After 20 minutes of walking, the duo stopped in front of a two story building. "Who's going to knock first?" Stella asked. "You do it," Musa said. "Why don't you do it?" Stella asked. "Because I-" Musa was shortly cut off. The door opened and there was a man standing there. "Are you the ones from fairy tail?" He asked. The girls nodded, "I need you girls to watch over my pet alligator for the next few days. All the things that you need to know are in the refrigerator. If you do a good job around the place, I'll think about giving something extra" he explained before leaving. Musa was the first to go into the house, but tripped over something.
She looked back and saw that it was the alligator. She got back up and dusted off her clothes. "You know, when I was thinking of pets, you weren't on the list," Musa confessed. The gator just gave her the cold shoulder before moving away from the door. Stella went off somewhere in the house while Musa went into the kitchen. There was a note on the fridge, she quickly looked it over before throwing it away. There was a scream that came from the run out and saw that Stella was on the couch as the alligator was snapping at her.
Musa's Pov
"Sound cage!" I yelled. The alligator was trapped in a purple and white cage. "Are you okay Stella?" I asked her. "Not really, I'm bleeding and that thing is still looking at me weird. This was never in my princess training back in Solaria," Stella complained. I summoned my fairy dust bottle. It was a hot pink, bottlenecked container with a hot pink, disc-shaped cap. It was adorned with rectangular, silver studs and an eye hook-type fixture. It was encased in a silver, spherical cage adorned with light pink, flower-shaped charms with a silver center. The cage closed off with a hot pink, disc-shape with light pink flower-shaped charms on gray strings hanging from it. "Looks like we still have our powers still intact" I pointed out as I sprinkled the powder on her leg. The bite marks faded away from Stella's leg. "I hope that we're both still able to transform," Stella said as she got off the couch. The alligator was still snapping at her. "What did you even do to cause him to snap at you?" I asked her. "Absolutely nothing, all I did was look over those pictures then he tried to take a bite out of leg" she explained.
*Mini time skip*
The alligator was well taken care of by me and was sleeping close to the kitchen. Me and Stella were sitting in the living room. "Musa, what are we going to do?" Stella asked. "What do you mean?" I asked her. "How are we going to get back to our world? Don't you feel like you're out of place while being here?" Stella asked. "I get what you mean, do you have any ideas to get in contact with our friends?" I asked her. "I did, but I already tried using my phone to see if something would happen," Stella explained. "So trying to contact them is out of the question, maybe we should talk to the master about this," I suggested. "What are we going to do about housing?" Stella asked. "We have a couple of options, we can either rent out a place or we can make a place that's not close to the town" I told her.
"I think the best option for the both of us is to rent out a place," Stella said. Then the door opened, the guy had come back with two women following behind him. "How was he?" he asked. "With the exception of him biting my friend's leg, he was quite pleasant," I said as I approached him. "Is she alright?" he asked. "Yeah, she's perfectly fine. I managed to fix up" I told her. "So what's the reward?" Stella asked. I pushed her gently, "Don't be rude" I told her. "It's quite alright, here," he said. He went through his bag and pulled out a pouch and gave it to Stella but handed me an Obsidian Key. "What is this?" I asked. "It's a Celestial Key, I really don't need it anymore. You can have it now," he admitted. I took it from him and looked it over. It had a couple of scales that spiraled on the neck of it. The bow of the key was sculpted in the shape of what looked to be a three pointed crown.
The blade of the key ends with a mermaid fin. I took a glance at the symbol on it, it was a three-pronged fisherman's spear. "This wasn't on the paper" I pointed out. "Yeah, I know. Think of this like something to learn from in a way" he said. Me and Stella looked at each other before leaving his house. "Hey, wait a min-" the door closed before I could ask him anything. "You know, if you want to know about the key, you should probably ask that blonde girl," Stella said. "What blonde?" I asked. "There was this girl back at the guild hall, I saw that she had a couple on her belt," she added. "Come on, let's get going," I said. The both of us started to head back.
We passed this one alleyway, I just so happened to look into it. I saw a small creature that emerged from the trash can. "Stella, give me a second," I said. I went in and crouched down to it's level. "What's the matter?" I heard her ask. "It's this chick here, it looks injured," I said as I carefully picked it up. I cradled it up in my arms and walked off the alley. "Since we're off to the guild anyway, we could find a healer," I told her. She nodded in agreement. We were off towards the guild again.
*At the guild*
The both of us entered the guild, "Hey girls, how did the job go?" Mira asked as we approached the bar. "The job went pretty smoothly with the exception of a little injury along the way," I told her. "Who's the little one there?" she asked. "Oh yeah, I found them in an alley while coming back from the job. Is there anyone that can find out what's wrong with them besides the injures" I told her. "I can help you if you want," a little girl said as she came over. A white cat was close behind her as well. "Oh, that would be great," I said. I handed over the chick to her. "Wendy, you'll get all dirty if you do this," the white cat said. "Carla, it's fine," she said. Wendy ran off to what I assumed to be the infirmary, the cat followed. "Hey look, it's that girl I'm telling you about," Stella said as she grabbed my arm.
"Who?" "She's over there," Stella said as she dragged me over to the girl. It was indeed the blonde and she was accompanied by 4 others. "Is there something the matter?" the girl asked. "Sorry to bother, but my friend here has a small problem and you can help her," Stella said. I had to yank my hand back from her. "Sorry about her, I'm Musa and she's Stella. Nice to meet you," I said as I stuck my hand out to her. She smiled at me and shook my hand. "I'm Lucy Heartfilia, your friend mentioned you had a problem that I could help you with" she pointed out. "Yeah, actually. She told me that you had keys in your possession after I got this from the job we took" I explained. "A Key?!" Lucy visibly brightened, back going straight. "Silver or Gold?" She asked. "That's just the thing, it's black" I told her. "Black?" Lucy's eyes darted to the both of us, wondering if this was a joke. "I've never heard of a black Celestial Key," She admitted. I gave her the Key from earlier. I watched as Lucy ran her hands over it.
"Strange" she murmured. "It feels similar to a Gate Key, but somehow...off" she added. "Off how?" I asked her. "Most Celestial Keys give off a kind of magic energy that resonates with my own core, letting me know that they are available to make a contract. This one just rubs me the wrong way" She shook her head at how she sounded. "It's hard to describe," she said. "Does that mean it's not available?" Lucy shook her head again at Stella. "That's not the feeling I'm getting from it." She hesitated before asking quietly, "Do you guys mind if I get one of my other spirits to look at this?" She asked while looking at us. "Yeah, that's fine with us," Stella said. Lucy got up from her spot and pulled a Silver Key from her belt. "Open, gate of the Southern Cross, Crux!" In a flash of silver light, a gray cross floated in the air. "How can I help, Miss Lucy?" He asked. "Hey, Grandpa Crux. What can you tell me about this black Key?" She asked him. "Black?" The Spirit eyed the upheld key blankly for a moment before his eyes widened and he leaned away. "Miss Lucy, where did you find an Obsidian Gate Key?!"
"It was given to me on a job," I put in quickly, my eyes watching both Lucy and her spirit closely. Grandpa Crux side eyed us before facing Lucy. "You know I can't say too much, Miss Lucy. Especially with other mages present," he said. She nodded with a small smile, "I know, but what can you tell us?" Lucy asked. He paused before saying, "That is an Obsidian Gate Key. They're rare, extremely difficult to get, and considered more legend than fact" he explained. "What Gate does it open?" Lucy asked. There was another pause, before; "It opens the Gate of the Sea Empress" Crux said. "What do you mean? As in, more than one?" I asked him. "I cannot say much more than that." Grandpa Crux paused before adding slowly, "Miss Lucy, should you decide to open the Gate, be prepared. The Obsidian Keys do not lead to spirits like the ones already in your possession." Crux disappeared in another puff of light, with my question going unanswered. The silence descended for several long moments, before Lucy's mind was calm enough to respond.
"So," Lucy took a deep breath before handing the key back to me. "That's all I can get for you. I'm sorry I couldn't be of much help" Lucy apologized. "No, it's quite alright, Lucy. You know what, why don't you have it? Neither me nor Stella has the kind of magic you do," I told her. "Are you sure? I already have so many," Lucy said. "Yeah, I'm definitely sure," I smiled at her. "Hey, I healed your chick for you," Wendy said as she came running towards us. "Wendy! Be careful!" Carla raised her voice. Just for Wendy to trip while the chick was tossed in the air due to it. The chick landed in my arms while Stella helped Wendy up. "Are you okay?" Stella asked her. "Yeah, I'm fine, thanks," she said while dusting off her clothes. "We should get going Stella," I told her. "Where are you two heading off too?" the redhead asked. "We're going to look for a place to stay for the night," Stella said. "Are you new around here?" the boy haired boy asked. "You could do it like that," I asked. "Why don't you move live at the fairy hills apartments, it's not too far. I could show you where if you'd like" the redhead said. "It's fine, I think that the both of us can do fine, but thanks for the offer" Stella said.
She grabbed my arm again before dragging me out of there. For some reason, it felt like I was missing something, something important. Not completely sure what it was but it wasn't like I was forgetting anything.
Some time later, the both of us finally found a place to settle down in. From the outside, this house looks luxurious. It has been built with gray bricks and has sandstone decorations. Tall, half rounded windows brighten up the house and have been added to the house in a fairly symmetrical pattern. The house is equipped with a small kitchen and one modern bathroom, it also has a comfortable living room, two bedrooms, a cozy dining room, a library and a large storage room. The building is square shaped. The house is fully surrounded by a covered patio. The second floor is the same size as the first, but part of it hangs over the edge of the floor below, creating an overhang on one side and a balcony on the other. This floor follows the same style as the floor below.
The roof is high and pyramid shaped and is covered with seagrass. Two small chimneys sit on either side of the house. Several long, thin windows let in plenty of light into the rooms below the roof. The house itself is surrounded by paved ground. "This is a nice place that we managed to get," Stella pointed out. "And at the price that I got from the landlord" I said. I went to the bathroom. "You've been dirty for long enough, let's get you clean" I told the chick. I could feel him shake against my body as I set the water in the sink. I was going to place under the water, but he jumped away from it. "What's the matter little one, I'm just trying to clean you up" I told him. He continued shaking in my arms. After a while, I managed to get him cleaned up and dried him off. "Since you're clean now, what should I call you?" I asked.
When we arrived at the guild the next day, Lucy immediately came over to us. "I'm glad that you two have made it," she said. "What are you talking about? What's going on?" I asked her. "I got permission from the master to summon that spirit you gave to me yesterday. I was a bit skeptical about summoning it, but I wanted to do it today," Lucy said. "And you want us to watch you do it?" Stella asked. "Yeah, follow me," she said. The both of us with a couple of the other guildmates followed her what I guess was the training grounds. "Right, this might get interesting!" Lucy called before facing away from her guildmates and holding out the Obsidian Key. She took a deep breath to center herself. "I am linked to the path of the world of Celestial Spirits! O' Spirit, answer my call and pass through the Gate! Open, Gate of the Sea Empress, Sireniod!" Lucy called.
Nothing happened, it didn't seem to work. She went to try again, but nothing happened. "Is that supposed to happen?" I asked the redhead. "No, it's unheard of from what I'm aware of," she said. "Hey, can I try something?" I asked her as I approached her. "I thought you weren't a celestial wizard?" Lucy asked. "I mean, it doesn't hurt to try," I said. She handed me back the key, "Am I supposed to say what you said earlier?" I asked her. "Yeah, pretty much" she said. I put a bit of my magic into the key, "I am linked to the path of the world of celestial spirits! O' spirit, answer my call and pass through the Gate! Open, Gate of the Sea Empress, Sireniod!" I called. Nothing happened for a couple of seconds, "Maybe something's wrong with it" I said. That was before there was a soft blue light. A strong presence emerged from it in the form of a large mermaid-like spirit. She was entirely blue with a three pointed golden crown. She had this golden lyre on a staff. "Are you the one that summoned me here?" She asked.
"Yes, ma'am" I said. "So you're the one that I'm destined to meet?" she muttered. "If you don't mind asking, but I have a few questions for you" Lucy steps forward. "What is it that you would like to know?" Sireniod asked. "How was she able to summon you without having any celestial magic?" Lucy asked. "To open the Obsidian Gates, there needs to be a type of magic that only a fairy possesses," Sireniod said. I could feel the stares fall on me.
"So what happened to the other keys?" I asked her. "The last person to have all our keys scattered them around so they were difficult to obtain. There's a magic that surrounds them which makes them hard to touch without fairy magic. My key, forunately was held not like that so it would be easier to be given to you," she explained while making eye contact with me. "Is that why that guy gave it to her yesterday?" Stella asked. "Yes, he knew about you two coming here," she said. "Can you tell us more about the Obsidian Keys?" the redhead asked. "There are 6 other keys in existence. Our keys aren't as known as the golden or silver keys are. We also don't have constellations," Sirenoid said. "Do you know where they are?" Stella asked. "Unfortunately, I can't tell you," she said. Sireniod disappeared in a soft blue light. "Do you have any books around here?" I asked her.