Hey guys, a quick note before I get to the new chapter. Thank you to everyone reading this, and thank you, Savage Kill, for giving me the idea of a mini-quest for Gildarts, Vega, and Erik. Also, thank you, everyone, for not demanding updates! Part of the reason this is so good is because I take my time writing and editing every chapter until I'm sure it's perfect.

Thank you all for your continued support!

"If you give the audience half a chance, they'll do half your acting for you."

~Katherine Hepburn

Ginestra was just as beautiful up close as it was from a distance. Flowers everywhere, perfectly manicured trees and bushes, grass in both yards and parks cut to a specific length, everything in perfect order.

The people, on the other hand, were a different story.

Upper-class socialites one and all wandered the streets in groups that quickly got their errands done without any fuss or dawdling. There were ladies clad in the most beautiful silks, jewels glittering on their fingers, in their ears, and around their throats, herding well-dressed children through the busy streets with a careful and wary eye. The men were in finely spun cotton, limbs loose and free to move should they need to. Many of them carried the scent of magic on them. No one was visibly armed; however, save for the Rune Knights that were patrolling in pairs down every street.

Fear practically rolled off of them in waves, and I wrinkled my nose in disgust at the sour scent.

"Vega?" I looked up as a hand fell onto my shoulder and looked up to see Gildarts' concerned eyes. "Everything alright?"

"The smell is so much worse here," I whispered, tugging Erik a bit closer to my side as he let out a whimper. "Overpowering."

Gildarts looked sympathetic. "Let's get you two to the inn as fast as possible then." Without any hesitation, he picked up Erik. Erik squealed a bit in surprise and happiness as the tall man settled him on his shoulders, allowing him to see through all the crowds. With a smile, I slipped my hand into Gildarts' and allowed him to lead me towards our destination.

After we entered the city proper, mayor Di Angelo split off, citing pressing matters in his office, and left Captain Raymond to lead us to our lodging.

Meanwhile, Captain Blast was entertaining Erik and Kinana from atop his horse, waxing on poetically about the city, it's history, and the different entertainments available to the public. Erik's eyes widened at the word Greenhouse, and he immediately turned pleading eyes towards me. I laughed at the puppy pout that quirked his lips. "Tomorrow, Erik," I promised. "Sleep first, then we can go hunting for new poisons."

"Yes, Vega…." Erik groaned in agreement, the hint of exhaustion in his voice betraying how much he needed sleep.

I stifled a yawn myself as we trudged on, which was noticed by the sharp-eyed Captain. Gildarts chuckled before he picked me up. I squawked as my feet left the ground, and the redheaded mage handed me off to the Captain. Blast let out a laugh of his own as he settled me behind him on the saddle, and I nervously clung to him like a monkey. "Never been on a horse before?" He asked as we got moving again.

"No." I tightened my grip again as the horse pranced a bit, and my stomach lurched in response. "How do you ride these things every day? I'm getting motion sick from just a minute!"

Blast laughed lightly. "I've been riding since I was about Erik's age, and grew up around horses." He affectionately patted the neck of the stallion and ran his finger through its dark mane. "This big guy actually came from my family's farm, and I was the one that trained him."

I looked down at the proud buckskin stallion as he tossed his head and pranced down the cobblestone road with ease. "What's his name?" I asked.

"I call him Jaskier," A secretive smile flitted across Blast's face. "It means Buttercup. He was almost bright buttercup yellow when he was a colt. I wanted to name him that officially, but unfortunately, my little sister got to him first. She's a fan of The Princess Bride, so his official name is Dread Pirate Buttercup."

I couldn't help but laugh even as Captain Blast reigned to a stop in front of a reasonably well-to-do inn. "Here we go milady," The Captain theatrically announced as he dismounted. "Welcome to the Copper Snapdragon."

I scrambled down from the horse to follow him and Gidarts inside of the cozy-looking building. Dark wood surrounded a brick fireplace that held a roaring fire, comfortable overstuffed armchairs everywhere, a bar with an impressive selection of alcohol, and several other mages sitting at tables and enjoying the evening meal.

The next hour was hazy as Captain Blast got us checked into our rooms, Gildarts made sure we had some food in us, and both men made sure that Erik and I got to our room and beds. As I started drifting on the edge of sleep, they started talking, and I immediately jolted up.

"The people are terrified, Ray," That was Gildarts, sounding slightly worried. "And don't try to tell me they aren't, because Vega could smell it from nearly a mile away. What exactly did I just bring my charges into?"

Captain Blast let out a sigh. "A possible black magic cult is making a resurgence."

"...Really Ray? Really?! That's something that should really be specified upfront in requests!"

"I didn't write it, Gil, Mayor Di Angelo did. He wants to keep this as quiet as possible and keep the public from panicking any more than they already are. He and I both know that if someone gets seriously hurt, I'll be duty-bound to report it back to Era, and neither of us believes that is a good idea."

"Good call. If this is a cult, the last thing we want is for the army to come tearing through town. Best case, they would arrest quite a few of the members, but none of the leaders. They would probably cause a lot of damage in the process too."

"And worst case would be for the cult to go to ground and disappear, or start killing people to get them to back off, and then the army would call in the guild mages anyway."

"Yeah, let's avoid civilian deaths. What can you tell me about them?"

"Whatever they worship, it's Pre-Zeref."

"Fuck."

"Yeah, my thoughts exactly. They call the damn thing Agdradoz, supposed to be a demon of violent deaths connected to air."

"With a deity like that, I'm surprised they haven't killed anyone yet."

"Me too, but it gets worse, Gildarts."

"How could it possibly get worse?"

"This thing was legitimate. It was real, and according to ancient city records, it terrorized this area about two thousand years ago. It was killed, but it took the combined efforts of seven war mages to take it down and make sure it stayed dead. And that was after it killed the rest of their army."

"Well, shit."

"Eloquently put my friend."

"Alright, alright," I could hear Gildarts take a calming breath. "Fill me in, what exactly has this damned cult been doing?"

"There's been a string of robberies and muggings in the last month." There was the sound of rustling paper, a map maybe. "We've got them all marked down here. They've been spread out over almost every section of the city, with no clear pattern to where they hit, but with one thing in common. Every piece stolen has some kind of connection to the demon. This one here, with the topaz earrings? They were said to be the demon's greed. And the yellow peridot bracelet taken from here was supposed to be the demon's pride."

"...How many pieces like these have been taken?"

"Let me see, a yellow peridot bracelet for pride, a pair of blue topaz earrings for greed, an amethyst ring for lust, an orange citrine anklet for gluttony, and an aquamarine broach for sloth."

"All we're missing is Envy and Wrath…"

Another set of papers rustled. "Here, in the museum records."

"The Envy of Emeralds, a necklace on loan to Sarah Di Angelo, and the Armband of Wrath, kept in the museum vault."

I rolled over and let myself slip into sleep, satisfied that I had learned what I needed to know about the situation. Half-formed contingency plans started to flit through my mind, but I pushed them away to consider in the morning. I mentally poked Alepou and Edafos, asking them to be ready for exploring in the morning, and a slight smile crossed my face as the poked back with fond assurances.

Seconds later, I was dreaming about a lightning bolt playing with a star.

Morning came all too soon as I was jolted awake by Erik and Kinana jumping on me. "Good morning to you, too, little Vipers." I groaned as I sat up in my bed and stretched out. Both of them smiled at me, showing off their matching fangs.

The additions to Erik's teeth had been a surprise for everyone when they came in. They were longer than average, just like any other dragon slayer's, but Erik's were also hollow and curved like a real pit viper. Instead of just for show, or just hollow enough to add certain chemicals that kept us healthy, Erik's fangs were connected to individual venom sacs in the roof of his mouth. We had tested it one day and concluded that it was a highly potent and corrosive venom that was unique to him. After that, we were content to leave and let live.

"Come on, Vega, you promised!" Erik begged as he bounced on me again.

I grunted and groaned as he landed on my ribs, but smiled as I pushed him off and rolled out of the little bed. "A shower and clothes first Viper. We definitely don't wanna smell like travelers in a city like this."

Erik nodded as he scooped up Kinana and settled her on his shoulders before heading towards the bathroom.

I yawned as I padded towards my own bags and dug out one of my best outfits, before doing the same with Erik's. If we wanted to explore without well-meaning adults getting in the way, then we needed to blend in a bit. I laid out Erik's clothes on his bed and turned back to the window to look over the town for a bit.

The layout was relatively simple, grid-patterned streets with little residential courtyards tucked into the squares. Shops and food booths everywhere gave off fantastic smells, small tourist shops that sold novelty knick-knacks for inflated prices, and Ginestra flowers of all sizes and colors that spread their pleasant perfume everywhere.

If it weren't for the constant tang of fear that was threaded underneath everything, it would be picturesque.

Erik chose that moment however, to burst into the room with nothing but a towel on, and Kinana slung around his shoulders. I chuckled as he practically dove for his bed, before grabbing my own clothes and heading for the bathroom.

One quick shower, a drying spell, and a few twists to my hair later, and I was ready to see what Ginestra city had to offer.

Erik looked very handsome in his button-down wine red shirt. Paired with a black waistcoat, white pants, black dress shoes, and combed hair, he looked the part of a young gentleman even with Kinana curled around his shoulders. On the other hand, I had opted for a knee-length white dress with an asymmetrically cut skirt and a red belt around the waist. Golden gladiator sandals laced up to mid-calf for me, completing my sweet summer child look as I allowed my hair to wave free.

I was at ease, perfectly comfortable in the slightly expensive clothes that Mom and Dad had insisted on, and Irene helped me pick out. The only thing I grimaced about was when I dug out the very plain gold wire circlet, with its single amethyst right in the center. I deftly settled it where it would be partially hidden by my bangs, and unnoticeable unless someone was looking for it.

On the other hand, Erik seemed uncomfortable if the way he was tugging on his shirt collar was any indication. "Relax," I advised as I straightened the collar again and brushed away a bit of dust on his waistcoat. "It takes a little bit to get used to it, but if you don't think about it, it becomes natural much quicker." I deftly fixed the plain silver coronet to his forehead underneath his bangs, carefully settling it in a way that would feel comfortable.

"How do you stand it?" Erik almost desperately asked as his hands twitched. I could tell he was itching to go back at messing with his shirt collar, but one stern look from me cut that off before it could start. "It's hot, the collar is itchy, and I feel like I'm gonna jump out of my own skin the first time I go outside."

I chuckled as I adjusted the arm straps of my dress to sit the way I wanted them to. "It's putting on airs, little brother." I reasoned as I led him out of the room and started down the stairs. "Acting, playing a part that we may not necessarily like but have to endure regardless. It is a game that all nobility play throughout their lives. However, we are royalty, even if it is just by adoption and Dragon Slayers. We put on a show for the humans, make them see what they wish, but among our own kind, we act as we please. Humans have many expectations, but Dragons only have a few. Mages are even worse." A smile tugged at the corner of my mouth, despite the serene poker face I had adopted. "They have no expectations at all other than loyalty to the guild. It's part of the reason we're going to Fairy Tail."

"Is that why you've got the poker face on?" Erik curiously inquired as we stopped in the stairwell. "Because you're playing the game?"

"Indeed, little brother," I confirmed, happy that Erik was picking up on the subtle differences so quickly. "But as it is my job to play the part of a visiting dignitary, it is yours to act as you would." Without a second of hesitation, I touched a hand to the keyring on my hip.

"Open! Gate of the Bluecap, Gate of the Raiju! Edafos! Alepou!"

A flash of light, and the toll of a bell later, and my two male spirits were standing alongside us. Edafos was in his usual attire, though he had put on a shirt since we weren't in combat, and the pick was missing from his belt loop.

Alepou, on the other hand, was the size of a medium dog, his bony crest was missing, and had a bright electric blue collar around his neck. "Alright, gentlemen," I announced as I clapped my hands together. "Let us layout the plan for the day. Edafos, you will be accompanying Erik to the local greenhouses as he searches for new poison blends."

Edafos grinned as Erik beamed up at him. The two shared a brief fist bump before they refocused on me as I laid out the rules. "Keep each other out of trouble, don't start any fights, but if someone tries to fight you, then you better finish it. Above all, though, have fun, but try not to draw attention to yourselves." I ruffled Erik's hair as he grinned again.

I immediately got serious again. "Meanwhile, Alepou and I will be at the museum. Alepou wants to learn how the world has changed in the absence of the demons, and I told Gildarts I'd help him with research. If we don't find anything relevant there, we'll likely be at the library."

"Understood Vega," Edafos confirmed as he bowed his head slightly. "Should I bring the little vipers to you once we're done?"

I thoughtfully looked over at Erik for a moment and got a compelling pair of puppy-eyes instead. "I think it'll be safe enough to explore." I relented. "Just make sure you're back at the inn before dark."

Erik grinned, wrapped me in a quick hug, then bolted downstairs and out the door. Edafos was right on his heels, calling for Erik to slow down and wait for him.

Laughing, I reached out and picked up the lovely leash attached to Alepou's decorative collar. "You sure you're okay with this?" I muttered as I knelt next to him and ran a hand over his ears. "Acting like a pet?"

"I am perfectly alright with it, Vega," Alepou reassured as he stood still and allowed me to clip the leash to his collar. "We share many things in common with our Spirit counterparts, but unlike them, we know when to disregard flashiness for subtly."

"Good to know." I quipped back as he gave me a canine grin. "Alright then, Alepou, let's get going. We've got quite a bit of ground to cover today."