The next few days were like a blur to Lucy. She got up in the mornings and made herself breakfast, trying not to dwell on the note Natsu left. After she had cleaned up the kitchen, she would sit in the living room with research materials she had gotten from the Guild's library and try to work on the various requests for research from Fairy Tail mages. When she got tired of reading, she would sit with the note on the coffee table in front of her and try to parse out what Natsu meant. She couldn't call him, as due to the nature of the magic of the occult mages he and the others were up against, communication devices were not allowed. Natsu had left his device on the nightstand on his side of the bed.

She often found herself panicking when she thought of all the possible outcomes of Natsu's coming home and them talking. Various imaginations either had Natsu coming home to proclaim his love for her, which made her freak out and wonder if she was ready to be committed to one person after only ever being with Natsu; or Natsu would return home, and having realized his love for Lisanna, break Lucy's heart. The note told her nothing about what Natsu was feeling, so she was left guessing.

Three days of the same routine filled with panic had Lucy ready to scream, so on the fourth day she decided to break her routine and go into town to see what it had to offer. The weather was relatively warm for a winter's day, but Lucy still felt the cold of the power that sealed her magic, making her bundle up anyways. Locking the door, she walked down the path to the stores on the outskirts of town that were less visited.

Besides getting her out of the house, Lucy's excursion had a purpose as she needed to restock on paper and writing utensils. She walked around window shopping from the small stores to kill more time and distract her from her inner thoughts. Just when she was thinking about stopping in a café for something to eat, she was hailed by a man coming out of a store in front of her.

"Miss Heartfilia was it?" Rai Mandal asked as he came up to her. He was dressed in casual attire rather than the council uniform Lucy had first met him in. She realized with a shock that he was fairly young for a captain of a rune knight division and only a little bit taller than herself.

"Captain Mandal! Hello! And you can call me Lucy." She said with a smile, grasping the bags she carried in front of her with both hands.

Rai flashed her a smile of brilliant white teeth that stood out against his tan skin, Lucy couldn't help but feel a little mesmerized. "Please, call me Rai when I'm not on duty. I have heard 'Captain' one too many times this week." He said with a laugh that was rich and deep. Lucy laughed along with him, feeling more relaxed in his company than she had in the past few days. "What brings you to this side of town?" He asked with genuine curiosity.

Lucy looked out over the town towards the Fairy Tail guild hall realizing Rai thought she must live close by and had strayed far to shop. "Oh, I actually live out this way." She said when she turned back towards him, he was looking at her intently, his hazel eyes bright and intense. "I needed to pick up some writing supplies," She said as she lifted the bags she was holding, breaking Rai's stare as he looked down at them, "I'm mostly at home these days, working on research since I can't take on jobs."

Rai frowned slightly, rubbing his gloved hand on his chin. "Yeah, I guess that's right." Relaxing his posture, he continued, "Are you hungry?"

Lucy stared at him, taken aback, before blinking her shock away enough to answer him, "Actually, yeah, I am."

"Perfect!" Rai clapped his hands, rubbing them together, "I was just going to find a place to eat myself. I'm unfamiliar with Magnolia, this being my first visit to the city, perhaps you could suggest a place?" He asked, reaching down to take the bags Lucy was holding.

Lucy relinquished the bags, blushing slightly, "Uh, yeah. There's a really cute restaurant just around the corner we could go to. They serve the best steamed dumplings in Magnolia, but don't tell Mira I said that, she's been working really hard on perfecting hers."

Rai laughed again, offering Lucy his arm, "I promise I won't let it slip." They walked in comfortable silence down the street. The restaurant was quiet as usual being that it was a bit of a hole-in-the-wall and they were seated quickly.

Lucy took a sip of water, unsure how she should act with the captain. Rai was busy reading the background information on the restaurant that they provided on pamphlets alongside the menu. Without looking at her, he broke the silence between them. "I wanted to apologize for my behaviour the other day."

Setting down her glass, Lucy adjusted the table setting in front of her, "It's alright. I understand the want for privacy. I was unsure myself how much I wanted to share about my magic being sealed at first, but when it became a benefit to the investigation, I didn't feel like I had much of a choice."

Rai nodded, setting down the pamphlet, he laced his fingers together in front of him on the table, "Yes, the information you have provided has been a great help in the investigation. I want to share with you what I can about our findings at other Freezing locations."

The server interrupted them briefly to set down their food orders. Lucy lay a napkin on her lap and picked up her fork to dig in. As she stirred her food Rai continued, "I told you and your Guild that three other locations were discovered. All of these cases are in the countryside surrounding Magnolia. Unfortunately, similarly to the individual your guild discovered in the secondary location here in Magnolia, the families inside the houses did not survive." Rai paused to judge Lucy's reaction.

Lucy's heart fell at the news. The terror of finding out that the magic that affected her had the capability to kill multiple people resurfaced. Setting down her fork, she took another drink of her water, her appetite ruined. "Were they magic users?" She asked softly.

Rai gave a sharp nod of his head, "Yes. At least two residents of each house used magic. In two of the houses, there was an additional victim. The magic levels of these two individuals was very weak. Through interviews with neighbours, we discovered that both of them were not in the habit of using any form of magic regularly. We believe they went quickly, possibly not even aware what was happening."

Lucy sat with her hands in her lap, her fingers twisting on themselves. "That means there are nine victims. Ten including me." She whispered. The reality of how close she had been to death becoming more apparent with the increasing number of victims.

"Mm." Was Rai's reply, he quietly ate a few bites of his food. "I want to reassure you that my division is not the only one that is looking into these instances." He took a drink of his own water, carefully setting the glass down, his gaze focused on it as he spoke, "I want to share some information with you. I cannot guarantee it will make you feel better or worse, but I feel like you are someone who wants answers and won't stop until you find them. I find that valuable." He locked eyes with Lucy; she could see the sincerity behind his words in them. Lucy began to realize that Rai was a man who was very open when his job allowed it, his emotions clearly laid out on his face when he chose to share them. "There is a reason why the council was so willing to take over the investigation here in Magnolia despite it being more or less regarded as Fairy Tail territory. As I mentioned before, the countryside Freezings are in close proximity to Magnolia, and as there are no other reported cases elsewhere in Fiore or beyond, we believe that what or who ever is behind these attacks is located within the city limits."

Lucy couldn't stop the audible gasp that escaped her lips. She thought back to December when Fairy Tail had searched the city after the snowstorm. Thinking out loud, she said, "Fairy Tail searched the city, and found nothing out of the ordinary besides the two known frozen buildings. That could be indication that the individuals inside are connected somehow?" She looked Rai; he was shaking his head.

"We looked into connections between the victims. None of the families that were living in the countryside were close. Each house being part of a different village."

"I don't know anyone in Magnolia beyond the Guild." Lucy confirmed. Her brow furrowed as she tried to piece things together, "Perhaps the other tenants in my building?" Rai again shook his head. "Alright, so not the victims. That leaves the buildings being the connecting factor."

Rai leaned forward, his eyes bright with interest at the conversation, "Each building was distinct in its architecture, meaning they were built at different times. Looking into it further, we could find no connection to the buildings through the contractors that completed the work as each house was built by someone different."

"How far into extracting them from the ice are you?" Lucy asked, she pulled out a new notepad and pen she had just bought, jotting down what Rai was telling her.

"Unfortunately, the council is no better off in clearing the buildings than Fairy Tail. The ice grows back quickly, and with now five locations, we must cycle our time unless the ice escapes the confines and affects the surrounding ones."

Lucy sat back, thoughts bouncing around in her head. She loved the feeling of working on a mystery such as the Freezings. It was one of the reasons why she was content to be a researcher for Fairy Tail mages. "The buildings are isolated then. Whatever is the cause must be within."

"But what?" Rai asked, taking another bite of his food that was growing cold. "Besides the farmhouses, none of the victims were in the same line of work. What could they have brought to their homes that would cause them to freeze?"

The door to the restaurant opened, the chilled air rushing over Lucy causing her to shiver. She was thankful the restaurant was heated. Lucy's brain itched when it thought of heating. Looking around the room, she realized that there was no fire in the fireplace, only decorative logs. Lucy signaled for the waiter, "Excuse me? Could you tell me how you heat this place?"

The waiter came over, looking a little confused at the question, "We suffered some damage during the ice storm late last year. The owner decided to upgrade to a heating lacrima that was being offered through credit by the guild Fairy Tail."

Lucy thanked them as they walked away. She turned back to Rai who was giving her a questioning look. "That's it. That's the answer."

"Heating lacrimas?" Rai questioned, the confusion palpable in his voice, "But they heat, not freeze."

"Before winter," Lucy explained, "My landlady updated the heating system to a heating lacrima after other tenants voiced their fears about using the fireplaces in the units with children around. I bet you, if you look into the other buildings, you will find that they too had upgrades to their heating."

Rai sat back, crossing his arms while he started blankly at the table and thought about what Lucy was saying. "It's plausible. I will have to look into it."

"That's all I can ask I guess." Lucy replied. The excitement at having discovered what she thought to be the link quickly fading.

"If anything comes out of your hunch, I'll update you." Setting down his napkin on his now empty plate, Rai signaled the waiter again, this time for the check. "This has been a lovely outing." He smiled, "You're right about this place having the best steamed dumplings in Magnolia. I don't think I ever had better."

Her heart lightening, Lucy smiled back. "Remember, no telling Mira."

Rai winked at her as he paid the bill, "Of course not." Standing, Rai straightened his jacket as if he was in uniform, "Thank you, Lucy. Please take care of yourself."

"And thank you, Rai. Despite the heavy topic, I had a lovely time. Thank you for paying."

"It was nothing. I couldn't possibly let a pretty woman such as yourself pay. My mother raised me better." He bowed slightly, before taking his leave of the restaurant.