Chapter 4 – Daybreak
Looking over the secondary job request I picked up from the guild yesterday, I read through everything once more.
Help Track Runaway
Twelve-year-old boy from Oshibana has run away from home. This request comes from the Swan family, a non-magical family who adopted the boy. Its speculated that the boy took off after developing a magical ability, then as a result of asking his parents where it could have originated from; found out about his adoption. It's due to the boy being a mage that this request has been put out to the wizarding guilds, seeing as any prior attempt to bring the boy home has failed.
Below that had the address, and beneath that stated that this job had a 150,000J reward to it. According to Mira, the boy has been living in the woods surrounding Oshibana since he ran away and hasn't shown any signs of trying to run away any further than that. I know that usually jobs like this are time sensitive, but if the boy isn't going anywhere, and is constantly avoiding being captured; I know he will be alright on his own, and I'll be able to help Lucy and Natsu with the Everlue job like I had been promised to do before heading to Oshibana.
Besides, maybe the time in between now and when I get there will be enough for the kid to process everything that he'd been bomb shelled with.
"Icelynn, are you sure you don't want to head to Oshibana first? I'm sure that boy's parents must miss him terribly." Lucy asked from where she sat next to me in the back of the carriage we rode in with Happy and a very sickly Natsu. Whom she had been teasingly talking to like she was his personal maid. Much to Happy's dislike.
"No doubt that they do, but I'm sure. This brat probably just needs some time to come to terms with how he came to be with his family. Doing this Everlue job with you, Natsu, and Happy will give him just that. We'll end up having to part ways in Shirotsume though. I don't want an overzealous Natsu to upset the kid any more than what he already is. Not to mention Happy and his smart mouth might just make things worse too." I answered, as Lucy hummed in agreement, while Happy yelled hey in protest. Only to go back to poking Natsu in the face to make sure he was still alive.
"You've got a point there. I'd love to tag along with you, but I guess someone needs to make sure Natsu gets off the train at the right place. Motion sickness really sucks, doesn't it?" Lucy asked, as I gave her a sour look.
"Oh, you have no idea Luce." I said, as Lucy and I went silent. We stayed that way the rest of the way to Shirotsume. The moment the carriage stopped, Natsu dived right between Lucy and I just to get off the ride from hell. All Lucy and I could do was sit back in our seats to get out of the green fire breather's way before he could barf on either of us. When we were in the all clear, Lucy and I turned to get our bags while Natsu continuously kissed the ground outside.
Once she had her things, Lucy hopped out of the carriage, and I followed suit, while Happy made sure to float Natsu's bag out before it could be whisked away to some unknown location.
"I swear, that's the last time I ride one of those damn things." Natsu muttered, as he shrugged his bag on his back, and the four of us began walking down the main street of Shirotsume.
"You say that every time." Happy said, as Natsu then decided to mutter how starved he was.
"Wait, can't you just eat your own fire if you're hungry?" Lucy asked Natsu, as he glanced her way, then turned a droll stare back to the road.
"Oh yeah, that's a great idea, why don't you eat that cow of yours, or Plue while we're at it." Natsu answered sarcastically, while Lucy looked thoroughly creeped out.
"Wait, why would I do that!?" she shrieked, as Natsu kept focusing on putting one foot in front of the other while his normal color returned to his face.
"Dragon slayers can only eat their element if it comes from an outside source, Lucy." I explained to my sister, as she glanced my way.
"So, you're telling me that you can eat ice so long as it's not from your magic? Or fire in Natsu's case?" Lucy clarified, as I nodded my head once to show her that she had that correct. "That's kind of lame." She muttered under her breath. Hearing her, I couldn't help but gently jab her side with my elbow. Realizing that I had indeed, heard her, she shot me an apologetic look.
"I'll remind you of that the next time you want me to make you ice for a drink." I warned her, giving her a good-natured smirk.
"That's alright, I know you can't say no to this cuteness!" Lucy shot back, as I chuckled at the pose she pulled as she said that. Rolling my eyes, I then looked back at the way the four of us were going.
After we continued to walk for several minutes, Natsu stopped in front of a restaurant. I had to admit though, they sure smelled like they were cooking up something mouthwatering in there.
"Oh wow! You smell that, Happy! I say we get some grub before we get to work." Natsu suggested, as he and Happy looked back at Lucy and me.
"I could probably eat." I said, as I glanced over at my sister.
"I'm good, but you guys go enjoy. I've got something to take care of. I'll be back in a few." Lucy answered, as she waved at us as she began to walk further down the street.
As Lucy walked away, I couldn't help but wonder just what she needed to go and do. She didn't mention anything on the way here. Figuring that she probably wanted to go and get some shopping done before we work the job, I just shrugged my shoulders and followed Natsu and Happy into the restaurant. We were seated, ordered, and got our food in a timely manner. By the time that we had gotten halfway through our meal, Lucy had returned.
Wearing a maid's uniform.
Upon seeing her, I didn't really think anything of it. Natsu and Happy made it seem like they wanted to take this approach to get into Everlue's mansion to steal the book. However, Natsu and Happy both looked really surprised.
"Lucy?" Natsu muttered, the food he had been chewing falling in his lap as his mouth fell open.
"Oh, come on. I know I'm really cute in this maid's outfit, but I'm sure you can still tell its me." Lucy said, as she then took on a shy pose. "Have you gotten enough food to eat, Master? Or shall I bring you some more?" she practiced, as Natsu and Happy placed a hand by their mouths and began whispering to each other.
"Oh no, she thought we were serious about the costume." Happy whispered loud enough for both Lucy and I to hear.
"We'll just have to roll with it. Just don't say anything, okay." Natsu whispered back, as I gave them a dry look.
"I swear, you two need to learn how to whisper. You two said that so loudly that even the man down the street could hear you." I told the two sarcastically, as they slapped the hands they'd been talking behind over their mouths, like they had said something wrong.
"Way to be such jerks, you guys." Lucy agreed, as she sat down next to me.
The rest of our meal went by smoothly. Lucy and I just simply conversed while Natsu and Happy sent food flying everywhere much like they did when we first met them back in Hargeon. When we were done, we paid the bill, and began making our way to the house we were to meet our client in to discuss the job we were coming to do for him. Upon reaching the address though, I couldn't help but think that the place smelled off somehow.
It's almost liked this house has barely even been lived in. I thought, as Lucy rang the doorbell. Who knows, maybe the client just bought and moved into this place. Either way, it's none of my business. Shrugging that train of thought off, I stood back on my heels as we waited for someone to come to the door.
After a few long minutes of waiting for someone to answer the door, I began to rethink ignoring my instincts. From the looks of this place, it's about the size of a mansion. Not as big as the Heartfilia estate, but a small mansion none the less; and any mansion big or small has a few servants and retainers milling about to keep the place up and running day to day. So, it was strange that we've been waiting for someone to open the door for nearly three minutes now.
Natsu was about to go up and start pounding on the door with his flaming fists, but upon hearing footsteps heading our way from inside the house, I quickly grabbed him by the back of his vest to prevent him from reaching the door.
"What the hell Icelynn!?" he growled at me, as I heard the lock being disengaged.
"Natsu, I'd rather meet the client without burning down the house they are staying in." I simply said, as I applied a light amount of my magic to my breath, as I blew out the flame on Natsu's hand. Once it was out, I simply released my fire dragon slayer counterpart.
When the door opened, a middle-aged woman wearing a red dress greeted us.
"Good afternoon. Might you be the mages we are expecting?" the woman asked, as Lucy gave her, her dazzling smile.
"Yes, Ma'am! My name is Lucy, and we are mages from Fairy Tail who accepted your request. We are wondering if Mr. and Mrs. Melon are available." Lucy said sweetly, her heiress training kicking in.
"Well, I am Mrs. Melon. It's nice to meet all of you. Please, why don't you come inside, and I can fetch my husband. Then we can discuss the job." Mrs. Melon said, as she ushered us all inside.
As we walked through the halls, we didn't see another soul as Mrs. Melon led us to the parlor, where we would discuss business. Once we were there, Mrs. Melon excused herself as we all settled down onto one of the sofas. Lucy sitting between Natsu and I, with Happy settled comfortably on the white apron of her maid uniform.
While we waited, I thought back to the specs of this job request. The job itself was simple. Steal a book from Everlue, get out without being caught, return to Mr. Melon, and get the two hundred thousand Jewel reward. Not to be stereotypical or anything, but the lengths Mr. Melon wants us to go to accomplish this job, you'd think he'd pay a bit of a higher price. The other jobs on the board I saw back on the guild involving stealing were base lined at around seven hundred thousand to nine hundred thousand Jewels.
Once again, my instincts were telling me that something was off, but there were so many factors that could easily explain things. Like the theory that they just moved in. Then there is the simple fact that any employees working here could be on holiday or something. Once again, I'm probably just being paranoid.
Although, the last time I was paranoid like this, Lucy almost got kidnapped by human traffickers and taken to Bosco. I thought with a scoff, earning the curious eye of said sister. Shaking my head to tell her silently that it was nothing, I went back to looking around the parlor we were in.
After a few more moments, Mrs. Melon returned with her husband in tow. Granting us a good afternoon, Mr. Melon took a seat on the sofa sitting across from the one Natsu, Lucy, Happy and I were currently sitting in. Once he settled, we got down to business.
"Thank you all for waiting. My name is Kaby Melon, it's nice to meet you." Mr. Melon said, introducing himself. However, before Lucy could open her mouth, Natsu and Happy both begin drooling about; well, melons…
"Quit being so rude you two." Lucy quietly snapped at the two, who began pouting at her. Deciding that it would be best to let Lucy handle the two numbskulls, I sat forward in my seat.
"Please excuse them Mr. Melon, Natsu and the blue cat Happy here really love food. I'm Icelynn by the way, and next to me here is my sister Lucy. It's nice to meet you as well." I apologized, as Mr. Melon gave me a small smile.
"Oh, it's fine. I get that a lot actually." He said, as he waved it off. Thankfully, Natsu, Happy, and Lucy had all stopped fussing and started paying attention. "Now that we've been properly introduced, let's discuss the job I requested of your guild."
"Of course. On the flier, it said that you wanted us to steal a book from Duke Everlue. Is that correct?" I asked, as I sat back once more.
"Yes. Duke Everlue has a book called Daybreak in his collection. I'd like for you to get it from him and burn it for me." Mr. Melon said, as I began to feel surprised. I could tell that Lucy felt the same by the expression on her face. As for Natsu, you could easily tell that his pyro urges were beginning to act up again.
"That wouldn't be a problem for me!" Natsu declared, as he held up his index finger, and lit it up much like a lighter. "I'd even burn down the entire place if you wanted." He said, as I smacked him upside his head again.
"We can't get paid if we go to jail for arson, idiot." I scolded, as Natsu turned the pout he tried to use on Lucy towards me. Giving him a bitch please look, Natsu soon huffed at me and looked away.
"Sir, do you mind me asking why you want this book to be burned?" Lucy asked, while I won the stare off Natsu and I were having and turned back to the meet and greet with our client.
"For two hundred thousand Jewels, I don't think anyone would really give a damn, Lucy." Natsu said, as Mr. Melon raised an eyebrow at us.
"My goodness. I guess you lot must have taken the job before they could update it. The reward has been raised to two million Jewels." Mr. Melon corrected, as I felt my eyes open wide at this. My earlier suspicions coming back full force. While Natsu, Lucy, and Happy were still reeling from the shock of the reward amount change, I took a discreet deep breath of the room we were in.
Wait a minute… Even if the Melons just recently moved here, there would still be a deep-seated smell of their employees. However, the only other scents I'm picking up besides us, is just Mr. and Mrs. Melon. I thought, as I narrowed my eyes at our client. Maybe I was on to something with my earlier suspicions after all. Why do I even question myself? I wondered, as I mentally prepared myself for the headache I'm likely to get from this.
Feeling glad that I had pulled that extra job off the board before we left Magnolia, I began losing hope for the two hundred thousand, or even the two million Jewel reward. From what I was smelling, Mr. and Mrs. Melon probably couldn't be able to afford to pay us even if we complete this job.
Great, I can smell a past family scandal all over this bullshit. I thought in annoyance. I'd smelled enough of those for a lifetime back at the Heartfilia estate…
Now that I'm thinking about books though, the name Melon sounds really familiar to me. Glancing over at Lucy, who I know loves books way more than I do, I couldn't help but wonder if she could remember. I'd have to ask her later though, because if this really is the scandal I'm suspecting it of being, then things could get ugly for us later on.
"Either way, to answer your question. That book must be destroyed at all costs. I cannot allow Daybreak to exist any longer than it needs to be." Mr. Melon continued, as he folded his hands. "It's also why I've raised the reward."
Seeing Mr. Melon's determination to have this book burned, Natsu's head practically combusted. The suddenness of it had Lucy crawling in my lap while Happy took to the air to avoid being crushed, just to get away from the overzealous fire wizard.
"I'M FIRED UP NOW! COME ON YOU TWO, LETS GET TO WORK!" Natsu shouted, as he put the fire around him out long enough to grab Lucy by the wrist and begin dragging her out of the mansion behind him.
"AYE, SIR!" Happy shouted, as he flew behind the two.
Watching as they left, I then turned to where Mr. Melon sat watching the door with a bit of shock. After a moment, he began to look down at the hands he still held folded before him as he asked us to burn the book. In what I could see of his face, there was a bit of anger, sorrow, and grief.
"Mr. Melon." I called, gaining the man's attention. "I can understand if you don't wish to tell me, but does that book mean something negative to you and yours?" I asked him, as Mr. Melon began clutching his hands so tight, they began turning white.
"Yes. That book is an insult to my family. It's caused us grief for some time now, and I can no longer bear this weight." He answered, as he closed his eyes. "Please, don't ask anymore. I've been tired of this subject for a lot longer than I care to acknowledge." He pleaded, as I nodded my head once.
"I understand." I said, standing up. "Oh, and once again, please forgive Natsu. As I said before, he gets rather excitable. Now if you'll excuse us, we'll go and get to work."
"Yes, of course." Mr. Melon said, as he turned to look at his wife. "Dear, do you mind showing Miss. Icelynn out?" he asked her, as I held up my hand.
"Oh, there's no need. I can show myself out. Thank you, though." I said, waving goodbye at the couple.
Making my way out of the mansion, I made sure to close the door Natsu had left wide open in his haste to get out of here. Once the door was shut, I began following the tracks and scent trail Natsu and Lucy left behind in their mad dash. It took me a while, but I eventually came across Natsu and Happy hiding behind a tree, watching Lucy as she walked up to the gate leading into Duke Everlue's mansion. A house Mr. and Mrs. Melon's could have fit inside of a couple of times with room to spare.
"Oh, there you are Icelynn. I was beginning to wonder where you went off to." Natsu said, as I put my back against the tree that sat next to his and Happy's and peered out at Lucy as well.
"I had to ask Mr. Melon one last question before I chased you out of his house. Honestly Natsu, didn't Igneel teach you any manners?" I asked the fire breather, as he just shrugged his shoulders.
Rolling my eyes, I looked away from him and Happy to watch Lucy's progress. Approaching the gate, Lucy placed one of her hands by her mouth to amplify her voice.
"Hello! I'm here to apply for the open Maid's Position!" she called out, as everything grew silent. It stayed that way a few moments before Lucy had to put her back against the gate, all to avoid being hit by the walking stones being sent flying by this huge woman who spun up from the ground my sister had just been standing on. Wearing a similar maid's uniform to Lucy.
Holy shit, she's about the size of a small vulcan. I thought in shock, as the gorilla of a girl made the ground shake as she landed on her feet. When she turned to look at Lucy, the poor girl could only let out a small squeak.
"So, you are a maid?" the gorilla woman asked, as Lucy nodded her head quickly.
"Yes." She squeaked again, becoming really nervous of giving the wrong answer.
"I assume that you saw the ad that the Master placed in the paper then." The gorilla maid said, as Lucy nodded again.
As Lucy went to ask more about it, we hear this creepy laugh come from the hole the gorilla woman had left behind. Not a moment later, this little round man pops up with a lecherous smile. All the while, stroking the mustache he made out of his nose hair. Fighting the urge to puke, I carefully watched the interaction between my sister, and our targets.
"Did I hear someone say Master?" the creep asked, as I narrowed my eyes on the bastard.
Calm yourself, Ice. Remember what you told Natsu about not getting the reward if you go to jail… I reminded myself, as the little man turned to eye Lucy up and down.
"This maid is here to apply for the open position, Master." The gorilla woman said, as the little man turned his head this way and that.
After a few moments of this, the little man gave Lucy a bored expression, and waived her off.
"I'll pass, now scram ugly." He said, as I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing at the dramatic look Lucy had on her face.
Poor Lucy, she just can't get a break with her feminine wiles, can she? Either the man just isn't into looking at young girls and has eyes for only his wife, or the man simply doesn't view beauty in the traditional sense. In this situation, looks like the little man, who I'm guessing is Everlue; is the latter of the two.
"You heard my Master, Ugly. Get lost." The gorilla woman repeated, rubbing salt into the wound Lucy's ego must have right now. As Lucy stumbled back a step, Everlue turned to look at her as he stroked his nose mustache again.
"Sorry, but a man of my status has certain standards to uphold." Everlue said, as the ground in several places were broken through behind him. Out of the holes stood other maids of various shapes and sizes.
To put things politely: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, as they say…
"That is why I will only hire the fairest maids I can find." Everlue finished, as Lucy looked on at his maids in shock. All of them began hugging their master, telling how grateful they are too him. From the way they looked, you could tell that they were well rested and fed. With the way they were shaped for this life, I can see how grateful they would be for Everlue to give them a job. Sadly, not everyone would hire them for how well they'd do their jobs. Some people just are, not so nice like that.
At least it doesn't seem like he's abusing them. I thought, a little grateful for that.
Poor Lucy though, she got one last, run on home, ugly before she could really turn and begin walking. Once she was able to though, she turned and began wandering down the road. As she began leaving, I glanced over at Natsu, who silently nodded at me before slinking further back into the woods. Following his lead, the two of us plus Happy began heading in the direction the road leading up to Everlue's mansion went back to town.
We found Lucy sitting just within the tree line, at the base of a tree, her knees pulled up to her chest. Dramatically crying her eyes out of all things. Yep, her ego had definitely been bruised.
"So, you just couldn't pull it off, huh?" Natsu asked, as Lucy turned her tearful fury at him.
"I tried! That idiot just wouldn't know what beauty was if it bit him in the ass!" she sob-shrieked, as I rolled my eyes.
"Alright then, I guess we'll just have to resort to old Plan T." Natsu said, as I raised my eyebrow at the name of the plan…
"Yeah! That jerk's going to pay!" Lucy agreed, despite not knowing what Plan T is.
"Natsu." I called, getting both his and Lucy's attention. "What's Plan T?" I asked him, as Lucy began realizing that she doesn't know what that means either.
"Take 'em by storm!" Happy answered, as I couldn't help but shake my head in amusement.
Of course, leave Natsu and Happy to name a straight up frontal attack something like Plan T. I like it. I thought to myself, as Lucy began grilling them about taking a more subtle plan of action.
"Look! Icelynn already told you that we are not going to jail because of your craziness." Lucy scolded, as she put her thumb and finger to her chin in thought. "Now, there has to be a way we can sneak in and get the book. Then come back out with none the wiser so we can have Natsu burn it." She said, as I turned to look at what we could see of the Everlue mansion over the tops of the trees.
"If we want to get in without being caught, then we could have Happy fly each of us up to the roof. We can break in through an attic window or something." I suggested, as I began wondering for just how long we could get Natsu to go along with our silent approach.
"Oh, come on! That doesn't sound as fun!" Natsu whined, as Lucy gave him a stern look.
"No! I think that Icelynn's plan has a better chance of success. It has the least amount of risk that Everlue catches on to what we're doing snooping around his mansion." Lucy said, as she turned to look at Happy. "Well, are you up for flying us to the roof, Happy?" she asked the little blue cat.
"Sure, so long as I don't have to carry two people at once." He answered, before giving Lucy an evil smirk. "I'm not looking forward to flying your heavy butt up there though…" he said teasingly, as Lucy gave him an evil look of her own. Still feeling a little sore over the ugly comments from earlier, Lucy just huffed at Happy as she grabbed the spare change of clothes she had brought along just in case the ruse didn't work out. When she had them, she went behind some bushes to change.
After she was done, we began sneaking our way through the woods back to Everlue's mansion. Sneaking around towards the side to get away from the gate, Happy then began flying each of us individually up to the roof. He took Natsu first, me second, and Lucy last. While Happy flew back to get the last two of us, Natsu melted away a part of the glass on one of the windows.
Once he made a space wide enough to fit his arm though, he reached in and unlatch the window.
"Are you guys sure we can't just bust in through the front door. This isn't really taking them by sTorm you know." Natsu whined once more, as Lucy sighed heavily.
"We've already covered this Natsu." she said, as Natsu turned his pout towards her once more.
"But I thought you wanted to have your revenge on that guy." Natsu pointed out, as Lucy got an evil glint in her eye that I knew all too well.
"Oh, I'll get my revenge on him alright. I'll find his toothbrush and scrub the toilet with it." she declared, as Natsu and Happy both became disgusted.
"Wait, wouldn't you be doing Everlue a favor at the same time?" I asked her, feeling just as disgusted. Thinking it over, Lucy came to the same realization. When she did, her evil expression fell.
"Oh my God, your right…" she sighed heavily.
"How about we just move a bunch of random things around and hide ones that look important." I suggested, as Natsu slid the window open. At my words, Lucy's evil glint returned to her chocolate brown eyes.
"Wow… No wonder people think we're blood related…" Lucy said, giggling maniacally.
"Wait… You two aren't really sisters?" Natsu asked, from where he and Happy had already crawled into the window he opened. Following him in, I shrugged my shoulders.
"Technically… We're not blood related, but I was adopted as the family ward, so Lucy and I were raised as sisters." I explained, as Lucy followed us in.
"Oh, really now." Natsu muttered, as Lucy slid the window closed behind her.
"Yep. That pretty much sums up how it happened." Lucy confirmed, as we all began looking for the way out of the attic.
While we looked for the door, Happy found a replica of a human skull big enough to fit over his head. Once he had it on, he sniggered as he began quietly tip toeing his way behind Lucy. When he was behind her, he sprouted his wings, and shot up right in front of Lucy's face.
Thankfully, Lucy was able to keep herself from screaming her head off and letting everyone in the vicinity know that we were here; but she did look like she was about to have a heart attack. While Lucy sank down against a wall to calm herself down, Happy turned to show Natsu and I a better view.
"Wow! Check me out! There's no way anyone would recognize me if they saw me now!" Happy said, as Natsu gave him a high five.
"You look pretty fierce little buddy." Natsu complimented him.
"It would make a nice mask, but please refrain from scaring Lucy like that again. We really would have to resort to Plan T if she screamed in fright." I said, as Happy and Natsu both nodded their heads. Lucy, on the other hand, gave me a quiet thanks in gratitude.
With that, we put our shenanigans aside, and found the door that would let us into the rest of the mansion. Once we found ourselves in the level below the attic, we began carefully combing through all of the rooms on the floor. After about fifteen minutes, we'd found many guest rooms, music and drawing rooms, and golden bathrooms decorated with Everlue's ugly mug.
"Are we really going to check every single room in this place?" Natsu asked, after Lucy closed the door on the fifth golden bathroom.
"If that's what it takes to find the book, then yes." I answered him, as Natsu gave me an annoyed huff.
"I say we take someone hostage and make them tell us where it is. Or at least where to find the damn thing." Natsu said, as he opened the door to another guest room.
"The whole idea here is to keep from being seen, you dummy. So, we have to be stealthy. You know, kind of like a ninja." Lucy suggested, as Natsu got this nerdy, head in the clouds look on his face.
"Like a real ninja?" he asked, as Lucy began shrinking away from his expression.
"I think you may have just created a monster." I told her, as she placed her hand over her face.
"You're probably right, as usual." Lucy agreed. "I'm honestly afraid of what's going on in that crazy head of his."
At about this time, I saw the tile floor behind Natsu lurch upwards. Smelling magic in the air, I turned to face the enemy. We then watched as the maids from before popped up from the floor that had been below us. I guess someone must have seen us as Happy flew us up to the roof. That is, if Everlue hadn't been watching us from the start.
Then again, Lucy didn't wear any gloves with that maid's outfit from earlier, so that's a real possibility. He probably saw the Fairy Tail emblem on her hand when he took a look at her before. I thought, as I filed that bit of info away for later. If Lucy and I ever planned on going undercover for another job, I'll have to keep that in mind.
"INTRUDER ALERT VIRGO!" The group shouted, as the gorilla maid from before popped up from her own separate hole in the floor.
"Let's crush them, girls!" the gorilla maid they had called Virgo ordered, as the smaller maids charged at us with staffs.
However, with Happy wearing the skull, all he had to do was hiss at them to make them turn tail and run away. As they did this, Natsu lit up one of his fists, and shouted something that sounded like Ninja Power as they flew back through the holes they had created. All Lucy and I could do at this point was sweat drop as Virgo simply dropped her heavy self on top of Natsu.
Instead of being squashed like a bug though, Natsu pushed the gorilla maid off and away from him. Once he did that, he took his scarf and wrapped it around his head like a hood and mask. Once again, following the Ninja example Lucy had tried to get him to follow with being quiet. When he had it done the way he wanted, he had just enough time to dodge Virgo's counterattack, and kick her back down through the hole she had made with the other maids as well.
"We must not let ourselves be discovered, for we are Ninja." Natsu said, in a strange voice as he mimicked a hand sign. Crawling up on Natsu's shoulder, Happy did the same thing and echoed the word Ninja.
Sighing in annoyance, I used my magic to freeze over the hole left in the floor. Natsu was already being ridiculous enough, and I didn't want one of the maids to come back and encourage his bullshit any longer than necessary.
"Guys, I think ninjas are supposed to be quiet." Lucy told the two, as I simply walked past them.
Opening the door to the room we had been coming up on next, I called the other three over as I discovered the first library we've come across since we began searching through this place. Once everyone was inside, I quickly closed the door behind us. Looking around, you could see that just about every inch of the walls in this room were covered in books.
"There are many books in this library." Natsu said, still holding the hand sign and speaking in that odd voice.
"Aye, there are indeed." Happy copied.
"You guys can drop the ninja act now. We have to work quickly before the other maids and Virgo regain their wits." I said, as Lucy walked over to the closest bookshelf to us.
"Wow. I never would have thought that Everlue was such a book worm." Lucy commented, as she began scanning over the many different titles.
"Let's start looking!" Natsu declared, as he and Happy began doing a little dance of their own.
With that, he, Happy, and Lucy began scanning over the titles. Meanwhile, I walked over to the only desk in the room and picked up what looked like a catalogue of all the books in this library. Flipping it open, I began looking for the section of books beginning with the letter D.
After searching through the massive amounts of titles for about ten minutes, Lucy let out a huff of annoyance.
"Honestly! How in the hell are we going to find one stupid book in this huge place?" Lucy whined, as Natsu ooh ed and ahh ed at every other book. One with pictures, and one on all sorts of different fish. Ignoring them, I kept looking. Eventually, I found the title of the book. From what the log was saying, it should be on the shelf Natsu was currently gushing about the different colors the book covers were.
"Hey, look at this one, it's sparkly." He said, as I looked over.
It was on the tip of my tongue to tell him to quit yapping and start looking through every book on that particular shelf. However, as I noticed the name of the sparkly book, I held my tongue.
"Holy shit, that's got to be the strongest dumb luck I've ever seen." I exclaimed, gaining Lucy's attention.
"What's wrong Icelynn?" she asked, as she looked over at the book Natsu was holding. Noticing that it was the book we had been looking for, she climbed down off the latter, and we both hurried over to where Natsu stood with it.
"Oh, wow! You found Daybreak Natsu!" Lucy said, as Natsu looked at us in shock, then down at the book.
"I did!?" he echoed, as he read the title for himself. "Oh, wow, you're right!"
"Wait, we've already been here that long?" Happy asked, thinking that we would have been in here all day by now. Ignoring him, Natsu lit up the opposite hand he held the book in. Yet, before he could so much as touch his flames to the book, Lucy snatched it out of his hands.
"Wait a second! I didn't realize that this book was written by Kemu Zaleon!" Lucy said, as I blinked in shock.
"Kem Zela who?" Natsu asked, while Lucy fan-girled over Daybreak's author was.
"Kemu Zaleon. He was a famous wizard and author. He's Lucy's absolute favorite. He's even got a couple of books I'm fond of." I answered, while Lucy hugged the golden book to her chest.
"I thought I'd read everything he'd ever written! To think, of all places, I'd come across an unpublished novel of his in some dirty old pervert's house!" Lucy said, as she looked at us with stars in her eyes.
"Well, it all burns the same to me." Natsu said, as he held the hand that he still had lit up in flames before him. Waiting for Lucy to torch the book she now held in her hands. As much as I like some of Zaleon's work, we still had a job to do. Lucy on the other hand, didn't feel the same way.
"Oh, no you don't! This is a great work of literature, there's no way in hell I'm letting a pyro like you burn it!" Lucy declared, as she turned pleading eyes towards me. "Come on Icelynn, you agree with me, don't you?" she asked.
"Look, Luce. I agree that Zaleon knows his way around writing a book, but we still need to complete this job. We do need to buy food and pay our rent after all." I reminded her, as I crossed my arms.
"Icelynn is right, what about the mission?" Happy said, backing me up, as Lucy began backing away from him and Natsu, who had started creeping forward to get the book from her.
"Forget about the stupid mission! I can't let you destroy this!" Lucy protested, as Happy began to get annoyed.
"Failure is not an option! We have to burn that book to get the reward." Happy snapped back.
"Come on, you guys! Can't we just say that we burned it? I'd just keep it at home where no one but Icelynn would see it, and we'd never speak of it again!" Lucy suggested, as Natsu gave her that pyromaniac smirk of his, as they trapped Lucy at the desk.
"I'm not a liar." He told her simply, as he began reaching for the book.
At this point, Lucy began looking like she was about ready to begin fighting tooth and nail to keep Natsu from getting a hold of Daybreak. Not wanting to see either of them get hurt, I cast a cold blast at Natsu's blazing fist to put out his flames for the second time that day.
It was so sudden, that Natsu could only look at me in shock.
"Alright, children. How about a compromise?" I asked them, not giving Natsu or Lucy a chance to respond to what I had just done.
"What sort of compromise?" Happy asked, becoming suspicious that I was helping Lucy find a way to keep them from completing the job. Ignoring it, I stood between Lucy and the two backing her into a corner.
"This: You and Natsu hold off on burning the book for now. At least until we get out of here and get back to the Melons. After which, we burn the book before Mr. Melon's very eyes so that he can have undeniable proof that the book he wanted destroyed really was." I suggested, as Natsu and Happy thought it over. "Meanwhile, up until we get back to the Melon's place, Lucy has a chance to at least read the last book Zaleon wrote before it's gone for good. At least, that's what I'm assuming this is about. Right, Lucy?" I asked, as I turned to look over my shoulder.
"Well, yeah, but do we really have to destroy it?" she asked, as I narrowed my blue eyes at her.
"Luce, you already know the answer to that." I scolded her gently.
Sighing heavily, Lucy grabbed her gale force reading glasses, and plopped down right where she was to open the book to the very first page. "Oh, alright. It's a good thing I brought my glasses with me." She said, as Natsu and Happy openly gapped at her.
Glad that she finally gave in, I turned to look at Happy and Natsu. After a moment, they both nodded their heads in agreement. So long as the book gets destroyed like it was supposed to be, the when didn't matter to them. The only problem now, is how to get Lucy moving so we can get out of the mansion.
Sadly, we wouldn't be leaving without a fight.
"Well, well. What do we have here?" we heard a familiar, creepy voice ask, as the floor behind us was broken through for the third time today. Out of it this time though, popped up Everlue himself. Flanked not by his maids, but by two other guys as well. A man in a blue jacket, and one in white. Each of them held a cuff with a guild emblem on it. The one that belongs to the Southern Wolves, a mercenary guild.
Seeing as another enemy showed up, Lucy stood up with Daybreak still in her grasp.
"So, you thieves are looking to pilfer Daybreak from me." Everlue said, as he began stroking his nose mustache again. "I knew that you lowlife wizarding guild types were coming around to take something of mine. I just never would have guessed that it was all to get that stupid book."
Hearing this, I couldn't help but feel a little confused, and more confident that a family scandal was present in all of this. After all, why would Mr. Melon say he's willing to pay two million jewels for a book its owner deems as stupid. Back at the Heartfilia estate, Jude had any book he saw as unfit of being in his house sent somewhere else. Yet, Everlue, not as rich as the Heartfilia family but still pretty rich; has done no such thing.
The only question left is why?
"Wait, so if this book is stupid, does that mean I can keep it?" Lucy asked, as I smacked her upside the head this time. Squeaking more out of shock than pain, Lucy turned a pleading look my way.
"NO! IT'S MINE! YOU CAN'T HAVE IT!" Everlue freaked out, as Lucy called him Greedy Gut in a low voice. She got another ugly insult for her troubles though.
"Oh, whatever! Lucy, just hand the book over so I can burn it and get this over with." Natsu demanded, as she closed the book and hugged it to her chest once more.
"No! Icelynn said I had until we got back to our client!" she fussed, as Natsu began to get annoyed once more. Ignoring him, Lucy squatted back down to resume reading. Making Natsu a little angrier in the process. However, before he could start an argument over it, Everlue waved the two Southern Wolves members forward.
"I've had enough of you thieves touching my possessions! Come forth and eliminate them Vanish Brothers!" Everlue ordered, as the two wearing similar jackets stepped forward. "The Southern Wolves are always hungry for fresh game. Say your prayers you dirty thieves."
"Fairy tail punks, huh?" one of the wolves said, as he eyed each of us carefully.
"It would seem so." The other one answered, as he too, eyed us for what we were worth.
As they did this, Lucy took off her glasses, and stood back to her feet. Reaching over she grabbed one of my hands.
"Hey Natsu, do you think you can hold them off for a while. I think this book holds some kind of secret." Lucy said, all traces of her earlier childishness replaced by a serious look. "Icelynn, I want you to come with me just in case those maids from earlier try to find me while I'm trying to figure it out."
"Are you sure, Lucy?" I asked her, as she nodded her head once.
"Yes. Are you alright with this plan, Natsu?" she asked him next.
"Sure, it's more ass kicking for me to dish out." He answered, as Lucy turned to nod at me. Giving her my own nod, I muttered for Natsu and Happy both to watch their backs as Lucy and I ran for the door.
One of the wolves tried to follow us, but all it took was making and throwing one of my ice spike-daggers to make him have to dodge back from us. Giving us plenty of time to get out of the library and shut the door tightly behind us. Knowing that Natsu would be able to bust the door open with his fire power, I froze the door to its frame to prevent anyone else from following after us.
Once the door was stuck, Lucy and I began running through the halls. Looking for a safer place for her to finish reading the book. A place everyone inside this mansion wouldn't think to look. While we ran, Lucy put her nose back into Daybreak to try and find the secret she thinks it contains. Not wanting her to trip and fall down a set of stairs, I simply threw her over my shoulder. Making me thankful for my dragon slayer training, and how it made me a bit stronger than an ordinary girl.
NOT that Lucy is heavy or anything. To be honest, she's actually at an average weight for a girl of her height and width. Despite what Happy says, anyway.
Luckily for us, I only had to set Lucy down to deal with Everlue's maids only once. Thankfully, Virgo was also absent on this account as well. I hated to get violent with them, but they were in the way of us doing a job. Once they were taken care of, again, Lucy and I found ourselves down in the sewer that ran beneath Everlue's mansion.
We made sure to head down the tunnels for several yards before I set Lucy down once more so she could get as comfortable as she could in a place like this to read a bit faster.
"Any idea what secret that book holds yet?" I asked, as Lucy paused in her reading.
"Yes, and it's not pretty." Lucy answered, as she looked over her glasses at me with an angry and sad expression. "From what I've found out so far, Everlue forced Zaleon to write this book by threatening his family. Not only that, but he kept Zaleon in a prison cell that is down here somewhere for three years. I'm almost at the end of the book, and I have to say that I'm appalled that Everlue would go to such lengths just to stroke his stupid ass ego." She said, as I felt both of my wrists have a ghost of a throb.
Holding my arms across my middle, I glanced down at my black and blue leather bracers that hid my wrists and the scars that mar them. They had shrunk, and faded a bit, but you could still see them. My ankles even had a matching set of their own. Biting my lip, I reminded myself that I was no longer a prisoner, as my helplessness turned into anger; and unlike the bastard that held me captive, I can make the man who wrongfully imprisoned Zaleon pay for what he's done.
"Lucy…" I called, as Lucy turned a curious glance at me. Which turned to worry as she saw the darkened look that had come over my face. "Do you have your lacrima camera on you?" I asked her.
Reaching into her skirt pocket, she pulled out the very object I had just asked her about.
"What do you need it for?" she asked nervously.
Taking it, I turned to face away from her.
"You said that the cell Zaleon was kept in was down here, right?" I asked her, as she hummed yes. "Then if I can find it and get some evidence that Everlue illegally held him captive here, then we can have Everlue dealt with for committing such an unforgivable act. Will you be alright here on your own while I do that?" I asked, as I turned to look back at her. Making sure to dial back my scary look a bit.
"Yeah. If anything happens, I can always call out Taurus. Just be careful Icelynn. I don't want Everlue to trap you for three years too." Lucy said, as she gave me a small smile.
Never again… I'll die before I have to live through that again. I thought bitterly, as I turned to hide my eyes from her once more.
"Yeah, that sure would suck." I said, emotionlessly.
Without another word, I turned and began running in the direction we had been going in before. Where we entered the tunnels was the very back of the sewer line Everlue owned, so I knew the prison cell had to be somewhere a head.
After spending a little while searching, I suddenly had to brace myself against the wall as an explosion rocked the very foundation of the mansion above me. For a moment, I began worrying that the tunnel was about to collapse on me and Lucy. Luckily, everything still held itself together.
Natsu Dragneel, you are one fucking destructive wizard. I thought with a smile. After Hargeon, it's not very difficult for me to believe that he can easily destroy Everlue's mansion on a large enough scale to shake the earth like that. If anything, I'm a bit surprised that he didn't break through the floor at the rate he's going.
When another ten minutes passed me by, I stopped to take a break in my running.
"Damn. How far does this thing go anyway?" I questioned out loud, as I turned to lean back against the wall. As I did though, I felt something slide into place, and click. Getting off the wall faster than I leaned against it, I turned just in time to see a hidden door sliding open.
Looks like I may have just found it. I thought nervously, as I wiped my suddenly sweaty palms against my black pants. Taking a deep breath, I steeled myself for what I was about to see. Peering inside the room, I saw what kind of poor lighting Zaleon was forced to write in for three years. The only reason I could see well enough to tell that the big block in there was a low wooden table, was thanks to my sight being enhanced by my dragon slayer abilities.
Back behind it, was a stake holding a chain to the floor. Halfway between the table and the stake sat the shackle. A shackle with three-year-old dried blood. What caught me off guard though, was the smell that still permeated the air in that room. I don't know how many years have passed since Kemu Zaleon was released from this room, but his scent was still there. I was also surprised at how similar this scent was to Kaby Melon.
Like when two people are closely related. Like the scent of a father, being very similar to that of his son… I thought in shock, as the real reason Kaby Melon wanted Daybreak destroyed became clear to me.
However, I had to agree with Lucy that the book could not be destroyed, not now. Not before Mr. Melon sees the secret that Lucy found anyway. If the secret is as I suspect it of being, then the book Everlue forced him to write for him is just a ruse. A way for Zaleon to hide his final words to his son. The truth of why he had disappeared from his son's life for those three years Everlue held him here.
It made sense that Mr. Melon has no idea of any of this. Lucy, Natsu, Happy, and I wouldn't be here to steal and burn the book if that were the case. No, we'd be here to bring it back to Mr. Melon instead. That, and seeing that it's for our client's greater good even if the job says otherwise; Lucy and I will have an easier time getting Natsu and Happy to let us show the book to Mr. Melon instead of destroying it.
Then I'm sure Mr. Melon would like to have some justice gotten for his father. So, I'd better get to taking pictures. I thought, as I held up the camera and began snapping away. Pushing away my nausea, I formed an ice claw, and used it to scrape away some of the dried blood from the shackle that hadn't been used since Zaleon had been here. When I had a sample of what was left, I then broke off the ice nail, and froze it over.
A skilled healer would be able to extract the blood and test it against any records of Zaleon's medical history. Or even Mr. Melon's own DNA if it came down to it.
Satisfied with what I found, I stepped back and hit the slightly discolored stone to make the room close itself once again. Not wanting Everlue to try to come down here and get rid of everything before the Rune Knights could show up, I froze the door over, much like I had to the library door earlier. When I stepped back once more to view my handy work, I began hearing what sounded like a drilling noise coming from where I had left Lucy.
Becoming a bit worried for my sister, I turned and began running back in her direction. When I was about halfway back to where I had left her, I found my way blocked by the two mercinaries we had left to Natsu back in the library. Both looked pretty singed and damn it if they didn't reek from it.
"Where do you think your going?" the taller of the two asked, as I put Lucy's lacrima camera in my pocket for safe keeping.
"It would seem that our employer was right about us needing to get to the hidden cell. I'm afraid that we cannot let you go after you've been in that room. Duke Everlue gave us strict orders to eliminate anyone who dared to enter it." The shorter one said, as they both stood at the ready.
"Look boys, haven't you two had your asses kicked enough for one day. If you can't stand up to one dragon slayer, how in the hell could you stand up to another?" I asked them, as I watched and waited for them to respond. Or even attack me if they liked.
At my words, the two looked at each other for a brief moment before looking back at me.
"We had heard that Fairy Tail had acquired another dragon slayer, but we weren't sure if that was just a rumor." The shorter one began this time, as the other one spread his feet a little further apart.
"All of the dragon slayer's we've heard of so far are all male, how could you possibly be one?" the taller one asked, as I narrowed my eyes at him.
"Well, then. Just don't say that I didn't warn you." I told them, as I let the coldness of my skin permeate the air around us. It only took a few seconds, but soon the three of us could see our breath in the colder atmosphere I had made.
Shocked at the sudden change in atmosphere, the two began looking at their breaths. Seeing this as my opportunity, I rushed at them. Pooling my magic into my fist, I use my wing attack on the taller one, and spun around to use my talon attack on the shorter one, once I followed through with my first attack. The force from it was enough to put them back down, as I thought it would.
If they hadn't fought Natsu first, then it wouldn't have been so easy for me to take them down. Still, I didn't want to take any chances, so before I left to continue on my way to Lucy, I formed an ice block around the two. Making sure to leave enough space for them to be able to breathe and call out for help, I then shoved the ice block into the sewer water. Right as it hit the water, it began floating away from me, following the current to the place the water would drain into. Knowing how Natsu is, despite not knowing him for very long, I figured that this place would be crumbling down not too long from now. So, this was the least I could do to make sure the two hired wolves wouldn't be crushed by falling debris.
Once they were nearly out of my sight, I turned and began running once again. This time, I was able to make it to where Lucy, who had been joined by Happy at this point, was. In front of her stood Cancer, who was in turn, facing Duke Everlue. The man looked rather furious, so I could only guess that Lucy had told him that we knew what he did to Zaleon. Also, that Zaleon had written down everything Everlue had done, and used a spell to conceal all of it within that one golden book.
"Lucy!" I called, gaining my sister and Happy's attention. Along with Everlue's of course, while Cancer merely glanced at me for a second before facing the enemy once more to keep an eye on him.
"Icelynn! Did you get it?" Lucy asked me, as I nodded my head once.
"Yeah… I found the cell this bastard kept Zaleon in and took several pictures. All we gotta do now is get out of here." I answered, as Everlue began to sweat.
"Impossible! The Vanish Brothers might not have been a match for that fire fellow, but how in the hell could they be defeated by this mere slip of a girl?" Everlue fussed, his face now turning red with his anger.
"Oh, about those two… They won't be fighting us on your behalf anymore. I kind of… Sent them sailing, if you catch my drift." I joked, as Lucy snorted behind me in amusement. Happy on the other hand, began rolling around in his laughter, only causing Everlue to turn about as red as a plum.
"I've had about enough of this!" Everlue shouted at us, as he pulled out a key that looked similar to those Lucy wields. Taking a similar stance, Everlue then held the key out in front of him. "Open Gate of the Maiden: Virgo!"
As the summoning circle appeared beside Everlue, I felt my jaw drop a bit. Glancing over at Lucy, I saw that she held a similar expression to me. Happy was totally shocked as he stood back up from his laughing fit.
"Wait, isn't that your trick Lucy?" the little guy asked, as the gorilla maid from earlier appeared.
However, the most shocking thing of all, was not that the gorilla maid from earlier was Virgo the Maiden of the Zodiac Gate Keys, but that Natsu was hanging on to her shoulder.
"Natsu!" Lucy shouted, as he turned a stupefied look our way.
"Hold on! How did I get here?" Natsu asked, as he blinked at us owlishly.
"Natsu, weren't you upstairs?" I asked him, as he nodded his head once at me.
"I was. I saw the maid getting back up, so I jumped on her. Next thing I know, I'm here with you guys." Natsu quickly explained, as he kneels on the giant spirit's shoulder.
"So, you grabbed her while you were still in the house… Then that means you passed through the Celestial Spirit gate with her. That's supposed to be impossible!" Lucy shrieked.
Oh yeah, I forgot that Lucy explained this to me at one point. For a human to pass through a spirit gate is a breech of the contract between wizard and spirit. Not only that, but it's said that humans can't breathe on their side of the gate. I thought, as the time I asked Lucy about all of that came to my mind. It was while we were on the train ride to Magnolia to begin or new lives as guild members, after she finally learned a bit more about the magic type I possess during our fight in Hargeon with Bora.
Either way, I'll have to think about all of that later. Right now, I need to get my head back in the fight. I thought, as I looked away from Natsu.
"Forget about all of that! Virgo, I want you to fetch me that book!" Everlue ordered his spirit, who turned to look at Lucy.
"Uh oh, Lucy, Icelynn, what do I do?" Natsu asked, as Virgo began moving to dislodge him.
"Finish what you started!" Lucy called back at him, while I dropped to my knees, and froze the concrete floor we were all standing on over with a thick sheet of ice. This would prevent Everlue from doing that drilling magical thing he does. The ice an ice dragon makes is very hard to break through or melt. If Everlue tries to use his magic now, he'll just spin around like a top.
While I did this, Natsu used his breath attack on Virgo. As he took her down, and with Everlue unable to escape, Lucy took her whip and managed to snake it around Everlue plump form. Once she had him, all it took was a flick of the wrist to send him flying towards Cancer, who had been standing ready this entire time. When Everlue was free of Lucy's whip, Cancer descended upon Everlue's hair with his scissors.
When Cancer was done, every single strand of hair on Everlue's face was gone. Little bastard looked like a freaking goblin, now that he was bald and clean shaven. He was so mortified, that he pretty much let himself keel over.
Thanking Cancer for his help, Lucy sent him back home, as Lucy, Happy, and I turned to see Natsu standing beside Virgo with his foot on her back. Taking one look at Everlue, Natsu began cackling.
"Wow! Crab Man did a good job!" Natsu said, as the house above us began rumbling once more.
Unlike when it did that earlier though, the rumbling didn't stop. Figuring that the Everlue Mansion was about to come crumbling down on us, I reached over to put the tip of my foot under Everlue. Once it was there, I then kicked him towards his downed Celestial Spirit.
Seeing what I was doing, Lucy was about to ask me why I did that, but quickly shut up when I scooped up Happy and grabbed her arm before dragging her over towards Natsu, Everlue, and the maid. When I got us there, I handed Happy over to Lucy before using my magic to create a dome of ice above us. Just in time to, for even the tunnel ceiling above us began crumbling over our heads as well.
"What's happening?" Happy asked, as I focused my concentration on the dome of ice protecting us.
"All of the holes Everlue created must have weakened the support system for the mansion." Lucy explained, while we all waited with baited breath, hoping a huge piece of the house wouldn't be enough to crush my dome of ice.
After what felt like an eternity, the rumbling and the crumbling stopped. Letting go of my magic, we watched as my ice dome shattered to reveal a totally leveled plot of land. Gaping at the destruction, Lucy ran to what used to be the front of the house and turned to look at the extent of the damage from outside the plot. Following her, I turned to look myself. Upon seeing it, I could only die a little inside at the lecture we're sure to get from Master Makarov…
Natsu on the other hand, looked completely relaxed. Letting out a whistle, he turned his signature grin towards Lucy and me.
"I like your guys style. End it all with a bang! You two are definitely gonna fit right in at Fairy Tail." Natsu commented.
"Wait, weren't we supposed to not destroy stuff?" Happy asked, as Lucy turned a whiney look in my direction.
"I hope I don't get blamed for this." She pouted, as I turned a tired look her way.
"Might as well suck it up, Luce. Face it, all of us will share it. Everlue might have caused the damage, however, we were the ones who broke and entered." I told her, as her pout only worsened.
Sighing heavily, I turned and began heading for the path that would lead back to town. Without dropping her pout, Lucy followed after me. Natsu and Happy also did the same, discussing what they wanted to eat for dinner once the job was done and we all got paid.
After we got back to town, I stopped at the road that would take me back to the town's edge.
"Alright you guys, this is where we part ways." I said, as Happy and Natsu looked at me with confused expressions.
"Icelynn, you're leaving already?" Happy asked, as I nodded my head once.
"Yeah. Before we left the guild, I took an extra job to do on my own. Seeing as my part in Lucy's promise has been fulfilled, I can get to Oshibana and track down some runaway kid." I answered, as Natsu and Happy looked at each other and shrugged. From the way we ended up bringing the book with us, and the secret Lucy found in it, I don't think we'll be able to complete this job. Therefore, we won't be getting paid for it either.
"Cool with me. What about you little buddy?" Natsu asked.
"Fine with me. So, I guess we'll see you back at the guild." Happy said, as he turned to look at Lucy. "Are you going with her too?" he asked.
"No… One job at a time is enough for me. Besides, I'm pretty sure Natsu here would appreciate it if someone helped him get off the train once we're back in Magnolia." She answered, as Natsu began to turn green just thinking about it.
"Either way, I'll see you guys back home. Oh, and try not to be too hard on Mr. Melon if he gets upset that we didn't destroy the book." I said, as I turned to face the direction I would be going in.
"Okay. Bye Icelynn!" Lucy shouted, as she waved at me. Waving back at her, I then turned to start walking.
We spent just about all day getting that book from Everlue. On the way back to town, I had already handed Lucy her lacrima camera back so she could use the photos I'd taken to convince Mr. Melon to keep from burning the book at least until he's had a chance to read it.
Not to mention, how they'll then need to be handed over to the magic counsel to be used as evidence against the Duke Everlue. That being said, it would take me a couple of days to make it to Oshibana from here. By the time I get there, that kid I need to find should have had plenty of time to think about things concerning his family.
With me being the ward of the Heartfilia family, I kind of know what he must be feeling. As someone whose been adopted, or made a ward, the moment you find out such a truth can be a little hard to digest. Like for one, you know the people around you love you, but sometimes you can't help but to feel like an outsider. Some kids also react to this situation differently.
As for myself, I went into the Heartfilia estate already knowing that they weren't my real family. However, after a lot of time to think through the shit I had to endure beforehand, and love and patience from Lucy; I managed to accept her as my sister, despite the two of us coming from different blood.
As for the boy I'm to find, some have the urge to run away. In cases like these, it takes patience and love from the parents; and sometimes some friendly advice from someone whose been there before.
I can only hope I can get through to the kid…
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Next Chapter: Chapter 5 – Lullaby
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