Chapter 8: Another One Bites the Dust
Inside Erza's Office
June 2 11:50am
Erza Scarlet hung up her black office phone and picked up the small remote to continue flipping through the slides on the projector, carefully observing the people displaying on the screen. Each slide that was presented, showed still images of people walking in and out of the vault that was kept under government surveillance. After many hours of extensive, heated arguments and paperwork for the warrant approvals, they've finally granted her some access for home addresses, camera footage's and names of the people that were involved.
"So, you have thoroughly checked his last known home address, Jellal?" Erza spoke after finally turning away from the screen.
"Yes, I have brought in several of the crime investigators and thoroughly checked Crawford's home. However, it seems he hasn't been there for quite some time. The first few days we took turns with the stake-out's, we have noticed noone was coming in and out of the residence at all. We later came to a conclusion after looking through the windows, noone has even been in that house for quite some time, give or take a couple of years..."
He turned to look at the screen on the wall beside him, "...We let ourselves in and began a very thorough sweep in the home and have found nothing. His office was cleaned out and anything personal, was missing, shredded and broken. It seems he ran under the radar, knowing he was going to be caught at one time or another or someone else did a clean up before we have even arrived..."
Erza nodded while her hands clasped tightly together over the desk, "...Is that so?...All of those countless hours and it was for nothing yet again..." she spoke quietly.
The detective grimaced, "...Despite not having any conclusive evidence, it just means we're on the right track. I'm sure with a more thorough sweep of all the people working with him, above or below him, we'll definitely find the loose ends, no matter what it takes, Erza "
The door behind them creaked open and two people slowly walked in, "I've brought him over Erza" Gray grumbled as he folded his arms, clearly not in any mood to deal with the dragon slayer next to him.
"Tch, I didn't need you to escort me, I know how to get here on my own, frostbite" Natsu hissed angrily towards the ice mage.
The ice mage glowered towards Natsu, "Is that why we had to pull you away from the other cops?"
"They started bad mouthing me the moment I've walked in there!" The dragon slayer pointed towards the doorway while glaring back at Gray.
"Enough!" Erza yelled, immediately silencing both of them.
The Scarlet woman sighed with frustration and got up from her desk. She quickly picked up the projector remote and changed the current slide. The new photo slide was an image of the Vermillion Gardens with the lush green grass, trees and the bright, sunny sky with two people centered in the picture. Several people were blurred in the background, barely distinguishable. Erza turned her head towards Natsu, carefully observing his reaction.
Natsu eyes flickered to the changed image on the screen. His eyes dilated the second it caught on the familiar scene while his jaw clenched tightly together. With this image alone, Natsu knew he was in trouble, but this wasn't their business, nor a reason to be ridiculed over confronting someone. No, this summons was because there was witnesses, people seeing someone arguing with a powerful public figure. Its not because of what he did, but, how it'll effect the public eye.
Gray looked down towards Natsu looking a bit shocked and confused while Jellal sat down behind Erza's desk, watching the boy's expression change from confusion to anger.
"Mind telling me, What happened here, Natsu?" Erza kept her voice neutral, knowing if she tried anything else, her anger from the press earlier will return.
The two people in the picture was Natsu grabbing ahold of Zeref on the bench. The dragon slayer turned his head slightly away, not wanting to look at the image anymore and to avoid eye contact with anyone else in the room. He was reaching his limit of patience, not wanting to recall that irritation and regret of letting that man walk away from him again.
"Natsu..." she said firmly and a bit louder than before, "...I've asked you a question.." Erza placed down the remote and crossed her arms across her chest, "...What were you doing with Mr. Dragneel, especially in front of other people? Do you have any idea how many people confronted that man? The reporters, the paparazzi? It's a miracle he didn't press charges, instead insisted on saying it was nothing. Clearly, that wasn't nothing..."
Erza walked over to Natsu, "I'm not asking you to go over and apologize, i just need to know what were you thinking going over to somebody like that on your own?" her voice was calmer than before, seeing how distressed he looked, but he still refused to look at her though.
Jellal walked over to her, placing a hand onto her shoulder. Erza sighed again and glanced toward the detective. The woman spoke again, "Natsu, unless you can give me a clear explanation, I'm going to have to keep another person on watch over you and Lucy until i say otherwise. I can't afford to have another commotion again at this time, especially with this case we're all working on. I need you to be more focused than this"
The dragon slayer spoke very quietly, "...That man..." then looked down at his clenched fists with a solemn expression, "...Is my brother..."
The room fell silent again and Gray backed up towards the door, "Ah shit, I guess this is out of my hands now. I'll see you guys later" Gray waved his hand and closed the door behind him as he left.
Erza pursed her lips and looked back at the screen as she thought for a minute before looking back towards Natsu, "...I see. Is that why you have never told us your last name?"
The pinkette let out an exasperated sigh and turned around to stare at the wall, "I refuse to see that man as family and chose to cut all ties with him" he said quite bluntly.
The scarlet woman nodded as she processed this and spoke again, "We had to spend nearly two days of fighting with the paparazzi and the news station from publishing this little...scene. From what i can understand, you guys had an argument here however, family related or not, it has caused quite the uproar in the media. There was even a recording of you two. Now we couldn't hear or understand what was said or what happened, but i just want to make it very clear, Don't try this funny stunt again without consulting us first, Got it?"
Natsu shook his head and turned to look at her as he folded his arms, "...Is that it?" wanting to leave the office as quickly as possible.
The scarlet women let out a long sigh and shook her head, "Yes, we're done with this subject for now but, Jellal will need your help with some scouting" She turned to look at the blue-haired detective before walking towards her desk again.
Jellal looked at her then to Natsu, "...If you're willing to, of course" he promptly added.
Natsu flickered his eyes to Jellal, "Sure, what's up?" he turned around as he tried to shake off his agitation.
"We need to investigate this abandoned facility and see if you can pick up anything at this location. Now i know your ability is limited to how recent traces are left behind, but if you can pick up anything, it'll be quite valuable to us all"
Natsu scratched the back of his head, "...Alrighty, but how do you expect me to know what i'm looking for?"
Jellal held up a tape in his hands, "We can't access the security cameras on that house until we can finishing filing this particular warrant. Now me and some of the men already pulled into that place the past few days, If you can pick up anyone different, that's what we can use to follow on, got it?"
Natsu shook his head, "Let's go then, the longer we take, the faster any lingering traces will disappear"
Jellal looked to Erza with a half smile, "We'll be back soon..."
The woman shook her head and then looked back to Natsu, who was already turning to leave, "Before you leave Natsu, i just want to ask one more thing, if that's okay with you?" She motioned Jellal to leave and he quickly left through the doors.
The dragon slayer paused in his step and his shoulders slumped slightly. He turned his head halfway to look at the woman behind him. He didn't say anything but, she took the gesture as a hint, he was listening.
She folded her hands onto her lap as she eyed the dragon slayer carefully, "If you don't mind me asking, What happened exactly at the park, Natsu? I know you guys seemed to be arguing, but to me, it looked like a lot more than that..." she tilted her head to the side, eyes filling with genuine concern.
Natsu sighed in disbelief and looked away from her again, not letting her see his face, "...He wasn't suppose to come here"
Erza shook her head confused, "What do you mean? A man of his status and continuously growing corporation, they are bound to move and expand their sources eventually. New Magnolia is a prime spot, given how this is the second largest city in the nation..."
He moved his hand up, covering half his face, wondering for a moment on how to choose his words, "It means hes planning something and he knows I'm here, I don't know what or how he found out but, normally he does everything while staying behind the scenes. For him to suddenly show up publicly now, means hes planning to do something soon and using his face to cover up his plans, distracting the media in the process. Which is why i went down there, but of course, he didn't tell me shit..."
Natsu paced back and forth nervously by the door, leaving Erza lost in her thoughts for a minute, "I see..." She barely caught the look in his eyes as he was turning around. His eyes were dark, almost distant as he glanced at her before turning away again. He had thoughts hidden behind those eyes, but she won't pry any further for now.
He stopped in his tracks and held his hand by the office doors while speaking almost worriedly, "I just need to make this clear, hes dangerous, Erza. Double up the guards, camera's, everything. Don't let him slip behind the curtains again, because if he does..."
Natsu turned his head half way to her again, sadness filling his dark, green eyes, "...We will have a serious problem, Which is why Igneel left me here and disappeared all those years ago..." he said quietly.
Erza got up again and walked over to him slowly. She only just now noticed his hands were shaking a little bit. She held her hand out to him and patted his shoulder, "Just make sure to keep yourself safe next time, alright?"
He nodded and moved her hand away gently, "...I have to get going now" and he left the room without another word.
Erza moved back over to her desk after the door clicked closed and then pressed on her telecom, "This is Erza, I'm going to need the special units back from Alakitasia and Stella, as soon as possible"
There was a small pause before the secretary on the other side spoke, "Any reason for the sudden recall before i send out the message?"
"Just do it"
"Of course"
Erza looked back at the slide with Zeref and Natsu. Her eyes lingered over the black-haired man, "I have a bad feeling about this..." she whispered.
Lucy's apartment (rooftop)
12:37 pm
Lucy was panting while crouched over. She looked up at Leo who was across from her in the distance. Happy sat by the door way with a pile of fish as he watched the two of them sparring.
"Do you need a break, princess?" The lion spirit smiled at her. His celestial form was only a little different than his normal "human" look. His orange hair was longer and more spiked out like a lions mane and his ears were covered but then you see cat like ears on the top of his head. Instead of wearing casual clothes, he wore a black suit and dark shades.
"I'm fine, just need to breathe for a minute..." Lucy took in a few more breaths as she stretched upwards, "Okay i think i'm good now..."
Leo smiled at her, "Very well, Get ready, Lucy" He moved his right fist in front of himself and it started to glow bright again. Lucy quickly put back on her shades to help see past the blinding light and lunged towards him again.
"In combat you never hesitate, Lucy. Keep your eyes on the enemy at all times" He moved out of the way and grabbed her arm. He attempted a back hand but stopped inches from her face, "...don't ever let them get the upper-hand"
Lucy flinched then quickly pulled her self back as she tried to do a roundhouse kick. Leo jumped over her and grabbed her by the left shoulder. Lucy gritted her teeth and grabbed his hand. "Like this?" she immediately stepped backwards towards him and used all her strength to pull him over her. Leo gritted his teeth as his back got flipped but caught the ground just barely with his feet.
"Yeah, something like that" he grinned as he caught his breath, "Your form is a bit sloppy, nothing a little practice can't fix"
Lucy shook her head and tried lunging at him again with her fists, trying to keep her legs and arms in sync as she pressed into the ground. Her right fist touched his glasses but he still tilted his head to the side just enough to not knock them off. She immediately followed it up with a knee to his torso but he smacked her leg back down causing her to hiss through her teeth from the shock of hitting the ground so abruptly.
"Sorry princess" he said a little worriedly.
"It's fine, it's fine i asked for this" Lucy took a deep breath and got into position again. He nodded towards her and then he started his own set of lunges at her, but obviously alot slower compared to hers.
Lucy pivoted back around as his light engulfed hands slid past her face but was followed up by another, she held up her arms just in time and slid back on her feet from the collision. Lucy panted tiredly but was quite pleased she managed to block herself in time.
Leo grinned at her and came at her again from a different angle, this time he picked up his pace to test her further. Lucy watched as his foot movement tried to slide behind her and she ducked as she saw a shadow of a fist fly over her. The celestial mage immediately dropped onto her hands and knocked his legs from under him. She bit her lip from the concrete scrapping her hands again but then rolled over out of the way as he fell over.
His eyes widened a little bit as he looked up at her, "I take it you've been training without me recently?"
"It's something I've learned with Natsu" she smiled.
"Oh? and anything else i should know about?"
Lucy grinned, "That's only for me to know"
He shook his head and pulled himself back up and re-adjusted his glasses, "I see..."
Lucy tilted her head a bit and looked at him with curiosity, "I've always wanted to know why you wore those glasses, even while fighting"
The lion spirit laughed, "Well, if you really must know..." He nudged his glasses a bit more, "...It's to help soothe my eyes from your blindingly, beautiful existence" he grinned.
Lucy rolled her eyes, "Really?..." she got ready to fight again, "Alright, I'm coming at you again" she said quickly.
He stood there with his arms folded, "Alright"
She was a little perplexed as he just stood there, but ignoring that, she lunged at him again. He only side stepped this time. She tried to kick him from behind and he sidestepped it again. Lucy's eyes narrowed, Is he trying to make a point?
Lucy lunged at him again holding her fist out towards him, the second she moved closer, he moved his hand up and a golden light flashed in front of her. She blinked only for a moment, blessing her glasses and noticed he wasn't standing there now.
Don't give the enemy any openings...
She turned around quickly and he still was not in sight, however, she did catch Happy's gesture, the cat was pointing upwards. Lucy looked down at the incoming shadow and rolled back out of the way from the collision. He punched into the ground leaving only a small crack behind.
Leo smiled, "Alright, i think that's the last lesson for today" he wiped his hands off and clapped.
"You scared me half to death, Leo"
He laughed, "I had this feeling you would have dodged that though...if not..."
"If not?..." She eyed questioningly.
"I would've stopped it in time..." Leo said quietly as he moved next to her. Lucy nodded and stretched her arms out. There was some new scratches on her arms and flinching at the thought of cleaning them soon.
"Well, thanks for everything, Leo..." She turned her head partially away from him, "...I know you're probably really busy, but i still appreciate the help nonetheless..."
"You know I'll always make time for you, Lucy" He smiled.
"Speaking of time..." Lucy looked towards the rooftop door, "Where's Natsu? He was suppose to be here awhile ago" Lucy picked up her water bottle and chugged her water down as Happy flew over to them.
"Happy, did you get a call from Natsu yet?"
"Aye! I was just about to tell you, He'll be running late!"
She looked to Leo, "Alright, no problem. I'll be finishing up my stretches then, before i head back inside..."
"I'll see you next time, Lucy" The lion spirit nodded as he faded into a gold light.
Lucy smiled at the fading light and looked back down towards the cat, "Let me guess, you ran out of fish" she chuckled as she tried to do more stretches.
"No, i just put a couple away for later" He placed down his little, green pouch.
"Oh yeah, I've always wanted to ask you..." She knelt down to him, "Natsu mentioned you help him alot around the city. I'm curious as to how"
The blue cat grinned, "I fly Natsu around! I can go really fast too!" He held his paws up excitedly, "Do you want to see?"
"Uhm...I don't know. You have me a little worried there..." She nervously stood up and looked around.
"You don't trust me, Lushii?" Happy asked with a saddened expression on his face that made Lucy's heart squeeze.
"N-No it's not like that, I'm just a little scared of heights..."
"It'll be fine i promise, I'll just keep over the building!" He squealed as his mood perked up again.
"O-Ok, if you say so...What do you need me to do?"
"Nothing, just watch!" The cat flew behind Lucy and she felt her shirt collar get pulled up.
"H-Hey! Watch it!"
"..and up we go!" The cat said excitedly. Lucy felt her feet leave the ground and she immediately looked down. Already a few feet into the air and she felt all of her nerves go in overdrive.
"I swear to the heavens, if you drop me, Happy"
The cat giggled, "Just trust me!" He flew her around a little while above the roof top and after about ten minutes, Her nerves finally calmed down. It didn't take much longer for her to actually enjoy the sky view.
"How high can you go, Happy?"
"I can go really high, but..."
"..but?"
"You're heavier than i thought" He said flatly.
Lucy glared but didn't want to annoy the cat that was holding her life on the line.
"Are you able to take me up a little higher, Happy? I really want to see the city"
"Aye, Hold on Lucy!"
She watched as the building got smaller and everything else became more in view. As scary as the thought was before, it completely blew away her mind how beautiful the city was. The light glimmered off the windows and the cars shined brightly in the distance. Birds flew by them and Lucy can feel the air in hair as it whipped back.
"This is amazing Happy! I can't believe this is a thing" She giggled and kept a mental picture in her mind knowing she can't do this all the time. "I take it back, You're amazing, Happy!" she grinned excitedly.
The blue cat smiled widely and she saw his tail wagging quite happily too. After a long while, she asked to be put down before the cat would accidentally drop her, "What now, Lucy?" he said as he crawled into her arms.
"I need a long soak in the bath. Let's go back inside"
Lucy filled her tub up with hot water as she got undressed. Then she looked into the mirror and noticed a few scrapes on her back and arms. Lucy sighed as she pulled up the rubbing alcohol and gritted her teeth as she cleaned up the dirt.
Gah that burns...Lucy groans as she cleans the next one on her elbow, I really need to be more careful around the guys or I'm going to need alot more than just a band-aid. Lucy thought to herself as she glared back into the mirror and slowly walked to her cozy bath that was waiting for her. Sliding one foot in a time, she slowly sank herself in until the only thing sticking out was her head.
Sigh, I wonder if I'll ever get stronger...She held up her hand in front of her face.
The water dribbled slowly down her arms until bubbles were the only thing left. We were only sparring and i still felt so weak. No matter how much force i put into my punches, my kicks...They were able to so easily dodge it all...
Lucy held both her hands over her face, "My goodness, I'm so hopeless..."
She leaned back on the tub and looked at the door in front of her. Her eyes drooped slightly from the steam relaxing her a bit too much. Maybe i should pick up practicing with my Whip again...But how? I don't want to accidentally hurt them. Then again...how else will i practice? Lucy let out a loud exasperated groan, nearly echoing in the bathroom.
*knock...knock...knock...*
Lucy yelped, snapping her out of her thoughts and accidentally over splashed the bath water outside of the tub.
"Oi, Lucy, You okay in there?" said the person behind the door.
"Y-Yeah, Sorry..." she mumbled.
After another ten minutes, Lucy pulled a chain to drain the tub and threw a towel around herself. She opened the door to see Gray sitting on the couch by Happy. She immediately turned red and ran towards her room in record time.
Five minutes later...
Lucy sat across from the ice mage, arms still folded over herself after she got over the embarrassment of him seeing her in just a towel.
"So...You're here because Natsu is going to be busy for awhile?" Lucy shook her head letting it sink in.
"Yeah, sorry about the late heads up. Erza just kind of sent me over last minute..." His bored expression could've passed for being agitated but he swore it wasn't anything like that at all. So she quickly learned at that moment, that look is just the way he normally is.
"I take it, the traveling is really far, considering where the headquarters are at" She thought for a moment while trying to picture the amount of transportation Natsu had to deal with. She snickered for a minute but it did not go unnoticed.
"What's so funny?" He leaned forward while Happy finally pulled out his last fish.
She looked down to Happy and cleared her throat while trying to stifle a laugh, "...Nothing really, I'm just picturing how Natsu must be feeling right now with all of that traveling..."
Gray chuckled, "That guy is ridiculous with transportation. I mean, even Gajeel said he only just started having that problem only recently. As for the pyro, he claimed to have that problem since, forever..."
Happy looked at the ice mage, "Natsu just keeps forgetting to take his pills..." The cat turned around and pulled up a bottle from his pouch, "Like these..."
Lucy and Gray started laughing hysterically, "W-Why do you have those, Happy? Shouldn't you have given those to him before he left?" She spoke between laughs.
"It's because he threatened my fish!" he pulled the bottle to his chest tightly. Lucy patted him and sneakily pulled the bottle out of his paws while he was distracted. "Hey!" he whined.
Lucy flipped the bottle in her hands to try and read the prescription, "They're just ordinary over the counter pills...and here i was expecting something alot stronger from the way he acts about it" she mumbled.
Gray leaned back into his chair and looked towards the window outside. The sun was setting, illuminating the room with a slight orange hue, "...He probably won't be back for a few days. The unit is going to have him working around the clock like a hound dog at the moment..." He grinned at Lucy, "All you're missing is a leash"
Happy giggled but Lucy let out a huge sigh, "What's your deal with Natsu anyway? All you guys ever do is bicker back and forth until someone else steps in" she placed the pill bottle onto the end table and crosses her legs.
Gray looked at her carefully and closed his eyes as if he was thinking about it, "(Sigh)...Where do i start?" Happy curled into a ball beside Lucy but he too was curious.
"...Maybe from the beginning?" She threw in as an example.
He looked at her with an unamused face, "hah, what a pain...well..." He folded his arms and continued, "...It started when I've first met him. He came around the bar with the old geezer and the first thing he says to me is, 'What're you looking at droopy-eyes'. Ever since then, he's just been on my case with everything. So I've disliked him since..."
However despite saying all of that, Lucy noticed a change in his expression. It definitely wasn't dislike, It looked more like he was amused by the past memory. His eyes twinkled ever so slightly but when their gazes met, it disappeared. Maybe...Just maybe, deep down, it wasn't just bantering, it was their way of saying hello to another, like really old friends. Lucy couldn't help herself from lightly smiling at the weird explanation.
Gray looked at her with confusion as to why she would smile from something like that. He hid his face slightly behind his hand as he leaned back, "...You're weird"
Lucy's smile dropped, "Excuse me?..." She glared at him then pulled a marker out of her drawer and handed it to Happy, "Happy..." The cat looked at her as she handed the marker over to him.
"You know what to do with this?"
"Aye, Sir!"
"Have at it, Happy" She motioned towards the ice mage while smirking. The cat cackled and flew up with the marker.
"Oi what do you think you're doing?" Gray questioned as he eyed the flying cat above him.
"The last thing i need is you AND Natsu both calling me weird" Lucy folded her arms again over herself as she watched Happy fly around the ice mage.
Happy flew towards Gray with the marker uncapped and Gray immediately retaliated. He held up his hand and a faint shimmer of icy air came out. The cat squealed and flew back towards the kitchen, "He's cheating!"
"Am not! You started with me!"
"Lushii told me to!" The cat still held the marker but was hiding behind the kitchen column.
Lucy shook her head in disappointment, "I'll assume that was your ice magic?"
He snapped his gaze away from Happy and looked at her, "Yeah, what about it?"
Lucy shrugged, "It looked pretty..." She looked towards the hiding blue cat and spoke again, "I'd really like to see more of it, if that's okay with you..."
He narrowed his eyes skeptically and then sighed in defeat. Gray wasn't one to show off his abilities but, always found it hard to turn down requests from pretty girls.
"Okay Happy, you can give me the marker back now" She held her hand out and the cat handed it over.
"Alright, look here..." Gray said calmly as he leaned forward and Lucy watched as more cold air came out from his hands again. One hand was clenched into a fist and held it over his palm, even if it was just a moment, he moved one hand back revealing an icy rose, "...I use Ice-make magic. I can basically make anything i want out of it, big or small" he grimaced. Lucy held her hand out to him and he placed the frozen rose gently into her palm.
"It's beautiful..." She held it up to her eyes and noticed all the little details put into it. A smile slid onto her face as she admired the craftsmanship and Gray couldn't help but fluster a little bit from her reaction. So he hid his face slightly behind his hand again while she was distracted.
"Does it melt easily or can you control that too?" She asked very curiously while still looking at it. The light from her ceiling shimmered through it, making it look like a large, blue crystal. Small prism lights reflected around her hands and arms every time she turned the rose in her palm.
"It depends on how much magic i put into it, i guess..." His head was leaning more into his hand now while he watched her.
Lucy's face fell slightly, "So, this will melt soon?"
His eyes widened, "I-I mean it was just a demonstration" He mumbled and held a hand behind the back of his head. "Here, give it back, I'll fix it for you"
She did as she was told and he held his hand over the ice rose again. Lucy watched as his hands emitted cold air again, fogging over the rose. For someone that looked so serious all of the time, he had probably the prettiest magic she has seen in years.
"There, that should last a little while longer" he said as he handed it back to her.
Lucy brushed his hands slightly as she took it back, "Thank you" She smiled warmly, "...I know it was probably weird of me to ask..it's just..." She looked at it again and noticed this time it had a very, tiny ribbon on the stem this time. Her fingers brushed over it, "I treasure things alot more when its hand-made rather than just manufactured, you know? That personal touch to it just makes it infinitely better"
He nodded, "Yeah, I know what you mean" Gray looked towards the sun that was now gone. He frowned slightly, "I should head back before i miss the train" He stood up and turned towards the door.
"Are you coming back tomorrow?"
He glanced at her as he tilted his head back slightly, "Yeah around noon. I'll see you then" He waved to her as he left.
Lucy locked the door behind him and noticed Happy curled into a ball sleeping. She let out a sigh of relief having the quiet back again. She got so use to talking to people lately, it was just a little bit weird to finally have absolute silence again. Her eyes looked back down to the crystal ice rose and moved towards the kitchen. She pulled out a small dessert glass case that was sized for a single cupcake and placed the rose inside. Lucy giggled realizing it was a perfect fit and went to her room. She eyed her vanity that sat in the corner with only a few bottles and a hairbrush on it.
Moving her stuff to one side, she placed the glass box by the corner and grinned, "Now i can see it all the time until it decides to melt..." she said quietly.
Now thinking about it some more, It's going to be weird having Gray around now for awhile.
She got so used to having Natsu's company, that having his frenemy in her home felt weird. However, she couldn't help but giggle to herself, "Maybe now i can finally try to understand the two of them without the excessive bickering?..." She patted the glass case and moved to lay down on her bed to sleep.
Some Old abandoned Warehouse Yard
June 8 8:28pm
Several warehouses were lined up behind a bunch of deteriorating metal fencing's. Old trees and overgrown weeds invaded the entire area but it did not stop these group of people for trekking through it. It took them around ten minutes to pull through but then they stopped as they reached the blocked off entrance.
One guy shook his head, face half covered, "Did anyone else find a way through besides the main gate?" He spoke through his hidden mic attached to his thick coat collar.
"Not here..."
"Nothing here either..."
"Damn, well, there you go Natsu, you have the go" Jellal spoke to the person next to him.
Natsu punched his fist into his palm excitedly, lighting them on fire, "Alright! Now I'm fired up" He looked at the gate and with one swing, he threw his flaming fist into it. The gate nearly exploded and pieces of metal debris flew everywhere.
"Very nice Natsu, but try to be a little more discreet about this next time. The last thing we need is to alert un-welcomed people" The blue-haired man sighed but the pinkette only shrugged.
"I was holding back though..." he said with a blank expression.
Without another word, a group of men followed them from behind. Natsu almost ran right into the first warehouse but Jellal yanked him back by the scarf.
"What the hell?" He glared back behind him.
"Discreet Natsu!" The detective raised his voice only slightly.
The dragon slayer sighed and peeked over to the window next to them, "There's noone inside" He said before looking back towards Jellal, "How long do we have to wait? I just want to get this over with already..." He folded his arms in annoyance. Patience was never his game.
"Soon, Just a little more time" He patted his shoulder and moved towards the gate himself. He signaled a few men nearby waiting for their cue. Few more people moved to the other side of the warehouse and a few others went over to the ware house that was next door.
Jellal signaled quietly with his fingers to the people next to him.
3...
2...
1...
Jellal opened the warehouse door, making a loud, metal piercing noise in the air as it got pulled across. As soon as it was opened enough for two people to enter, he let go of the door. Natsu followed behind the detective and a of the couple others followed suit. The warehouse was dark, dusty and looked untouched for ages.
"There's supposed to be a door leading to the downstairs around here somewhere..." He said to Natsu who was already stepping away from the group. The dragon slayer nodded and shuffled quickly towards the closest wall. Even though it was dark, he was able to see everything quite easily. As he scouted around looking for the hidden stairway, Jellal went around looking at the giant shipping crates left behind.
"Did anyone find anything interesting?" He spoke through his hidden mic again.
"Negative"
"Group 3?"
"Nothing yet, sorry"
The blue-haired mage stared at the large crate in front of him. He flexed his fingers only slightly and moved towards the handle. In one pull he cracked it open and dust flew around. After the small dust cloud disappeared, he pointed his flashlight towards the opened container. The light revealed piles of box's but they seemed recently placed. He walked further inside while one person kept guard outside. The closer he got to the box's, he noticed some older box's placed inbetween with hand prints left in the dust on one of the flaps. Jellal took a stick out of his pocket and carefully moved the flaps to the side of the box that was touched. He flashed his light towards it, to reveal some of the contents inside. He moved the box over to get a better angle and dug further in. With a gloved hand he pulls up one book and started flipping through it.
"Did you find anything interesting, sir?" The person guarding the container asked as he noticed the detective pulling stuff out.
"I'm not sure..." he responded quickly. He started flipping through the book but it wasn't in any language he recognized right away. He shoved the book back in and started searching through the other box's.
Meanwhile Natsu, was quickly walking in between the containers around him. He sniffed the air a few times but then sneezed, the air quality was poor and his eyes started to tear up. The more he tried to use his senses, the more it started to irritate him.
Shit this place is terrible He whined inside of his head, If i wanted to hide something, where would I be...
He darted his eyes around looking for anything that was shoved against an unusual spot. Above him he saw hanging, rusted walkways, dusty lamps and across the warehouse, held an office with a broken window. Natsu made a quick jog over to the door way and pulled on the broken handle.
Seems like someone has been in here... His nose twitched, but nothing specific stood out.
He looked around the desk and shifted through tattered papers. When he was done searching through the useless pieces of paper, he turned around and looked under the desk only to find nothing, yet again. Natsu got up and started scratching his head as he spun around the bare room. After a few more minutes, he left the room and looked back out towards the large, spacious warehouse.
How the hell would you hide a stairwell in this place? He frowned as he continued to think.
He noticed some people have already opened the nearby containers, which finally gave him an idea. As quickly as he could, he started flipping all the remaining container doors open. One by one, making a lot of noise while doing so. He didn't care though, something told him this was the right thing to do.
Aside hearing grumbles of annoyance from behind him he finally came across the last container hidden to the side of the warehouse. It was a different color than the rest of them and he quickly pulled it open. Natsu lit his hand on fire to give the area some lighting and that's when he saw a metal door inside.
"Hey guys! I found it!" His voice echoed through the warehouse, not realizing how loud he was talking, "I win this time Jellal!" He grinned and opened the door inside. Jellal tiredly sighed and pulled a few more boxs out.
"I'm going to follow Natsu to the bottom level, I'll leave the rest of the search with you guys..."
"Roger that, Sir!"
"Report anything you find suspicious or stack pile them separately until we come back up"
It didn't take Jellal long to catch up with the dragon slayer, "I thought I told you to be discreet, Natsu" He quietly scolded the pinkette.
Natsu waved his hand at him, "I found it though, didn't I?" He scowled but continued to walk ahead. They were soon met with a pair of double metal doors. Jellal nodded to Natsu to stand back and he listened. The door opened slowly, making the rusted metal door hinges screech in the process and the room inside was pitch black.
"Can you see anything, Natsu?" The detective whispered when the area fell silent again.
"Nope, Now let me in already!" He whined. Jellal moved out of the way and the dragon slayer swiftly slipped through the doorway.
As they both walked through the doors, it clicked shut behind them and the blue-haired mage moved his hand around to look for a switch. Natsu was partially able to see some things in front of him, but not entirely. He still squinted and only saw a few box's lined to the sides of the walls.
"What the hell is this place?" he said abruptly.
"I'm not sure..." Jellal finally found some switches to the side and started flipping them on, one by one. Slowly but surely, the room was finally lighting up.
There was a single, empty chair placed in the center of the room. There was several support beams lining only the edges of the room. Newly placed box's were placed against the walls and one large shipping container at the back corner of the room. Natsu tried to walk forward but Jellal yanked him back. The dragon slayer wanted to growl at him but then noticed where the man was pointing. Up above them was a hung shipping container.
"What the-" He breathed under his breath.
Jellal shook his head, "This is why you have to pay attention Natsu and not just rush into everything"
The dragon slayer hissed slightly but then moved to the side of the room. Jellal moved to the opposite side, waiting for something to happen. All it took was one crunch to echo in Natsu's ears and it alerted him immediately, "Jellal someone is here!" He yelled. However, before the other guy could react, there was strange wire snapping sounds echoing in the room.
"GET DOWN!" Jellal yelled.
The sound was deafening as the large shipping container crashed down next to them. Metal splinters flew everywhere. When the dust and sounds settled, Natsu turned around to see the whole middle area covered in huge piles of metal debris.
(Natsu Resolve Determination Extended OST)
The dragon slayer narrowed his eyes to the corner of the room to see someone approaching them.
"It's not everyday i get company" The mysterious voice spoke making Natsu glare at him directly. Jellal moved towards Natsu to get a better view of the incoming company. However, a few more people started to show up from the corners of the room.
"It seems we have company boys. I guess its time to treat our guests to some entertainment, hm?" The men pulled out their guns and pointed towards the two mages in the middle of the room, "I'd love to stay and chat but i have guests upstairs too, you know?"
He faded into a mist and Natsu clenched his teeth, "Damn it, We have to hurry!"
Jellal nodded and sprinted into a bright light. His most iconic heavenly magic, to be able to move around at great speed, Meteor.
Natsu lit his hands on fire and grinned, "Alright, Who wants a crack at me first?" His eyes darted around to the multiple targets, "Or better yet...I'll take on all of you!" he jumped into the air, "Fire Dragon's Wing Slash!"
"Natsu! Be careful! They're still normal people and don't set this place on fire!" Jellal yelled after the fire explosion.
The smoke cleared out and a few people laughed behind them. Jellal pivoted and struck his fist into the one closest to him, sending him flying back then he rushed at high speed to the one trying to escape.
Natsu heard guns being picked up again while another started shooting in his direction. He swung his back around and lit his body on fire. It stopped half the bullets but he had to move out of that spot quickly. Kicking his feet into the ground, he managed to gain enough momentum to eye the person firing shots from a distance,
"Fire Dragon's Roar!" A blast of flames shot towards several people. The men dropped their guns from the extensive heat and a couple others ran to put their clothes out from the flames. Natsu grinned, "There's more where that came from"
Jellal finished packing a few guys in and then tied them up. The dragon slayer followed suit and rounded up the remaining few.
"So who the hell are these guys?" Natsu looked up to Jellal for an answer.
"We can figure that out later, we have to help the people upstairs"
He nodded, then they both ran for the door and back to the upper floor. Gun fire shots were echoing in the building while glass seems to be shattering everywhere.
The blue-haired mage slammed the door open to see several of his men knocked out cold. Natsu shoved his way past him and looked around. He sniffed the air and picked up on the foreign scent.
"This way" He yelled towards the man behind him.
They ran outside to see the mysterious man holding one of the soldiers by their neck.
"Oh the little rats found their way out, Pity" He snapped the persons neck and the body dropped to the ground, "I guess I'll deal with you two after all..." He shifted into mist and faded out of sight.
"Damn it! Fight me fair and square you bastard!" Natsu yelled and heard a crackling noise behind him. He immediately pivoted his right foot and lunged a flaming fist into the shadow that was starting to form behind him.
Jellal raised his hand and started his incantation, "No bars here, Natsu. He's a mage, so have at it" He said quickly and lit his body in light again as he tried to finish his Grand chariot enchantment.
Natsu grinned widely, "Alrighty, Now you're going to pay..." He heard another crackling sound behind him and immediately shifted stances. A hand lunged at him and Natsu grabbed it immediately, "Heh, Bad move man" He lit his hand on fire and shot it to towards the shadowed figure.
The man howled in pain and tried to disappear back into his mist but Natsu re-grabbed him, "Fire Dragon's fist" The shadowed figure was knocked back into solid view.
"Now!" he yelled. Natsu Jumped back and Jellal was already in the air, "Grand Chariot!"
They knew it was overkill, but after seeing almost their entire team wiped out, it really set them off. The dark mage was knocked out cold.
Natsu turned around and frowned as he looked at all of their fallen comrades, "...They're not going to get away with this" He said coldly.
Jellal placed a hand onto his shoulder, "In due time Natsu. Right now we have to hurry up and have this place cleaned out. I'll go report to Erza and you need to head back. You've done a splendid job helping us out this past week"
Natsu didn't say anything as he stared at the the people on the ground aside him. He only nodded and walked away quietly.
Jellal watched as Natsu disappeared into the distance and turned to look at the black mage that was on the ground next to him. He knelt over and pulled out his phone. He quickly searched through the person's clothing for anything left behind however, there was nothing noteworthy. He took a picture and quickly sent it to headquarters followed by calling Erza.
"Jellal, is everything alright?" She quickly answered.
"I'm afraid not. I need a search team brought here immediately. We were led to a trap built by the enemy it seems..." He stood back up and looked around.
"Shit.." She said quietly through the phone, "...Anything else, Any casualties?"
Jellal was quiet making Erza quite impatient, "Jellal!?"
"We're going to need a few ambulances, Erza. There's two people unconscious...as for the rest, I'm afraid we lost them..." He clenched his phone tightly.
"Very well...Did you at least reprimand the criminal behind the trap?"
"Yes and trust me when i say, I'll rip the answers out of him" He ended the call and glared back down to the dark mage.
A/N: Hope everyone is doing well this week. Took me awhile to sort through this chapter, but i gave it my best and hopefully you guys enjoyed it. It'll be awhile before i finish editing the next chapter but i guess i could put some previews for you guys. c:
I'll see you guys next time and hope to hear more from you soon!
-Rosario
Preview:
The two sat in silence, listening to the echoing waves brushing up against the rocks and shore. Lucy would've half expected herself not to be anywhere near the human torch but the kind of warmth he gave off was different. It wasn't at all like the heat from the sun, but a comforting warmth that made you feel cozy on a cool day. She found herself snuggling into him more and closed her eyes.
"Natsu..." Lucy mumbled while making herself comfy.
"Hm?" He started to lightly brush his fingers against her shoulder.
"If...Erza calls you off from being my bodyguard...Are you going to go back to your place?" She found it really hard to say for some reason but at the same time, she wanted to know, to mentally prepare herself.
The question hung there for awhile before he finally spoke, "Do you want me too?"