Chapter 21

Lucy only looked on as Angel pushed Leo back into the small shack. The celestial spirit grunted, face contorting in pain as he was thrown to the ground, Angel following quickly behind him. The shackles rattled loudly, and she instinctively found herself gripping her own key ring.

"How…" Lucy said. "How is this possible?"

Brain hummed quietly. "Leo has been trapped here for quite some time. Much longer than should've been possible, according to Angel."

Angel stepped back through the door, coming to rest on a small bench outside of the shack. There was a small fire crackling in front of it, with some type of meat cooking above it. Lucy could only watch, feeling sick to her stomach. It should have been impossible for a spirit to stay this long. Leo should've run out of magic.

"From what I gather," Angel spoke. Her voice was high, condescending. She shot Lucy a distasteful glare. "He refuses to return to the Spirit World. I have my theories, but I don't know if any are correct."

"So, Miss Heartfilia," Brain continued. "Since Leo has refused to share his story, it will be your duty to convince him otherwise."

Luc blinked, suddenly aware of all their eyes on her. Brain remained calm and collected, scheming as always. Cobra and Racer had been bickering off to one side, but when the conversation had started, they had turned their attention to her. She suddenly felt much smaller than before and was blatantly reminded of the fact that she was alone with four powerful mages.

If she was to survive, then she'd have to comply with their demands.

"I…I understand," she said. "I will try my best."

Brain took a step forward, cupping a hand under her chin and pulling her up to meet his eyes. "No, you will succeed." He glanced at Angel, who turned to the ground and huffed. "If you satisfy, then perhaps we will need to talk about replacing our current Celestial Mage. She has proven very incompetent in this task."

He let her go, and Lucy released a breath that she hadn't realized she'd been holding. Her legs trembled, and her hand clenched around her key ring like a vice grip. She let it go, although that did nothing to sooth the trembling in her legs. She took a hesitant step towards the door, pausing as she glanced at Brain, not wanting to barge in without his approval.

He waved her forward, before turning to Racer and Cobra. Lucy hurried in, shutting the door quickly behind her as she heard the pair begin speaking. She knew that it was a risk, but she couldn't help but listen in to their conversation.

"Hoteye and Midnight," Brain said. His voice was muffled through the thin metal door. She could hear Angel quietly muttering to herself off to the side. "Have they done what I asked?"

She heard a hiss from Cubelios and a small yelp from Racer. Cobra laughed loudly.

"Yes," Cobra replied. "Hoteye went to ensure that Jude wouldn't try anything, while Midnight went to ensure that Phantom Lord made the right moves. Last I heard, Phantom Lord defeated Fairy Tail pretty handedly. They even managed to take out one of their S-Class mages."

Lucy shivered. That shouldn't have been possible. They had been so sure of themselves, and so many of the mages were so powerful. She hadn't thought that they could ever lose to anyone. Fairy Tail served as a beacon of hope throughout Fiore; to show the world that they could strive to be something better than what it currently was. And if they fell, then it would have terrible repercussions.

She forced herself not to think of that possibility too much. Already, she wanted to curl up into a ball and cry for being so foolish to think her father would've done anything. She wanted to cry for Levy and the others that had been taken by Phantom Lord. And now, for all those that might have been hurt, lost, or worse during the attack on Phantom Lord.

She couldn't allow herself to give in just yet. Not if she wanted to survive the Oracion Seis, and especially not if she wanted to have any chance at helping Leo return to the Spirit World and out of their clutches.

Lucy turned, placing her back against the door and sliding to the ground. Leo's huddled form shuffled by the wall, his bright orange hair catching the light. He watched her, a forlorn expression across his face.

"I'm sorry," Leo muttered. "I was a fool."

"It wasn't your fault."

Leo fell silent. Lucy shuffled a bit closer to him, ignoring the way the dirt and grime clung to her clothing. Up close, he looked even worse than before. Cuts and bruises were scattered across his body, showing through the tears in his suit and one of the lens of his sunglasses had been cracked and broken. This was supposed to be the leader of the Celestial Spirits, yet he remained chained in the corner of a run-down shack.

"If only that were true," Leo eventually replied.

Lucy had nothing to say to that. She knew that he blamed himself for what had happened to him, but how could she convince him otherwise?

"How are you still here?" Lucy said. Leo met her gaze once more, the orange of his irises seeming too clear for the current state that he was in. She felt none of the magical power from him that she typically felt from her other spirits, especially those of the golden keys. She decided to try a different approach. "How long have you been here? None of my spirits can stay for more than a few hours."

He didn't reply at first, but when he did, his words were low and pained. "So, you are a Celestial Mage too?"

Lucy nodded, and when he didn't respond, she spoke. "Yes."

"Then you should run. It will bring you nothing but danger if you stay here with me."

If she could, Lucy would've run far away from here already. Anything to get away from the members of the Oracion Seis, and all the pain they brought. She glanced at Leo. Although, now that she had seen what they had done, and what they were truly trying to do, she wasn't sure if she would've been able to make that choice. She needed to help him, just as she would the rest of her spirits.

"You know that isn't possible."

Leo grunted. He shifted, rattling the chains around with a groan. She delicately reached out with her hand, resting it on his shoulder. Leo jolted, practically hissing as he pulled himself away.

"Don't touch me!" His eyes grew wild, but quickly settled once it seemed like he realized what he'd done. "I'm sorry. I know that you won't be able to escape Brain, but you shouldn't spend your time helping me. I'm a lost cause. I will only hurt you in the end, and it's not like I have much time left anyway."

"You know that I can't do that."

"Why not?" Leo said. "The spirits are sworn to serve. We must follow every command of celestial mages, whether we like it or not. If we try to fight back…well, we end up destroying ourselves in the end anyway."

Lucy shook her head. "My spirits aren't servants, Leo. They are my friends, and my allies. I wouldn't ask of them to do anything for me that I wouldn't do for them. They are some of the only family that I have left, and if I can return you to them, then I shall do everything in my power to do just that."

Leo rolled over, turning his back to her. She sighed, before standing up and moving to the other side of the shack and taking a seat.

"Who has your key?" she asked.

"No one."

Lucy raised an eyebrow. "No one? How is that possible?"

"I'm here through my own magic." Leo sighed, turning back to her. "My key was taken, and with it, my access to the spirit realm."

"Taken? Who could've taken the key? Even then, couldn't you still be able to go back?"

"It was the Spirit King, Lucy."

"The Spirit King…how…" Lucy fell silent. She had only heard of the Spirit King in passing, either through Aquarius complaining about him, or an odd comment from Virgo. As far as she was aware, a celestial being that powerful didn't even have a key like the rest. She turned back to the spirit. "And how did you know my name?"

Leo smiled, his pearly white teeth shining. "You look just like your ancestors. They were celestial mages too, you know."

Lucy did know that. Her mother had spoken of the fact that their magic had been passed down through their bloodline a couple of times. Apparently, one of her ancestors had even held all the golden keys at some point, but they had eventually been lost. That had always upset her, not understanding how anyone could just give away their keys so willingly.

"Apparently, a lot of us Heartfilia's have been celestial mages, huh?"

Leo's smile fell. "I know that all too well…"

There was silence again, and eventually Lucy huffed, crossing her arms. She was trying not to grow impatient with the spirit, but any chance of being able to help Fairy Tail relied on her helping Leo first. With him refusing to speak, it would make any chance of escaping the clutches of the Oracion Seis impossible. Although, seeing as how she would never hand over Leo's key even if she managed to help him, she was sure that they would continue hunting her down for a long while.

"You need to let me help you," Lucy eventually said. "I don't know what I could do, exactly, but perhaps if I knew what you did to anger the Spirit King, I can make a deal with him to get your key back."

"What?!" Leo looked at her like she had suddenly grown three extra heads. "There's no bartering with the Spirit King! He's already declared me to be exiled, so there's no chance it'll work."

"How do you know that for sure?"

"That's just how it works, Lucy. The Spirit King doesn't make deals with anyone, especially a being not from the spirit realm. He's stronger than nearly everything to have ever existed, so there's no forcing him to agree either."

Lucy frowned. "You already mentioned that there have been a lot of Heartfilia celestial mages. I would think that me being one as well would hold some sway after so long."

Leo just shook his head, making Lucy slump down against the wall. "Well, no matter what the Spirit King says," she continued. "I won't be able to ask him of anything unless I know the full story. If you want to live, then you're going to have to share it with me."

"What makes you think that I even want to live?"

Lucy gestured towards him. "The fact that you're here right now."

"Really?" Leo began to sit up, groaning. He tugged idly at a shredded piece of his suit. "How does that mean anything?"

"You had the choice to give up," Lucy said. "We both know that celestial spirits don't last this long out of the spirit realm. Not unless they had both the magical powers to sustain it, and the will to keep pushing for that long."

Leo silence was confirmation for Lucy. She pushed herself back up, striding over to Leo and placing a hand on his shoulder once more. This time, he didn't flinch away, but instead met her gaze.

"I was hoping that you would be the one to come," Leo said, his voice low. He sounded defeated, yet nostalgic. "I hadn't heard that Layla had a daughter until a few years ago, from another one of the spirits. I've been hoping to meet you ever since."

"You knew my mother?" Lucy blinked as unwanted tears began to fill her vision.

"Of course." Leo grinned. "Nearly every spirit knew your mother."

Her lips trembled as she forced them into a smile. She took a seat, remaining close to Leo the entire time. She would had known that she'd help him but knowing that he had known her mother made this task feel more personal. Lucy reached down, gripping her key ring—an act that Leo noticed.

"So," Leo said. He offered another grin, and she realized that she liked seeing him more upbeat. "Shall I get started on my story, then?"

Lucy nodded, sitting down and making herself comfortable. There was only one thing that she knew for certain, out of all the doubts that plagued her mind. She would rescue Leo. From both the Spirit King and the Oracion Seis.

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