as I sighed with satisfaction. It has been too long since I last flew like this and never without the full enjoyment of complete freedom.

Arcing around I twisted around and flew back to the cliff top, rising up like a silver arrow with a rush of air as Loke stared at me openly, tearing back as I flapped my wings to halt my travel and land gently on the cliff in front of him, blinking innocently. "What are you doing here?" I asked him with a tilt of my head as he continued to stare at my wings. I blushed with embarrassment and hid them behind me as much as I could, my hands rising to begin fiddling with my hair.

"I wanted to make sure you weren't too upset." He stammered before shaking his head and throwing out his hands. "What were you thinking?! You nearly gave me a heart attack jumping off the cliff like that! I thought you were committing suicide!" I stared at him in astonishment before turning my face away, feeling the heat continuing to gather at my cheeks.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you. I hadn't realised you followed me." I answered then fell quiet. The gentle hiss of the wind and the dull roar of the waves below sounded around us as Loke flinched slightly, realising that he had only made me feel worse for shouting. He took a deep breath then exhaled to calm himself before giving me a gentle smile, reaching out with one hand to gesture to my wings.

"So is this your real magic? Take Over?" I nodded my head.

"Angel Soul. It's very rare. My mother had it and it's run in our family only for generations as far as we know, though it doesn't appear every generation. This is my Regular Form. All that changes is my wings and the heightening of my strength and speed." I explained to him weakly. Loke paused a moment, trying to think of what else to say before he stepped towards me and took my hand, drawing me towards him before his arms locked around me, making me squeak slightly and my wings twitched as he tucked me close to him.

"Don't scare me like that again." He whispered into my ear and I swallowed nervously before nodding my head, not trusting my voice to be steady. I felt tears rise to my eyes so I pressed my eyes shut to keep them from falling, gripping my fingers into Loke's jacket as he continued to hold me close. "I don't what I would do if I lost you. You're important to me Fae." This time a tear trickled down my cheek.

"And you're important to me too, Loke." I whispered with a trembling voice before I buried my face into his jacket, his warm arms enshrouding me. "You were the first man I truly trusted, that I wasn't afraid of. You helped me unlock a part of me that I thought had been taken away from me and I'll never be able to thank you enough for that." Loke made no response except to pull me more securely against him, turning his head into mine as the wind blew around us so I stretched my wings forwards and created a feathery barrier to protect us.

"Gotta say princess, you just keep on surprising me." He chuckled into my ear, making me laugh weakly too as we pulled apart and I dried my eyes quickly. "How many forms do you have?"

"Several as far as I know. I spent the first few weeks of my time in the library reading up on Angel Soul and its magic, learning things that I didn't even know were possible to achieve. I thought it was just an alternate form that looked pretty. Turns out it's pretty special." I smiled at him winsomely. "I can change my form to suit the environment and even gain magic attributes depending on which form I choose, a little like Erza's requip."

"I see." Loke mused, reaching out with a hand and brushed his fingers over the feathers of my right wing, making me shudder slightly at the unusual sensation. "So soft…" He murmured before looking at me again. "Why didn't you just tell Natsu and Gray? If they knew you had this kind of magic then they wouldn't have argued about you going on the quest alone."

"You and I both know that's not true." I chuckled, reaching up and tucking my hair behind my ear. "They always argue whenever I choose to go out alone. They worry about me and I'm touched that they're concerned but I wish they would just put a little more faith in me. I'm not as weak as I once was and there is much about me that they don't know and probably could never understand."

"I know, I told them as much as I walked out to follow you." Loke smirked, rubbing the back of his head casually. "I may have called them the dumbest excuses for wizards that ever existed and some other insulting stuff too but my memory's a little foggy." I giggled again quietly. Loke always had a way of making me smile and laugh again. Guess that was all part of his charm. "So were you about to go for an evening flight?" I nodded my head. "Okay, I won't keep you then. You be careful up there, I hear the birds are migrating early this year." He joked, making me roll my eyes as he turned to leave.

"Do you want to come with me?" I blurted without thinking before mentally slapping myself. Stupid Fae, what were you thinking? You've never flown with anyone other than mom before, and she had her own wings!

"Go with you? Sorry to break it to you princess, but I can't sprout pretty wings like yours. I'll drop like a rock." Loke told me teasingly and I blushed because of it before slowly lifting my eyes to meet his.

"I can carry you." Feeling a pang of confidence I turned to look up at the sky. "Haven't you ever wondered what it's like to reach out and touch a star or fly among them? It's the most sensational feeling in the world. It's almost as if you're untouchable, you become a part of the sky itself." I murmured before looking back to Loke who had moved closer without my realising, jumping slightly when I found him standing directly before me.

"I see the stars whenever I look in your eyes, so I feel like I'm always close to them." His seductive purr threw me for a moment before I frowned at him, arching an eyebrow at him. "Sorry, force of habit." He lifted a hand guiltily and smiled to me so I relaxed and slowly moved towards him, my eyes never leaving his until I moved around him and slipped my arms around his waist.

"Hold on." I whispered into his ear before giving a gentle flap of my wings, lifting us off the ground and into the air gradually, surprised at how easily I could take his weight. Loke gave a slight gulp so I tightened my arms around him as he gripped onto my hands for reassurance, his feet standing on mine as I turned my face upwards to gain altitude, stopping when we were several feet in the air. "And hold your breath." I advised with a laugh before diving forwards.

Loke gave a loud yell which I responded to with a laugh as we dove straight down the cliff, hurtling straight for the water before I straightened out and we skimmed the surface, weaving between the waves with my wingtips brushing against the water as it rippled with moonlight and starlight.

Once Loke had settled he gave a laugh, a wide smile spread on his lips as I arched my back and flew up into the air with a spiral, my wings carrying us back into the sky with the speed of a lightning bolt, flying higher and higher until finally we broke through the clouds that had gathered and Loke's eyes widened, mystified by the speckles of light and shining lights of the aurora unable to be seen from the earth.

He stretched out a hand and ran through a cloud to trail a wispy wake as I turned onto my back in a slow rotation, letting him see everything from all angles before I pulled up and held him in the air, flapping my wings rhythmically to keep us suspended. "Beautiful isn't it?" I murmured to him and he nodded his head in answer, still staring about him in awe.

Glancing to his face I saw Loke looking to a particular constellation in the sky, his eyes watering slightly and I don't think it was because of the flying. Finally he smiled softly, still gazing at the same constellation before he turned his head back towards me, his eyes deeply gratifying. "Thank you." I smiled and inclined my head in answer before I flapped my wings and continued our flight, soaring through the sky and between mountaintops before finally I returned us to the ground, labouring for breath slightly but beaming all the same.

As I let Loke go I stepped backwards and the light swirled around me, returning back to my original form as my shoulders heaved slightly whilst I shivered. Seeing that I was shaking Loke shrugged out of his jacket and placed it around my shoulders and I instantly shrank into it, pulling the warm folds around me as his hands rested on my shoulder. "Have to say, that has to be one of the greatest dates a girl has ever taken me on." He teased so I elbowed him in the stomach gently.

"It was not a date, you didn't ask me out." I corrected him simply before chuckling. "Well, I'd better head home, Levy's probably worried by now and she's most likely still waiting up for me."

"In that case, allow me to escort you home, princess." Loke placed his arm around my back and pulled me intimately close to him, smirking as I felt my breath catch in my throat and my heart began to quicken its pace in my chest. "After all there are many nasty characters out at night and someone has to protect a beautiful flower such as yourself." I shook my head at him despairingly but walked beside him all the same.

Loke kept his arm draped around me as I huddled under his coat, warm and comfortable with it around me and even more comforted with his presence right next to me. Whenever we passed a group of loungers or suspicious looking characters Loke would draw me closer but not look their way as not to make eye contact.

We walked back to my home which I shared with Levy and once we reached the door I shrugged out of Loke's coat and handed it back to him. "I had fun this evening, thanks for cheering me up Loke." I told him softly, keeping quiet as not to disturb the peaceful silence that surrounded us.

"That's what I'm here for." He answered before blushing slightly. "I'm sorry about what happened the other day with the girls, I've told them to lay off you from now on so they should leave you alone."

"That's okay, they don't worry me all that much. I've dealt with worse." I chuckled as I looked down at the ground, reaching up to fiddle nervously with my hair. Suddenly I found Loke's hand sliding into my hair over my ear, pushing it back and tilting my head backwards slightly as my eyes widened, staring at him as he moved closer.

For a breathless moment my eyes dropped to his lips and a fluttering, hopeful fantasy flashed through my mind only to be shattered when he rested his brow against mine. My shoulders slumped in disappointment but I sighed and closed my eyes, relaxing against Loke as my hands lifted to his shoulders and rested there. "Goodnight princess." His whisper sent a shiver down my spine and for a moment I couldn't answer, gulping silently before taking breath.

"Goodnight Loke."