Reviews are Nice; The pairings are NOT decided yet. I get people like Vander/Lucy, I like them too, they're adorable when she's sassy and keeps up with him, but...I really don't know if they will get together or if it will be a friendship...or how far this darkness is going to go.

I don't own Fairy Tail. Mashima Does.

I don't own the Pradesh Clan. Desna does (and thank you for them).

I own the Storyline. That's it.

Alternate Title: That in Which Farron and Kaleb both work for the affection of the same person.

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When the Holidays passed, things seemed to go back to normal. Well as normal as Hestor's cluster fuck of a life was going. He enjoyed meeting up with Farron, talking, sharing pleasure, just feeling like he had someone to talk to. Not that he couldn't talk to Lucy, but the woman liked to tease him from time to time and with the depression he was feeling, the confusion that rattled him, they both knew that it was best if he had time to think.

He carefully packed his bags for the next few months of traveling, pursing his lips as he looked around the apartment he had. After a moment, he smiled as he saw a book that he'd borrowed from Farron, an old book that the man had acquired about Celestial Mage bloodlines. It had both hurt and helped reading about the five families and it had become a bit of storytime for Lucy and him. He finished his packing and then picked up the book, turning it in his hands a few times before smiling and turning towards the door.

They left in the morning, and he really needed to return the book before they left. Each family had a small indicator of who they were, what they were. The lighter hair, or parts, in the case of the Main Xing Family, emotion filled eyes that always seemed to show joy and heartache. He rubbed the back of his neck and then nodded as he left the apartment. He needed to see if Farron was in town, which was the first step. He'd go from there, otherwise.

When he saw the familiar head of hair, he let out a sigh as he saw the platinum head of hair by him. The two seemed engaged in a conversation that was heated and he assumed that Farron was using his magic to keep people from listening in to their out of the way table. Another life, another time, he supposed, he would use that table. It was out of the way, easy to not pay attention to. He took a breath and let it out before he slowly walked towards the table, letting the two talk for as long as he could.

He put on a polite smile as he got to the table, "Farron, Master Kaleb." he ignored the twitch in the mindbender's eye as he held out the book towards Farron with a small smile, "Thank you, Farron, for letting us borrow this. It's been an immeasurable help."

Farron smiled as he took the book, "you're welcome. It was one of my mother's books that I've kept with me…" He paused, looking almost sheepish, "In hindsight, I probably should have let Lucy see it before now…"

Hestor chuckled and shrugged, "it's fine, it's been good reading, good relaxation."

Kaleb pursed his lips a bit, watching the two and then taking a breath, "you four are leaving again soon?"

Hestor's features hardened a bit as he looked at Kaleb, "Yes, Master Kaleb, we'll be cavorting around the landscape to find more keys starting tomorrow."

The Mindbender flinched a bit, "...I'm sorry. I really didn't mean it that way…"

The Celestial Mage arched an eyebrow slightly, "then what did you mean by it?"

Kaleb felt that same pressure again at the back of his skull, pushing past it and taking a breath, "I was concerned and I said things in a bad way." He paused, "I missed our talks...and…"

Hestor looked a bit unimpressed as he stared at Kaleb for a moment, then let out a faint sigh. He wanted to not let it go, but between the book and Lucy, he knew for his own mental health, he needed to put it behind him, "behind us. The past."

Kaleb nodded, a slightly hopeful look in his eyes as he sat there, "hopefully, we can discuss things more, when you four get back?"

Hestor debated as he stood there, "after we get things settled down, yes. It normally takes a few days for us to sort things." he didn't want the pain of knowing this was the only person other than Lucy, Vander and Zen he could talk about the secrets of Celestial magic with, knowing that the man simply didn't know what he wanted between the two of them. Hell, he himself wasn't even sure what...No, he knew what he wanted. He'd told the man Secrets. He'd wanted to earn trust and affection from the mindbender.

Kaleb gave a nod and a small smile, "Alright, I look forward to our talks."

Farron watched the two of them for a moment, a small smile on his lips, "Good, now that this issue is settled…"

Kaleb's eyes narrowed on his brother, sensing that the man was up to something. He couldn't pinpoint it, but when Farron spoke again, he felt his world almost drop out beneath him.

"I'll see you for dinner at that Midish place by the consulate?" Farron tilted his head, "I'll have the food ready for take out."

Hestor chuckled and smiled softly, "of course. I'll bring the scotch." he waved and turned, "see you then."

Kaleb let out a low growl when Hestor got far enough away from the table and hissed, "what is that?"

Farron slowly arched an eyebrow, "A standing plan, Kaleb. We discuss what is found in different books on Celestial Magic and the keys twice a week."

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Lucy sighed as she walked through the Minstrelian city they were in, rolling her eyes as, for once, she wasn't the one that was happy about shopping. They were in the northern peninsula, taking a few days off after finding a few keys that they weren't sure who was going to contract them yet. She and Hestor wanted to know more about them and Vander and Zen decided to leave them to it.

When she was tugged to the side, she let out a squeak and scowled at Vander, who turned her around. Zen held up a dress against her, looking thoughtful and she got a flat look on her face, "i'm hungry. I want some pasta."

Hestor looked up from the shirts he was looking at, "and we're a little sick of wearing the same clothes." He stared at her.

Zen snorted, "not that Virgo isn't amazing with cloth craft...but I think that we need this. You need this." He arched an eyebrow, "you like shopping."

Vander kissed her neck gently, "and you've been stressed."

Lucy let out a low sound as she stood there, "Fine...if nothing else, it will give Virgo some patterns."

The three men could see she was getting restless the closer it came to summer. She wanted to find those last two keys, so they could move on...and be ready for whatever Hisui was plotting. She wanted to take care of Grandice, she wanted to get married instead of just Promised. She wanted time off from the world going crazy.

As the three men continued their shopping, Lucy stood to the side, chuckling at them and smiling as she realized they were really trying to help her mood. She could also see how Hestor was avoiding thinking about things. Their next shop was a magic shop, with Zen had noted there were keys in, but since it was a shop, there was no overly quick rush to get there.

It took nearly an hour for the three to finalize purchases and even with her pointing out things weren't needed, she'd given up halfway through the hour. She rolled her eyes as Hestor smirked "Oh, stop.."

"Well, I still think that you just let them buy you clothes…"

Lucy elbowed him, smirking, "if they like it, I'm more likely to get laid."

The two celestial mages laughed softly as they walked into the shop, looking around idly before finding the case with the keys in it. It was a decent negotiation, with Zen putting a locked box on the counter and kissing Lucy's temple. After that, they retreated to the house that Arman had there for when he - or any family member - was in the area, the two mages grinning.

The box simply opened when Hestor flipped the lid and he smirked, "One more."

Lucy nodded, eyes dancing in excitement, "one more." She looked through the rest of the keys that they'd bought, humming in thought.

Hestor snorted and snatched up a few, "Serpens is not good for you." he arched an eyebrow.

"I already have a copy of that key," Lucy stuck her tongue out with a grin as they sat there and then inspected each one.

"Where are Vander and Zen?" Hestor pursed his lips.

Lucy pointed to the floor, "Downstairs, cooking while we take care of this." She leaned against hestor, "one more, Hes."

The male mage nodded and murmured, "one more." One more and he would take care of two of the biggest issues that were in lucy's life. He wasn't sure that he'd do more than that, but Tesso had contacted him about joining the knights and staying with a commission at the citadel itself. The set would be invaluable and he understood the why. The man smiled warmly and shook his head as they both stood and made their way downstairs.

Hearing an additional voice, Hestor arched an eyebrow as they came down the stairs, blinking, "Hello, Xally."

The dark haired woman grinned as she turned and then tackled Lucy in a hug, "There are you are!"

Hestor shook his head with a small smile and slid past the two, snorting in humor. He almost mumbled 'women', but held his tongue before he got himself a drink, "I take it she's going to drag Lucy out?"

Zen let out a hum, "yes, we'll see them in a few hours, when the lasagne is done."

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Zen was sure he felt three keys, but as the main group stayed in Minstrel, he took to wing every few days, searching out over the water and pouring magic into his wings to try and find where they were. He felt annoyance every time he came back empty handed, but Lucy's smile and kiss and Hestor's pat on the back helped a bit.

He let out a low growl as he flew then let out a startled sound as the water geysered out of the ocean and an orb rose. His eyes were wide as he waited, not wanting to get too close, but there, after the magic faded, was an island. He carefully landed on the beach, frowning at the destruction and then saw the first mage. All he could do was yank on the bond he had with Lucy and Vander, bringing them to him.

"Zen! What is goin…." she looked around as she saw familiar features, "That's Freed!" there were groans and she grinned as she called out spirits to help suss out each of the mages that may have been there. Delight ran through her as she saw blue and black hair, tackling the mage that was barely sitting up, "BIXY!"

"Kaleb?"

"...zen?"

Zen grinned as he stood there, watching Lucy fuss over their brother, "I need you to send an airship. I know you can find where I'm at."

"Why?" The mindbender sounded confused, then shock rang through as Zen opened his mind to show his brother what he was seeing. "...I'll...get one on the way as soon as I can. Keep everyone safe."

"We will, brother, we will."

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Instead of dropping the Fairy Tail mages off in Magnolia, they were all transported back to Bosco. Hestor half huffed at Vander at being nearly forgotten, but the three keys that bickslow had found more than made up for it.

He had watched Lucy scream in joy and hug him, knowing what that last key meant and he grinned into her hair, hugging her tightly. The other key he wasn't sure about, but it was made of a strange substance that looked like it was made from Meteorite, yet shimmered blue in the light.

Both mages knew they would have to actually figure it out, but they'd been distracted by attempting to get out of the way as Laxus locked onto Xally and Xally had purred...right before Bickslow screamed like a little girl about at least mating his sister where he couldn't hear.

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Lucy was bouncing as they settled back home, letting the Fairy Tail mages rest and letting Kaleb talk to them about what had been going on. She'd happily cuddled and hugged Bickslow the entire way back when he'd handed her capricorn's key and she was over the moon about having the entire set of Ecliptic Zodiac keys.

The other made her curious, but she wasn't quite ready to contract it or find out who it was yet. It felt...powerful. Powerful enough that it sent a shiver down her spine. She settled on the beach behind the Pradesh estate holding the strange black, yet blue glinting key in her hands, trying to figure it out. Her eyes were half lidded as she pursed her lips and tried to think about who it could be. She'd never heard of a key like this before and she was waiting on Hestor to find a book after he'd taken a picture of it with his com and retreated to the Academe as quickly as he could, hopping off the airship quicker than they could see and making a beeline to grab a ride without even a look towards anyone.

"What's on your mind?"

Lucy looked up, smiling at Kaleb, though he could still feel her general annoyance with him, "I got a key.." She held it up, "But i'm not sure about it at all."

The mindbender motioned as he sat down and then smiled as she gently handed it to him. He inspected it, pursing his lips, "it's...heavier than I thought it would be."

"Mm, I know, I've tried storing it in requip space a dozen times…" She let out a breath, "i've been able to do that with uncontracted keys...but...it goes in there...then the space collapses and it falls on the ground. I'm at a loss."

Kaleb nodded as he sat there, then pursed his lips, "...I'm sorry…"

"What?" She blinked at him as she watched him study the key quietly. Her head tilted a bit to the side as she tried to figure out what he was trying to apologize for.

Kaleb let out a deep breath as he held the key, "...what I said to Hestor...I know he talked to you about it…" he flinched as he heard the heavy breath through her nose and kept his eyes on the key, "I...did not mean that Celestial Mages were weak…" he shook his head, "just that...both of you start talking...and no one can get a word in edgewise…"

Lucy watched him, arching an eyebrow slowly, "and…?"

"I was frustrated with him because he was chastising me...and snapped," He hung his head a bit, "I shouldn't have. I know better, but...I just snapped. I know better than to interrupt you when you get that way, but...something almost compelled me to snap at him…"

"Did...you have Cris look you over?" Lucy frowned, looking at him in concern.

Kaleb nodded, "yes, he found nothing. Which was confusing and…" he sighed, "So we don't know why I did that, why I didn't choose my words carefully…" he held the key out to Lucy, "and I'm sorry. I normally...don't do that. I was raised better, we all were."

Lucy smiled at him as she took the key and then held it again, "Forgiven...but don't do it again, yeah?"

Kaleb nodded as he sat there and then smiled as she leaned against him. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, "I'll do my best to not do it."

Lucy smiled as they sat there, still fiddling with the key and then smirked, "Right."

The two laughed as they sat there and then eventually stood. Lucy stretched, "Right...I'm going to go take a nap, Hes is off getting books for me...he confiscated my Crux key…"

Kaleb arched an eyebrow, "again? And you've not hurt him?"

Lucy shrugged slightly, "I was up for a day and a half on our stop in Minstrel...trying to decipher the keys we found…"

"Smart man."

Golden eyes rolled and she gave him a sudden shove as her foot hooked, sending him careening towards the water. Her smug look was short lived as his hand shot out and drug her down with him. They both landed in the water, coming up sputtering and Lucy went to say something when rumbling started.

"Uh…" She looked at the key in her hand, seeing it glowing brightly, "Legolas, what did you do?!"

Kaleb stared at the key, "...nothing...on purpose?"

Water swirled around them, managing to not disrupt the grass in the water as the rumbling continued to fill the air. The two were suspending in the water as it curled into an orb. In the center, before them, a form slowly materialized. At first, it was the shape of a small tortoise, then slowly grew, blue magic swirling until a blue skinned man that looked like some sort of two legged man with flowing hair, gils and webbed feet and fingers. The last thing that swirled into place was a wrap around his waist and a set of ornate jewelry around his shoulders, neck and wrists.

The males eyes opened suddenly, bathing the area in light and both felt as if the being was looking right to their souls. The eyes lazily and slowly looked between them, "mm." the ocean blue orbs landed on the key and he let out a low hum before a hand went out and he beckoned with a finger, Lucy floating closer. He studied her for a moment and snapped his eyes to Kaleb as the man let out a growl.

"Hush, boy," The voice was calming, the volume almost ebbing like the tide before the hand went out and to Lucy's face, grabbing her chin and holding it as he slowly moved her face from side to side. "I see." his lips curled into a grin that reminded both of them of a shark, more literally than Lucy's sharklike grins because his teeth were razor sharp and pointed. "You saved me, girl, you have...little fear. That is good, knowledge, wisdom you're working on…"

The water slowly lowered, leaving the three standing on the peach sand, "Adequate enough for a contract. What is your name, girl."

Lucy took a moment, feeling Vander and Zen, and most likely the rest of the family on the porch. She held up a hand as if to tell them to stop and gave a warm smile, "I'm Lucy, Lucy Heartfilia...it's a pleasure to meet you….?"

"Genbu." He stared down at the young woman for a moment, "King of The Northern Palace. I bind and contract myself to you. Do not misplace my widsom and trust."

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A/N: for those that ask, yes, the Table is a nod to the "Canon-Evil Hestor" area that he uses that's out of the way to try to take Zen in Light of The Sea.