Chapter Twenty Three - Happy Holidays

I know why Bickslow is such a pervert.

I don't know a lot about abused kids, but I do know that sometimes, when they switch to a non-abusive caretaker, they tend to push their guardian so they know where their limits are; how far they can push before they're punished, so to speak.

I'm sure that Bickslow was punished for any small thing, no matter how strange or weird, because he (very) slowly started showing more and more of his oddness to everyone else.

It started with his guildmark.

"Your tongue?" Makarov asked. "Are you sure?"

Bickslow nodded. "Yeah, definitely!" He stuck out his tongue.

Makarov sighed. "Oh well, it's your choice." And then he pressed the stamp to Bickslow's tongue.

Bickslow then spent the next several hours drinking water, trying to wash out the taste of magical ink on his tongue. It finally stopped bothering him…after a few days.

Then he started using Papa to spy on the older generation. As you could probably guess, I (and therefore the younger generation) was completely fine with this, as was Papa (because he could be young again – he was a 'flying ninja').

The older generation, if you could not tell, was not fine with it.

Some of the younger ones of the older generation (such as the 'old timers' who were still around in the future, like Macao and Wakaba, and even Gildarts) found it funny…until we started using Papa to play pranks on them.

Makarov was fine with all of this. He felt that it made the guild livelier.

Eventually, Bickslow stopped pushing. He came to the realization that it really was different here, that he really was safe, and that it really was okay to be himself.

After that, he fit in pretty seamlessly.

He got along well with Freed, and they bonded over research, oddly enough. Freed helped Bickslow look up more about Seith Magic (which made Freed happy all on its lonesome), and Freed would also put runes on Papa to make him more durable and to channel magic easier. They also bonded over being the only two boys in Fairy Valleys. Every other boy in the guild had already had an apartment before the place was built, so they felt no need to move.

There was a bit of an emergency when we learned that Papa needed a lacrima for his puppet. He explained to us that he wouldn't be able to communicate as freely, and while he would still have independent thought and be able to watch Bickslow's life (which is why he chose this), he wouldn't really get to continue living, per se.

After hearing this, I figured that this must have been what happened in the other timeline - why Bickslow's souls would repeat what he said. It had seemed a lot different compared to how lively Papa was now

Bickslow panicked, and most of the rest of us did, as well. Makarov told us the type of thing we were looking for, and I thought I had a few similar items in my treasure hoard. I brought it all in and dumped it, and while we didn't find the right type of lacrima, we found a decent substitute that would last for a few years, so we had time to look for the right type of lacrima

Laxus's birthday went by with a breeze. He found three other things in my treasure hoard, and was extremely happy with them. They were three gems – an emerald, a unique piece of hematite (which is particularly good for conducting magic) and an odd little spherical moonstone, which matched the one on the necklace he gave me, except it was the size of a small pearl. I have no idea how he even found that in all of the things.

Levy had gotten lacrimas and had imbued them all with lightning, for Laxus to carry with him, so he could eat them if he needed to. Cana and Juvia worked together to make a card that would let him soak the floor with water so he could conduct electricity in the middle of a fight. Freed let Bickslow in on his gift, and Bickslow suggested that instead of simply making a rune defense for Laxus, they would make a prank rune defense, one involved the person to trigger it to be covered in paint.

I had to take a break from the group because I was laughing so much when I heard that, especially when Makarov yelled that he would pay to have that around his house and office so I wouldn't break in.

Which reminded me that I had been too busy training too break into his office lately, which was probably the reason he hadn't already asked Freed.

That was also the day that Freed and Bickslow started their security company, but that's a story for another time.

After that, we all had Christmas together. Most of us spent Christmas Eve at the guild, gathered around a tree and sharing presents, which held an odd variety of things, especially since most of the younger generation tried to make each other's gifts with their own magic.

I ended up taking anything I had gotten as a gift and placing them in my study, as a sort of tribute to all of the wonderful people in my life.

I couldn't wait to meet more of the others.

The best part of Christmas Eve though was just sitting around with the others, enveloped in the warm and homey atmosphere. Honestly, it was something I'd never had before, and it made me feel like heaven.

Several times that night I nearly cried out of happiness, but I managed to hold it back.

But now I waited outside the Heartfilia mansion, waiting to be let in from the very, very cold weather. It was December 25th, at around six in the evening, and it was already dark out. Jude, after already celebrating Christmas with his family last night and again this morning, had decided that he had to go attend his company's Christmas Party, which was tonight – which gave me the perfect opportunity to celebrate Christmas with Lucy.

Layla opened the door. "Sorry, Elle, I know it's cold."

I waved it off. "Eh, it's fine."

I had requipped a giant quilt out of my storage, which was now snuggled around me.

Layla smiled at the sight. "Merry Christmas."

"And a Happy New Year!" I finished, as she led me inside. Since I always teleported to the back of the house, Layla would let me in herself, instead of sending a servant to do it for her. "How has Jude been, with the whole training thing?"

Layla sighed. "Not very well. It doesn't really help that you know the future, because he doesn't believe it."

I stopped to think. "I believe that at some point in the original timeline, the Junelle Corporation ended up having to buy the Konzern because Jude went broke."

"When was this?" Layla asked, shocked.

"Awhile from now," I said. "Late in X784, I think. Might as well warn him. It's his fault if he doesn't take me seriously."

"Ellie-nee!" came a child's voice, and I was tackled by Lucy. "It's so good to see you! I've been practicing super hard!"

I smiled at her. "Really?"

She nodded. "I can open three gates! They're not all Zodiacs, but I can open three, isn't that great!"

I blinked. That was faster than I thought. "Can you open two Zodiacs?"

Lucy nodded. "But if I open three gates, only one can be a Zodiac."

"I see," I murmured.

"She's working on making it two Zodiacs and one silver, and then she'll concentrate on three Zodiac gates."

I nodded. "Nice. Now, you know what that means, right?"

Lucy frowned, but nodded. "Yeah. I can't summon Monoceros yet. Or get another Zodiac key."

I nodded. "Yeah. I've got silver friends for you, but you need to hold off on the others."

"Alright," Lucy said sadly.

I nearly screamed at seeing how sad she was. Just…ahhh!

"But…" I said. "You read the book I copied for you, right?"

She nodded. "Yeah, the spirit book."

I requipped Ophiuchus's key into my hand. "If you can convince me to give this to you, you can have it."

Lucy stared at it, before grabbing the book off a shelf. She flipped forward and held it up to me.

"In the Table of Contents, Ophiuchus is in the Golden Key section, but it's called 'The Zodiacs and the 13th Gate'. That means that the book doesn't count Ophiuchus as a Zodiac key!"

I gave her an odd look. "Did you already make this argument on the off chance I'd offer you Ophiuchus?"

Little Lucy giggled. "Virgo told me that you found his key, and she hinted that you might give it to me, so I made an argument, just in case."

I shook my head and turned to Layla. "You've actively seen her summon three spirits, or two Zodiacs?"

Layla nodded.

I smiled, and handed Lucy Ophiuchus's key. "I suggest you go outside, if you want to summon him. He can be pretty big. Also, be careful. I think it takes quite a bit of energy."

Lucy nodded eagerly and ran outside, with me and Layla tagging along.

"Don't take too long," I told her. "It's chilly out, and you shouldn't be out long."

Lucy nodded again and gathered her power, before swiping the key and shouting, "Open, Gate of the Snake Charmer; Ophiuchus!"

A large magic circle appeared, and out of it came the coiling serpent.

"Woah…" Lucy said quietly, before shouting. "Hello Ophiuchus, it's nice to meet you! You're so cool! My name is Lucy Heartfilia, and I'd like to make a contract with you!"

There was a moment before a deep voice said, "Yes, I will accept you as my Master."

"No, I'm not your master!" Lucy said, all smiles. "I'm your friend!"

She ran forward to the front of Ophiuchus's mouth. "Can I pet you?"

Ophiuchus nodded, a bit stunned.

Lucy threw her arms around the giant snake, petting his scales. "You're so awesome, Ophiuchus. I'm glad I get to make a contract with you."

"Hmm, why do you think she reacted like that?" I asked Layla as Lucy spoke with Ophiuchus.

"I think it's because of Ophiuchus's impressive size," Layla said, smiling. "It's probably the closest she can get to a dragon right now."

I couldn't help laughing at that.

The oppressive magic vanished, and Lucy ran forward with a tiny purple snake curled around her neck. "Mama, Ellie-nee, look! Ophiuchus has a mini-form! It takes a lot less magic to keep him out like this, too."

"I'd certainly hope so," I muttered. Turning to Lucy, I smiled and rubbed her hair. "Alright, cutie pie, how about we go over the silver keys I've got, alright?"

She nodded eagerly.

We went back inside and I requipped three keys; Aquila the Eagle, Caelum the Chisel, and Pictor the Easel.

I didn't want to give her Serpens because she just got a giant snake, and Musca the Fly and Chaemeleon the Chameleon had too much to do with sneaking around, so I wanted to hold off on both of those for now.

Speaking of which, I had to go over the other silver keys from Galuna…

Lucy squealed and happily hugged the keys, going to the book so she could check them.

"I have a few more questions for you," I said. "Can you solidify your power?"

Lucy blinked. "What do you mean?"

I paused. "Lucy, instead of just moving magic through your body, try to manifest it." Holding out my hand, I concentrated on the feeling I get with earth, and a clump of earth formed in my hand.

"Wow," Lucy said.

Tightening my magic on it, I put enough pressure that it hardened, and when I was done, a rock was left in my hand. I gave it to Lucy. "You can manifest your magic, and you should try it. It should help with your power, and if you're strong enough, you can even make weapons."

"Really?" she asked.

I nodded. "Since you'd be making it out of Pure Magic, it would be a lot stronger. So I'd like you to try doing that."

Lucy nodded.

Then, I requipped a book, and handed it to her. "I also want you to read this book, and practice Requip. I know that it's another type of magic, but it should help with your magical reserves, and more than that, it should also help you store your keys in a safe place."

Lucy took the book. "Got it. I'll work hard, Ellie-nee!"

I smiled and ruffled her hair. "That's good, but don't forget to have fun, too. If it's alright with your spirits, you could always just take them out to play and spend time with them."

Lucy smiled. "Alright!"

There was a chime and a bright light, and Virgo appeared.

"Virgo!" Lucy said happily.

"Hello, Hime-sama," Virgo said. "If you excuse me, I must speak to Elle-sama."

"Okay!" Lucy said.

Virgo led me into an adjoining room before handing me a book.

"What's this?" I asked.

"This coming year, Yukino will be born," Virgo said. "Libra and Pisces have told me to give this to you to give to her when you next see her." She handed me a bracelet. "When the time comes, this bracelet will lead you to her."

I nodded. "Alright. Is there a particular reason why they want her to have this book?"

Virgo paused. "There are five Stellar Bloodlines. Each have a specialized form of magic. The Heartfilia's, a name passed down through the women of each line, were the world's first Celestial Spirit Mages. The Fernandez Clan was always especially talented at Heavenly Body Magic. The Aguria Family were known as the Priestesses of the Moon, and specialized in that sort of magic. The Fioran Royal Family was always very good at Sun Spells and Creationary Stellar Magic. And finally, the Rigby's were the best practitioners at Planetary Magic."

I paused to take that in. "W…what?"

"Of those magics, most are lost. There is no current Priestess of the Moon, or ones who know how to become one. We, the Celestial Spirits, are taking advantage of your appearance and knowledge to resurface this lost magic. The Rigby family died out a very very long time ago, but they were known as the strongest Planetary magic users. You are probably descended from them."

I shook my head. "That's impossible. It's not like I was born into this world, my child body at the age of nine just sort of appeared here!"

Virgo tilted her head. "And nothing changed upon entering this world?"

Seeing me hesitate, she continued. "You probably ended up getting a boost in magic and an affinity in Planetary Magic because the Rigby Family was added to your DNA. Whether or not they share your name for the same reason…who knows? To omniscient beings, time is meaningless."

I shook my head. "This is a lot to take in."

Virgo shrugged. "Give it some time. I also suggest you look over this book and the rest of the books you've found – it will help to know that information. But make sure that Yukino (and if you can, Sorano) learns that magic – neither were ever meant to be a Celestial Spirit Mage."

I nodded. "Alright."

"That is all," she said, before walking outside. "Merry Christmas, Hime-sama."

"Merry Christmas, Virgo!" Lucy said happily, and hugged Virgo before she could disappear.

"Wait, Virgo, one more thing," I said, before she vanished.

Virgo turned to me.

"When Lucy can hold open three Zodiac gates, I want you to start teaching her Urano Metria."

Virgo nodded, and disappeared.

"What's Urano Metria?" Lucy asked.

I smiled. "You'll see. If you want to know faster, though, you should probably work a bit harder. Also, I should probably get going. It's late. Anyway, I'm afraid that I won't be seeing you guys until your next birthday, Lucy."

She pouted. "Really?"

I nodded. "Yep, I need to get my own training in, too. Don't worry, you'll be fine. Show me how strong you are when I get back, okay? And I promise I'll spend the whole day with you." She smiled and nodded, before hugging me.

"Goodnight, Ellie-nee," she whispered. "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas," I whispered back.

I said goodbye to Layla and I teleported home.

Appearing there, I finished packing up all my stuff when I felt a surge in Celestial Magical Energy. Phoenix and Corvus appeared, in my room.

"So, what did you think?" I asked them.

"She's cute!" Phoenix said happily.

"She's a kid," Corvus said.

"Yeah, but what do you think?" I asked him.

"…" he said nothing.

I rolled my eyes. "You think next time you'll let me hand your key over?"

"Yes," he said. "She's probably strong enough now, but I think I'd prefer to stay with you a bit longer."

"Aww, that's sweet!" I said.

He completely ignored me.

Jerk.

"Where are we going, again?" Phoenix asked. "Galuna Island?"

I snorted. "That's where I found you, silly. No, we're going to a place called Tenroujima – Tenrou Island. Or Tenrou, for short."

"What is it?" Phoenix asked.

"As I just said, it's an island, so I suppose you've got it half right," I told him. "And Tenrou is known as the Fairy Tail Guild's sacred ground."

"And….why are we going there again?" Phoenix asked.

Corvus sighed and schooled his younger brother. "Elle is going to train Venus, Mars, and Neptune there."

"Yeah," I said. "Still, it's a bit more complicated than that. I'd like you guys to come out often, if possible."

"Well, company should stop you from going crazy!" Phoenix said.

"Crazier," Corvus muttered under his breath.

I ignored them. "I was hoping for a bit of your help with Mars, Phoenix. Fire is your domain, after all."

"Why haven't you asked for my help with Pluto?" Corvus asked.

I paused. "You know, I didn't ever really look up your page in the book. So you control Shadow Magic?"

He nodded. "I'll help you with Venus, as well."

"Light magic?" I asked.

He nodded. "While I don't actually possess any light magic – that's the stupid lion's domain – I know how to help you balance it out. The hardest part of truly mastering Planetary Magic is learning how to control contradicting magic. Like Mars vs. Neptune, or Venus vs. Pluto."

"You know, you never told us how you were planning on learning the others," Phoenix said.

"Well, I've got Uranus covered – I know the perfect time to learn that. And I might be able to do Jupiter, but I'm a bit worried about Saturn."

"What about Mercury?" Corvus asked.

I froze, and dropped the book I was holding, before screaming and clutching at my hair. "DAMMIT! HOW COULD I FORGET ABOUT MERCURY! It's one thing to forget about Pluto, but Mercury? How could I forget about Mercury, with being an awesome element and an awesome god and the first fucking planet?"

Corvus snorted. "It's your memory. You tell us."

Phoenix laughed a bit.

I threw the book at him. "Oh, shut up."

Corvus rolled his eyes at the two of us. "You have just about everything packed. What about lessons, for the kids?"

"I've got that covered with Master and Gildarts," I said. "They know what they're going to do."

I left my (now empty) bedroom and went to the study, making sure I had what cards I needed.

"Everything looks good," I said.

"You got a tent?" Phoenix asked curiously.

I nodded. "Yeah, but that's just in case. In Fairy Tail Zero, there were buildings, so I was hoping to live in one of the abandoned ones."

"Aren't they all over a hundred, or something?" Corvus asked.

"Yeah, isn't that dangerous?" Phoenix asked.

"For the regular houses and village, yeah, but I imagine that the school library would still hold strong."

"So that's why you're taking your bed," Phoenix said.

I rolled my eyes. "Yes, Phoenix. That's why. Now, it's time to get going. I want to get set up in time to sleep tonight."

They took my hands and I jumped us to Fairy Tail's sacred ground.

So... it turns out I forgot Mercury.

Before Elle's four month training happens, there will be one more chapter coming up. I'll probably try to post that tomorrow, and then it will probably be a week (give or take a few days) before I post again, because I want to get the training montage out of the way in one go.

Thank you to all my lovely reviewers, and to the guests I can't reply to. I hope you've all been enjoying this story.