I crossed my arms, looking up to the purple-tinted Moon. I could see where Erza was going with her plan, but her course of action was beyond me, why not tell others the truth? "Natsu, we're going to destroy the Moon." Erza stated.
"Really?" Naru said excitedly. Gray, Natsu and Happy seemed terrified.
"It's the only way we can change the villagers back to their human forms." The villagers cheered.
"Where you wanna go? Do you think we should climb up to the top of the Temple? It's a lot higher up there."
"We'll do it from here." Erza informed him, her arms crossed. "The Villagers can't go near the Temple and they need to witness this."
"I don't know what she's thinkin'." Gray admitted. "I mean she can do some amazing things, but still."
"So...what do you think she's gonna do to it?" Lucy wondered.
"This is exciting, huh?" Happy said.
"More like teriyfing…"
"It'll be ok." I assured the blonde, turning to her. "If Erza was going to do something wrong, I'd stop her."
"This is Giant Armour." Erza explained to the villages, turning to show off the armour she was wearing. "It increases my strength and allows me to throw farther. And this." Erza lifted her hand and summoned a large spear into her grasp. "This is the Spear of Haja, it repels Darkness." The villagers gasped.
"Oh! I see what you're planin' now!" Natsu realised. "You're gonna use that Spear to knock the Moon out of the sky!"
"That's right, but I'm afraid I'll need more strength than this armour can give me. So Natsu." Erza turned to the pink-haired boy. "I'm going to need to use your firepower as a boost. Whenever I begin to throw the spear, I want you to hit the back of it with your flames. Now, we'll have to time our attack perfectly. But I think you should give me just enough power to do the job."
"Sounds like a killer plan to me."
"Then let's do it." Erza started to walk off.
"They don't really think they're gonna pull this off, do they?" Gray questioned.
"Well, I think they've totally gone off the deep end this time." Lucy stated. Erza and Natsu stood on top of a watchtower, ready to attack. My arms were crossed loosly as I watched Erza prepare her spear. The top of the tower exploded as the spear launched from Erza's hands, Natsu's fire trailing after it.
"She did it!" Happy exclaimed.
"This is bad…" Gray trailed off.
"What are they thinking!" Lucy wailed. I watched as the spear rose higher and higher, disappearing from my eyesight as it reached the sky. There was a crash, and the Moon started to crack. I smirked when the cracks spread, spreading across the sky before it broke, and a normal, pale white Moon behind it. "It wasn't the Moon that shattered….it was the sky!" Lucy gasped. I looked around when a yellow glow started to encase the Villagers.
"What's wrong?" Gray asked. "They're not Transforming."
"Oh no…" Happy trailed off.
"That's because these are their true forms." Erza informed as she returned, clad in her regular armour. "The Moon Drip never had any effect on their appearance, however, it seems to have altered their memories."
"What do you mean?" Lucy wondered.
"They think they're Humans who can transform into Demons, but it's the other way around."
"Wait, so you're saying...they're really?"
"Yep, the Villagers have always been Demons." The group started to freak out before Erza continued.
"My Father explained it to me." I said. "You all possess the ability to disguise yourself in a Human form. The altered memories you received from the Moon Drip lead you to believe that your temporary Human forms were your true ones. All you simply were, were Demons who fell victim to the Moon Drip's horrid effects."
"Hold on, why weren't Leon and the others affected?" Lucy asked.
"I assume it's because they're human." Erza said. "As far as I can tell, Demons were the only ones susceptible to the memory loss. I knew what was going on as soon as the Villagers told me they were unable to go to the Temple. The Moonlight collected there was sacred, therefore Creatures of Darkness couldn't go near it."
"You are quite the detective." A familiar voice said. "I knew I could trust you and your friends." I turned to see the man from the boat. "Thanks Wizards, I owe you one."
"You're the guy from the boat." Gray realised.
"Bobo…" Moka trailed off.
"But I thought you were…" Someone muttered.
"Getting stabbed in the chest hurt real bad." Bobo admitted. "But you've gotta do more than that to kill a Demon."
"But...on the boat?" Gray questioned. "You just disappeared into thin air." My eyes followed Bobo as he summoned his wings and appeared in the sky.
"I really hope you kids can forgive me for not telling you the truth sooner. I was the only one who didn't have any memory loss, I had to leave because everyone went nuts. I knew I was a Demon, but everyone else, suddenly thought they were cursed Humans?" Moka summoned his wings and flew up to meet Bobo, followed by the other Demons, celebrating the return of him.
"Yep, they're definitely Demons." Erza stated.
"I dunno." Natsu argued, stepping u to us. "If you look at their faces, they kinda look more like angels to me."
"No matter what." I said. "They're back to their original selves, now the S-Class Quest is done."
TIMESKIP
A feast was laid out, and everyone dug in. I sat next to Lucy, chatting happily with her. "It looks like someone is getting a lot of attention from the ladies." She commented, leaning around me. I turned and saw Gray being dragged off by some of the village girls.
"Well, I have to admit I was wrong about Humans." Moka stated. "All of these years we've chosen to hide from the outside world, we were so afraid that others would judge us by our appearance."
"You know, the curse, that was just a rumour we spread so no one would come to the Island and bother us." Bobo added.
"Well it worked." Lucy told him. "'Cause the Sailors at the dock were terrified, nobody wanted to come here."
"I know." Moka said. "And it's a shame. But after meeting you, we've changed our minds. You've restored our faith in Humans and we're not afraid. We're ready to go out and befriend people from other lands."
"That's good." Erza stated. "Friendship is a beautiful thing. It's an emotional bond that transcends ones physical appearance." We eat heartily, but fell silent when two people entered the village. Yuka and Sherry. Erza stood. "How can I help you?"
"You Fairy Tailers are tough, the Cold Emperor is so bannged up he couldn't make it down here." Yuka stated.
"What's why we've come to pay you a visit in his place." Sherry added. Lucy scrambled to stand.
"Wait just a minute!" She protested. "I thought we were cool. Didn't Lyon tell you guys what happened?" I stood as well, shifting to angle my body to protect Lucy.
"Yes, but that doesn't matter to us." Yuka said.
"We wanted to settle things with you ourselves." Sherry told us.
"Alright, why don't you show me what you've got!" Natsu demanded, jumping forward with a flame erupting in his palm.
"Wait, Natsu." Bobo protested. "Thanks for the help, but we can't keep relying on you, so let us fight them."
"He's right." Another agreed. "We got these clowns."
"If we want to keep our village safe, we've got to protect it." Someone else continued,
"Normaly I would agree with you gentleman, but I think it's best if I handle this one." Erza said.
"We meet again, Titania of Fairy Tail." Sherry mused. "You gave dear Angelica quite a beating earlier."
"She seems like a formidable opponent." Yuka said.
"Watch out for that creepy chick!" Lucy shouted. "She can control inanimate objects!"
"And don't even bother trying to use your magic against ol' mega brows." Natsu added.
"Is that so." Erza contemplated. "In that case…" Erza started to run forward. "I'll do it the old-fashioned way!" Erza kicked Sherry back and punched Yuka so hard he fell on his ass. Sherry shakily sat up.
"She didn't even have to use any magic…" Lucy trailed off.
"You're truly an amazing warrior." Sherry admitted. She and Yuka got to their feet.
"No kidding." Yuka agreed. "We're no match for you."
"Wait, so you're not here to attack us?" Lucy asked.
"I doubt this is going to make up for all the trouble we've caused you, but we wanted to apologise in person."
"Oh, so you guys came here to settle things in a good way." Happy realised.
"The Cold Emperor told us everything." Sherry said. "Thanks to you, we can finally let go of the pain Deliora caused us so many years ago."
"You mean, you were victims of Deliora too?" Gray wondered.
"When we were children, the monster ravaged our village, we watched it murder all of our friends and family." Yuka revealed.
"The Cold Emperor had a plan to kill the Demon once and for all." Sherry added. "That's why we joined him."
"You see, we wanted revenge, and we were so focused on getting it we never realised we were hurting innocent people."
"We were so blinded by our hatred, that we ended up acting no better than the Demon itself. From now on we'll treat other people with respect, and love."
"Alrighty then!" Natsu cheated, appearing behind the two and throwing an arm around each of them. "You guys should stick around and join in on the feast!"
"But we were enemies a second ago." Yuka reminded him.
"I don't think it's a good idea, because I'm trying to watch my figure-"
"Man, you two don't shut up." I said, walking up to them. "There's no need for any excuses, you can stay, if the Villagers allow it." Natsu dragged the two into the middle of the feast and shoved cups into their hands.
"Ok! Now we're ready to party!" Natsu shouted, and that broke the tension. I made sure to sit in between the newcomers and Lucy, despite the fact they weren't attacking.
TIMESKIP
The next morning, I shouldered both mine and Lucy's bags and waited out the front of the village. We were leaving today, and heading back to Fairy Tail. We were all gathered at the entrance, the Villagers had chosen to stay in their Demonic forms, as it felt more natural according to them. Erza had just refused the reward. "What?" Moka rasped. "But miss, you deserve the reward so take it! Please!"
"Thank you, but your gratitude is payment enough." Erza told him.
"That's nice but you should take the money!"
"Erza." I said sternly. She turned to me and I stepped forward. "Technically, I am the Quest leader, you have no say in whether or not we accept the reward or not." I turned to the Villagers. "We shall accept the reward…of 100 Jewel each." Moka gasped.
"But that's so little!" He exclaimed.
"You should all keep it. If you're hoping to journey to the mainland, you need as much funds as you can. And if possible, can we have the Celestial Key also?" I gestured to Lucy, who I could see out the corner of my eye was grinning manicly. "Our resident Celestial Wizard, will find it most useful."
"Well, at least let me take you back to Hargeon." Bobo offered.
"Thank you, but I have a boat waiting for us sir." Erza said. We walked to the beach, and I was surprisingly unsurprised to the fact a Pirate Ship was waiting for us.
"A pirate ship?" Gray asked.
"You kidding me!?" Lucy demanded. "DId he hijack it!?"
"Ahoy me beauty." One of the pirates called.
"'Me Beauty'?" I echoed.
"That's right, they've become quite fond of me." Erza said. We boarded quickly, and instantly, Natsu was sick and hanging off the side of the boat, trying not to bring up his breakfast. I waved to the villagers, who wished us well, and we promised to see each other.
TIMESKIP
After docking in Hargeon and hitching a train, we arrived back in Magnolia. "I'm bummed." Gray sighed as we made our way to the Guild. "All that time and hard work for 100 Jewel some lousy Gate Key."
"Yeah, and that S-Class reward was big-time money." Happy agreed.
"The process of the S-Class Quest being accepted was in the wrong order." I told the group. "You're lucky I made sure that we were doing it legally." I then turned and glared at everyone. "You should be extra lucky that you got something out of it!"
"She's got a point." Lucy said. "Now quit your complaining."
"That's pretty easy for you to say, you got a bigger reward." Happy said. "Can we sell it?"
"How can you even suggest that Happy! You guys just don't get it, they're hard to come by. Sure there are lots of Silver Gate Keys, but there are only twelve Gold Zodiac Gate Keys. And I'm lucky enough to have five."
"It's too bad they're all crazy." Natsu said.
"You better watch your mouth you punk! Me and my Celestial Spirits are gonna be stronger than you someday!"
"So Lucy, what key did you get?" I asked her, turning to Lucy.
"It's Sagittarius the Centaur." Lucy revealed.
"You're all so carefree." Erza sighed. "It's as almost as if you've forgotten you face punishment when you get back to the guild."
"But why?!" Natsu gasped. Lucy, Natsu and Gray crowded Erza and I, causing us to pause in the street.
"Everything worked out in the end!" Lucy reminded us. "Can't we just forget the whole punishment thing?"
"You're right, everything worked out." Erza agreed. "But only because Yami tagged along and accepted the Quest in your name, a job none of you were qualified to do."
"Stealing an S-Class Request is a serious offence." Erza said.
"We said we're sorry…" Lucy trailed off.
"If you promise you'll never do it again, then I don't think you need to be penalised by the Guild. Unfortunately, I don't have any say in the matter. Your fate is in Master Makarov's hands. So I'm sure you'll be facing punishment."
"Now I'm scared." Happy said shakily. "Do you think he's going to make us do that!?"
"Just kill me now!" Gray shouted. "I don't think I can live through that again!"
"You guys are freaking me out!" Lucy wailed.
"Don't let him scare you." Natsu said, patting the blonde on the shoulder. "I'll talk the Old Man out of punishing us, that guy loves me!"
"I don't think you should do the talking."
"Natsu, this is something you can't talk yourself out of." I said, crossing my arms. "You and Happy will be facing that soon enough, I wish you luck." Natsu started to wail about not wanting punishment. "I'll make sure you're not punished, Lucy." I said to her. "Don't-" I cut myself off when I took a breath in, the scent of rust and iron invading my nose. "Guys." I called seriously. Everyone paused and turned to me. My eyes narrowed as I scanned the skyline. After a moment, I pinpointed the scent, and my eyes widened in fear. "Something's wrong with the Guild."
"What?" Gray breathed.
"We have to go...now."