Fairy Adventure Chapter 21: Adventure 021, a fairy tail fanfic

Disclaimer: I do not own Hiro Mashima's "Fairy Tail", but all original plots and characters are mine.

In a land far, far away lies the kingdom of Fiore, a small, peaceful nation of 17 million, and a place filled with Magic found in every home, bought and sold in every marketplace. For most, Magic is merely a tool, a mundane part of everyday life. For some, however, Magic is an art, and they've devoted their lives to its practice. These are the wizards. Banded together into magical guilds, they ply their skills in search of fame and fortune. Many such guilds dot the landscape of Fiore. But there is a certain guild in a certain town that soars high above the rest, one from which countless legends have been born. A guild that will no doubt continue to create legends well into the future. Its name...is Fairy Tail.

Last time, on Fairy Adventure: Hallow's Eve, Magnolia was itchin' to celebrate the great holiday of Halloween with black and orange streamers, skeletons and ghouls, and everything in-between. Even Fairy Tail is bringing out all the stops with their own Hallow's Eve Spell-taculuar! But, it looks like Luna was a lot nervous for her tango performance with Cane. Meanwhile, Gajeel is called back to the field with Panther Lily and new recruit Gale to arrest serial killers Marco and Wolfgang, ex-Phantom Lord members with a knack for bloodlust and meet up with Gajeel and Panther Lily's task force: Gray Jaguar. On the next day, everyone is in the spirit of Halloween with costumes and candy galore! Well, everyone but the city of Mimosa and the Special Operations: Task Force. The task force begins their own mission while Justin starts his own: having his party guests trick-or-treat-or-drink with a hint of matchmaking. Luna preps herself for her performance, but without Gale's support, she's still a little lost. Gale finally gets the chance to speak to Luna before his job starts, but things don't go as planned and they both end up missing each other more and having nerves for their respective missions. Igneel brings over Mary Jane's costume, but witnesses one of her migraine seizures. Rather than leave, he stays besides Mary Jane and helps calms her, helping her into her goddess costume which is weird. I thought Mary Jane hated Halloween. Oh, well! But, oh, what's this? Looks like Cane got himself tangled up with the wrong crowd at the wrong time.

"Sorry, beautiful, but I've got some things to handle here first. But, I promise you… This…won't take long."

I hope not, Cane, you've got a show to do! And, what's up with that ring on Mary Jane's nightstand?

Gale was doing his best to stay calm as he paced near Oswald. Oswald kept his eyes on all his screens at the same time. He watched the screens showing each and every street and alleyway. The people on the streets were gone, but heat signatures of the task force appeared.

Gajeel leapt from his place on one roof and to next. He perched himself on the ledge. His eyes narrowed. His glasses shimmered. His sight rid of the civilians to see a black void with orange lines outlining every building, street, and walkway. He scanned the streets for any sign of struggle. "Anything?" he asked into his earpiece.

"Nothing," Gonzalez called. He had hidden himself beneath a brown blanket to blend in with the brick of the bell tower. Roy had crouched low to the ground as well. Delgado had set up his sniper rifle and was scanning through the scope.

Asuna walked along civilians with a hat covering her head and a jacket covering her task force number. She looked around inconspicuously through her sunglasses. "Nothing here either," she reported.

Riza and Panther Lily had taken to the skies. Panther Lily circled around the northern half of the city. "Nothing."

Riza, on her hover-cycle, shook her head as nothing out of the ordinary stood out to her. "Nothing," she agreed.

Jackson took a puff from his cigarette from his vantage point atop a baker. "Great. So, we've all got nothing," he said flatly.

Something flashed on one of Oswald's screens and he straightened. "Caught something nearing Reflex. Captain, I'd say the mutt is about forty-three degrees off your right."

Gale peeked at the screens to see what Oswald meant. He saw a strange heat signature loping around in a drunken pattern. It seemed to be on the streets and knew it was not being followed. It only stumbled into the streets like it had not a care in the world.

"Whoa," Gale whispered. "Is that…?"

Oswald nodded. "That, kid, is our mutt number one."

"Found him," Gajeel said through the link.

°•°•°•°

In Gajeel's territory, he rolled onto another roof. He ran to its edge and jumped off. He touched his chest. Scale by scale, the cloaking device activate and made Gajeel blend in with his surroundings in mid-air. He landed atop a lamppost with little effort to balance himself. He scanned through the street. It was in a shopping district. Hundreds of men and women carried bags of clothes and books and accessories. Gajeel allowed his scanning sunglasses to scour the street.

He smirked. "There you are, mutt."

Through the sunglasses, he saw the stumbling heat signature. A data analysis was given to Gajeel. A profile was brought up as well as statistics on age, date of birth, affiliation, and even blood type.

"There you are…"—Gajeel's smirk turned crooked, cruel even—"Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart."

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

mishiranu kao sagasu sasayaku ano koe ga

nigiri shime ta yaiba tsuki tate subete o ubaeto

•

minashigo tsudou shiro emi kamen ni egaite

itsuwari no itsukushimi sae hane de tsutsumu serafu

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

One screen of Oswald turned into a profiling screen for Wolfgang and Gale and Oswald ran through the date together. "His name is Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart," Oswald listed. "His age is unknown, but birth is dated to around X-seven-sixty-one. He was previously known to be in the guild Phantom Lord, but, once it disbanded, he temporarily went off the grid."

File after file popped up on the screens and Gale began to make sense of it. Some were surveillance scanners. Others were from traffic cameras. Some were simple receipts in his name. But, they all connected to Wolfgang.

"Looks like Wolfgang was tracked in a number of countries and continents. He was in Ishgar, Alakitasia, Andusa, Valchestria—this guy has been everywhere and nowhere and somehow jumps from place to place within a matter of days," Oswald went on.

°•°•°•°

Gajeel jumped from the lamppost to another before jumping atop the building made for retail. He watched Wolfgang bumble down the street. He looked the part of a doctor. His black hair was slicked back and professional-looking. He had on his surgeon mask and his stethoscope around his neck. His lab coat was on and so were his gloves. He looked like a doctor about to go back to the hospital.

"Ice Dancer, close in. Twenty-three, thirty-six. Orion Major, go to Jennifer and load up with Rogue. The mutt is tougher than he looks. Silver Falcon, keep an eye for the raven," Gajeel commanded lowly. "Broken Hawk, on me. Keep watch with Firefox. Lily, close in on my signal on the corner of Burgundy and Fifth." And, he jumped to the next roof.

°•°•°•°

"Looks like the mutt isn't as bloody as we think in the illegal sense," Oswald reported. "He got his doctorate degree a little under twenty years ago and has been working as a doctor for third-world countries."

°•°•°•°

Delgado continued to scan the streets. "Any sign of the raven in those stats?"

"Barely," Oswald reported. "The only photo I can locate was one taken at a bar. Wolfgang went in, and then, two hours later, Marco went into the same bar. I'm researching what I can find from their rendezvous, but it could take hours."

°•°•°•°

Jackson took another puff of his cigarette and blew out a stream. He looked down at Walt and offered him the cigarette, to which Walt shook his noble head.

"Check it later. Track the raven now," Gajeel ordered.

"Right," Oswald agreed. "Searching for matching images now and…"

°•°•°•°

Oswald's eyes narrowed. "I've found something."

"Don't tell me the little birdie's only picture was him in Phantom Lord," Gajeel prayed.

"Negative, captain," Oswald said. His eyes scanned the screens as pictures of Marco popped up as well as his track records, his files, and anything the world caught on him. "Marco looks like he's half-and-half. Apparently, Marco isn't even his real name, but all the images of his true name are blurred out. Grew up in Alakitasia."

"Hard place to live in," Riza commented. "Only the strong survive in that land. They're strong believers in that."

Jackson added, "And vodka for breakfast, lunch, or dinner."

Oswald continued. "Anyways, Marco wasn't nearly as popular as Wolfgang. Was spotted at bars and clubs and maybe a conference or two with fellow poets, but—" His eyes narrowed. "I've found something a little more interesting. Looks like the guy has been hanging out at the Bent Broomstick."

Gale raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that the place where criminals fresh out of prison hangout?"

°•°•°•°

"Broken Hawk, you've been there on recon," Gajeel said, keeping an eye on Wolfgang. "Ever seen the raven?"

"No," Delgado negated. "But, he could have hidden his identity at any time from me."

"For all we know, they could know who we are," Asuna pointed out.

"Wolfgang ain't that bright to put names to faces," Gajeel remarked. "But, Marco? Definitely. He was always into the freaky shit that hid him from his enemies back in the day. I always thought he was weak physically, but could overpower me mentally." His sharpened when Wolfgang's pattern seem to match up with someone else. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. The good, witch doctor found his target."

"Finally," Jackson grumbled. "Who is it?"

"Lily," Gajeel grunted.

From Asuna's position, she did not falter. She continued her walk without a hitch. All she did was simply cross the street and onto the next sidewalk as planned. "How far?" she wondered.

Gajeel gauged it and allowed his scanner to decide the approximate. "Mutt is third of a click away from your position. Maintain speed. Orion Major and Rogue, track Lily. Silver Falcon, you are to keep watch on her. Firefox, Ice Dancer, and Broken Hawk, you are looking for the raven."

"Yes, captain," came a resounding agreement.

Gajeel nodded. "How are you doing, Black Salamander?"

A shaky breath. "Fine, old—… I mean. Good, captain."

Gajeel smirked. "I can hear your fear from here, pipsqueak. Don't piss your pants."

Gale huffed. "Asshole old man," he muttered.

Gajeel chuckled. "Don't get all grouchy, pipsqueak. You're doing fine…for a rookie."

Silence on the link.

"Oh, thank you, Black Steel." The appreciation came out as smooth as silk and as sly as a fox. "You flatter me too much."

Gajeel stilled in his position as a cold look of fury overtook him. He spat the name as though it itself was poison. "Marco."

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Fairy Adventure 021

Hallow's Eve Part II:

Tango Cantarella

ハロウィンのイブが続く！ミモザの戦いと舞台恐怖の戦い！

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

A growing smirk. "You remember me, Black Steel?" A chuckle that rumbled like thunder. "I thought the secret, fifth element of the element four would've forgotten someone as insignificant as me."

Gajeel threw himself off one roof and onto the next. He searched the city with his scanner for another heat signature identified as the enemy. "Oh, how could I forget the faces and the scents of you slimy, backwater bastards," he snarled. "Especially the squad I remember Jose praising more so than the Element Four." His eyes sharpened when he found a small heat signature atop of a building. "He called you the 'Death-Gun Squad'. I couldn't get the name out of my head even if I tried."

°•°•°•°

Marco looked down at the city below. He looked at the drifting people, innocent and guilty all at the same time. He watched as they continued with their meaningless lives. He watched bags of meat and water and carbon dioxide and blood walk freely as though the world belonged to them. "Jose loved giving out titles," Marco remembered. It was not a fond memory. "'Death-Gun' was one of my favorites. We did what you spineless, meat bag, humans couldn't do."

"You talk like you ain't human."

Marco chuckled. "'The greatness of humanity is not being human, but in being humane', Black Steel. For that, I don't consider myself 'human'. In fact,"—a glean hit his eye—"I never did." He blurted out a caw that mimicked a raven's cry.

°•°•°•°

Wolfgang stilled as he heard the raven's cry over the noise of the city. He listened. He heard.

He smiled.

His eyes gleamed.

And, he broke into a sprint.

°•°•°•°

Gajeel could hear Oswald's thundering voice couched in static, "Lily, he's closing in on you. May-day. May-day. Run to Lullaby. You will pass Carmen and trigger it. Orion Major, you are closest to a motorcycle. Haul it to Jennifer with Rogue. Silver Falcon, on my mark, close in on Lily."

Gajeel glared up at the Mikage Tower. "You bastard," he spat. "I don't know who you think you are, but you're in my territory now. I will find you, asshole. I'll kill you."

"Don't get upset with me, Black Steel. Get upset for who set you up."

Gajeel's eyes hardened. "The Hell do you—?"

"We're done here."

The link was cut off for urgent shouting to come through it. "—ptain! Captain, are you there? Respond!"

Gajeel growled. He threw himself off one building and onto the next, making a dash for Mikage Tower. "I'm here, Saturn. Found the raven and I'm in pursuit."

"Okay. Ice Dancer, Broken Hawk, Firefox, aid the captain. Lily, you triggered Carmen. Get on the nearest bike and gun it to Lullaby," Oswald ordered.

"On it," Asuna called back.

"Captain, be careful," Oswald warned. "The records on the raven aren't much, but they're enough to tell me he's more dangerous than we could ever wish."

Gajeel forced his hands to turn into steel claws as he leapt into the air. His steel claws pierced the brick, making him slow in his descent. He climbed the brick like the wild dragon he was. When he got to the top, he grabbed the edge of the roof and threw himself onto it. He snarled out a cold, foggy breath. "Trust me. I won't make the mistake of going easy on him."

°•°•°•°

Gale glanced at Oswald. A bit of trepidation and a lot of steeled emotion. "What do we do now?"

"Now, I make sure everyone follows the plan and our team lives through this," Oswald said, blunt. "You, on the other hand, make sure I'm not killed."

Gale nodded and walked away from Oswald. He had to pace. He had to think. He had to calm down his heart rate. Never had he face something like this before. He closed his eyes.

Think of Blondie. She's my resolve.

He could see her smile and her melting brown eyes.

Gale felt himself calm at remembering him. He swallowed his nerves.

Oh, principessa… You don't how much you calm me.

Something disrupted Gale's thoughts. Something dark and ominous. Something ugly. Something…coy.

And, it came over Gale's earpiece.

"She keeps me calm too," came a grotesque whisper.

Gale hardened. "Who the Hell are you?" he whispered harshly.

Another odd laugh. "Tell me, little dragon… Did you know your princess looks extremely ravishing tonight?"

Gale felt his body tense. "What did you say?" His voice was growing into a dangerous snarl. A warning.

A deep inhale and a long sigh. "She's so beautiful," came a moan. "Almost like a goddess herself. A goddess I really want to—" He paused. Then, he chuckled. "Well… You would already know my thoughts, wouldn't you?"

Gale accidentally growled. "Who are you?" he demanded to know.

"Relax, little dragon, relax. I'm merely someone who wants to see you," came a soothe. "I mean…you wouldn't want me to visit your little princess, would you?"

Gale began to walk away from Oswald. There was no decision to make in his mind. He knew what to do. "Where?"

"Good boy," came a chuckle. "Go to the bathroom."

"What?" Gale could not help but question.

"Do it."

Gale ground his teeth. "Saturn, I'm taking a piss," he muttered, heading to the bathroom. He did not care for Oswald's approval as he slid open the bathroom door. His eyes widened. The bathroom was no longer to be seen. All that was seen was a swirling vortex of darkness.

What the Hell is this?

"Come in, come in. Don't be shy, little dragon," came a cackle.

Gale gave a short growl. Then, he stepped into the vortex of darkness. The bathroom door shut behind him, making Gale tense. He looked around the new realm he landed himself in. All he could see was utter darkness. But, that was not it. He had walked into a land of mirrors. Tall, short, small, large—it did not matter. The mirrors were everywhere. They did not drift. They had only one place to stay. And forever they would stay.

Gale looked around in anger. "You caught me. Now, what do you want?"

The voice came over the earpiece. "Walk, little dragon. Walk."

Gale gave a short snarl, but ended walking into the realm of mirrors and darkness.

The Hallow's Eve Spell-tacular was officially in full swing as the clock came a little after ten. The servers—man, beast, and skeleton—had taken to officially serving alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks with the Hallow's Eve Spell-tacular officially for Fairy Tail members and citizens 16 and up with a few exceptions. Most on the dance floor were those who came from the trick-or-treat competition and had felt the buzz of Halloween night. Others in the party were a bit older and took to the tables with drinks and food. All hands were on deck for bartending with Mira, Julia, Kinana, Orochi, and two other bartenders behind the counter. Orochi had changed into his bartending uniform, but supported the Halloween spirit with cat ears. Olivia watched him glare at her each opportunity he got from her seat at the bar. She had come as an iron knight, using her own metal to forge a scandalous costume. Kinana had gone with Mira's vampire idea and Julia had returned from her trip as the little mermaid.

Vinyl had dressed as the bride to the Skeleton King with stitches and a patchwork cocktail wedding dress covering her body. She had set up her own DJ equipment and was playing the disco-funk song Halloween Night. The bass drum kept the four-beat while the brass section added the groove and the bongos played in the background.

The entire dance floor lit up like a disco bar. Panels were each given individual colors, changing as the beat did. A man dressed up as a disco star was enjoying the beat with his girlfriend dressed, too, as a disco star.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

tobira aketara marude TAIMU MASHIIN!

maki modosareta yume no DISUKOTIKKU

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Galileo finished his shot alongside Coeus. He was dressed as a daring hero in medieval Perench tales. A musketeer in his own right with a matching mask and rapier. "Ah! Good, old Dead Man's Kiss," he sighed, satisfied.

Coeus finished his shot, but did not say much. He merely looked around. An earpiece was in his ear with a tactical Lacrima radio hidden in his jacket. The man had platinum blonde hair and gray eyes, but looked like a wolf scoping for his prey.

⌜FAIRY TAIL

Name: Coeus

Age: 30

Occupation: Mage, Intelligence

Magic: Chain Reaction

Likes: conspiracies Dislikes: normality

Special Note: Coeus is a naturally wary man with a thousand conspiracy theories! Who's to know if any of them are true?⌟

"Something doesn't feel right," Coeus muttered.

"You say that every day, C," Gajeel told him, clapping him on the shoulder. "I'm going to dance. Come join when you get out of your latest theory." He moved past Coeus and sailed through the guild hall. He gave greetings to those he knew and winks to girls he did not know. He made it to the dance floor and instantly threw his mind into a place where nothing mattered. It was not long before he could feel bodies moving around him, dancing, grinding to the beat of the music.

A warm body pressed against Galileo.

His nose twitched.

I'd recognize that scent anywhere.

His hands went from the woman's shoulders and all the way down to her hips. He could feel the smooth movement of her rolling her body.

He heard a teasing voice. "It's that Desiertan blood me in, I'm telling you! Makes me a better dance than you, Iron Man."

Galileo held her closer to his chest. She was dressed as a gypsy belly dancer. The light blue complimented her tan complexion with the veil around her mouth and nose bringing out her eyes. She moved like a seductress without much effort and Galileo was enrapt in her movement. He could feel his body mimicking hers, matching hers step for step.

Galileo smirked as his mouth went close to her ear and he nibbled at the lobe.

Her movement stuttered, but she kept going.

Galileo smirked a little. He planted a warm kiss right below her ear before murmuring, "You're right. Your dancing is better than mine, Ya Hayati."

Jades eyes opened and the dancer whirled to look behind her.

And, there was…no one.

"Paprika! Paprika!"

Rika turned to see Justin flinging himself at her. She laughed at his drunken and disheveled state. "Hey, Justin. You okay?"

Justin nodded with a lovely smile on his face. "Ace is so yummy…!" he groaned. "How the Hell did I snag such a handsome piece of ass?"

Rika laughed. "How about we find him and ask him?"

Justin pouted. "Ace had to leave," he whined. "He had to catch a train to catch tonight, but he prom—" He burped. "He promised he'd call tomorrow…"

Rika laughed some more and slung Justin's arm over her. "Come on. Let's sit you down."

And, a pair of eyes watched as Rika led Justin off the dance floor.

A fanged smile.

I've missed you…Ya Hayati.

°•°•°•°

Nashi, Ellie, T'oree, Dazzler, Gary, Cade, Mustang, and Ghost had gotten a booth together. Dazzler and Mustang sat relatively close with Dazzler mesmerized by the polite cowboy as he spoke to her about his mother Nya. Cade had an arm around T'oree who did not seem to mind as she experimented with different drinks the waiter had laid out for her. Ghost was mooning over Lyra who was giggling away as she spoke to a silent Thirteen dressed as the Skeleton King (much to his reluctance). Ellie was at one end of the booth and was hitting it off with a sexy sailor who stared more into her eyes than her cleavage.

And, that left Nashi who was struggling to leave Gary's grip.

"I think I hate Halloween," Nashi muttered.

Gary merely laughed as he finished his Bubble-Bubble-Toil-and-Trouble drink. "You love Halloween, Angel. I think Angel's just mad because I seduced her."

"You did not 'seduce' me," Nashi snapped. Her pink cheeks said otherwise. "You just…caught me off-guard. That's all."

Gary shook his head in amusement. "Angel just can't resist me."

"Screw off," Nashi muttered.

T'oree slammed down her last drink and swallowed it. "These Hallow's Eve drinks are kahibulo! Nothing as strong on Vanhalla, but still, they leave a good taste in my mouth."

Cade laughed. "Earth Land drinks are definitely the same as the ones on Earth," he said, picking up his glass with a glitter liquor in it. "Just not as flashy."

The sailor Ellie was talking to offered his hand. "Dance with me?" he pleaded.

Ellie thought about it with a flirty smirk. She took his hand. "How about one dance and see where it takes us?" she offered in a sultry tone. As she stood up, she told her group, "Guys, I'm going to dance."

As Ellie and her partner waltzed away, T'oree clapped her hands. "Lord Cadorius, we should participate in the Earth Land ritual of dance as well!"

Cade sweatdropped when he noticed most couples were grinding. "Tor, this isn't really 'dancing'. Maybe we should stay he—!"

Cade was yanked out of his seat by T'oree's enthusiastic strength and dragged towards the dance floor.

"Come! We must mimic the humans to accustom ourselves to this realm, Lord Cadorius!" T'oree explained.

Cade blushed as anxiety got to him. "Wait! T'oree…!"

Dazzler sighed as she watched her friends leave. She was already a bit tipsy, her head bobbing from left to right. "Maybe I should get out there and dance too," she mused. "But…it's not like I have a partner or anything," she added coyly.

Mustang gave his southern smile. "Perhaps I could be your dancin' partner until you find a man better than me at it, Miss Lafayette," he suggested.

Dazzler lit up at Mustang's suggestion. "Come on, cowboy! Let's get our grinding on!"

And, that left Nashi and Gary.

Gary turned to Nashi. "Ange—"

"No. I will not grind with you."

Gary pouted. "At least dance with me?"

Nashi shook her head. "In your dreams."

Gary whined. "Angel…!" He kept prodding her. "Angel, Angel, Angel, Angel, Angel, Ange—!"

Nashi gave a noise of frustration and got up. "Ugh! Fine!" she caved in. "But, keep your hands to yourself."

Gary eagerly got up and tugged Nashi to the dance floor. "Come on, Angel! Let's dance!"

Nashi allowed herself to be pulled into a mass of heat, sweat, liquor, and sex. Once you immersed yourself, you grew used to such a humid stench. Nashi and Gary did not flinch at the scent, though Nashi scrunched her nose. The two stopped at a substantial point on the dance floor and turned to each other. The changing lights illuminated themselves and their costumes.

A man dressed as the Devil came behind Nashi with a smirk. "I like your costume," he whispered in her ear.

Nashi whipped around with a growl on her lips. "Hands off—!" Her words were cut off when she was pushed behind Gary. She blinked away her confusion to see Gary giving a cool glare to the drunken Satan. "Gary…"

"Sorry, Devil, but the Hood is with me," Gary said civilly.

The Devil shrugged and his eyes caught onto prey in the form of a sexy bunny.

"I had that handled, you know," Nashi grumbled.

Gary turned back to Nashi and smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, Angel. I just don't want to share you," he admitted. "It's you I want to dance with. No one else."

Nashi looked away, cheeks warming up. "You're just saying that," she tried to explain.

"I mean it," Gary persisted. "I don't want to share this night with anyone else but you, Angel."

Nashi's eyes caught something and she grinned a little. "Oh, my God."

Gary looked in that direction. "What?" His eyes caught onto the sight and he could not hold back his amused smile. "I see."

The pair was staring at their group of friends who had all found themselves dancing together. Ellie and the sailor were both doing disco moves, though shared kisses in-between when they got close enough. Cade was a red-faced mess as he stared at T'oree who lost herself in the music of disco-funk. T'oree saw he had not moved and smiled prettily, taking his hands and putting them on her hips. Cade spluttered, but T'oree murmured something to him and he seemed a little less nervous than before. Dazzler was trying to get Mustang to grind, but seemed to play the part of a jealous and possessive girlfriend, clinging to Mustang when several other girls eyed him and some were bold enough to try and dance with him. Like the gentleman he was, Mustang spoke to them kindly, but with nothing outside of friendliness.

"Wonder where Justin went," Nashi murmured. "He's missing the fun."

"Probably having fun of his own somewhere," Gary predicted. "Hopefully, somewhat sober fun." He looked down at Nashi. "So, how about we have some fun of our own?"

Nashi glanced at Gary, but looked away quickly, cheeks burning. "Don't get any wrong ideas, okay? This doesn't mean I like you or love you. We're just…partners," she reminded.

Gary hummed. "I know, Angel."

Nashi cleared her throat to keep her composure. "So, um… Ho-How do you want this to go?"

Gary smiled. His hands drifted from Nashi's sides to her shoulders to her neck to her chin and tipped her head up.

Annoyed, but timid chocolate clashed with soft, but loving cerulean.

"I'll guide you," Gary promised, his low voice coming across the change in music.

Lights suddenly went out.

Screams and shouts of terror rang throughout the guild.

Then, came maniacal laughter.

POOF.

Smoke and a mixture of green light came from the stage. A man appeared from the smoke. He was dressed for Mardi Gras as a voodoo master. He smirked at the crowd with his psychedelic-looking guitar and took the microphone.

"I put a spell on you…" he told the crowd, "And, now? You're mine…"

The entire hall shook with applause at the appearance of the first Anderson Brother. It was their famed song that had made every chart for Halloween song.

Gary looked down at Nashi. "Do you trust me?"

The Anderson Brother—Felix—continued with his tune. "You can't stop the things I do… I ain't lyin'…"

An eerie harpsichord joined him.

Nashi did not have to think about it. "Yes."

"It's been four hundred years…!" Felix preached. "Right down to the day! This bitch is back! And…"—he gave the audience the middle finger—"there's some Hell to pay…!"

The audience crowed and clapped at that.

"Then…"—Gary gathered his hands onto Nashi's cheeks and leaned closer—"please, Angel..."

"I put a spell on you…!" Felix crooned, getting ready to strum his guitar. Four beats of a growing bass and brass. "And now…you're…mine!"

He hit his chord and the lights sparked on. The stage had been transformed to a witch's lair with fog coming off it and spiders a-dangling. The Anderson Brothers Grimoire and Sauron were on drums and bass guitar respectively while their keyboardist and other guitarist began to wail away. Each was dressed in their own voodoo costume that dazzled and scared crowds.

The entire guild hall screamed and shouted as everyone gathered onto the floor to hear the Anderson Brothers sing on of their hit songs.

Nashi looked at Gary and gave him a small nod that was so much more than that. "Okay," she whispered. One word that meant one thousand things.

Felix, as he strummed his guitar, said, "Hello, world! I'm Felix!" He winked down at a few fangirls. "What's yours?" he purred.

Gary's hands shifted to Nashi's shoulders and turned her around.

Felix led the band into the first verse of the rock song. "I put a spell on you…!" he sang with his band singing back-up. "And, now, you're gone…!"

"Gone, gone, gone! So gone!" his brothers sang.

Nashi closed her eyes as Gary pressed against her. His nose trailed from her shoulder to her ear. "Dance with me, little Hood," he whispered.

Nashi allowed her hips to sway at first. Gary held her movement, but did not restrict her harshly. He allowed her to move as freely as she desired and he would follow. But, both knew the story of Little Red Riding Hood. No matter how much the Hood found herself in control of the situation, it was the big, bad wolf who was truly the master of the game.

"My whammy fell on you...!" Felix sang. "And, it was strong!"

"It was strong! It was strong! It was strong…!" Sauron and Grimoire sang back.

Gary helped free Nashi's body little-by-little. He nudged her movement to become looser and lucider. He rolled with her steps that he was truly coordinating. The wolf was dancing with the hood.

And, it was wonderful.

Felix sang, "Your wretched, little lives...have all be cursed! Cause out of all the mages working…! I'm the worst! I put a spell on you…! And, now…you're mine!"

°•°•°•°

Elvin was working at the bar with the other bar tenders. He wore the bar tending uniform, but was forced to dress in as a fairy. He was given a charming set of little wings to strap onto his back and used Magic to make his ears appear pointed. As he sighed, pouring beer into a glass, he could not help but mutter. "Why did my mother have to be obsessed with fairies? Why not anything else?"

"Because than Aunt Ever wouldn't be who she is."

Elvin looked up to see Mary Jane sitting in front of him with an annoyed look. "Mary Jane," he breathed. He eyed her goddess costume. "What are you…?"

Mary Jane raised a hand for silence. "Don't – even – ask," she growled.

Elvin decided not to push his luck. "Where's Igneel?"

Mary Jane rolled her eyes. "How should I know? Do I look like his keeper?"

Elvin gave the drink to the customer before turning his attention back to Mary Jane. "No, but I know him. He wouldn't let you out of his sights for a second if he could help it," he reminded.

"Well, he did and I'm leaping for joy that the idiot got distracted," Mary Jane said dismissively.

Elvin narrowed his eyes.

'Idiot'?

"But, I did see the cute Dragneel before coming here. Actually, she's the reason I'm over here," Mary Jane went on to say. She brought up a water bottle. Not just any water bottle—a Poko water bottle with Luna's initials on it. "She's freaking out a bit. Panic, anxiety, shaky hands—all the symptoms of stage fright." She slid the water bottle over to Elvin. "Little, miss fashionista wants the cute Dragneel to have some relaxing tea. To compromise, the cute Dragneel wants this put in it. Says her mom makes it to help her relax when she's under stress or something?"

Elvin understood at once. "Oh, yeah! Aunt Lucy usually puts in a special liquid honey one of her spirits got for her. It makes tea stronger and relaxes the body quicker." He took the water bottle into his hands. "I'll get on it right away. Tell Luna and Ena not to worry!" And, he dashed off.

A smirk. "Well, that was easy." A hand twirled and a goblet themed to Lord Death with a haunted skull was on it. In it was a bubbling black liquid that did not look like the average drink. The goblet was raised to sly lips. "It's just business, little human. Nothing but business."

°•°•°•°

Silver looked at the dance party from his vantage point at a table. "I just know my beloved Paige is in there somewhere," he said dreamily. "She always loves playing Hide-and-Seek with me." He stood up bravely. "Don't worry, my beloved Paige! Your prince is here to rescue—!" The rest of his words were choked out of him when someone yanked him by the back of his costume and dragged him into a bathroom. He was slammed against a wall. He grunted, but could breathe normally again, stroking his neck. "Oh… God… What was that?"

A humph. "Dropping your guard at any second can make you weaker than you already are, Fullbuster."

Silver looked up with a glare in his eyes. "You…" he growled.

Ena glared back at him. "Yes. Me," she confirmed. "If you are quite done with your theatrics, we can get to the point of our discussion."

"There is no 'discussion'," Silver snapped. He straightened up. "Not with a witch like you."

"There is when it comes to a person we both love," Ena snapped back. "Luna."

Silver hesitated. Then, a wary look came about his person. "What about her? Did something happen to her?"

Ena shook her head. "No, but…" She looked away. "It's about Cane, actually."

Silver raised an eyebrow. "What about him? Hey, shouldn't you be going through his costume with him right now? And, checking the costume of the backup dancers—?"

"Be quiet, little prince," Ena snapped at him. "This is important!"

"Then, enlighten me, little wench," Silver grunted. His patience was thinning. "What's wrong with Cane?"

Ena sighed. She brought out her Compact and opened it, tapping away. "Read the article." She handed her Compact to Silver.

Silver snatched it, still wary, before looking down at the contents.

His eyes widened.

"Crap," Silver whispered. "No… But, how…?"

"From what it looks like, complete surprise," Ena answered. "But, I think we're smart enough to know that wasn't the total case."

Silver handed Ena her Compact. "What do we do?" His eyes widened further. "What do we tell Luna?"

Ena opened her mouth. "I—"

A marimba stopped her words. Two sets of them.

Silver took out his Compact in confusion as well and both Mages looked to see a message from Luna addressed to them in their group chat. It was an emoji.

(💫)

Ena and Silver jerked their heads up, worried dark chocolate meeting worried cerulean. "We need to go," they said in unison. And, they rushed out of the bathroom.

°•°•°•°

Luna was still backstage and was nearing tears as she kept hearing ringing from her Compact call. "Come on, Cane, where are you?"

The ringing ended to hear a voicemail.

"Cane, here! Y—!"

Luna groaned and hung up the Compact as Ena and Silver burst into the room.

"We got your message!" Silver gushed. "What's wrong?"

Luna called Cane again. "Have you seen Cane? He wasn't at the dress rehearsal and we've got less than an hour and a half until the performance!"

Ena and Silver exchanged glances—uneasy ones.

Luna ended the call in a huff and glared at the two of them. "What's going on?" she demanded to know.

Ena tried to break the news. "Look, L—"

"Luna!"

Luna looked to see Elvin coming in the room with a cup and saucer in his hands. He shouldered past Ena and Silver to give the tea to her.

"Here. Sorry it took so long," Elvin apologized.

Luna took the tea in confusion. "What is it?"

"It's tea to help calm the nerves." Though, Elvin looked confused as well. "You gave Mary Jane your water bottle with the honey and she told me you wanted me to make you some tea."

Luna furrowed her eyebrows. "I don't think I—"

"Lu!"

Luna groaned as Luke came barging into the room as none of than a ninja. "Oh, God, now what?" she bellyached.

Luke caught his breath. "Oh, thank God, you're safe!" he breathed.

Now, Luna was more confused than ever. "What? Wait, 'safe'? What do you me—?"

Lucy popped her head in the room. "Lu, come on. The stage crew wants to make sure everything is in place and wants you to be there."

Luna sighed. "Yeah. Coming." She set down the tea and ran out of the room with Lucy.

Luke looked at Silver, Ena, and Elvin. "Wait, so… She wasn't…?"

Silver shook his head. "Uh-uh. It was just him," he assured.

"'Just' who?" Elvin wondered. "What's going on here?"

Ena sighed. "It's Cane…"

°•°•°•°

Luna nodded to the stage manager with a warm smile. "Thank you so much," she appreciated. "Everything looks amazing. I trust you and the crew wholeheartedly."

The stage manager nodded back and began to talk into her headset.

Luna walked away to look down at her Compact. The time was 10:31. Her eyes flickered into worry.

Cane…

°•°•°•°

KA-KLACK. KA-KLACK.

The air was sterile.

KA-KLACK. KA-KLACK.

Wheels frantically rolled as a team marched beside the gurney. Their faces did not show panic.

KA-KLACK. KA-KLACK.

Flashing lights. Always flashing lights.

"I need…V…stat…!"

Labored breaths.

Cracked eyes.

A warm hand raking through hair. "It's going to be okay," came a sweet whisper.

°•°•°•°

Gale…

A realm of mirrors and shadows surrounded him. He was in a field where no earth could comfort him, only gemstones. He was alone. He was utterly, utterly alone.

Luna closed her eyes as she could not help but whisper, "Where are you?"

Gale kept walking in the realm of darkness and mirrors. Distrust was clear in his eyes and anyone could see how tense he was. He was in a place where he was at a disadvantage. He was easily more alert than ever before. His eyes flicked over to each mirror. It was eerie having them there. It was like they were watching his every move. It was like they were judging him.

Gale finally stopped when he had enough. Enough of the darkness. Enough of the silence. "Come out and face me!" he shouted. His voice left an echo. "I know you're here! Why did you want me?"

Silence.

"I just wanted to see an old friend," came a sly chuckle.

Gale looked down to see his own shadow detaching from him. He watched as it came to reality and formed a shadow copy of Gale. Shadow-Gale smirked at the true Gale. "It's been a while, little dragon. I've missed you."

"Who the Hell are you?" Gale pressed.

"I'm you," Shadow-Gale said, "and, you're me. We are one."

Gale snarled. "'We' aren't anything," he snapped. "I'm going to ask you again: just who – the Hell – are you?"

Shadow-Gale turned his head. "Why don't you catch me and find out?" With a laugh, he disappeared into the realm of darkness.

And, with a growl, Gale took the bait and followed.

The Anderson Brothers finished their next song with a stinger and had the crowd going wild. Felix panted with sweat clinging to his forehead, but by the proud gleam in this eye, he was happy.

"Thank you, Magnolia!" Felix shouted. "And, Happy Halloween!" He threw down powder and burst of light and fog covered the stage. The audience shut their eyes. But, when they opened them back up, the entire stage had been cleared save for Erza Fernandes. She stood on the stage dressed as Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty.

"Good evening, creatures of the night!" Erza boomed. She smiled. "Are you having a horrible time?"

Everyone shouted and roared their happy agreement.

Erza nodded, satisfied. "Excellent. Then, let us kick this Spell-tacular into high gear!" She lifted her staff and the green jewel that staff clutched swirled with mystical forces. As she chanted her spell, fog intertwined with green light fell off the stage and onto the dance floor.

Erza chanted: "Listen well, all of you! On this spooky night of horrors and thrill! May the darkness commence on the Fairy Queen's will! Now go with this curse and serve me well! Bring us song and cast my spell!" She gave a witch's cackle as she held up her staff and a burst of emerald and gold Magic consumed her. In her place was a band and a singer dressed as the God of War.

As the music began once more, everyone began to move and groove to it without hesitation.

Erza appeared backstage where Ena waited for her. She let out a long exhale. "Never thought of being an evil fairy for Halloween."

Ena smiled. "Well, you look beautiful, Mom," she complimented.

Erza hugged her daughter. "Only because you made this and practically the whole guild's costumes." She gave Ena a kiss on the head. "I'm very proud of you," she murmured. "And, your father would be proud too."

Ena looked up at Erza with shining eyes. "Really? He would be?"

"Are you happy making clothes and costumes?"

Ena nodded.

Erza softened. "Then, he would be very proud as long as you're doing what you love."

A snort. "Why talk about him, Mother?"

Erza and Ena looked to see Mystogan approaching them with two bottles of water. He was dressed as none other than a mobster.

Ena brightened. "Hi, Misty! Is your costume working for you?"

Mystogan handed Ena one bottle of water and smiled. "It's great, sis. You did wonderfully like always," he promised. He handed the other bottle of water to Erza.

Erza took it gratefully. "Don't you think your father would be proud of her, Mystogan?"

Mystogan sighed. "Mother, you know I hate it when you mention him."

Erza shot Mystogan a stern look. "He isn't a bad man, Mystogan," she tried to get him to realize. "He is a great man."

"If he's so 'great', why didn't he stick around?" Mystogan asked coolly. "Some 'man' he was to abandon his own family."

Erza glanced down at Ena who had taken to looking at the floor, uncomfortable and uneasy. Erza sighed as the fight left her. "Let's not fight about that," she decided. "We should be celebrating. This Hallow's Eve Spell-tacular turned out fantastic. Ena's costumes are radiant." She gave Mystogan a pleading look. "Let us celebrate that."

Mystogan saw Ena staring at the floor and sighed. He got to her level and put an apologetic hand on her head. "Mother is right," he agreed. "Ena, you outdid yourself this year."

Ena looked up at Mystogan tentatively. "You think so?"

Mystogan nodded and offered her a fond smile. "Absolutely."

Ena seemed to brighten. "Good because I have a whole new set of ideas for next Halloween!" She gasped. "I need to go draw them!" And, she scampered away.

As Mystogan stood up, he laughed. "She certainly got her love of fashion from you."

"She did," Erza agreed. She looked at her son. "Mystogan… About your father…"

"Save it, Mother." Mystogan's words were soft, not harsh. "I'd rather never hear about Jellal ever again. He isn't my father. He's just half my genetics and that's all."

Erza reached out to him. "Mystogan—"

Mystogan was walking away. "I'm going to go make sure Aine is doing all right."

Erza watched her son walk away with a broken look on her face.

Oberon… One day, I hope you'll be ready to hear the full story.

°•°•°•°

KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK.

Luna flattened her hair and cleared her throat. "Come in," she said, though her voice was a bit shaky.

Natsu opened the door and poked his head in. "Hey, baby girl. Just wanted to see—" His eyes widened. "Whoa-ho-ho!"

Luna turned around. "What is it, Papa?"

Natsu slipped into the room and closed the door, hiding something behind him. "Nothing, baby girl, it's just that…" His lips curled into a fanged smile. "Just, wow… You look just like your mom…"

Luna tilted her head and laughed a little. "Well, duh. She is half of me," she reminded in a tease.

Natsu shook his head. "I know, I know, but…" He laughed to himself. "Never mind. You look beautiful, baby girl."

Luna looked at herself, inspecting for something wrong. The costume Ena had made for her was nothing shy of magnificent. It was made of virgin white with fabric that sparkled on its own, needing no help from glitter by from Magic. The dress had a corset back that exposed Luna's upper back and shoulders, but it went for the innocent maiden look. A bow tied the bottom of the corset with silk coming off the dress and two, long curls. The skirt of the dress flare to above Luna's mid-thigh and that was okay. The front of her dress had no straps to hold it on, but clung to Luna's bust as support. Gold wings outlined the top of Luna's bust like the wings of a dove. The center of it had a golden symbol on it in Ancient Language. Her blonde hair had been put into a length low ponytail with pink Magnolia's integrated into it. Thigh-high stockings had been given to Luna, their tops outlined in gold and the rest of the material in mainly white with silver flecks. She would be dancing in dancing heels of white and gold.

Natsu pulled out a bouquet of flowers from behind his back. "These are for you, baby girl," he told her.

Luna's smile grew wide. "Papa… You didn't have to—"

"Yeah, but I wanted to," Natsu told her. "But, the real flower isn't in the bouquet."

Luna furrowed her eyebrows as she took the bouquet from her father. "What do you mean?"

Natsu gave a secretive smile as he held out his hands. A flame came to life in the palm of his hands. The flame twitched and morphed, stretching itself on one end and fattening itself on the other. Luna watched, enwrapped, as the flames themselves became a fiery flower.

"Wow," Luna breathed.

"I gave one to your mom when we were younger." Natsu recalled the memory fondly. "She was asked to come in for a live Lacrima-broadcast interview and she was nervous. I gave her a fire flower and, to this day, she still has it in her office. And, when Nashi first had to perform for her first time, I made her one too. I can feel it still in her room." He looked down at the fire flower. "I wanted to give this to you before you went on for Fantasia, but now is as good of a time as ever."

Luna was careful in taking the fire flower. She knew better than to expect the flames to burn her, so she did not flinch. Its flames were harmless and would not burn a thing. She gathered the fiery plant in one hand and watched as it flared a little in welcome. She smiled. "It feels just like you, Papa."

"It is a part of me," Natsu told her. "It's part of my eternal flames. Even after I'm gone, the fire won't go out."

Luna sniffed and set down the bouquet of flowers before laying down the fire flower gently. She, then, ran back to her father and hugged him. "Thanks, Papa," she breathed.

Natsu gave her a forehead kiss and hugged her back. "No problem, baby girl," he murmured. "You're going to do awesome tonight because you're not just my kid. You have Lucy's blood in you too and she's pretty much the definition of 'amazing'." He pulled away to flick Luna's forehead playfully, grinning. "Even if you fall on your ass, we're still going to be supportive. You know that, right?"

Luna rubbed her forehead. "I know," she promised. "Thanks, Papa."

Natsu winked at Luna. "Anytime." He went to the door and opened it. "Now, get psyched, baby girl. We promise the second you're finished, we'll come back here to give you a huge hug."

Luna laughed. "Okay, Papa, bye."

Natsu chuckled as he slipped out of the room. He closed the door behind him.

Luna's laughter shrunk into silence. Then, her smile turned into a frown. She went to her dressing room counter. Her eyes drifted to her Compact. She woke it with a mere touch.

The time read 10:57.

No messages. No calls.

Nothing.

Luna took a deep shaky breath. Her hand went to her Compact and unlocked it. The number was on speed dial.

There was no ringing.

"Hey. This is Gale. You know what to do. And, for the record, I probably won't listen to this anyways."

Luna let out another shaky breath. "H-H-Hey, Gale. I, uh…" She gave another shaky breath. "So, um… Yeah, I'm about to go through one last equipment check. I'm—" She sniffed. "I'm pe-pe-performing soon, and I…" She nearly let out a cry. "I really hope you're here, Gale," she confessed. "I really need you, and I'm sorry I'm being selfish and emotional. I'm blaming hormones because Nashi said I could." She shook her head at how whiny she sounded. "Anyways, I hope you come home safely and not hurt. That's all. My performance doesn't matter right now. You matter, so just…come home safely." She ended the call with a trembling finger.

DRIP.

DROP.

A tear flaked her cheek and she was quick to wipe it away.

"Come on, Lu, pull yourself together," Luna whispered harshly. "You aren't weak. You have to brave. You aren't weak."

DRIP.

Another tear fell from her eye.

DROP.

Luna furiously rubbed away the tear. "Stop crying. I can't cry right now," she told herself sternly. "I'm stronger than this. I've faced a demon. I've—…" Another tear streaked her cheek. "I can't do this," she wheezed.

KNOCK. KNOCK.

"Lu?" It was Igneel's inquisitive voice. "Hey, Lu, can I come in?"

Luna sniffled. "Um, give me a second," she pleaded. She cursed her voice wavering.

Silence.

"I smell your tears, Lu," Igneel murmured. "Please, let me in."

Luna tried to rub them away. "J-J-Just… Give me a minute, Iggy, please."

Igneel sighed. "Lu—"

"Oh, this is freaking ridiculous," came a grumble. "I'm coming in."

Luna wiped away the last of her tears as Mary Jane stormed into the room like the angry goddess she was in her ensemble. If Luna was not so upset, she would have been stunned at Mary Jane's choice in Halloween costume. Igneel tried to follow her, but she slammed the door on him before he had the chance.

BANG. BANG. BANG.

"MJ!" Igneel said warningly.

Mary Jane kept her hand on the doorknob and allowed her hand to glow. Once it stopped, she released it and looked at Luna. Her eyes softened when she saw Luna's sad expression. "Don't worry. I put on the Sound-Proofing Charm. And, the door is sealed until I give the 'okay', so we're safe."

Luna sniffled as she sank to the ground. "Thanks, Mary Jane."

Mary Jane was on her knees and next to Luna in a heartbeat. "Need a tissue?" she offered.

Luna shook her head. "No, I'll be okay," she promised. She, now, had the time to look at Mary Jane's costume. "What are you—?"

"Long story short: your brother tried being nice and made your fashion friend turn me into the goddess I apparently am," Mary Jane summarized, rolling her eyes. "I know, I know. I look—"

"Beautiful." Luna meant it. "You look really beautiful."

Mary Jane could afford to smile. "You say it like you mean it, so thanks for the compliment," she appreciated. "Now, mind telling me why you're crying? I mean, we all need a good cry in life, so I'm not judging you."

Luna sniffled again and gave a gasping hiccup. "It's nothing," she dismissed. "I'm just being stupid."

Mary Jane snorted. "No. 'Stupid' is your brother when he thinks it's a good idea to piss me off. You, cute Dragneel, are not stupid." Her eyes went to the Compact on the floor and softened. "Is it your stalker?"

Luna furrowed her eyebrows. "My what?"

"Are you crying over Gale?" Mary Jane reiterated.

Luna looked down at her lap. "I'm not… I'm not mad at him," she tried to explain. "He's working and he should be focusing…" She bit her lip. "But, I…" Her next words sounded to deplorable to say them.

Mary Jane understood. "But, you just want him to call you back, tell you he's on his way home, and then, afterwards, you two will passionately kiss like it was meant to be?"

Luna gave a crying laugh. "Something like that. Without the kissing part."

Mary Jane hummed her laughter. "He'll come home," she promised soothingly. "If there's anything I know about the Black Dragon, it's this: he has anger issues; never ask what's in his drink; and he is insanely crazy about keeping his word to you and you alone."

Luna did not believe that. "But… We're just friends," she reminded. She shook her head. "It doesn't matter anyways. He's busy right now. He needs to focus on his job. I need to focus on my performance."

"Luna," Mary Jane sighed, "you don't realize how much he cares about keeping his promises to you. He'll be home in time."

Luna glanced at her phone. The time changed from 10:59 to 11:00. Her heart sunk, but she kept her head up. She stood up. "He needs to focus on his job just like I need to focus on mine," she explained to Mary Jane. "I should go warm up and make sure Cane is okay. He hasn't been responding to my calls or texts." She went to the door.

"You call Redfox your 'dragon', right? And, in this fairy tale, you're the princess?"

Luna froze.

Mary Jane stood up as well, eyes piercing Luna's form. "If there's one thing I know about dragons and princesses, it's that one can't be without the other. Dragons are crafty and sneaky, but when they promise something, they mean it. Don't turn your back on that."

"I'm not." Luna meant that. "But, that doesn't mean I have to cry. You said it yourself, Mary Jane. 'There's a time to be brave'. Remember?" She put her hand on the doorknob. "This is my time to be brave."

Mary Jane closed her eyes and let out a deep exhale. "The charm has been lifted and so has the seal," was all she could say.

Luna opened the door and left the room without another word.

Igneel stepped inside, though his eyes trailed after Luna. "What was that about?"

"Nothing," Mary Jane dismissed. "Just some girl talk over boys."

Igneel made a face. "Lu isn't ready for boys yet," he argued.

Mary Jane rolled her eyes and pushed past Igneel. "Oh, grow up, moron. She's thirteen. It's not like she's thinking about getting a boyfriend or running away to get married," she said as though obvious. "We're too young for that."

But… Not too young for innocent, little crushes, huh?

She closed her eyes.

Redfox…

CRASH.

Gale smashed another mirror with a fist full of earth.

Please… Get back to your princess safely…

The mirror shattered into nothing more than pieces.

Laughter rung in the air and all-around Gale, making her snarl. "You didn't think it'd be so easy for me. Wow. You really are pathetic."

Gale saw something flicker in a shadow beside him and growled. "Shut up!" He smashed the mirror and watched, panting, as it fell to pieces.

Shadow-Gale appeared in a mirror farther away. "Over here," he taunted.

Gale threw out a hand. "Terra Disk!" he chanted. A disk of ebony Magic hit the mirror and shattered it.

Shadow-Gale appeared in another mirror. "Now, I'm here!" he sang-sung.

Gale took off in a sprint to catch up to Shadow Gale, but each time he smashed a mirror, Shadow Gale appeared on another one, taunting him, mocking him.

"I'm here!"

CRASH.

"Now, I'm here…"

CRASH.

"Missed me."

CRASH.

Gale had to stop, gaining his breath. Full-length mirrors encircled him in rows and rows. Some were taller than others, but they all had one single purpose. They reflected multiple Gale's. They reflected his flaws and weaknesses. They reflected who he was and who he was not.

"I don't get you," the mirror-Gale's spoke in unison. They all converged into one mirror, one Gale. He smirked at his real-life counterpart. "They call us the 'Earth Dragon', but here we are, punching mirrors like we're in some sort of temper tantrum."

Gale snarled and bunched the mirror with his fists covered in diamonds.

The mirror shattered.

Mirror-Gale appeared on the mirror behind real Gale. He hummed mockingly. "Oh, wow, angry much? Then, again we did always have anger issues…"

Gale growled and whirled around. "I said, 'shut up'!" He punched another mirror and it crumbled into pieces.

Mirror-Gale observed the wreckage, intrigued. "Mom's right. We really are like the old man. She said he has anger problems too. Isn't that what we wanted?" Mirror-Gale smirked as Gale shook, physically seething. "We always wanted to be just like him." Mirror-Gale split himself to make a reflection on every mirror. Each Mirror-Gale looked at their real-life counterpart in contempt and dark amusement. "Always stalking him. Always trying to copy him. Always trying to do what he does because he want to be just – like – him. And, yet, here's the joke." They all laughed. "We're nothing like him."

Gale could not hold back anymore as he let out a feral roar. His eyes had gone to slit of ruby as he let out his roar. From his body and below his feet, clusters of spiky onyx burst out. They pierced the mirrors, ran straight through them, in their fury and shattered the glass. Gale could not hold onto his humanity as he allowed more and more onyx to sprout from around him and pierce every mirror he could.

And it was then the Earth Dragon was truly losing it to his anger.

Gajeel landed onto a roof and snarled when he saw Marco. "I don't know where the Hell you think you're goin', but you ain't gettin' far, bitch."

"You humans are so uncouth in your tongue," Marco observed. "It's rather fascin—"

BAM.

Marco had already landed a safe distance away while an iron club had crashed into the previous spot.

A smirk. "You seem to talk a lot for something that's not human."

Marco tipped his head. "'Not human'?"

Gajeel retracted his iron club. "You didn't think I wouldn't notice that stench?" he questioned. "Heh. Shows what a stupid bird like you knows."

Marco's laugh was odd. It was a cawing laugh, more bird than man. "None of my victims have stayed alive long enough to know that," he mused.

Gajeel's smirk broadened. "That's because I'm not your victim, bird." His Magic Circle bloomed enough him, an earthly green with a roaring dragon in the center. "You…are mine."

Marco looked down to see jaws of iron and rows of teeth trying to snatch him. He shed his form of human to transcend into one of a black raven. He flapped away and into the wind.

Gajeel chuckled to himself. "Glad yer flyin' away. The thrill of the chase is what gets a dragon going every time." As he kept leaping from roof to roof, he checked in with his task force. "Saturn, stats. Lily, check in."

°•°•°•°

Oswald's eyes darted around each screen as he kept typing. "The raven is heading in your direction, Broken Hawk. Data sent you. Ice Dancer, prepare to coral the raven closer to Broken Hawk."

°•°•°•°

Asuna reached a motorcycle on the street. She did not hesitate to look for bystanders as she pulled out her Lacrima pod and attached it to the bike. The motorcycle came to life for her, lights turning on, as she grabbed the handles and mounted it. She revved the engine before kicking the kick-stand back and allowing the motorcycle to pull out of its spot and jet down the street.

"I'm headed down forty-three west street right now, Captain," Asuna reported. "The bomb should be going off in the next twenty seconds."

"Wolfgang is gaining ground," Oswald warned.

°•°•°•°

Oswald watched as Wolfgang made his way towards Asuna. The way he moved was unnatural. He moved through the sea of people in such a calm manner, running without a care in the world. But, his speed was not normal for a doctor of third-world countries. His speed was extraordinary.

"He's hitting fifty kilometers… Fifty-five… Sixty… Sixty-five… Seventy…" Oswald's eyes widened. "He's hit eighty kilometers per hour!"

°•°•°•°

Asuna smirked. "And the bomb is hitting…now."

B-B-BOOM. BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.

The buildings behind Asuna blew out their windows and their main structures crumbled. They toppled over in such slow motion as though gravity was trying to keep from falling. Still, they befell onto the ground. They smashed into the buildings across from them and to the sides of those buildings. It was like a short chain reaction. A stampede of debris and cracks in the earth shook the ground. Asuna raced against the stampede of debris and dirt and made a sharp turn onto the next street. The debris was too stupid to realize her turn and kept going, but she went scot-free onto the next street and zoomed in-between cars.

"How's the doctor, Saturn?" Asuna wanted to know.

°•°•°•°

Oswald's eyes concentrated on the dead buildings and their scattered remains. He watched and he waited for the dust to settle. It would take a while, but it would—

A shadow bolted from the debris.

Oswald's eyes sharpened. "What was that?" he murmured. He tried to find a different angle to find the shadow, but nothing on his screens showed up. For the first time, Oswald displayed visible emotion and his eyes widened. He got up from his chair with something glinting in his eyes. "Lily, get out of there!" he commanded in a shout.

Asuna hardened. "I'm on i—!"

The shadow appeared before Asuna's bike.

It was Wolfgang.

He held out a hand.

Asuna's eyes widened.

As though an invisible wall was there, Asuna's bike crashed and was forced backwards. Asuna was thrown off like a rag doll and bumped into the street once, twice, before rolling to the ground and finally landing. She was bleeding. There were cuts and scrapes along her body and her right knee was bleeding. Her sunglasses had flung away from her, but her earpiece was still there.

Wolfgang lowered his hand and walked towards Asuna.

Asuna tried to push herself up, but collapsed when she tried to use her right hand. She looked at her right wrist and cursed. "Shit, guys. I have a sprain," she mentioned.

"Can you make it?" Gajeel wanted to know.

Asuna gave a tired smirk. "I'm not one to fall easy, Captain." She looked up to see Wolfgang towering over her. "Saturn, remember that really good fusion Veronese and Joyzaarian place?"

"Why are you talking about? Get out of there, Lily!"

°•°•°•°

Pantherlily soared towards the fallen buildings. "I need Lily's coordinates!" he roared. "Orion Major, Rogue, fall in!"

Jackson had already stolen a car and was speeding through traffic with Rogue beside him and his weapons in the back. "We're on it!" He put a hand on his shades. "Sending coordinates now!"

°•°•°•°

Asuna was quick to go to her gun holster. She flicked it off safety and was about to fire when Wolfgang forced the gun out of her hands. She tried to get her knife, but it was too late.

Wolfgang forced Asuna to float in the air.

Asuna could feel an invisible hand choking her. She could feel her weapons leave her. She could feel oxygen leave her.

She tried to get more words out. "S-Saturn," she wheezed, "promise…you'll…tell CJ...lunch is on…me…"

"Asuna…" Oswald breathed. "Asuna, don't… Don't say stuff like—!"

Asuna's eyes widened.

Her mouth parted.

Wolfgang had stabbed her heart with a Liston knife, a knife used for amputation.

°•°•°•°

Oswald's eyes widened. "No," dropped from his mouth. "No…"

°•°•°•°

Wolfgang did not stop to watch Asuna's face in horror. He did as he pleased with her injured body. His knife came out her heart and he waited in excited breath for her to cry out, to bleed, to go through the pain and confusion of it all.

None so happened.

Wolfgang kept waiting.

Nothing happened.

Asuna's eyes went black. Her mouth opened. "Model one-a-five-seven-three, Version ten-dot-one-dot-two has been critically damaged. T-minus fifteen minutes until repair."

A wild smirk. "Thanks for holding her, doc."

BANG.

Wolfgang barely turned out of the way as a bullet passed him by. He turned around to see the real Asuna safe and sound and yards away from him. He still looked dopily happy as his eyes set upon her. Then, he looked back at the Asuna in his invisible grasp.

Asuna's smirk broadened as she kept the shots going. She walked forward towards Wolfgang as she shot her rounds, headphones covering her ears.

Wolfgang threw down the fake Asuna to avoid the round of bullets. Rather than dodge and duck into an alleyway, he ran closer to the barrel of the gun in a crazed manner.

Asuna could not help but be amused as she stopped firing. She allowed Wolfgang to descend upon her. Like a dog, he tackled her to the ground. He eagerly brought out his Liston knife to cut open her stomach. However, what he found inside was not the blood and internal organs he sought. All he found was a steam, leaks of oil, and jammed gears.

Asuna's eyes blanked again. "Model one-b-three-five-three, Version 4-dot-2-dot-3 has been critically damaged. T-minus fifteen minutes until repair," she said robotically.

Wolfgang leapt off the other fake Asuna. This time, confusion set in the mad doctor's eyes. He wanted the kill. He wanted her to scream.

°•°•°•°

A grin. "Well, Saturn, you were right. The mutt fell for the toy."

A motorcycle raced down a busy street.

°•°•°•°

Oswald groaned as he sat back in his chair. "That was my best coding work," he bellyached. "It was Personification Magic embedded with my Coding Alchemy. And, he just damaged two of them!"

"Come on, Saturn. It was either he cuts open me or them. Which one would you rather choose?"

°•°•°•°

"You're not going to like my response," Oswald said blandly.

Laughter. "Oh, Saturn…" Goggles flashed and revealed burnt umber. "Don't worry. I'll make it up to you about the loss of your babies. Right now, Silver Falcon, Orion Major, Rogue, where are you?"

ERRRRRRRRRR.

The Lacrima car Jackson was driving swerved onto Asuna's street. He smirked when he cut between two cars to meet Asuna. "Right beside you," he said over the com-link.

Walt barked his arrival.

B-BOOM.

Pantherlily grinned as he landed atop Jackson's stolen car. "We're all beside you, Lily."

Asuna lowered her head. "Good. Because I've got a little plan to keep our favorite doc on us." She put on her turn signal and leaned left to turn into the next street. "Come on, boys! Let's get this mutt!"

Gale cut off his roar as he tried to keep it together. He tried to reign in his anger, but it was so hard. It was hard to keep it inside. "No. Have…to stay calm," he told himself. "Can't…let…anger…control me…"

Shadow-Gale appeared above Gale, floating casually with his arms behind his head. "Why not?" he asked his counterpart. "What's wrong with anger taking over?"

Gale clutched his head as his jaw locked. He growled to keep himself in control.

Shadow-Gale waved a hand and a drink appeared in it in grayscale. He took a sip. "Anger, fear, grief, pain—they'll all make you stronger. Isn't that what we want? To be stronger?"

Onyx sprouted from Gale and lashed at Shadow-Gale, forcing him to disappear.

Shadow-Gale reappeared elsewhere, floating. "Oh, don't get all mad at me now. I'm just telling the truth. You know that, right?"

Onyx lashed at Shadow-Gale, making him disappear.

And, again, Shadow-Gale reappeared elsewhere, bored. "Okay, this isn't getting anywhere fun," he complained. "I don't get why you're mad at me. It's yourself you're mad at. I can feel all the pain and rage inside you. It's honestly the best taste I've ever had. Why not just let it go? Why stay in control and be weak when you could let it out and be strong?"

"No," Gale gnashed. "Have to…stay calm… For Blondie…"

Shadow-Gale groaned. "Ugh… That one, again? Isn't she over you by now? You're hardly anything to look at and, let's face it: she's probably shacking it up with Cane right now."

Another spiral of onyx came at shadow-Gale.

A smirk. "Ah-ah-ah…"

Shadow-Gale raised a hand and, when the spiral of onyx touched his palm, it disintegrated. All the onyx sprouted around Gale to defend him disintegrated into black sand. Gale was left trembling, growling to himself, as Shadow-Gale floated to the ground and landed on his own two feet.

"You're pathetic."

Gale looked up to see Shadow-Gale looking down on him like he was better than his true counterpart.

"You know it too," Shadow-Gale jeered. "You know how weak you are." He took out the shadow beretta and took off the safety, cocking it.

Gale flinched.

Shadow-Gale smirked in dark amusement. "What? Can't handle a gun?"

"I can," Gale said defensively.

Shadow-Gale snorted. "Please. You turned into a whiney bitch when the old man gave you one." He masked on a fearful look. "'Dad… Am I going to use it on someone?'." He laughed. "God, that sounds like such a pussy thing to say!"

Gale growled. His anger was getting to him. "I am not a 'pussy' and I'm not a 'whiney bitch', you jackass!"

"We both know you're a princess' bitch," Shadow-Gale mocked. "We both know she's your weakness. She'll be the reason you'll never get stronger like the old man. You'll be the reason he dies to tonight: because you didn't have the balls to get over yourself."

"Killing people doesn't make me 'strong'. It makes me a murderer," Gale snapped. "You want me to have blood on my hands that badly? Screw the Hell off. I'm happy with the way I am. I don't care I'm Blondie's bitch. I'd rather be that than a stupid reflection that talks emo and looks like he got into my mom's make-up."

Shadow-Gale curled his lip in a sneer. "Don't you get it, dumbass? I'm you. And, you're me. We're one. Everything you are, I am."

"Bull-friggen-shit," Gale called. "You're a familiar who's messing with my head because his master or mistress dearest told him too, so I'll ask you again: who are you?"

Shadow-Gale curled his lips into a cruel smirk. "I'm not the one who let down the most important people in my life."

Gale turned confused and angered in one emotion. "The Hell are you—?"

A sniffle. Another one.

Gale's ears perked.

"Oh, Gale…" came a sob.

Gale's eyes widened.

He turned around.

The circle of mirrors had disappeared into one. It was a dresser mirror. However, it had turned into a one-way mirror. Gale could see into the room the mirror was in, but no one could see him. He approached it to see Luna sniveling on her chair facing the mirror. Tears dripped down her cheeks and she did not try to rub them away. She was hiccupping. She was hurt.

"I wish you were here," Luna blubbered. "You would know just what to say, wouldn't you?" She rubbed away the tear trails on her cheeks. "I'm being such a crybaby and you'd tell me that too. I just wish I could stop being nervous and be brave like you. You can do anything without fear and I—" She peered into her mirror.

Watery chocolate eyes inadvertently clashed with shocked ruby.

"I'm such a mess," Luna cried. She tried to wipe away her tears. "I know I said I'd be brave, but I'm crying a-a-and—…"—she took a wheezing inhale—"a-and…"

Gale put his hands against the mirror. "Breathe, Blondie. Breathe," he tried to coach.

Luna fanned herself as she kept wheezing. "Now, I—!" Her inhales kept getting quicker. "I have to s-s-stay calm!" Her coughed as more panic began to rise in her. Hot tears poured out of her eyes. "But, I can't!" she wailed. She put her head in her hands as she sobbed. "Why can't I stop being nervous? Why can't I stop being afraid?"

"You can, Blondie," Gale insisted. "You can do this!"

"I'm so sorry," Luna told no one in particular. "I can't do this." She shakily got out of her chair. "I have to tell Aunt Erza I can't do this…"

Gale banged on the glass. "Blondie, no!" he roared. "Don't do it! You can do this!"

"I can't do this," Luna whispered. She hobbled away. "I can't…do this…"

"Blondie, don't you dare leave! Get back here!" Gale yelled. "Hey! Blondie! I'm talking to you! Blondie!"

"She can't hear you." Shadow-Gale materialized behind Gale, hands across his chest. "You let her down, Gale. You let her down when she needed you."

Gale's fingers scraped against the glass. "No…" he said hoarsely. "I wouldn't…"

"But, that's how it is, isn't?" Shadow-Gale presumed. "We aren't ever where we need to be. We aren't ever doing what needs to be done. We're failures."

"'We're…failures'," Gale echoed.

A window appeared beside both Gale's showing an image of a young Gale trying hard to feel the Magic inside a piece of shrapnel.

"Don't you remember that day?" Shadow-Gale murmured. "Remember the day when we knew we wouldn't amount to shit?"

Gale turned his head as he heard his mother's sigh. "What are you doing, Gale?" Levy appeared in the window and walked up to the young Gale.

The young Gale continued to concentrate. "I'm going to move this piece of metal," he told her determinedly.

Levy sighed and knelt beside Gale. "Baby, you know you don't have to be an Iron Mage like your siblings, right?" she tried to remind. "I thought you said you liked earth?"

Young Gale shook his head. "Uh-uh. I'm going to be the greatest Iron Dragon Slayer! Better than the old man!"

A strange cackle. "Kid, you ain't beatin' me at anything."

Gajeel showed up in the window. He grinned at the younger version of Gale oddly. It was not his normal grin. It was more of a sneer. "You're never going to understand metal, so get over it already, kid," he said not kindly. "You're nothing like me or your dear, old grandpa. You're nothing like the rest of this family. You…are nothing."

Young Gale froze. He looked up at his father with his eyes watering. "But… Dad, I—!"

Gajeel turned his back on the younger Gale. "Stay out of my sight," he barked. "I don't want to look at something like you. You're pathetic. And, you'll never be a son of mine."

Gale's eyes darkened at that, blanking into something emotionless. "I'll…never be the son he wanted…"

Shadow-Gale moved closer. "Yesssssssssss, that'sssssssss it," he hissed. "You will never be the son he wanted. You will never be strong. You will never be the hero."

"Never," Gale echoed.

"There issssssssss a darknessssssssss in your heart," Shadow-Gale hissed softly. "A darknesssssss you cannot control. We both know that. But, to become the perssssssssson you want to be, you mussssssst free it."

"How?" Gale wanted to know.

A door appeared before Gale. The mirror was gone. Everything was gone. It was him and the door before him. Even Shadow-Gale had left. Just a door remained. It was a gothic door that held nothing but black and red, the colors of sin, corruption, and death.

"Open the door, Gale," came a pushing command that tried to sound persuasive. "Open the door to the true placcccccccce you belong. Only you may open the door."

Gale lifted his hand. "Only I can…"

"Yessssssssssss," came a hiss. "Give in, Gale. Give in."

Gale put his hand on the door knob. "'Give in'…" His hand wrapped around the door knob and—

—he opened the door.

Overwhelming darkness came to life as the door open. It slipped out with the faint screams of the innocent and the wails of the guilty. It wrapped around a blank-slated Gale. It brought him into the room of darkness. It swallowed him.

A chuckle floated through the realm of mirrors as the door began to close. "Humansssssssss… You are ssssssssssuch fickle creaturessssssssss…"

And, the door closed.

But, right before it closed, a figure snuck into the forbid room.

BANG. BANG. BANG.

Marco avoided the multiple iron clubs in his direction, moving with ease between man and bird. He smirked at Gajeel's frustration. "I cannot believe a mere human would think he could touch me," he mused.

Gajeel smirked. "I can't believe you're such easy prey," he shot back.

Marco flipped onto the top of a building. He ran to the edge as Gajeel caught up on the other side. Marco stopped at the edge to turn back to Gajeel.

And life carried on in Mimosa City.

Marco smirked. "What makes you think you won't kill those innocent people down there?"

"We both know you haven't killed," Gajeel told matter-of-factly. "You don't want to get your pretty, little feathers dirty. No, you left Wolfgang do all the work for you. You let him kill. All you have to do is give him the word and he'll do it." He narrowed his eyes. "All I can't understand is why. Why him?"

Marco laughed.

Gajeel growled. "Something funny?"

Marco had to confirm it. "I don't understand humans' needs to know everything. I only need to know what I like and that's all. Wolfgang understands."

"Is he your puppet?" Gajeel pressed. "Are you his? Why go through all this trouble to kill humans? What, they tear down your home?"

Marco stepped onto the ledge. "I wouldn't question me too much, human. For all you know, at my next cry, Wolfgang will be allowed to kill all he sees and not just your precious mechanic."

Gajeel, this time, laughter. "You stupid raven, don't you see it by now?"

Marco cocked his head in a birdlike fashion. "'See' what?"

Gajeel could not stop laughing. "You stupid raven! Look around! Who's here for Wolfgang to kill?"

Marco narrowed his eyes at what he thought was a stupid question. "What are you talking about? There's humans everywhere!" He looked around just to prove his point.

Gajeel smirked. "Look closer, raven."

Marco gave Gajeel a short glare, but did as told. He looked closely. He saw a little girl run into a cake shop with her mother texting behind her. He saw a bus stop and unload its passengers. He watched as two men talked about MagiCross—

His eyes narrowed.

Wait a minute.

His eyes narrowed on the two men. He watched them closer and closer and closer until—

PSSSST.

The two men glitched.

Marco's eyes were wide. "What?" he whispered. He was in deep disbelief. "No… That can't be…"

"Had the activity in this town recorded on a Lacrima recorder," Gajeel informed. "We knew Mimosa was your next stop, so we had all the people here recorded. Their daily activities, the transport system, even the lights in the building. But, in reality? We're all alone here, birdbrain. There ain't no one in this town besides my team and your little mutt of a doctor."

Marco tried not to be ruffled by that, but you could tell he was ready to flee. "A trap," he said, despising the word. "The prey set a trap for the predators."

"Damn right we did," Gajeel said proudly. "Give it up, bird. It's over."

This time, Marco laughed and darkly so. "I think not." And, he jumped off the ledge to ascend to his raven form.

°•°•°•°

A smirk.

A click.

A hand was ready for the trigger.

°•°•°•°

The raven cawed in triumph as it began to fly away from Gajeel.

°•°•°•°

The finger pulled back.

BANG.

°•°•°•°

Gajeel's eyes glistened as he heard the bullet sail.

I think so…

The bullet of pure magical energy hit the raven that was Marco. The raven's eyes widened as magical energy coursed through him like electricity. He let out a garbled caw to signify his pain, but even that was cut off into silence. The Magic took him, overpowered him, rendered him paralyzed and unable to much more than stare.

One of the sky motorcycles from the Magic Council lowered next to the raven being overwhelmed with Magic. It was Riza, her eyes hard as she watched the raven twitch and barely fight against the Magic. Walt was in the sidecar and did not pant. He only growled at the raven that was getting its punishment. Once the spell was over, Riza held out her hands and the paralyzed raven fell into them, not cawing, only breathing. She cradled him in her arms.

"I never thought I'd be using the paralysis bullet I use on magical creatures on a murderer like you," Riza said in a dark tone. "If it were up to me, you wouldn't be breathing."

"Good thing it ain't up to you."

Riza looked up to see her captain standing on the ledge. He nodded at her in approval. "Great work, Ice Dancer," he complimented. "And, great work to you, Broken Hawk," he added as he looked up at Mikage Tower. It was a soaring tower that was taller than all buildings in Mimosa. It thrived on the power it was given.

"It was nothing, cap."

°•°•°•°

Delgado took off his earmuffs from his position near a window with his gun pointed out the window. He wiped his mouth. "I'm just glad we took down the raven. He seemed to be the trickiest. Let's hope our friends are doing better."

°•°•°•°

Gajeel allowed the wind to overtake him. He closed his eyes as he took a deep breath. "Don't worry, Broken Hawk. From what it smells like"—he opened his eyes—"we've got nothing to fear."

°•°•°•°

Wolfgang ran in his crazed run after the motorcycle. He could smell his prey. He wanted his prey underneath his knife. He wanted her.

Asuna looked through her mirrors to see Wolfgang was still giving chase. "Orion Major, I'm taking a left up here. Keep going straight for about two blocks, then circle back."

"On it," Jackson assured.

Asuna cut into a sudden left and descended onto the street. Jackson kept going straight and did not even glance to see if Asuna was okay.

And, Wolfgang?

He went after the prey he wanted to kill.

He went after Asuna.

Asuna found herself descending down a hill. Even as she went down the hill, the buildings and houses did not go down the hill as well. Instead, walls were built, brick and nothing else. No, Asuna was headed down a steep hill and into a tunnel. Her eyes hardened.

Let's just hope this works. Come on, doctor. It's time to see the patient.

Asuna was quick to disappeared into the tunnel.

A rabid Wolfgang sprinted after her. He stopped just before the tunnel. For the first time, he was hesitant. What was his prey doing? But, then, he threw caution to the wind and followed her.

°•°•°•°

Jackson went two blocks, speeding through the recorded traffic, before he braced himself for a heavy U-turn. "Brace yourselves!" he shouted. He shifted gears before doing a hard right.

Panther Lily pushed himself off the car and extended his wings as Jackson forced the car into a turn. The car swerved around, going through the recorded cars and carriages, before straightening itself out once more.

Jackson panted as he changed gears. "Get in!" he shouted.

Panther Lily wasted no time getting the passenger's seat. Walt jumped into the back seat with no problem.

Jackson shifted gears and the car burst forward. "Okay, Lily, now what?" he called over the com.

°•°•°•°

Asuna sailed down the tunnel with ease. Tile surrounded her along with orange lights every-so yards, but she cared little. Rather than weave through traffic, she sped right through the illusions of cars and carriages.

"Remember that date you had, Orion Major, with that one preppy chick?" Asuna asked.

"Yeah. But, what does that have to do with anything?"

"Remember what you asked us to do when she went psychotic?"

A pause.

Then, a chuckle.

"The mutt won't know what he's getting into."

"This is your love life we're talking about," Asuna reminded playfully. "I don't think women know what they're getting into with you."

°•°•°•°

Jackson grinned. "Shove it, Lily. At least my love life has some good action sequences in it. Your love life is nothing more than hand-holding and cuddling."

Oswald interrupted the conversation. "She doesn't have to take it farther with anyone she doesn't want to."

"Oh, and the knight-in-shining-alchemy finally intervenes," Jackson chortled.

"A—… I mean, Lily can do whatever she wants," Oswald defended.

Jackson shrugged as he turned down the same street Asuna veered into. "I'm just saying it couldn't hurt to have some action in there, right, Lily? What do you say? You and me?"

"I say it sounds like a nightmare," Asuna said flatly. "Besides, everyone knows my first love is meccha. So, thanks, but no thanks."

"Hey, hey, hey, kids, Captain says, 'no fighting'," Gajeel grunted over the com-link. "Lily can do whatever the Hell she wants with whatever man she wants. Hand-holding or gettin' rough in the sack. But, how about you finish your homework before doing any extracurriculars, got it?"

"Oh, come on. You know I hate homework," Jackson played along.

"If your homework ain't wrapped up in the next five minutes, you ain't gettin' dinner," Gajeel threatened.

Jackson made a face of fear and swallowed. "Yes, sir," he mumbled.

Panther Lily chuckled. "After all these years, you've still got it, captain."

°•°•°•°

Gajeel grinned as he hopped down to ground level. "Food's the only way to threaten kids, Silver Falcon. Remember that when you have your own kits, got it?"

"Wh-Wh-What?!" Panther Lily spluttered.

Gajeel closed his eyes and smirked.

Stupid cat. Bet he thinks I don't know it, but I do. He wants his own little runts runnin' around and drivin' him nuts.

Gajeel lifted his head as his eyes opened.

But, one thing's for sure… Before we can even tease my cat, we've got to finish this job.

°•°•°•°

Wolfgang continued to run between cars. They did not acknowledge him. No cars or carriages swerved when he cut in front of them and wove between them. He did not care that they did not see him. He just wanted to see the fear in his prey's eyes.

ZOOOOOM.

Wolfgang effortlessly dodged the missile headed for him. That made him pause when he realized the tunnel began to collapse behind him. A storm of dirt debris attacked him, but an invisible force protected him from such a storm.

PING. PING. PING.

Wolfgang stiffened. His hand reached up to his neck. He plucked out something. He looked down to see he had plucked out large darts. They were not made for humans. They were made for large prey and predators.

His vision blurred slightly.

A smirk. "I think the good doctor never studied anesthesiology."

Wolfgang stumbled a little as he dropped the darts. The debris had settled, but the dirt was still making a haze in the air. His blurred vision looked down the tunnel. The cars and carriages he once saw had disappeared. All he saw was Asuna on her bike, blocking the exit with her gun.

Asuna put down her tranquilizer gun. "High-level tranquilizing agents for only the biggest magical creatures. The data on your physiology was a bit non-human, so I went with a bigger drug dosage." She smirked. "Should be hittin' ya soon, doc."

Wolfgang, in all his struggle, padded to Asuna. He wanted to kill her. He wanted to feel her flesh. He wanted… He wanted…

Wolfgang fell to his knees. He was forced to use his hands and knees to wobbly crawl to Asuna like a newborn. Asuna watched as Wolfgang hauled himself to her. It was amusing, really. Like a baby, he tried to crawl to her. His vision kept going in and out until his arms gave way. He lay on the ground, confused.

STEP. STEP. STEP.

Wolfgang shakily turned his head up to see Asuna looming over him without her gun. She did not look angry at him. She looked at him in no sympathy either. She just gazed at him.

"Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, I, hereby, arrest you for the crimes of murder, double murder, triple murder, and intent of genocide," she said tonelessly. She pulled out something from the pocket of her pants—they were bracelets. She got down on one knee to slip on the bracelets. Instantly, when both were one, they lit up, fired up with energy, and forced the arms to move so they could be reunited with each other.

Wolfgang tried to move, but it was no use.

"My latest creation," Asuna said. "Bracelet forged out of metal with magical properties. Once they're on, they're like parasites and leech onto your body. If you rip them off, you're dead." She stood back up. "So, please, rip them off."

"Hey now," Gajeel warned, "our requester wanted them alive, not dead."

"There will be no bloodshed on your hands," Panther Lily told her.

Asuna groaned. "Okay, okay! Geez. It's like Mom and Dad are teaming up against me," she pouted. "But, it looked like everything worked out for the best."

"It sure did!" came a shout.

Jackson approached Asuna with Panther Lily and Roy. He eyed Wolfgang's paralyzed corpse. "Can't believe the plan I used on my ex worked," he muttered.

"You did date a Rusalka," Panther Lily reminded. "Alakitasian mermaids are notorious for being obsessive and possessive." He shot Jackson a stern look. "You should have known that," he scolded.

Jackson laughed. "I, uh, well, c'mon, Lieutenant, she was a total looker!"

Panther Lily grunted. "There is more to finding a mate than just her attributes." He crossed his arms and upturned his nose. "You should like for the more refined qualities. Her intellect, for example. How she trains for battle."

A strange cackle rang through the com-link. "Givin' love advice, Silver Falcon? Coming from the single Exceed himself? How cute."

Panther Lily blushed a little as everyone laughed over the com-link. "Yes, well…" he spluttered

°•°•°•°

Gajeel road back to the hotel on Riza's motorcycle. Walt was in the sidecar and a cage containing the unconscious raven was with Delgado on his bike.

"All right, kiddies, let's round up the gear and head to base," he called. "Black Salamander, Saturn, you okay?"

°•°•°•°

Oswald was busy shutting down his multiple traps via Portable Archive Lacrima. "We're fine," he answered. "Black Salamander had to take a quick break, but he'll be back soon."

°•°•°•°

"Perfect. Let's get this over and done with, kids." Gajeel tapped his sunglasses to turn them into a tracking device. A musing look crossed his face as he looked at the data presented completed with heart rate monitor, beats per minute, and location.

He's been off the com link for a while now. And, his location disappeared off the grid, but I still have his heart rate. Pipsqueak's alive—I feel that—but he's not here.

Gajeel's eyes narrowed.

What the Hell have you gotten into, pipsqueak?

Where Gale ended up was somewhere he never thought he would be. He was inside a place that did not terrify him or comfort him. He felt like he had seen this place before.

I'm at…a train station?

The train station looked like no one had used it in years. There were a few cobwebs and a lot of dust, but it was relatively neat and tidy. There no trains, no people. It was just a train station. And, with the world tipped into grayscale, everything looked hauntingly beautiful. The light that touched the station was natural and a soft bright.

Gale looked around the train station in the middle of his perplexity. "So… What is this place?"

"It's the place you're meant to be," came a small voice.

Gale turned his head. His eyes widened. He was outside of the train station now. He was standing in a field of tall grass. He could see the train station was a little bit away, but not too far. It seemed like the train station divided a dark forest from the gray field of grass.

"What do you mean?" Gale wanted to know. "Where am I supposed to me?"

A tinkling laugh. "With me, silly."

Gale turned his head and, again, he was moved elsewhere. He was what appeared to be an abandoned train tunnel. Moss had covered the tracks and there were holes in the ceiling that let in soft light. He looked behind him. No train. No people. Just him.

"Where am I?" Gale wondered. He turned his head.

He was somewhere different.

A flood had taken over the land. He found himself standing in none-too-deep water. He looked down to see he was atop train tracks. The field of grass had been overtaken by water. He looked in the distance. A schoolhouse had survived the flood of rain, sitting atop a hill.

How did I get here?

DING. DING. DING.

CHUGGA-CHUGGA-CHUGGA-CHUGGA.

Gale looked behind him to see a train speeding down the tracks like it was nothing. It splashed up water and made waves, but kept going.

DING. DING. DING.

Gale's face did not even show a glimmer of worry as the train approached him.

He blinked.

CHUGGA-CHUGGA-CHUGGA-CHUGGA.

His hair blew in the wind as the train moved.

He turned his head in front of him to see the train had not even hit him. Somehow, it had missed him altogether and continued going on the tracks, chugging along.

Is this really the place where failures go? Is this the place I deserve to be for being a screw up?

Gale sighed. His head sunk low as he put his hands in his pockets.

And, he began to follow the tracks.

Not like I've got something better to do.

And he walked.

He passed a few houses and a church. Some had been affected by the flood. Others had continued to live normal lives. But no sign of human or creature life was present. It was just Gale in a place called nowhere.

A grunt. "You ain't nothin' like me."

Gale continued to walk. He did not even look up to see a shadowed version of his father on the tracks. Shadow-Gajeel looked condescendingly down at his son.

"You ain't ever gonna be like me," Shadow-Gajeel spat. "Nothin' but a pure disappointment."

Gale walked straight through Shadow-Gajeel and continued his stride.

A frown. "You need to cool it with the rage mode, Redfox."

Mary Jane in her grayscale was beside the tracks, arms crossed and eyes closed.

"Lashing out and being a bitch about everything won't solve your problems," Shadow-Mary Jane reasoned. "Why not try yoga instead of biting the hands of your loved ones?"

Gale walked past Shadow-Mary Jane and she dispersed into shadows.

And he kept walking.

A sniffle. "Don't you care about me?"

Gale stopped.

He lifted his head.

There was Luna. She was scraped and scarred, eyes wide and haunted. Her clothes were ripped and her hair was matted.

"You let him come for me," Shadow-Luna whispered. "You let me go."

Gale fell forwards. "Blondie…"

Shadow-Luna's bottom lip trembled. "How can you say you care about me?" She turned her back to him. "You're nothing more than a liar."

Gale reached out to her. "Blondie, wait, I…!"

Shadow-Luna was gone.

Gale was elsewhere.

He had made it do the gateway between the forest and the flooded plains. The forest looked dark and ominous. It looked like it was warning those who approached to not step any further. No signs of life were in the forest. It was silent. And that was rare for a forest.

Gale straightened as he approached the forest. He looked at the entryway. Two guardian snakes made an archway. They looked vicious and malicious with their snake eyes watching for those to eat.

Gale sighed. "Not like I have anywhere else to go." And, he walked forward.

The twin snakes came to life and broke free of heir prison. Gale paused as he found himself in the middle of their prey circle. The snakes were dark with piercing red eyes, the only color in this world. They circled Gale slowly, evaluating him for any weakness.

They spoke to him through telepathy.

Are you worthy?

Gale was confused. "Am I what?"

Are you worthy? the snakes asked.

Gale sighed. "How the Hell am I supposed to know?" he mumbled despondently. "Knowing my luck, probably not."

The snakes stopped circling him. They stayed still. They watched Gale, flicking their tongues. They watched their prey.

Gale closed his eyes. "If you're goin' to kill me, do it now and get it over with."

Silence.

A deeper voice spoke in the recesses of his mind. You have proven you are worthy.

Gale opened his eyes to see he was faced with a tall creature he had only heard in stories and seen in drawings. They were myths that were once real. His eyes widened at the creature.

"A…dragon…?" Gale whispered.

The dragon was darker than black with scales barely seen in its ethereal darkness. It towered over Gale with ruby covering its sclera and its irises and pupils. Its lengthy whiskers flowed in nonexistent wind.

You have proven you are worthy by admitting you are not, the dragon spoke deliberately. You are worthy and may pass through my gate. But know you are not alone.

Gale quirked an eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean?"

The dragon said nothing.

Gale sighed. "Figured I wouldn't really get an answer. This place just gets even more confusing." He walked past the dragon. "Thanks for the no-help. Appreciated and duly noted."

Be careful, brother. You trek into waters darker than our own scales.

Gale whipped around. "The Hell do you—?"

The dragon was gone and the archway of the twin snakes remained.

Gale snorted. "Typical." And, he walked into the forest.

The walk through the forest was not as terrifying or scary as predicted. The silence was relaxing. The darkness was comforting.

I can't feel anything in the earth. If there's any animals here, I would've felt them.

Gale kept going deeper and deeper into the forest. Still, he felt nothing. Still, he heard nothing. He just had darkness and nature combined as his friends and nothing more.

Something crackled and his ears twitched.

He stopped.

I can here…fire. And…I feel something in the earth. A cabin, I think. I don't feel any more vibrations, so I think it's abandoned.

Gale drove himself to move a little faster through the forest. He slashed through the trees and the underbrush as he tried to get closer to the source. He could hear more noises. A faint humming sound. More crackling. Even the occasional whistle or two. Gale forced his way until he came across the thickest of the forest. He gritted his teeth as he kept pushing through the forest. He needed to find the source.

Gale broke free from the thickness of the forest and he found what he was looking for.

It was a small cabin the middle of the woods. The trees naturally thinned out around the house, but still gave protection. There was no earthly path to the steps, but that did not mean there was no path. Steps had worn out the grass and started a natural path, like when elephant continued to walk the same path and made their own cross. Gale saw that smoke came out of the chimney and lights were on.

Someone's home. And that someone probably knows a shit-ton more than me.

Gale stalked forward toward the small cabin. He climbed the steps and went to the screen door. He opened it with ease and knocked on the main door.

The door opened after one knock.

Gale looked around. No one was around him. It was him and solely him. He exhaled loudly. "Oh, what the Hell," he grumbled. He pushed his way into the cabin and was shocked at what he saw. "Woah… Heavy…" he breathed.

The inside of the cabin was colored, not in grayscale. The whole one-room studio space was a nice hickory with pops of color. The kitchen was old to the point that the stove was fire-based, there was no dishwasher, and the refrigerator was a mere ice box. There was a dining room table had a colorful cloth to top it, but that was it. A single chair was its companion. Nothing more. There was a make-shift bed with a grayed quilt and pillows that needed some sewing done. A fire was started in the fireplace and there was a door that seemed to lead to the bathroom, but that was all that was in the one room cabin. Nothing more and nothing less.

"Hello?" Gale called slowly, cautiously. "Umm… Yo? Anyone in here?" He stepped in further. "Um… Yeah, I came here lookin' for some answers, so… Anyone home?" He looked down and his eyes widened. Color had flooded back into his body and clothing. He was no longer in grayscale. He was back in color, all tan skin, red eyes, and black hair. "Weird," he breathed. "Where the Hell am I?"

"Close that door!" came a sudden shout.

Gale whipped his head up, ready to fight. His defenses did not let down when he saw no one in the cabin. "Who goes there?" he snarled.

"Close the door!" came a whimper. "Please! Don't let him in!"

"I'm not doing jack-shit until I see who you are," Gale snapped. "What's going on? Where am I? How did I end up here?"

"He's coming!" came a cry. "He's here!"

Gale looked around. "What do you—?" His eyes narrowed when he understood the concern. The grayscale of outside was beginning to flood the colorful cabin. It was like a disease. Everything it touched, it infected grossly. Gale looked at his hands to see they were losing color in such an obscure drain. "What the Hell is this?" he murmured.

"The door!" came a sob.

Gale looked behind himself and at the door. He tentatively stepped toward it and closed the door. The result was instantaneous. Color stained the cabin once again. The disease of grayscale retreated. Even the tan color of Gale's hands came back at full-force.

"Wow," he murmured. "What was that?"

"You… You shouldn't be here."

Gale looked around. There was still no one in the cabin. "Just who are you?" he asked. "What's going on?"

A frantic murmur swirled around Gale. "It's a trap. He wanted you here. You shouldn't be here. You need to leave!"

"Why?" Gale was sick of walking in circle. "Dammit, why can't I get any straight answers? Where even is this place? Who's 'he'? Who are you?"

"Leave," came an urge instead of answer. "Leave while you can!"

"How the Hell do I even leave?" Gale demanded. "I don't even know where the Hell I am!" He closed his eyes to run a hand down his face. "And every time I friggen turn around, I'm always somewhere—" He opened his eyes to realize he was out of the cabin. He was in the mountainside, standing right in front of a cave full of darkness. His hands dropped to his sides in his weariness. "—else," he finished flatly. "Great. Awesome. Being transported to who-knows-the-Hell-where is totally bitchin'."

Gale peered into the cave with a raised eyebrow. "So, where am I now? What's this place?"

No answer.

Gale turned around only to find himself back at the abandoned train station. "Which means I'm back to square one and the universe hates me," he said blandly. He settled down on one of the benches and relaxed. He exhaled loudly. "Is there anyone who can tell me where I am?" he shouted loudly. Instead of waiting for an answer, he met his arm drop over his eyes. "This is such bullshit," he muttered.

Silence.

"This is the place you go when you've got nowhere else to go."

Gale did not look up to know his shadow counterpart sat on the other side of the bench. He looked different than Gale in response to clothing. He wore a peacock coat and long slacks.

"I have a home to go home to," Gale muttered. "I have friends, family."

"Let's be real now: we both know we were never one to get along with others," Shadow-Gale reminded. "Who's to say they'll miss us?"

"Well, aren't you positive?" Gale grumbled sarcastically.

"I'm the spirit of your Magic," Shadow-Gale answered. "Your conscious. I know your fears and all your weaknesses. This place, this station, lets you get onto a train."

Gale sat up and leaned forward, his eyes staring at nothing in front of him. "Tell me," he murmured, "if I get on this train…what will happen?"

Shadow-Gale closed his eyes and grinned. "The train will take you wherever it feels you should go," he explained. "If you want, it will help you get stronger."

Gale spat. "'Stronger', huh?"

Shadow-Gale's grin broadened. "In every way," he assured. "It will help you grow strong, the life you want to protect so much will never be in danger again."

"Blondie," Gale breathed softly. "She's my top priority. I would do anything to protect her."

"Then, get on the train," Shadow-Gale encouraged. "Protect her."

Gale thought about it. Then, he stood up. "I will," he promised. "If it means she's safe, then I'll do anything."

A shark-tooth smirk emerged, cruel, callous, crazed.

Shadow-Gale hummed. "She is priority," he agreed.

"But, I have one question before I go."

Shadow-Gale opened his eyes and a frown appeared on his face. "And what would that be?" he asked a little warily.

A two-beat pause.

"What's it going to cost me?"

Shadow-Gale was confused and looked at his counterpart. "What do you mean?"

"My old man told me with so much power, comes a price," Gale said simply. "I mean, you would know that, wouldn't you? The price of me having you and breaking the laws of nature is my life force ends the second my Magic Power hits rock bottom. If I get on the train to get some new power, what's the cost? My humanity?"

Shadow-Gale chuckled. "'Humanity' is such an easy word to toss around like 'love' or 'evil'. And, yet, no one uses them correctly. The cost of such great power is little. All you have to do is obey it and the power is yours to wield. Simple."

"No. Not 'simple'," Gale countered. "I know there's a bunch of screwed-up shit in the world that can make me stronger. Magic drugs, demonic weapons—even some weird technique to unlock my second origin of Magic. But, I know the more power I want, the more screwed-up the cost will be."

"So, you're not going to take the power? You won't protect her?" Shadow-Gale challenged.

"I'm not saying I won't protect my Blondie," Gale disagreed. "That's not even an option. But"—he clenched his fists—"I'll do it on the power I earned. Not borrowed and bartered power that was never mine to begin with."

Shadow-Gale abruptly got up. "You idiot," he cursed. "There is no force greater than the one being offered to you! If you don't take it, she'll die and it will be on your head!"

"No. She won't die." Gale turned around.

Hard and determined ruby met with seething black.

"She has Fairy Tail behind her," Gale said as color flooded back into him. "We protect our own. I mean, come on, man, didn't you hear?" He smirked. "Dragons get pretty protective over the chicks they capture."

Shadow-Gale gave his shark-toothed grin, madness radiating off him. "How can you care for someone so weak like her? There's plenty more for you to choose from. All she has is a great ass and tits." He licked his lips. "Even I would screw her. She's nothing more than an object of lust."

Gale lowered his head.

A fanged smirk crept onto his face. "So… I now know your true form…Vito."

Vito continued to stay in his Shadow-Gale form gave a snakelike chuckle. "What gave me away?"

"Besides from your obvious confirmation and the way you objectified the only good in my life?" Gale's smirk broadened when he lifted his finger. "Come here, baby."

Vito hissed when he felt burst from his skin, from the back of his neck. He covered the injury confusedly. "What was that?" he demanded.

Gale caught something and looked at her. "Such a good girl," he cooed. "Vito, meet my little girl." He raised it up for his shadow counterpart to see it. It was a small pebble of peridot. "She's my special little creation. She's learning how to camouflage herself. Ain't she cute?"

Vito growled. "How could you possibly—?"

"I have a connection to my gemstones," Gale answered, interrupting. "Faint, but I do. But, when I want to, I have a strong connection with them to locate them. When we fought at Uncle Ben's, that's when my little girl made her first appearance. And, she's been doing mervallesomente."

Vito sneered. "Huh. So, you aren't as dumb as you look. Not bad. But, you made one mistake: you let me in here." He let out a laugh for all the wrong reasons. "And you don't even know where 'here' is."

"I'm startin' to get the gist of this place," Gale said in actuality. "Maybe not the whole picture, but the general idea. That guy was right—I don't think I should've came here. And, my guess is your little femme dom of a mistress or maybe even your master if you're into kinky shit like that sent you here to get me here." He narrowed his eyes. "I want to know why. Why did they want me here?"

Vito chuckle. "You little idiot," he chimed. "Don't you see? It wasn't you they wanted here. It was me."

Gale whirled around with a growl. "Why the Hell would they want you in my body?"

Vito mirrored Gale's own perfect smirk. "Because you don't know how to use it correctly," he said simply.

"I've been doing pretty well the last sixteen years, now. I think I've got a handle on my bodily functions," Gale snapped.

Vito shook his head. "No. It's not just your body I need. It's the power you fail to recognize."

Gale raised an eyebrow. "Oh, yes, my secret power. That makes sense," he said, sardonic. He stamped his foot and pivoted it, allowing his hand to air bunch the ground. Lapis lazuli appeared on the ground and charged for Shadow-Gale. It wrapped around him in a gemstone grip.

Vito did not even move.

"You don't have the right to be in my body," Gale snarled. "The only right you have is to die in pieces."

"I thought you did not kill?" Vito reminded.

"My bad. I should rephrase that." Gale straightened and lowered a fist as he produced a blade of diamond as an arm blade. "I will never kill another human being whether he deserve it or not. But, when it comes to shithead likes you?" Ruby glinted dangerously. "I will do everything I can to make sure you never see the light of day."

Vito sneered as he phased through the lapis lazuli. "I know how to use this power more than you, Earth Dragon. I know exactly what this place hold."

"But I know for a fact you can't use it," Gale said smartly. "If I'm right about this place, only the soul of the body can use its power."

"Fair enough," Vito agreed. "But, without you able to use this power, you'll never get rid of me. Your little gems and your dirt can't rid of me." He copied Gale's move of making an arm blade. "All I need to do is tire you out. The rest will be history."

Gale readied himself. "I've got two words for you: fuck you."

Vito smirked. "My pleasure." And, he charged first.

Gale flicked his other arm and another arm blade was made. He brought his blade up to block the attack.

CLANG.

Vito pressed against Gale's twin blades with his own.

Gale grinned. "Attacking first? You know that means you lose, right?"

Vito grinned back. "I wouldn't be too sure, cugno." He pushed away from Gale and back-flipped.

"You lost the right to call yourself 'famiglia', you bastard," Gale snapped.

Vito dispersed his arm blades to draw power into his hands. "Rose Quartz: Shadow Sword!" he chanted. A grayed version of Gale's rose quartz sword appeared in Vito's hands. "So long as I'm inside this place, I am part of you. You are becoming like a brother to me the more seconds pass by."

"Oh, Hell no," Gale raged. "I have one bro and he's a womanizing, pain-in-the-ass to deal with. I refuse to have another one."

Vito shrugged. "Deal with it."

"Again, fuck you," Gale snapped. "Enough talk. More fight." He rushed forward in his anger.

Vito did the same.

Two battles were going on for the same war: the battle of the mind and the battle of strength for the winning of the war of power. The battle of the mind was the way their eyes looked at each other. It was the way Gale's eyes seethed of hatred while Vito was smug. In the battle of the mind, Vito had the upper-hand. But, when it came to brute strength, Gale was winning, hands down. He was well-versed in the way of his own Magic. He knew how to bend, how to move like his gemstones while Vito did not. Gale ended up injuring Vito in the side and cheek, forcing Vito's eyes to flash in subtle anger before remaining calm.

Gale managed to do a butterfly kick, allowing his blade to scrape the ground, before his arms came up.

Vito staggered back and looked to see Gale's blade had injured his chest in a long streak and his arm. "Damn human," he cursed.

"Hey! Eyes on me!"

Vito looked up—

—and it was too late.

Gale landed a clean punch on Vito's left eye.

Vito grunted as he fell onto his back from the force of the punch. His shadow sword disappeared as a result and the bruises was beginning to form over his eyes.

A shadow loomed over him.

Vito looked up to see Gale standing over him. Gale put a foot on Vito's neck and his blade poking Vito's chest.

"You aren't stealing my Magic away from," Gale decided. "My Magic is my own to control and it's my responsibility to grow strong or be weak. Cheaters never prosper and my mom didn't raise a cheater."

Vito cackled, flicking a forked tongue. "You think I'll be the lasssssssssst? There will be more who come for you and for your precioussssssssss 'Blondie'."

"That might be so," Gale agreed.

He jerked his arm downwards.

His blade had pierced Vito straight through the heart.

"But, you won't be one of them," Gale finished. He turned his blade and pulled it out, black blood dripping off it. "Now, get the Hell out."

"You might've killed me, but I can't return," Vito pointed out.

Gale smirked. "Y'know, Vito, you always had a way of talking too much," he noticed. He rid himself of his arm blades. "It's time for us to go."

Vito raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about thissssssss time?"

Gale pointed.

Vito looked to see a train had arrived at the station. Unlike its surroundings, it was a colored train of sleek silver and light blue. It hissed as it settled down in the station, letting out steam.

Vito's eyes widened. "Wait, no…" he whispered. "You couldn't have…"

"You told me this train will take me wherever I need to go," Gale reminded. "I know enough that this train is a part of me and I want to get the Hell out of here and back into the real world. I got people on the other side I need to see."

Vito began to panic. "You can't!" he blubbered. "You can't make me!"

Gale grabbed Vito's collar and began to drag his body to the train as the doors opened. "Oh, but I can. Like you said, I'm the earth dragon. We do whatever we please."

Vito tried to move, but he could feel his body fading in and out of existence.

No… Missssssstressssssss won't be pleasssssssssed… I can't….

Gale stepped onto the train and threw Vito's body to the other side. Vito's head hit the wall as the doors shut.

The train began to move out of the station.

Vito glared at Gale with all the hatred in the world. Then, he smirked. "Just remember, cugno: my mistress and her family will come for your little plaything. And, then, they'll come for you."

"Let them come."

Vito was confused when Gale smiled dangerously.

"They'll see the true strength of a pissed-off dragon when his princess is messed with," Gale finished. He tapped the pole of the train. "Now, let's get out of here, huh?" He closed his eyes. "Take us back," he commanded.

Vito began to hiss and cry out in his fury. "No! No!"

And, from the outside of the chugging train, the window lightened and lightened until white poured from them.

The task force converged back at the hotel room. A paralyzed Wolfgang was put out in a cage on the balcony and Marco the raven was held in an electric cage on the balcony as well.

Jackson plopped on the bed and cracked his neck. "This is the best part of the operation: relaxing."

Asuna punched Jackson's stomach, making him grunt. "We still have to write up our reports and check-in, doofus."

Jackson groaned, holding his gut. "I knew you loved me, Freeman, but the name-calling and violence ain't necessary."

Asuna hmphed as she went to Oswald and settled on his lap. "It is when dealing with your ass," she muttered, nuzzling into Oswald.

Riza allowed Walt and Roy to sniff and cover her in licks, laughing. "Just like old times," she murmured.

"I have Commander Gryder on standby," Oswald called out. "Whenever you are ready, captain."

Gajeel threw down his sunglasses, then nodded. "Call him."

Oswald pressed a button. There was a ringing noise for a total of three seconds. A holographic version of Mest appeared hovering over a plate of Lacrima. He looked around with a smile.

"Success?" he presumed.

"Of course," Gajeel grunted. "What do ya take my crew for? Amateurs?"

Mest chuckle. "Well, I did have to ask," he reminded. "I expect a written report within this week. I'll be by with my enforcers once this call ends."

Gajeel nodded. "Understood."

"Then, we're done here." And, Mest disappeared.

Panther Lily looked around. "Where's Gale?" he wondered.

"Bathroom," Oswald answered.

Delgado raised an eyebrow. "Still?"

Gajeel shrugged. "Stress does a lot and this is a high-stress situation," he reminded as he walked to the bathroom. "Pack up your shit and be readied to move to the rendezvous point." He knocked on the door. "Hey, pipsqueak? You doin' all right?"

Silence.

Gajeel knocked again. "Pipsqueak?" he called.

Silence.

Gajeel grew worried. "Pipsqueak, open the door," he commanded.

Silence.

Gajeel hardened. "You've got three…two…on—"

The door slammed open with a calm Gale on the other side.

"Calm it down, old man," Gale soothed. "I'm right here."

Gajeel looked at his son up and down. "What the Hell took you so long?"

Gale raised an eyebrow. "You really want to go there?"

Gajeel ruffled Gale's hair. "You're disgusting," he guffawed.

"I inherited that trait from you. It's purely y-linked," Gale grinned.

Gajeel rolled his eyes. "Stop being a smartass and gather your shit. We leave soon to the rendezvous point."

Gale nodded. "Yes, captain."

Gajeel appraised his son. "You did well…for a rookie. Don't think this will be a regular thing, though. You haven't even been trained for this."

"Then, train me."

Gajeel raised a pierced eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"Train me," Gale insisted. "Come on. I need to know what to do in situations like this. I'm, like, have your genes. I have it in me to be able to do this."

Gajeel frowned. "We'll talk about this later," he dismissed. Walking off was his way to say they were done with the conversation.

Gale hardened.

If Vito wasn't lying, then I need to push myself to limits. Not for me. But, for her.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Fifteen minutes later…

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Mest watched as his enforcers loaded their prisoners into their specialized carriage. "Well, that takes care of that," he said. "I just have some paperwork to do, but that can be done later." He turned to the task force with a smile. "From the Magic Council, your efforts have been appreciated and noted. You will receive compensation for your work."

"Damn right we will," Gajeel grunted. "Working on Halloween out of all days. Don't ever call me when it's Christmas."

"Wouldn't dream of it," Mest assured. He checked his watch. "Looks like it's about to be November first anyways."

Gale's eyes widened. "Wait… What time is it?"

Mest read the time. "Eleven-forty-nine." He looked up at Gale. "Why?"

"Shit," Gale cursed. "This can't be happening." He looked frantically at his father. "Dad, my Compact!"

Gajeel took it out and threw it at Gale.

Gale caught it to turn it on. "Come on, come on, come on, go faster!" he barked.

Jackson was confused. "What's going on?"

Gajeel saddened as he watched his son curse everything. "He isn't going to make it," he answered cryptically.

Gale's Compact turned on to his lock screen. The time 11:50 showed on his clock along with several missed calls from Luna.

His mouth went emotionless.

"I… I can't keep my promise to her," he breathed. He felt so powerless, so helpless.

And that made him…

…angry.

His eyes glinted in anguish as he let out a roar. He punched the earth.

CRACK.

A large indent in the earth crackled underneath him in his rage.

Gajeel's eyes softened and he looked away. "I'm sorry, pipsqueak," he murmured.

And all the task force and Mest could do watch as the Earth Dragon felt entirely…

…defeated.

Backstage was full of murmurs and people in black running from one side to another. The stage crew was prepared for the last act of the Hallow's Eve Spell-tacular with only minute and picky details being looked at. Vinyl had set up a small orchestra at the base of the stage in their own pit boat. The instruments were tuning while the two lead singers made sure they were ready for their performance. Luna was off-stage and to the left with Ena nitpicking at her costume.

"And…done!" Ena straightened up to smile at Luna. "Hair, make-up, and costume is in-place! Now, to add the finishing touch: your mask."

Luna let out a deep exhale. "I can do this," she told herself. "Don't look at anyone but Cane and I should be fine."

"That's right, L," Ena agreed as she brought up the mask.

"Maybe I should go find him," Luna said. "I mean maybe just to go over everything one more time—"

"You did that and you are ready," Ena promised sincerely. "Trust in your partner, L. Have faith in him and in yourself."

Luna exhaled again. "Right. Trust in him," she agreed. She peeked about. "Is, um…? Is Gale out there?"

Ena blinked, then looked away. "I… I don't know," she admitted quietly.

Luna paused. There was heavy disappointment that thrummed in her eyes, but she tried hard not to let it show. She tried to think positively. She tried. "Oh… Well, that's okay. He did say he had a job to do. I just hope he's not hurt or anything." She meant that. She meant that wholeheartedly. But, still… She looked down at her costume and swallowed. "Maybe I could call him one more time?" She posed it as a question rather than a demand. She did not know what to do.

Ena understood and had the Compact ready. "Here. Make it quick. Vinyl and her pit orchestra is ready." And, she whisked away with the mask.

Luna took the Compact and darted backstage. She dialed the number she knew by heart as she tried to stay out of the stage crew's way.

The phone call went straight to voicemail.

"Hey. This is Gale. You know what to do. And, for the record, I probably won't listen to this anyways."

There came a beep.

Luna was quick with her words. "Um, hey, Gale, it's Luna, but you probably knew that. I don't care if you're not here. It's okay. I just wanted to make sure you're okay. Please, let me know when you get home. Bye." She hung up quickly and closed her eyes. She inhaled slowly. Then, she exhaled.

It's okay, Lu, don't be afraid. This is the time to be brave, with or without Gale. For all I know, he could be out in the audience. I just have to trust in myself and in Cane. We'll do great tonight. I have to believe that.

Luna opened her eyes with renewed conviction in them.

I do believe that.

°•°•°•°

Ena was patiently waiting when Luna came back. She looked at Luna expectantly. "Ready?"

Luna smiled as she handed over her Compact. "No, but I'm going to dance anyways," she laughed.

Ena laughed as well as she took Luna's Compact and put it in her pocket. "No business is like show business, darling," she teased. "Now, let's put on the mask, shall we?"

Luna nodded eagerly and closed her eyes.

Ena took her time to place the mask just right on Luna. She made sure it fit her nose and around her eyes correctly before letting it go. Her eyes flicked to make sure the masquerade mask stayed in place. When it did, she sighed her relief. "Okay. Now, you're all set," she assured.

Luna opened her eyes to beam at Ena. "Thanks for being here for me, E," she appreciated tremendously. "I mean it. You're the best friend a girl could ever have. And, the best fashion designer."

"Obviously," Ena agreed. "Now, take your place. Nod to the manager when you're ready."

"I will," Luna promised as she moved towards the stage.

"And, L?" Ena called back.

Luna stopped, turned around, and raised in eyebrow in questioning.

Ena smiled. "You're going to do brilliant. I love you."

Luna smiled as well and mouth a thank you and I love you too before running onstage. She got to her spot. She was center stage and poised herself to become the center of attention. She closed her eyes.

Remember what Auntie Libra told me. I'm not 'Luna Dragneel of Fairy Tail' anymore. I'm the lady of a rival nation. I'm supposed to be innocent and clueless. I'm not supposed to know what Cane is thinking. I have to think just like my character, so think, Lu. Think.

Luna placed herself in the mindset and body of her character. She was starting off innocent, like a ballerina. She was in fifth position, but more relaxed. She had nothing to fear. She was merely a lady dancing at a ball in her kingdom.

I am Lady Lucia, daughter of the duke. I'm at a ball my parents are throwing for the sake of my brother's birthday and nothing more.

She turned her head and gave a tiny nod.

The stage manager spoke in shushed words into the headset.

°•°•°•°

The lights of Fairy Tail and the soft music playing dimmed into nothingness—save for the lights in the pit boat. The guild hall went black, but no one was terrified. In fact, everyone was excited for what was to come.

Vinyl gave a saucy four-count into a tango rhythm and looked at her string section and pianist. She gave the downbeat. The violin one and two started off with a melody split into a higher and lower ranger while the piano gave the thrumming tango beat to it all. No drums were needed right now. The violas, the cello, and the bass were all doing pizzicato to follow the beat of the piano.

°•°•°•°

Luna let out a breath.

Here we go. Like Auntie Libra said, I am the innocent lady.

°•°•°•°

Within the fourth measure, a repeat was coming back to the beginning. However, the trumpets and trombones were ready to come in this time. Vinyl moved to a comfortable cut-time conducting and gave a gesture when the repeat started, for the brass to come in.

°•°•°•°

Luna set herself to spin.

It's time.

°•°•°•°

The curtains were pulled back.

The vamp had started with the brass players coming in on half notes.

The curtains revealed a set stage. The background was that of a castle reception hall with characters painted into the scene. Though, none cared for the backdrop. Or the innocent lighting of magenta and gold and cerulean. No. All cared for the maiden dressed in white as she swept herself into a spin. She bounded out of it and landed on her toes. She pulled herself into an arabesque with a high chin and light arms and spun herself into a nice high-kick she paused for a moment on, throwing herself back in a dramatic flair and losing herself in the music. She dropped forward into another spin, going off of center and into the diagonal of the center. She paused when she saw the audience and gave her rehearsed, poised smile and did a curtesy as though to welcome them.

Vinyl looked up at the male singer and caught his gaze. She cued him in.

Luna knew it was time to face Cane.

This is it. Cane, we can do this.

And, on the first downbeat, Luna turned to meet her partner.

And, she was stunned.

Cane…?

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Fairy Adventure

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Luna could hardly believe it. The count from the rival nation looked dapper as ever, even if he was elusive and mysteriously cloaked in black. He was given a top hat to wear as well as a noble coat with a cape that flooded down the shoulders. He wore black gloves—the count was not allowed to touch his beloved—and a black vest and button down. He was supposed to look dark and terrifying with the only color on him gold to stand for the sun. But, it was his eyes that stunned Luna. They were hidden behind white material that covered the eyes of the mask.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Mitsumeau sono shisen tojita sekai no naka

Kizukanai furi wo shite mo yoi wo satoraresou

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Within the first word, both gazes had met. Then, Luna spun and looked away, taking the part of the shy lady, daughter of the duke. She was coy. She had never had experience with a man like that.

The count had taken his own steps towards her. He had taken a step closer, raising his hand and letting it fall. He spun, using a kick to drive him, and landed back on his feet, his hand reaching out to Luna.

Within the first word of the second line, Luna glanced back at him, then turned away, flaring her skirt. She chassed, step-ball-change with an added flair of her hands flowing through the air to make a circle, then spun herself to face the count, feet in fourth position while she held a hand out to him.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Yaketsuku kono kokoro

kakushite chikazuite

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

The count had taken vast steps to get to his lady. She shied away from him, trying once again lose herself in the music. She was surprised when she spun around and the count's hands took her own in a dance. She looked down, blushing and nervous, but the count lifted her chin on the last big beat.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Toiki kanjireba

shibireru hodo

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

The count smirked as he showed off, forcing himself into the lead and the lady as the follower. He led her into a dip, having her hook a leg around his own. He guided her back, letting her swing her head lugubriously before bringing her back up sharply to him.

The lady tried to catch her breath, to speak to the count, but he only smirked more as he lifted her up with no effort at all and swung her around. The orchestra increased with two downbeats and their upbeat counterparts. By the time the music paused, the count set down the lady and readied them for another dance and passion and uncertainty.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Arifureta koigokoro ni ima wana wo shikakete

Wazukana sukima nimo ashiato nokosanai yo

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

At this point, the audience was captivated with the love story presented to them. And, at this point, Luna was too. The count led the lady into a modified waltz for cut-time that was abruptly cut off as he spun her out. Then, spun her back in again. The lady, intrigued, was becoming looser around the count that she could not unmask. She gave a flirty smile of her own as she rolled her hips down before rolling to meet him again. She circled him like a lioness assessing her mate, a finger trailing down his body just to give him a little tease.

The count had enough of the vixen's teasing.

He tried to grab her hand to stop her, but the lady knew the game well and decided she would take the lead. She shimmied away in her heels. It was the way of women to do such a thing. To walk away, sashaying our hips, and always knowing the man we wanted would follow.

And, follow the count did.

He hurried after her steps like a cat begging for attention. He grabbed her hand and spun her close. The two became face-to-face once again with the lady leaning on the count for support. Her eyes were fueled for the desire to see the man behind the mask, but it was the mysterious air that the count wanted to entertain his beloved with. He grazed her cheek, not wanting to part with her, but the lady pushed away from him and gave a flashy spin to leave. The count pursued. He had waited long enough to catch sight of his beloved and she would not get away from him. But, the lady did not give into his demands. She played by her own rules. She would get him to take off his mask.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Mie suita kotoba dato kimi wa yudan shiteru

Yoku shitta gekiyaku nara nomihoseru kigashita

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

The game of cat and mouse had turned into a flirtatious game between the sly dog and the teasing vixen. The count came behind the lady and raised her hands. His own hands wandered down her arms and reached to her sides. She nearly caved. It felt right to be with the count. She could feel her arms go down and her body tremble.

It was then the lady realized her actions and snapped out of it with a push to him and an angry ruffle of her skirt. She was not one to fall for a man's games. Not now or ever. She turned away from the count in disinterest and made her way to the right of the stage.

This was the thrill of the dance of tango. It was not the steps. It was not the planned motions. It was everything about it that was not planned. It was the flirtation of the dance. It was the way the two parts moved with each other. The female was the object of affection, the prize of it all. She was the seductress, even if she did not mean it, and would show interest if she wanted or walk away in disinterest.

It was the male who wanted to win her heart. It was him who sought the hand of her and would do anything to get her, even if it meant lowering his pride. He would seduce the seductress. He would chase after her. For he always got what he wanted.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Sabitsuku kusari kara

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

The count slid towards the lady and took her hand. He could not let her get away.

The lady whipped around to look back at him, upset and done with his games.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Nogareru atemonai

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

The lady ripped her hand away as she spun to the right, going into a step-ball-change, before turning away from him with her hand out to stop him.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Hibiku byoushin ni aragau hodo

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

The count moved towards her in a prowl. He took her hand, watching carefully as she tensed. He allowed himself to come behind her. His gloved hand slid onto her waist while his other hand intertwined with hers. When the orchestra did their marcatos on the two down and upbeats, the count spun out the lady. She tried to run, but he held her back. He would not let her get away.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Tatoeba fukai shigemi no naka suberikomasete

Tsunaida ase no kaori ni tada okasaresou

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

This time, their steps were in sync with one another. They moved as a unit. They moved as though their hearts and minds were connecting. Even as their hands parted, they face each other and mirrored each other's movements, going in opposite directions of each other that led into an eventual circle of dance.

As the orchestra fell into their feature of the song and the vocalists were given a rest, the count and the lady were at opposing ends of the stage. They were at opposing ends of the king's ball in the story. The daughter of a duke and the rival count were falling in-love at this point of the tale. No one at the ball had even realized, but the lady did and it frightened her so. She ran off, much to the count's dismay. He tried to rush after her, but was stopped as a group of dancers whisked onto the dance floor in their masquerade attire and with rhythm in their feet. In his anguish, the count left the ball to search for his love.

Vinyl looked at the pianist to improv and the pianist took to it easily, letting keys fall and sink then rise and ride the wave of the chord progression. The interlude of the song was not a long one. It showed the ball at its peak with dancers poised and having a joyous time at the duke's ball. Each pair had their own style. One pair did a series of lifts. Another pair were more intimate and seldom left the company of the other's body. Another pair were eloquent in their dance and took to less touchy moves and more grand moves.

And the audience was captivated by it all.

The dancers parted from the stage, some leaping, others spinning and running off on the tips of their toes, but they all revealed that the lady of the land had left her castle for the comfort of the gardens. She was in the East Garden that held her favored flowers: the moonflowers. They were flowers so beautiful, only Mother Moon could make them blossom with her touch and gentle gaze. She sat in front of one of the tiered fountains with an angel spouting water. She did not know what to do. She needed time to think, time to breathe. She needed air. She needed space. She needed answers.

Vinyl gestured to the male vocalist.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Arifureta koigokoro ni ima wana wo shikakeru

Wazukana sukima nozokeba

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

The count came out into the gardens in steps well-rehearsed and eyes on the most precious sight in the world: his beloved. The lady noticed him and stood up, fearful. She tried to back away from him. She needed him to get away from him.

The count held out his hand to her and approached her like a stranger approaching a cornered puppy: deliberately and slow-stepped. He did not want to scare the one in which he intended to love. He wanted to seduce her. He wanted to love her.

The lady kept her eyes on the count as he approached her. She allowed him to come near her. His hand went to her cheek and caressed it. He was apologizing for his overwhelming passion. He was sorry.

The lady raised a hand to his and gave it a gentle squeeze. She pulled his hand down to intertwine their fingers. She forgave him.

The count took her other hand and led her to the center of the garden. They were away from wandering eyes. They were away from the enemy. He could be with her in his true form.

They stopped in the center and gazed at each other. He could see her eyes in the moonlight, but she saw nothing. Her hands let go of his to trail up to his mask. She wanted to know the eyes of the man she was starting to love. She wanted to see him. She wanted to know him.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Tsukamaete

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

He caught her hands, surprising her.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Tatoeba fukai shigemi no naka suberikomasete

Tsunaida ase no kaori ni tada okasareteru

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

The count spun the lady in an unexpected spin and the dance picked up from there. They were back to their tango of seduction. They danced in a circle, their moves mimicking each other without fail. They had learned each other's strengths and weaknesses in their dancing. They learned where to push the other and when to draw back. They learned how their mind worked, how their souls worked. In the efforts of their dance, a phenomenon occurred. A white aura pulsed from Lady Lucia. It was her Magic comforting her, embracing her. It made her ensemble for the evening glow like a star. The count found himself reacting in the same way. Black radiated off him and he looked like a gentle beast in the night, an intimidating force of black energy. Sparks of white and black broke off from the duo like little stars and dropped onto the moonflowers of the garden.

And, as if by Magic, the moonflowers awoke from their slumber and bloomed.

The count and lady eventually ended up in each other's arms once again. The count spun around with the lady in his arms, a knee kneeling on him while the other was curled in the air. He placed her back down lightly and she spun away from him. He would not let her get far. He chased after her as she sashayed her hips and he pulled her back to him, her back against his chest. He led her across the stage in light steps, then twirled her to face him.

They waltzed as the violins took over the melody once again. They knew this was their last dance. They knew this was all they had. So, they used as much as they could to get from it.

As the last two big beats were around the corner, the count spun out the lady to spin her into him, she leaned on him with a knee pressing into his thigh. Her eyes met his mask and her hand curled around the back of his neck. Their lips were close. She could feel herself leaning forwar—

And, then he abruptly dipped her. He held her as she arched her back for him, eyes closed as though she were ready for the count to do as he pleased. The count had done it. He had seduced the lady of his rival. He had won her heart. And, for evermore, he would keep it.

Silence.

Utter silence.

"That…was amazing!" came a yell.

And a burst of shouts and crows flooded the air.

No longer was there a garden of moonflowers. No longer was there Lady Lucia and the mysterious count. No longer was there a grand ball. It was Luna and Cane back in their guild hall. It was the Hallow's Eve Spell-tacular.

Per cue, Vinyl did the Cantarella Playoff, starting the orchestra off on their marcatos.

Cane brought Luna back up and spun her out. The two did their honorary bows as the crowd roared with applause. Luna stepped away gracefully and did a twirl into a curtsey. She gestured to Cane. Cane took off his top hat to give an exaggerated bow.

Luna looked at the top of Cane's head. He had been given a wig to wear of black hair with a low ponytail.

Wow. He really looks like someone else.

Cane straightened himself and put on his top hat. Luna let out a gasp of surprise when he twirled her back into his arms. She pressed a hand against his chest to steady herself, but still…

LUB-DUB. LUB-DUB. LUB-DUB.

Luna stared into the masked eyes of her partner. Her eyes were wide in surprise as she tried to keep herself together. She was breathing a little heavily and sweat glistened from her body, but that was not making her heart beat faster. It was her partner.

I feel so…weird. I've never felt like this with Cane. I feel safe and warm and…

She did not even notice either of them were leaning closer to each other. She could feel her eyes closing.

…light…

The curtains made a dramatic show of closing shut as the orchestra finished with their last downbeat with the lights shutting off.

Luna felt Cane let her go and disappear from her grasp. It was too dark for her to see him. "Cane!" she called. "Cane!" Dim lights came back on and Luna flinched at the sudden source, squinting her eyes. "Cane!" she called. "Cane, wait!"

Ena was the one to stop Luna. "L, let's get you out of that costume," she insisted. "I need to clean it before your sweat denatures some of my fibers."

Luna allowed Ena to pull her away, but could not help and search for Cane across the stage. The stage crew was already setting up the stage for the next band to arrive.

Cane… Luna thought. What…was that?

Ena took Luna backstage. A number of stage crew members and the dancers of the court congratulated Luna for an outstanding performance. She was humble as she accepted the praise, blushing cutely, and was sincere as she gave her own appreciation and congratulations to everyone who helped made the dance as wonderful as it could be. When Ena passed the dressing room, Luna glanced back at it in confusion.

"Um, E?" Luna called worriedly. "Where are we…?"

"Just a little something-something for my best friend," Ena said simply. "You deserve it."

Luna turned back to Ena with furrowed eyebrows. "What are you…?"

Ena turned to dual doors and stopped. She gave Luna a sheepish smile as she brought out Luna's Compact and gave it to her. "Sorry about this," she apologized in advanced.

Nothing made sense to Luna. "'Sorry about' wha—at?!"

Ena had shoved Luna into the room, causing her to stumble and fall on her hands and knees. As the door shut behind Luna, she got up in a grumble and brushed off the dirt. "I am so getting you back for this." She shook out her hair. "Now, what did she want me…?" Her words were killed off when she saw what was around her.

She knew what Ena wanted her to see.

The spirits of the Dragneel family and the Dragneel family themselves had all gathered in a room with wide grins on their faces and amusement in their eyes. "Surprise!" they chorused. "Congratulations, Luna!"

Luna was taken back. No, she was more than taken back—she was completely shook. "What…? I mean I… Wait, what?" she spluttered.

Lucy stepped forward to Luna. "We wanted to congratulate you, baby," she told her daughter. "What you did was amazing out there."

"Hell yeah it was!" Natsu bounced forward with Happy on his head and pinched Luna's cheeks. "My baby girl was dancing her butt off and made her papa proud!" he howled.

Happy raised a paw. "Aye, sir! Your dancing was amazing!"

Luna laughed as she playfully smacked her father's hands away. "Papa…!" she groaned. She looked up at Happy and beamed. "Thanks, Happy! I'm glad you liked it!"

Igneel and Luke appeared on either side of Luna. They kissed their sister's cheek in unison. "You did great, sis!" they praised. "Awesome job!"

"Thanks, guys!" Luna appreciated.

Nashi hugged Luna from behind tightly. She whispered in Luna's ear, "And that dress makes your butt look amazing. If you were trying to get a certain boy's attention, you certainly got it now."

A tick mark came off Igneel and Natsu's heads. "Luna's too young for boys!" they growled.

Luke sighed. "Not this again…"

Luna blushed at her sister's words. "Well, don't worry. There isn't any boy," she promised, shooting Nashi a glare. Her eyes flitted over her family. "But, really. Thank you so much," she appreciated softly. "I thought I was going to do terrible."

"You did beautifully, baby," Lucy cooed. "Certainly better than your papa's dancing."

Natsu grinned. "You love my dancing, Lucy! You're just jealous you aren't as cool as me!"

Nashi rolled her eyes, snorting. "Papa, you're not cool."

And there was Natsu sulking in the corner with a dark aura around him. "How could she even say that about me? I'm still cool," he blubbered.

Happy rubbed Natsu's hair. "Not really."

Natsu sulked even more. "Whose side are you on, fur ball?" he grumbled.

Luna turned to the Celestial Spirits that had come through the gate to see her and approached them. "I'm so glad all of you could come!" she said cheerfully.

Lucy's range of spirits had grown over the years. She kept her ten Golden Zodiacs, but the amount of silver keys she had increased. An eagle rather large for its size and had horns on its head was perched on the shoulder of Sagittarius. A man wearing a dolphin suit looked comfortable with Plue in his hands and Pyxis waddling right next to him. A rather pompous crane wearing expensive designer stood on one leg, speaking into a Compact while he checked his watch. The last two added were a pair of twin hunting dogs. They looked like regular hounds with drooping ears. Their pelts were dazzling in stardust and they seemed to shimmer each time they moved. They wore honorary collars boring the names Lelantos and Actaeon as well as the address of the Dragneel residence, but that was not their unique trait. Each one seemed to have one glowing eye and one normal eye. Lelantos had a glowing eye on the right while Actaeon had a glowing eye on the left. They were each other's counterparts in that way.

Scorpio looked at Luna with a grin and a thumbs-up. "We are here to support you, Luna!"

⌜CELESTIAL SPIRIT

Name: Scorpio

Occupation: Celestial Spirit

Magic: Sand

Likes: beaches Dislikes: winter

Special Note: Scorpio is the official husband of Aquarius! His kind, sandy soul is what the raging, watery soul of Aquarius needs—and he loves his Bahama mama!⌟

Aries was tucked underneath Loke's arm. She still looked young as usually and wore a proud smile on her face than a tentative one. "W-We really loved your dance, Luna. It w-was am-mazing," she stammered. "Oh, sorry," she apologized quickly.

⌜CELESTIAL SPIRIT

Name: Aries

Occupation: Celestial Spirit

Magic: Wool

Likes: knitting Dislikes: loud music

Special Note: Aries might be soft and cuddly, but she's more than willing to defend her master and friends! Even her boyfriend wouldn't mess with her when she shows her true spirit! ⌟

Loke kissed Aries' forehead. "All of us wanted to be here for you, Luna. You're our niece. We support all of our nieces and nephews," he reminded. He made a face. "As long as it doesn't have to deal with Igneel's fire-belching competition."

"That was a life-or-death competition!" Igneel justified. "And, I won!"

Natsu was out of his stupor at that. "No, you didn't! I did!" he said. "I'm the king of fire-belching!"

Igneel growled. "You can't be king of everything!"

Natsu pointed at the top of his head for a crown of fire to appear. "I'm wearing the crown so I'm the king," he reasoned smugly. "What do think about that?"

Happy leapt from Natsu's head, comically burnt and his tail on fire. "I think you're a big jerk for setting me on fire like that!" he wailed. "Charla!"

Natsu grew panicked and chased after Happy around the room. "Happy, wait! I'm sorry, little buddy, I forgot you were there!"

"You're making me feel worse!"

Luna was surprised when she saw Libra in the crowd of Celestial Spirits. "Auntie Libra!" she gasped. "You were here?"

Libra bowed her head in answer. "Yes. I wanted to see my little star shine on stage," she spoke with her deep and mysterious voice.

⌜CELESTIAL SPIRIT

Name: Libra

Occupation: Celestial Spirit

Magic: Gravity Change, part-time dance instructor

Likes: total submission Dislikes: N/A

Special Note: Libra enjoys the art of balance and the art of dance. If you're lucky, she might even dance for you!⌟

Luna ducked her head, a hand coming up to rub her arm. "Did I…do okay?" she wanted to know?"

Libra chuckled. "My little star, you were fantastic," she promised. "And, your partner complimented you perfectly. I could feel the balance between you too. Darkness and light—sun and moon. Whoever he was, I must thank him for making the dance unique to you two and you two alone."

Luna scrunched up her face in confusion. "What do you mean 'whoever he was'?" she wondered. "Wasn't it—?"

"Places! Places!" cried the stage manager. "One minute until we run!"

"Thank you, one!" came the appreciative murmur of the crew.

Lucy smiled. "It's about time for the Spell-tacular to continue." She looked around in the room. "Is everyone ready to celebrate Halloween a little longer?"

"Aye, sir!" everyone chorused.

Natsu stopped chasing Happy to grin. "Then, let's party, people!" he howled.

And, just like that, everyone flooded out of the room. They talked amongst themselves for the excitement of the party. Scorpio was ready to get it on with Aquarius and was trying to persuade her into going back to their home in their realm afterwards to get hot and heavy. Capricorn was being the type of fatherly-stern to Lyra and set a limit on the amount of drinks she drank or else he would take her home in an instant. Loke murmured into Aries' ears and she was caught blushing at his words and stammering out an abashed reply. Lelantos and Actaeon were winding around Igneel's feet and tripped him over, making Luke laugh as he picked up their leashes. A recovered Happy was sticking close to Lucy and nuzzling into her breasts. He gave Natsu a smirk as Lucy left the room after hugging Luna and Natsu gave Luna a kiss on the cheek and grumbled angrily how Happy was going to get it later.

Nashi was the last one and looked back at Luna who looked confused herself. "Hey, you okay?" Nashi inquired.

Luna furrowed her eyebrows. "Fine…I think," she said slowly.

Nashi grew concerned. "Want to talk about it?"

Luna shook her head as her eyes went to her Compact. "I do, but I think I need to get some answers from someone first," she decided.

"Ladies and gentlemen of Magnolia, are you ready to scream into the night?" came a roar from the stage.

The audience roared back, crying their agreement.

Nashi smiled. "Looks like the party is back on." She looked back at Luna and winked. "You sure you don't want to get out there?"

"In a minute," Luna promised. "Go have fun, sis. I'll be out soon."

Nashi softened. She went to Luna and hugged her. "Fine, fine. See you out there." She gave Luna a quick kiss before leaving the room altogether and shutting the door behind her.

Luna was quick to unlock her phone. She went to Cane's contact and pressed the CALL button. She put the Compact to her ear and waited.

ERRRRRRRR…

And waited.

ERRRRRRRR…

And waited.

ERRRRRRRR… ERRRRRRR…

Someone picked up the phone and it was not Cane. It was someone else. Someone tired. Someone sober. "Hello?"

Luna's eyebrows raised. "Auntie Cana?"

Cana yawned. "Oh, hey, kiddo. What's shakin'? How was the performance?"

"Weren't you here to see it?" Luna questioned.

"What? No. I've been at the Saint Judas Hospital in Dahlia."

Luna grew alarmed. "What? Wait, why? Are you okay?" She had too many questions and not enough answers.

"Relax, kiddo. I am, but Cane's still asleep. He should be awake by tomorrow," Cane informed as though it was common information. "He'll be a little pissed off his wallet's gone, but eh. Not like there was too much cash in there anyways."

"Wait…" Luna could not wrap her head around this. "Cane's in the hospital?"

"Yeah. He was a bit involved with some gangsters. My little man got drugged in the process and they stole his wallet." Cana chuckled. "He's going to get so mad when I laugh at him for getting knocked out by a bunch of snot-nosed gangsters. He could've handled them easily, but nope. Pretty sure my little man was distracted by a pretty, little thing with long legs."

"Wait… Slow down," Luna pleaded. She needed to know everything. "Cane… Is…? Is he…?"

Another voice murmured in the background and Cana said, "Hold on, kiddo." It was obvious she tried to cover the Compact as she responded to someone else's words in mumbles and a series of mmm's and mmm-hmm's. She was back on the line after a minute. "Sorry, kiddo, but I've got a little more paperwork to fill out for my little man, so I have to go. Wait! How's the performance go? Did the understudy do okay?"

"'Understudy'?" Luna closed her eyes. She was starting to get a headache. "Wait a minute. Why would there be an understudy for this?"

"Well, because, Cane told me he knew he wasn't going to be able to dance with you tonight."

Luna's eyes shot open. One word breathed from her mouth. "What?"

"He didn't know the exact reason, but he knew he wasn't going to dance with you, so he trained the understudy with his part." Cana sounded confused. "He didn't tell you?"

"No, he… He didn't," Luna whispered.

Cana snorted. "Figured. My little man was a bit of a little shit when it came to these things. I swear he's more like the god of mischief than an oracle." She coughed. "Anyways, I have to go. Lucy recorded your performance and when she sends it to me, I'll let you know what I thought, but we all know you did amazing. You're Lucy's daughter. You can't just not be amazing."

"Auntie Cana, wait," Luna pleaded.

"See you when we get home, kiddo! Auntie C loves you!" Cana made a kissing noise into the phone. "Hasta la vista!"

And, the call was dropped.

Luna allowed her hand to pull the Compact from her face. Her arm dropped down. Nothing made sense. Everything made no sense.

Cane…didn't dance with me?

She was trying to accept that fact. She was trying to get used to that fact. But, even if she did, even if she knew all the facts, the mystery was not solved.

If… If Cane didn't dance with me…

Luna clutched her Compact.

Then…who did?

°•°•°•°

Luke finally squeezed his way to the bar, sweaty and smiling. He flagged down a bartender. "Can I get an eight-up? Thanks!" He sat down at the bar and let out a breath. "Man, am I buzzed," he muttered.

A low grumble.

Luke looked over to his left. There, two seats down, Igneel miserably played with his chips and slouched in his seat. He looked like the pinnacle of a kicked puppy as he let out a low sigh.

"Bro?" Luke called, scooting over.

Igneel sighed again. "Hey. How's it going?" he asked in misery.

Luke raised an eyebrow. "Is…everything okay?"

Igneel glared at his food. "Why don't you ask MJ?" he spoke in childish anger.

Luke furrowed his eyebrows. "Wait. What do you mean?" he probed. He narrowed his eyes. "Did you upset her?"

"No," Igneel snapped. He jerked his head out to the guild hall. "She's over there with the enemy of my character."

Luke turned around and searched for Mary Jane. He did not have to look too far. He saw the blonde goddess standing at a high-rise table with a bit of a smirk on her lips. A smirk was not uncommon on her face, but still shocking. Who was next to her was even more shocking. He was a teenager of silver hair and slitted eyes, one emerald and the other gray. He was an anomaly, but an attractive one. His costume was a sexy antihero, Black Hood. He had taken off the mask that went with Black Hood, but his costume was essentially an all-black body suit with an X outlined in white and a brown leather jacket. He even had gun holsters hanging on his hips with fake guns packed into them. With the way his body language was, he did not seem like the type to be gentle and flirty or the type to be sinfully charming. He wore a lopsided smirk on his face. Not of confidence—of intrigue.

Luke furrowed his eyebrows. "Isn't he Black X or something?"

Igneel shook his head, an irate look on his face as he glanced back at the two. "That's Black Hood, Phoenix's sworn enemy," he explained. He rested his head back on the counter in a long sigh. "Can't believe she's with the enemy instead of me," he mumbled.

Luke understood. "Oh… So, she ditched you, huh?"

"Why you gotta say that?!" Igneel sniffled as a stream of comical tears came from his eyes. "I don't need MJ to have a good time. I'm strong and independent and I can have fun all on my own! Yeah, that's it!"

As Igneel pep-talked himself, Luke sweatdropped.

He's making it sound like he saw his ex-girlfriend and she moved on from him.

"Oh. It's the smart Dragneel."

Luke turned back to see Mary Jane behind him. She looked rejuvenated, oddly. She had a spark of contentment. He had to smile for her. "Hey, Mary Jane. We were just talking about you."

Mary Jane rolled her eyes to Igneel who had taken to ignoring her, muttering childish words of rebellion under his breath. She snorted. "You mean the moron was whining because I bailed on his ass?"

Luke shrugged. "Pretty much."

"Luke!" Igneel snapped.

"Who's the guy?" Luke wanted to know.

Mary Jane shrugged. "Name is Peter Shuusei-Thompson. Not from around here, but he thought I looked like I hated Halloween," she explained. "He's…okay, I guess."

Luke had to grin. "Don't tell me the Dark Empress is starting to like guys in a romantic sense now," he joked.

Mary Jane shook her head. "Not a chance," she said flatly. "I happily plan to be alone for the rest of my days. Peter's chill." Her eyes glanced at Igneel. "Better than other annoying shits I know."

Igneel sulked even more.

Luke chuckled as he received his eight-up. He said a quick word of appreciation and paid for the drink before getting up. "Well, you two have fun," he farewelled. He raised his drink and slipped back into the audience.

Mary Jane watched as Igneel stirred his drink and pouted angrily. She raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me the moron is crying because I was fed up with his bullshit?"

Igneel hmphed. "I'm not 'crying'," he mumbled.

"Then, what's your deal?" Mary Jane asked, unamused and not in the mood for games.

Igneel closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened his eyes, there was a weak smile on his face and his eyes shone nothing but sincerity. "Nothing, MJ. I'm…really happy you're actually having a good time tonight." His words spoke nothing but truth. "I brought you here because I wanted to see you smile. I might not have been the one to do it, but you did. So, I'm…really happy."

Mary Jane settled into the chair next to Igneel. "Yeah, no. You're spilling bullshit to me and the truth. I can tell you're happy for me, but not happy with me. Of course"—she shrugged—"I'm not one to really care for anyone's feeling. I'm just tired of bullshit."

Igneel could not face Mary Jane. "I really am happy for you that Peter could do something I can't," he murmured. "I don't care if I'm not the one to make you happy. As long as someone does, that'll make me happy."

Mary Jane shook her head. "Okay, well, while I believe that half-truth there, I want to bail, so I'm going home." She got up from the chair.

Igneel snapped out of his sulking to be more attentive. "Wait, now? But, what about—?"

"Peter?" Mary Jane filled in. She bitterly laughed. "I'm not the romantic character in this fairy tale, moron. I'm the one with a million problems and likes to focus on that than on some guy. Peter was chill and all, but not enough for me to abandon my beliefs for him."

The way Igneel reacted looked more concerned than relieved. "I could go with you? Let's hangout! We can watch old Halloween movies!"

"No," Mary Jane rejected. "I still hate this stupid holiday and don't want anything more to do with it."

Igneel got up anyways, slapping jewel on the counter. "At least let me walk you home," he offered. At this point, he was begging. "I just need to know you made it home safely. It's late, you know? The guard is letting everyone come home from the event as long as a Fairy Tail Mage guides them home."

Mary Jane cocked an eyebrow. "I am a 'Fairy Tail Mage'," she said slowly.

"MJ, it's really late. You can't be alone at this time of night when the mass murderers are still on the loose," Igneel tried.

Mary Jane sighed. "I'm not about to be one of those stupid girls who decides to go home alone and argue I can take care of myself. Walk me home, but don't even think about coming inside," she warned. "I want to get out of this costume and eat the leftover candy, then hate myself for it."

Igneel beamed. "Awesome!" He offered an arm. "Ready?"

Mary Jane was already walking away. "Come on, moron," she snapped.

Igneel could not help as his beam grew and he scrambled after Mary Jane.

°•°•°•°

Galileo fought his way to the bar and made it to Julia. "Hey! Jules!" he shouted.

Julia passed a drink along as she looked at Galileo. "That darned, elusive pimpernel," she teased. "What's shakin'?"

"You seen my twin?" Galileo shouted over the music.

Julia began her next drinks for the next round. "Actually, yeah! She and Chi-chi are in the rec room!"

Galileo gave a thumbs-up. "Thanks!" he appreciated as he turned tail and left the bar scene.

It took him a while to get to the steps to the basement. Two Fairy Tail Mages were guards to ensure no one out of Fairy Tail status was able to go downstairs, but they recognized Galileo and allowed him to pass. Galileo fled down the steps and to the recreation room. Speakers played the same music was what went on upstairs, but at a quieter level. For the most part, the recreation room was empty. Olivia and Orochi had taken to playing a game of pool. Their game was not the conventional pool—it was strip pool. Olivia had only lost one layer of clothing while Orochi had lost his cat ears, his shirt, and tie, and was stuck in his undershirt, his gloves, pants, and his right shoe.

Olivia noticed her twin's presence as she set up for her shot. "That darned, elusive pimpernel… What can we do for you?" She took it. Two stripes sunk into the two pockets and a solid flew in a different direction.

Galileo took off his hat. "Nothing really. Just wanted to see if you knew where Nashi went," he wondered casually.

Olivia sat up to lean on her staff. She watched as Orochi find the right angle. "I think she's with Gary. Did you see their costumes? The little, red riding hood and the big, bad wolf."

"Wearing a couple's costume without being a couple," Orochi commented. He found his perfect shot and took it. Sadly, all he did was move two solids closer to a pocket, but did not put enough force to drive them in. He groaned. "Damn."

Olivia smirked. "Still shit at this game," she snickered. She eyed the table for her next shot. "Strip."

As Orochi took off his left shoe, Galileo had to know. "You think she and Gary are going to hit the sack?"

"Probably not," Orochi disagreed. "Nana isn't exactly ready for that. And, I know Gary wouldn't do anything like that without pure commitment from her."

Olivia bent over as she lined up her cue-stick with the perfect shot of her striped sixth ball. She kept her eyes open to concentrate better. "Why are you so interested, bro? Didn't take you to be jealous." She took a chance and struck her cue-stick and, to her delight, her striped-sixth went in.

"I'm not," Galileo said in defense of himself. "I was just curious if she wanted to come back to our place with me. But, if she's hittin' up my bro, then"—he sighed—"there's nothing I can do about it."

Orochi paused in finding an angle to look at Galileo meaningfully. "You do realize you two can't keep doing this, right?" he wanted Galileo to realize.

Galileo raised an eyebrow. "'Doing' what?"

Olivia understood Orochi's words. "You two can't keep sleeping with each other," she said flatly.

"What's the harm in it?" Galileo asked. "It's just sex and both of us are okay with it."

Olivia shook her head. "Yes, and I know you two are okay with that, but…" She tried to word it properly. "Maybe you owe it to at least Gary to stop."

Galileo grew annoyed at that. "How is this becoming 'blame Galileo for shit'?"

"We aren't blaming you," Orochi assured. "What you and Nashi do isn't our business. But, did you ever think of Gary's feelings too? He genuinely loves her, Galileo. And, sleeping with the girl he loves? It's more like betrayal to your brotherhood."

Galileo tried to fight back, to retaliate, to say something that would defend him. But, in the end, he deflated in a sigh. "I know," he admitted. "I know I have to choose. When we first started, I knew it wouldn't last. It wasn't supposed to. And, I knew how Gary felt at the time, but I didn't take it seriously. But, now?" He lowered his head.

Olivia softened. "It's time to let her go, Leo," she murmured.

"Yeah, I know," Galileo mumbled. "God, I know. Just…how am I supposed to? What am I supposed to do about Gary?"

"That's for you to decide," Orochi told him. "For now, just enjoy the rest of the night. You don't have to do it right away."

Galileo nodded. "Livy, I, uh… I think I'm going to head home." He gathered his hat in his hands and walked towards the exit of the recreation room. "I'll see you later."

The door opened.

And, he left.

It shut again.

Olivia let out a breath. "I hope they'll be okay," she prayed.

"Things will be awkward if they make it awkward," Orochi told her, setting up his shot. "Knowing Nashi and Galileo, they won't let this stop them from being close friends."

"And, Gary?"

Orochi paused at that. "We can only hope those three won't break apart, Ollie. That's all we can hope for." And, he took the shot.

°•°•°•°

Ena was at a booth. She had finally donned on her costume. She was a candy corn witch with a ridiculous hat the color of candy corn with a nice bow to match. She had a drink next to her, but was too busy sketching to take more than three sips.

"Working hard, huh, E?"

Ena looked up and her face of serious concentration morphed into a delight face. "L! You're wearing it!"

Luna smiled sheepishly. She had changed into her dancing ensemble and dressed as a pumpkin witch to match Ena. She had on ridiculous hat on as well in black with pumpkins glittering on it. Her dress was a halter top with a puffy skirt that exposed from her upper thigh and down. She had been given sleeves to wear as well as stocks with pumpkin on them, some laughing, some crying, some scary, some friendly. To complete her outfit, she was given black wedges and a pumpkin choker.

"I figured I couldn't let such a beautiful costume go to waste," Luna supposed as she sat down next to Ena. She searched the drawings. "Making new designs?"

Ena nodded and went back to the one she was working on. It was for a male and she seemed to be working on a spooky suit theme to a skeleton. "Mmm-hmm. I got really inspired this Halloween, so I have to get started right away," she reasoned.

Luna chuckled. "That's just like you. Always on top of things when it comes to fashion."

Ena smiled. "So, what are you doing out here? I'd figure you'd be wanting to talk to people and out on the dance floor with Gale."

Luna's smile slipped into a frown and her eyes went to the side. "I, um, wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone, actually," she murmured.

Ena was quick to be worried. "What's wrong, L? Did something happen?" She scanned the area around them. "Where's Gale?"

Luna shrugged. "Actually, E, there's something I wanted to ask you."

Ena turned back to Luna. "Hit me."

Luna tried to word it. "So… That costume you made… It was for Cane, right?"

Ena nodded slowly. "Yeah… Every costume I make is specifically tailored to the person it was intended for. Why do you ask?"

Luna turned more-so to Ena. "Well, I talked to Auntie Cana and she told me about Cane's accident," she informed her best friend. "She told me Cane's still in the hospital."

Ena tipped her head. "I know. I heard about that. What's that got to do with it?"

Luna furrowed her eyebrows. "E… Whoever was in that costume wasn't—"

"'Wasn't' who, principessa?" came a teasing whisper.

Luna jumped and her head turned to be pleasantly surprised at the sight of— "Gale?" She said his name in disbelief. "You're here?"

Gale leaned back. "In the flesh, Blondie," he assured.

Ena examined Gale's costume and was satisfied. "I'm so glad the costume fit you so well," she commented. "I was worried it wouldn't fit since I couldn't do that last fitting on you."

"Yeah, Gale, you look…" Luna blushed and her eyes darted away from Gale. "I mean… You look…really good."

Gale did. He was dressed as a witch hunter. A leather jacket had been given to him in black to go along with his gloves. He had no shirt to wear and it was obvious from the way girls stared at him, they found the definition in his stomach attractive. He had on dark pants and combat boots as well. The only thing that made him look like he had a Halloween costume on was the iron cross he was given to wear across his neck, the holster he had with fake guns, as well as the crossbow strapped to his back.

Gale smirked. "Thanks, Blondie. Didn't peg you to be a witch this year, but I like it. Makes you look cute."

Luna's cheeks flushed even more. She swallowed. "Thanks," she choked out. "And, um, thanks for the gift you gave me." She looked up at him in uncertainty. "Are you sure you—?"

"Keep it." Gale finished her question with two, firm words. "It's a gift, Blondie. Be thankful. I don't just go handing out my stuff to anyone."

"But… It's your favorite," Luna emphasized. "You should have it. Not me."

Gale shook his head. "Nah. It wasn't my favorite jacket, promise. 'Sides"—he gave her a crooked smirk—"it looks way more perfect on you than it ever did me."

Luna's cheeks pinkened as Ena snickered. "Isn't he just so adorable, L?" Ena teased. "He gave you his jacket and gives you all these compliments? If I didn't know any better, it would sound like your dragon is becoming a little too soft and fond of you."

Gale cracked up. "Come on, Fernandes, look at that blush! How am I not supposed to go easy on the poor thing? She's too easy to tease."

"You know, I'm right here," Luna muttered. She stood up from the table. "Anyways, I'll talk to you later, E." She began to walk away.

"Hey, Blondie-girl! Where do ya think you're going?" Gale shouted.

Luna stopped to turn around and shrug. "I don't know. Dance, maybe?"

Gale walked to her. "I thought we were doing to watch some Halloween movies?" he questioned with a raised eyebrow.

Luna looked away. "Sorry. I'm not in the mood to watch Halloween movies," she lied. "If you'll excuse me…" She turned around to walk off, but Gale held her back, a hand on her arm. She looked at his hand then him. Then, she looked at the floor. "Please, let me go," she asked for kindly.

"I know you're upset with me," Gale spilled. "I know I hurt you. Principessa, I'm sorry I wasn't back in time. You needed me and I should've been there for you."

Luna sighed. "Gale, I'm not upset with you," she assured. "You were on a job. I can't be upset with you for being on a job request. We're good. We're fine. I just don't feel like watching Halloween movies, okay?" She tugged her arm out of his grasp. She bowed her head to him. "I'm sorry if I made you think I was mad at you," she formally apologized.

Gale shook his head. "Oh, no. You're not doing this to me."

Luna lifted her head. "'Doing' what?"

Gale grumbled and took Luna's hand. He began to walk her to the guild door exit.

Luna grew confused. "Where are we going?"

"My house." The words were tossed over Gale's shoulder. "We're cuddling and watching Halloween movies."

Luna was flabbergasted. "But… I just said…"

"I heard you," Gale promised as they maneuvered to the guild doors. He stopped and looked back at Luna with a smirk. "Dragons don't take 'no' for an answer." He turned back and opened on door.

And, Luna did not know what to say as Gale took them outside.

Gale was careful, making sure to escort her properly down the steps. He gave a nod to the Fairy Tail members standing on rotational guard duty before he and Luna headed out back to his home. The streets of Magnolia were not full of costumes and fright and little ones dressed as what they wanted to be. The streets were empty. The only light to guide a person were the street lights and even they could make a person feel unsafe. Luna kept her eyes open and looked in every possible direction.

The mass murderer is still out there. Maybe we should've stayed back and waited for someone else to come with us. But…

Luna's cheeks tinted a little pink.

It's weird. I feel…safe with him.

"Don't get all scared now, Blondie."

Luna looked up at Gale who kept his eyes in front.

"Those mass murderers are old news," Gale soothed. "No one's going to be out to prey on us."

"How do you know?" Luna wanted to know. "The news says—"

"Don't trust everything the news tells you, Blondie-girl," Gale warned. "All of it is a bunch of fake shit, shit that doesn't matter, and maybe about one-percent is about what is happening in strictly the non-Magic world."

Luna was dubious. "But—"

"Stop with the 'but's!" Gale cut off. He gave her a side glance. "You know I wouldn't let anything happen to you. You're way too important to me to let anything happen to you."

Luna blinked in awe. "Gale…"

Gale blushed at his own words and gave a grunt, turning away from Luna. "Now, come on. Sooner we're back to my house, the sooner we can change out of these costumes."

It hit Luna. "Oh, no," she whispered.

"What?"

"My clothes," Luna realized. "My Compact, my stuff—it's at the guild!" She tried to turn back. "We have to g—!"

"Shhh, Blondie. Easy, girl," Gale hushed, pulling her forward. "Already had your stuff put at my house."

Luna could not believe it. "But, ho—?"

"You didn't think I kidnapped you without letting your parents know first, did you?" Gale laughed when he saw Luna's uncertain look. "Blondie, I might be the dragon who steals the princess, but I'm not a heartless coward. I made sure your parents were okay with me stealing you away for a bit. And, since Galileo texted me to tell me he's at home, we'll have one supervisor so we can't do anything freaky." He winked at Luna. "So, you can stare at me all you want, but no touching, okay?"

Luna blushed a furious shade of red in both embarrassment and annoyance. "Gale!" she snapped.

"God, I love it when you say my name like that."

"So, what? My stuff is just magically there?" Luna demanded to know.

Gale raised an incredulous eyebrow. "Well, duh. We're Mages, Blondie. We are living proof Magic exists. So, yeah, your stuff was 'magically' brought to mine."

Instantly, Luna thought herself stupid and cursed herself for it, allowing her eyes to drop to the ground as her ears burned. "Oh. Right."

Gale shook his head in amusement as he turned his head back to the sidewalk. "You're so freaking cute when you have your little blonde moments," he chuckled.

Luna puffed her cheeks, but had nothing to say to that.

It took them a little bit to get back to Gale's house. His house was a two-storage cottage that was blessed with much acreage and neighbors that lived close by, but not close enough to see what everyone was doing inside their houses. The porch lights had been turned off, but the main light inside the house was on, signaling someone was home.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

« This is the Redfox Residence. When Levy and Gajeel first got into their relationship, Gajeel gifted them both with a cottage to start their family! »

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Luna and Gale climbed up the steps and to the front door. Coming inside was simple with the door unlocked. Gale let Luna inside before coming in himself. He kicked off his boots and began yelling. "Bro! G, come on, man, I need you!" When he heard no response, he grew frustrated. He turned back to Luna. "Want to go in the basement?"

Luna smiled shyly. "I'm good wherever."

Gale softened. "Take off your shoes and go in the basement. Pick whatever movie you want. I'll be down soon," he promised.

Luna nodded. "Okay. Sounds good."

Gale nodded and moved away. "Bro! Get your ass out here! We need to have a chitchat!"

Luna focused on taking off her shoes. Once she put them neatly by the door, she headed for the basement entrance. It was not the first time she had been in the house and she knew it just as well as her own. She went downstairs and did not even need to see to flip on the lights. The basement was a project that started when the house was bought and was finished after the twins were born. It was nice and finished with carpet on the ground and memories of the family hung up around the wall. It was obvious it was meant for the siblings of the house rather than the adults. There was a pool table set up as old Lacrima game machines Galileo and Olivia were fond of. A bar had been built with a small kitchen. There was even a few couches and bean bag chairs set up around a Lacrima-Vision. The bookcase surround the Lacrima-Vision had a plethora of movies to choose from, some as old as when the first movie came to be and others recent documentaries. Sections had been labeled from genre and then alphabetized from that, courtesy of Levy. There was another bedroom and bath set up below as well and even a secret office that was hidden behind a bookshelf that would open if you pushed on its middle hard enough.

Luna was too enrapt in looking at the childhood memories on the wall. She smiled when she saw a picture of an unhappy Gale, a smirking Cane, a jubilant Igneel, a content Luke, and a reserved Elvin. Igneel, Elvin, and Luke looked no older than six in the picture, putting Cane and Gale at seven. They were all dirty with scabs and scrapes, but they had slung their arms around each other still in their mirth. They were brothers-in-arms and forever would be. Another picture was of a baby Gale crying and Galileo trying hard to help his brother by offering his favorite stuffed animal. Another showed Gajeel cooking with a scowl on his face and a blush on his cheeks. He seemed to be making omelets, but had to deal with two twins who refused to let him go. Galileo had clung to his back, tugging at Gajeel's hair when it was a bit longer while Gajeel had to cradle Olivia who fisted his shirt.

One picture caught Luna's eyes. It was on a frame on a table filled with other pictures and she gathered it in her hands. Her eyebrows furrowed. It was a picture in which she was included. She was young—in all honesty, she was no more than maybe eight months old—and she was sleeping on a blanket on the floor. She was a tiny thing that came with more hair than most eight-month-olds had, her sun-kissed locks swept into a comfortable and short ponytail. A boy curled up to her and kept her warm. He was tanner than her and bigger. His hair was becoming thicker, already jet-black. But, he grasped her little hand and kept her close when she slept.

"Ah. So, you found us at the embarrassing phase of our lives, huh?"

Luna smiled with Gale behind her, staring at the photo over her shoulder. "We look adorable," she cooed.

Gale snorted. "You look like some wrinkly alien and I look chubby as Hell," he grunted. He turned away. "And, I am not 'adorable'. I'm sexy."

Luna put down the picture with a roll of her eyes. "Yeah, whatever," she dismissed. She noticed the items in his hand. "My stuff?" she guessed.

Gale nodded. "Got your bag, your shoes, and stuff." He raised his other to reveal an old, band t-shirt. "You can wear this tonight. I'll bring you home whenever. Or…"—he wiggled his eyebrows—"you could stay that night in the dragon's lair."

"Not happening," Luna rejected, making an X with her arms. Then, she thought about it. "Wait. What time is it?"

Gale shrugged. "A little past midnight. Why?"

Luna furrowed her eyebrows in thought. "Maybe I should stay here," she mused.

"Actually, you are."

Luna blinked at Gale. "Wait, what?"

Gale smirked. "Already asked your ma if you could stay here since it's so late. She's fine with it as long as I'm not in bed with you, but hey. What she doesn't know won't hurt her."

Luna shook her head rapidly. "N-N-No! No, no, no, no, no! Nope! I'll just take the guest bedroom."

Gale moved closer. "It gets a little cold down here, Blondie. You sure you want to stay down here along?"

Luna gulped and reeled back. "M-Maybe I could use a few blankets and—"

"You really think those will keep you warm down here?" Gale snickered lowly, forcing Luna to bump into the table of pictures. He had her cornered. The dragon was preying on the innocent damsel-in-distress. "You'll need something far warmer than that to keep a freeze baby like you warm. Something that can be under the covers with you. Maybe something like…"

Luna wanted to know. "'Like' what?"

"Like…" Gale pulled back. "One of my huge ass pillows," he said innocently. "Actually, Jules got one for me. Heats up and everything. I don't use it since I'm too hot, but you can have it tonight."

Luna blinked as she felt her cheeks warm. "Oh. I see then," she murmured.

Gale grinned and handed Luna his shirt. "Get your head out of those naughty thoughts, Blondie, and go change. I think I know which horror flick to start with."

Luna took the shirt into her hands and watched Gale walk away. "Okay. Sure." She moved away and found the bathroom. She turned on the light and closed the door, giving herself room to close her eyes and sigh.

What's with me? I feel like a total idiot whenever he gets like that.

Luna shed her hat first, and then her stockings.

It hurts a little I couldn't see him into the crowd, but I can't blame him.

She took off her sleeves and put them on the counter.

"I'm sorry, baby, but Cane's been in an accident."

Chocolate darkened in wonder.

If Cane wasn't here, then…

She remembered something burning into her eyes. She remembered the feel of hands holding her, keeping her grounded.

Who was it? Who danced with me?

KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK.

Luna was startled out of her thinking when Gale called, "Hey, Blondie. You okay?"

Luna swallowed. "Yeah, sorry. Just give me a second."

"Sure. Movie's set up. Come out when you're ready." And, Gale stepped away.

Luna exhaled.

Let's forget about it, Lu. I'm probably overthinking it.

°•°•°•°

Gale was on the couch with his feet up and his eyes on his Compact when he heard footsteps. The lights were off and all that was used to see was the Lacrima-Vision and his Compact.

"So, we're watching The Shaman, huh?" came an amused inquiry.

Gale looked up to see Luna parading in his shirt and a Perench braid. It was a little big on her, covering her like a short dress. He gave her a grin as she fell beside him on the couch. "Yup. Figured we'd watch the movie that made your bro piss his pants," he said as though obvious.

Luna could not hold back her laugh. "I can't believe Igneel did that. And, I can't believe you told me about it."

"You're his sister. You're supposed to know all the embarrassing things that happen to him," Gale figured.

Luna hummed. "I guess you're right. So, what's this I hear about cuddling and movies? Last time we did that, you got all blushy and nervous."

"I did not get nervous!" Gale snapped. The blush on his cheeks left him a liar, however. He turned away from her in a grunt. "Anyways, we're cuddling. It was…"—his blush worsened and he tried to cover it—"nice…doing it with you."

Luna giggled. "It was nice with you too. You're a lot warmer than my blankets," she teased. She crawled closer to him with a sly look and prodded his cheek. "Aw! The big, bad dragon likes to get all cuddly with the blonde princess? How cute!"

Gale turned away even more as his eyebrows twitched. "Sh—…! Shut up, will ya? I take back what I said!"

"No, you don't! You're just mad I caught you like this," Luna teased.

Gale growled. "Forget it. I don't want to cuddle anymore."

Luna snickered as she wormed her way into Gale's arms, making him grumble. "Come on! Don't be such a Grinch," she mock-scolded as she put her feet up onto the footstool.

Gale huffed as he let Luna get comfortable, locking down his Compact. He wrapped his arm around her. "I should leave you cold and alone for the way you talk to me," he muttered.

Luna beamed and winked. "Good thing I'm cute, huh?"

Gale softened a little. He grabbed the remote and pressed PLAY. "Good thing," he agreed.

The movie began to play as Gale set down the remote. He grabbed the blanket drapes beside him and let it drop on both him and Luna. It took only a third of the opening credits for the two of them to adjust. Gale ended up resting his cheek against the top of Luna's head while she snuggled into his side, a hand on his chest. The movie began to show the ruins and temples of ancient Midi.

Luna's eyes softened in thought. "Hey, Gale?"

"Hn?"

Luna could remember the way she was held. She could remember the thrum of her heart. She could remember his lips grazing her cheek.

"I, um… Well… See, the thing is…"

Gale moved his head to look down at Luna curiously. "What? Spit it out."

Luna looked away. "Nothing. Never mind."

Gale frowned. He took Luna's hand into his own. "Hey, you can ask me whatever," he assured. "I'm not going to get mad. Promise."

"I know," Luna murmured. "It's not that the question will make you mad. I just don't know how to put it."

Gale hmphed. "Just say whatever comes to mind. We'll work out the kinks from there."

Luna closed her eyes. "Okay… Well, when I was dancing… I felt a little weird with my partner…"

"You mean 'Cane'?" Gale questioned. His stare hardened. "Did he touch you?"

Luna shook her head. "No, never mind. I'm just being stupid."

"Tell me if that dipshit touches you," Gale urged. "I don't want anyone touching you without your permission."

Luna gave Gale a half-hearted and grateful smile. "Thanks, Gale," she appreciated softly. "I'm glad you have my back."

"It's what dragons do," Gale assured. "We might be the bad guys, but we're loyal bitches. We protect our things."

Luna raised an amused eyebrow. "So, I'm one of your 'things', huh?"

"Damn right," Gale grunted. "One of my most important things."

"Well, what if I don't want to be yours?" Luna sassed.

Gale smirked. He leaned down to kiss Luna on the cheek and his lips moved to Luna's ear. "Principessa, you don't have a choice," he breathed.

Luna's cheeks flamed as Gale pulled back. Surprised chocolate clashed with smug ruby.

"Watch the movie, principessa," Gale encouraged. "Let's get to cuddling. Just don't get too touchy, n'kay?"

Luna rolled her eyes, but pressed into him. "I think you're more the threat than me," she muttered. She closed her eyes.

Gale noticed. "Tired?"

"Mmm," was all Luna could say.

Gale breathed his laughter. "Is it time for Blondie to go to bed?" he cooed.

"Not…tired," Luna tried to assure.

Gale chuckled. "Yeah. Sure you're not. I think it's time to go to bed, principessa."

Luna groaned. "Ugh… Don't make me get up."

Gale raised an eyebrow. "What am I supposed to do? Carry you?"

Luna opened her eyes halfway and gave him a sheepish smile.

Gale laughed. "Fine. But, only because you're tired," he conditioned. "You owe me breakfast in the morning."

Luna yawned. "M'kay. Now, up," she demanded childishly.

Gale rolled his eyes as he took the blanket off the both of them. "What are you, three?" he muttered. He scooped Luna into his arms, carrying her in a bridal fashion. She coiled into him as he carried the both of them out of the basement and up to the first floor.

It was easy carrying her up the steps and to the second floor. The second floor was nothing special. He passed the master bedroom and his siblings' rooms until he made it to his. He did not have to flick on any lights for his room to welcome him. It did it automatically. His room was his dragon's lair. Souvenir and trinkets from every job and memory had a place in his room. His two electric guitars had stands side-by-side. There were a few articles of clothing thrown on the ground, but it was overall clean.

Gale set Luna on his bed. She curled onto his mattress. Gale gathered his comforter and covered Luna with it. She sighed as she clutched the blanket and curled in on her side. Gale smiled.

God, you're cute.

He left Luna as he pulled off his shirt. He let it drop to the ground as he went to his side of the bed. He settled down on the mattress only to sigh and run a hand through his hair. His eyes went to his nightstand. They narrowed and he grabbed something from his nightstand, getting up. He moved to his mirror in the corner of his room, tying something around his head.

Then, something happened.

His red eyes were covered in a white fabric.

He stopped in front of the mirror—

—and was completely different than how he was before.

He was dressed as the count of the rival land. He was dressed as the count after Lady Lucia's heart. He was dressed as the count who would step into the land of his enemy just to dance with the woman of his dreams.

"I'm never going to make it! Dammit!"

Gale was thrown back into the moment.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Gale trembled with his fist pressing in the indent he had made in the earth. Anger radiated off him.

I told her… I promised her I'd be there for her, and now? What a friggen liar I am.

Mest pressed his lips together. Then, he stepped forward. "I think I have a way for you to get there."

Gale whipped his head around. "What?"

Mest reached into his pocket. He pulled out an emerald crystal. He held it out for the whole team to see. "This is a Teleportation Lacrima," he explained.

Asuna was impressed. "Wow. I heard the Council was working on something with the amount of Teleportation Mages down, but I didn't think they'd make a Lacrima for it."

Mest nodded. "Mmm. It is only for Council-authorized use. Since I'm a Teleportation Mage, I don't need to use it." He smiled a Gale. "You need it more than me."

Riza was confused. "Why don't you just take him back home yourself?"

"I can't. I'm not allowed to set foot in Magnolia," was all Mest gave as an answer. He turned to Gale. "This Lacrima will take you to a place you know by heart or at least as close to it as you can. Picture it in your mind and let the Magic flow through you. It can only be used once, so don't mess up the first time or you could wind up with your leg in one place and the rest of your body in another."

Gale took the Lacrima cautiously. His eyes swept across the team. "And, you guys…are okay with this?"

Jackson laughed. "Well, kid, you're the one with a hot date tonight," he reminded. "Get your girl."

Delgado nodded in agreement. "Don't worry, filjo. We'll be all right."

Asuna propped an arm on Oswald and winked at Gale. "Just do us a favor and come to visit us, yeah, mini-me? We could use some fresh meat in this task force, don't'cha think, Oz?"

Oswald only blinked. "Yeah. Sure," he said monotonely.

Before Gale could turn to Riza, Walt and Roy barked and jumped onto him, knocking him over. He laughed as he was engulfed in fur and slobber. "Okay, okay, I'll miss you guys too!" he chortled.

"Take care of yourself, Gale."

Gale looked up to see Riza giving him that maternal smile. He softened. "Yeah. I will," he promised. And, he meant it. He pushed himself from the ground and turned to his father and Pantherlily. "Are you two coming with me?"

Pantherlily shook his head while Gajeel told Gale," We'll be right behind ya. We just have some Council shit to take care of." He walked up to Gale and swatted him on the back of the head, making Gale give a noise of hurt. Gajeel laughed and ruffled Gale's hair. "You get to the squirt, pipsqueak, and you make sure she doesn't have a breakdown. She's got this. We all know she does."

Gale scowled at his father. But, his expression quickly morphed into one of gratitude. "Thanks, old man," he murmured. He turned to Pantherlily. "And, thanks, Uncle. I'll see you both at home."

Pantherlily nodded. "Go," was all he urged.

Gajeel took a step away from Gale as Gale readied himself for transport. He closed his eyes and let out a deep breath, clutching the Lacrima.

Picture it in my mind, huh? The place I want to be?

He could see a radiant smile. He could see flowing, gold hair.

The emerald Lacrima began to bubble and shimmer with the Magic inside it. A Magic Circle opened up below Gale. It held the symbol of the Council with green markings curling around it of the earth. Sparkles of jades and emeralds and peridots shimmered around Gale and made him illuminate.

He smiled.

I just want to be…where she is. Take me there…please.

His eyes opened as green and gold sprung up from the Magic Circle. The last thing his eyes could see was the Special Operations, Task Force: Gray Jaguar as they all gathered before him. Asuna and Jackson waved their farewell while Delgado and Riza smiled. Walt and Roy were wagging their tails and barking wildly. Mest gave a small grin of approval. Oswald had not changed his facial expression, but his eyes were saying the good-bye for him. And Pantherlily and Gajeel were looking at Gale with their matching smirks.

Gale last saw his father give him the symbol of Fairy Tail, the hand of the Fairy, before he closed his eyes.

See you later…task force.

And emerald and gold consumed him.

°•°•°•°

When Gale was freed from the teleportation spell, he found himself immersed in loud music and louder cheering. It was muffled. He was in a room, but he knew that much. The Magic slipped away from him and he could finally see where he was. He was inside a dressing room and, from what he noticed, a female was the one in charge. He witnessed the Compact on the dresser. It had Fairy Tail's mark as a chain attached to it as well as a cover of Poko.

Gale smiled.

I'm here. I made it back. But, where's—?

The doorknob jerked and Gale was quick to hide himself in the closet. He shut the doors just as the dressing room door burst open. From his line of vision, he could see Luna hurrying into the dressing room with Ena and Silver.

"E, I can't do this," Luna wheezed. "I can't. Not without Cane." She collapsed over her dresser with a sobbing moan. "Gale… Where are you?" she whispered despairingly.

"Shhh, L," Ena hushed. "Just shhh. Fullbuster, take L out back for some fresh air and water. I'll be right there."

"Of course." Silver moved to Luna and gathered her. "Come on, Lulu," he cooed. He guided her away from her dresser and back out the door. "Let's get you some water."

As soon as Silver and Luna were out the door, Gale watched as Ena rushed to the door and shut it as quietly as she could. She turned back to the room and surveyed it with a hard look. She turned to the closet door and began to walk towards it. "Now, I have you to deal with," she growled.

Gale tried backing himself farther into the closet, but it was to no avail as the closet doors slammed open and a grave Ena glared at Gale.

Gale tried to crack a smile. "Fernandes, um, I-I-I can expla—" His words were cut off when his ear was yanked and he was thrown into the dressing room. He toppled to the ground with a groan, a hand covering his ear. "Ah, shit, goddammit, what the Hell!"

Ena loomed over Gale and he opened his eyes to see burning oak searing into his own ruby. "You have no idea how much she needs you," she snarled lowly at Gale.

"I'm sorry," Gale croaked. He was genuinely remorseful at that. "I know, Fernandes. Trust me." He took out his Compact and showed her the image of his lock screen.

Ena softened when she saw the image. "Oh, Gale…"

Gale pulled himself into sitting position. "Nnngh! I heard her messages, Fernandes. I get it. She's freakin' out and I wasn't there to help her." He cradled his Compact in one hand. His whole expression soothed when he saw her in his jacket. "I really wish I was, but I couldn't be," he whispered.

Ena leaned back with a plotting look about her. "Maybe you couldn't be there for her then… But, you can for her now." And, she walked away to her bag.

Gale grunted. "Don't tempt me with false hope, Fernandes."

Ena rummaged through her bag. "Look, Cane was in an accident and he can't perform tonight. I made the costume specifically for him, but…" She found what she was looking for and pulled it out with a smile. It was a black masquerade mask with gold detailing and the picture of the sun on the forehead. "But, you two are pretty close in size, so this just might work."

Gale raised an eyebrow. "What might—?"

"Up."

Gale was yanked to his feet much to his puzzlement. "What the—?"

Ena thrusted the mask into his face. "This is Cane's costume," she began to explain.

Gale raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. "A mask?" he questioned flatly.

"This mask is Cane's costume," Ena reiterated. "This is one of my newest creations from the Scarlet Fairy Halloween line. I wanted a way to efficiently store costumes and this was it. Once you put on this mask, the costume will automatically appear and dress you. I customized it to fit Cane, but with a little Magic…" The mask pulsed a reddish magenta for one solid second. Ena smiled. "All right. That should do it. Just some fine tuning, but it should work brilliant on you."

Gale was already protesting. "Look, that's great and all, but I can't dance for shit."

"Bullshit and you know it," Ena countered with a sudden sneer. "I know you know this dance because I was there when Cane told you he wasn't going to make it. We both knew he wasn't going to be here tonight. You know his part inside and out because he knew it would be you dancing with her." She grabbed Gale's hand forcefully and put the mask in his palm. She forced him to clutch it. "You're going to dance with her and you're going to be perfect. You're the only one who can do this, Redfox." She pushed away from Gale and like the scarlet storm she was, she left the dressing room with a slam of the door.

• — • — • — • — • — • — • — • — •

Gale pulled himself out of the memory as he took off the mask. The costume disappeared and was stored back into the mask. He was back to being just Gale, not the infatuated count that lusted for his maiden.

"Nnngh… Gale…"

Gale looked behind him to see Luna stirring. Her eyes wearily opened as she searched for him.

"Gale…?" she called again.

Gale smiled and made his way back to his own bed. "Right here, principessa," he murmured. He climbed into bed and under the covers.

Luna's exhausted eyes flashed to him and she gave a whimper. "I really needed you."

Gale's eyes saddened. "I know, Blondie. I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you."

I'm sorry I'm too much of a pussy to tell you the truth.

Gale laid down and pulled Luna into his arms. She snuggled into him and Gale let her get comfortable. "I promise I won't leave you," he soothed. "Go to sleep."

Luna soon nodded off back into her slumber without another whimper.

Gale found himself stroking her hair, his fingers going through locks with ease.

One day, I hope I can tell you the truth. That… That….

He kissed her forehead and closed his eyes. "Gemessona, principessa," he whispered.

And, the dragon and the princess fell into a deep slumber as the witching hour crept upon them.

shinamon sutikku wa mahou no sutekki

hitofuri suru dakede shiroppu ga fueru

nigasa sae wasurete amai yume no naka

tengai ni mamorarete

nemuri ni ochiru

•

gensou no saimin ni oboreta mama de ii

mekakushi o hazushicha omoshirokunai desho

ashimoto gochuui sono te wa boku ga hiku kara

sono mi o ima sugu ni

yudanenasai saa

TO BE CONTINUED…

Woah! Looks like that's the end of this adventure! But, don't be fooledl! We've got plenty more fun and memories coming up on the next Fairy Adventure!

The room was dark, save not for the orange moon that thirsted for terror. Still, it did not make the room any brighter. If anything, it added to the mystery of the room.

A Thought Projection of Mest Gryder stood from the center of the room over his own Lacrima Pad.

"That concludes my report, sir," Mest finished.

A hum. "Interesting… One man—a doctor triggered by the song of the raven—and one bird—a raven given the gift of humanity and poetry. And their origin of life together is even more intriguing. Good work, commander."

"Thank you, sir," Mest appreciated.

"Now, about your report on the boy? It says here he only managed to drive away the force?"

"Affirmative," Mest confirmed. "With the amount of data, I am unable to get a clear look at how. The fact that a boy his age and with his limitations was able to hold his own and drive away a force so dark and powerful shows remarkable skills."

A grunt of agreement. "I agree, commander. Maintain your duties along with the assignment I gave you. I will ensure the requester looks at these reports thoroughly, though I am sure they will be satisfied."

"Yes, sir." And, Mest disappeared.

There was the noise of someone sitting down. Pale hands spread the files on Wolfgang and Marco. Another file was there with a mysterious symbol.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Dark eyes opened.

"So…you came," came an acknowledgement.

Not a sound.

A chuckle. "The files and reports are show exceptional results. I had a feeling they would. It is unlike them to leave me unimpressed. Now… Did you get what I needed?"

Silence

A specially-wrapped box slid onto the desk. It was the same one Cane had gotten from the rotten underbelly of Dahlia.

Pale hands traced the packaging. "It has not been touched like ordered. Excellent." Aloud, he told someone, "Take this to them." The pales hands slid off the box. "Our work here is done."

A dark wave came over the box and, when it left, the box was gone.

A deep sigh. "Don't worry, dear friend. Your work will not go in vain. I swear it."

And lightning struck to reveal the face of Draculos.

Chibi-Luna appears on the same stage as last time with her giant pumpkin. "Hiya, everyone! This is the second part of our Fairy Lesson! Let's finish the holiday of Halloween origin story!"

A screen is projected on the pumpkin and counts down.

The screen shows shaky footage of the Podemelians going to war against a league of warriors far greater than their own.

"Way back when, the Feralans and the Podemelians went to war over the land. The Feralans won and took over the country of Podemel."

The footage changes to a great cathedral that is surrounded by hundreds of people dressed in their Sunday best. The great pope leads the people into song as the great bells chimed a simply melody.

"At the time, Christianity began to spread. The Feralan pope, Lela the fourth, declared November first All Saints Day wherein people would dress as devils and angels and saints."

The footage changes to a great parade of the people of Ferala. Confetti and candy splashes everywhere. The people are in full dance-and-sing as floats of musicians and politicians and celebrities and war heroes pass long in the parade.

"Parades celebrated All Saints Day with costumes and candy and music! It was a glorious time for the Feralans and, soon, other countries began to celebrate the end of harvest with All Hallows and the birth of the new year with All Saints Day!"

The footage updates itself into color. It shows festive extravaganzas dedicated to the black-and-orange holiday of Halloween. There is a black cat in side of a pumpkin, licking its chops. Two kids dress as dinosaurs and stop by a house to say trick-or-treat.

"Over time, All Saints Day and All Hallows Day converged into Halloween on October thirty-first, where black cats where considered unlucky, there were celebration over costumes and songs, and even the tradition of trick-or-treating began! And, to this day, Halloween has become one of the most celebrated and unofficial holidays of all over the world!"

The footage breaks down until the screen blackens.

Chibi-Luna raised a peace sign. "That's all for now! Insert songs used for today were I Put A Spell On You by Screaming' Jay Hawkins, Halloween Night by AKB48, and Cantarella by Kurousa-P, feating Hatsune Miku and KAITIO! Next time, on Fairy Adventure: INTRODUCTION TO MARGARET ROWN! I wish all of you a Happy Halloween! See you next time!"