Author's Note:
Hello! I'm BAAAAAAACK! Wohoo! And now, here's the chapter I promised.
Again, sorry for missing Wednesday...I hope this chapter makes up for it. ;D
And as always, of course you guys was absolutely amazing and left some WONDERFUL reviews! Big hugs and thanks to all my repeat reviewers: Elphaba818, WisdomDragon27, 19vanelkc, TheJSmooth, Shadowslayer15, thechani, Lady La-sara, valerioux, Donthedarkdragon26, ravenqueen162, FairyTailBookworm, MiseryWolf97, TheOGFTfanatic, moeruhoshi, FantasyDreamer06, Wolves silver wind, Leomae2.0, Kowareta1468, and Larissa! And equally big hugs and kisses to my newest reviewers: Rikudo Igneel, Daisy73, The Rain Will Fade, ThatOneAnimeGirl08, and fox0920!
Anyways, I know you're all eager to see what happens next, so I'll stop talking and get to the good stuff. Be sure to stay tuned till the end for a sneak peek of next chapter! :D
When they burst through the last door, it was to the sight of Erza helping up a really disoriented looking Jellal. Both of them were amazingly beat up for such strong fighters – which told Lucy that they were probably about to go up against the guild master.
Erza looked like she had literally been put through a garbage disposal, her clothes were torn to absolute threads and she was covered in bloody scratches. She also looked very well bruised and some of her deepest wounds looked like ugly bites. Jellal bore the same marks to a lesser degree.
"You guys still alive over there?" Natsu called.
They got a tense nod from Erza, though most of her attention was focused on Jellal.
He looked like he was just coming off some sort of drug or had received a cranial injury, because he was holding his head and groaned, "What happened?"
Erza confirmed Lucy's first theory when she murmured, "You were drugged. Remember drinking the potion?"
"Oh…right. Yes…"
Neither of them looked like they were in any condition to fight, so Lucy stepped forwards, looking to the center of the room and finding their opponent standing there completely unscathed. Before she could go too far though, Erza tossed her something, and Lucy caught it out of surprise.
"Put this on."
Lucy glanced down to see a simple black halter dress in her hands and easily slipped it over her head. By this point she flushed hot to realize that she was still naked – not that she had exactly forgotten. But it had temporarily slipped her mind at seeing her comrades so beaten up.
As she was dressing, Erza called out, "Unfortunately, I don't have anything for you Natsu. I don't think any of my clothes would fit you."
Lucy could practically hear him shrug.
"I don't care."
"Well that's wonderful, but this mage has a very thorny spirit that might tear up some delicate parts of your body. So guard yourself well." Erza cautioned dryly, and Lucy glanced over her shoulder to catch Natsu's wince.
Some heat leaked from him, and her eyes widened when red scales suddenly rippled over his thighs, hips, butt, and groin, making him a pair of red trousers. When she risked a glance at his crotch, she saw with some relief that all his male anatomy was apparently neatly tucked away like a reptile's. Of course his fantastic ass was still on display, but she was quite a bit more comfortable nevertheless.
"Hey! Why didn't you do that in the last room?"
"It didn't occur to me."
She just rolled her eyes and grumbled, "Would've been easier on me…"
Turning away from him in slight aggravation, she looked once more towards their enemy.
As soon as her eyes locked onto the other mage, Lucy knew without a doubt that she was the celestial mage Lucy had been looking for. The tall brunette oozed celestial magic like a lighthouse, and Lucy could feel her own power rising up within her to compete.
"I'll fight this one…" Lucy growled, already taking another step forward.
"We will fight with you." Erza said, but Lucy shook her head and turned to lock eyes with the redhead.
"This is really personal Erza. I'd like to take her on myself…I made a promise to some celestial spirits I met on the way here, and I intend to keep it. If I fail…then I'll pass my promise on to you to uphold. I told them I would release them from their contracts, so beat her to a bloody pulp and take her keys. She doesn't deserve them."
There was a long poignant silence, and Erza's eyes widened for a brief moment. Lucy held the eye contact, and after a moment, resolve and understanding made Erza's gaze grow significantly more intense. It seemed she understood, and solemnly nodded.
"I understand. We will remain here. And I promise to do what you asked if the time comes."
"Thank you." She spared her red-headed friend a heartfelt smile and then turned back to her opponent.
The other mage's eyes had already landed on her, and the brunette had been watching her as she talked to Erza. A broad grin split her lips. "…so, you're the other celestial mage that's been giving me so much trouble…"
"Yeah…and you're the one who doesn't know how to treat her spirits." Lucy spat back, stepping forwards into the room.
She couldn't remember the last time she'd been this angry. Even her recollection of Angel paled in comparison. The memory of those wolves screaming as she left them behind was still sharp in her mind, and it was enough to make her blood boil in her veins. This woman had done that, tortured those spirits to the point that they had become rabid. She couldn't even imagine how much pain and exhaustion had to be endured before that point. How long had they been in there? Months? Years?
Not to mention the spirits that had been chained in the other chamber. She didn't know if they were permanently kept there, but whatever the case it was still wrong to chain and cage them like that. They had been treated as gladiators … barbarically expected to either take out their opponent or get beaten to a bloody pulp … or possibly even killed. With those chains on them, it was entirely possible that they might die, since they couldn't return to the celestial realm until the chains were removed. If they got hurt badly enough and couldn't go home to heal, even a celestial spirit would die.
…. And then, when Lucy's eyes landed on a ring of gold at this other woman's hip, she saw red. Those were her keys. HER keys.
"Those don't belong to you."
The woman glanced down and smirked, looping a finger through them. "Yes…I do believe these were pried from your bloody hands. I can't tell you how hard it was to get the blood stains off this cute little pouch of yours."
She heard Erza make some sort of noise behind her but ignored the distress of her friend for the time being. Every ounce of attention she possessed belonged to this woman now.
She could feel her powers rising up alongside her charged emotions, and light began to radiate from her skin. There had been enough time since her fight with Pierre for some of her depleted magic to recover, but she was still dangerously low. This fight was going to be exceptionally difficult – potentially deadly – but she wasn't going to back down or hold back. She was getting her keys back and keeping her promise to free those spirits…no matter what.
The other mage's power responded to Lucy's, making her glow a little as well. The smirk on the other woman's face grew as she looked Lucy up and down.
"Oh…so you want to fight do you? Very well."
Pulling one of Lucy's golden keys out, she summoned Leo, and Lucy ground her teeth together in absolute fury. Drawing her whip, she stalked closer, ready to pulverize the bitch.
Poor Leo looked absolutely shocked and horrified that he had been summoned by someone else. "Lucy? What's going on here?"
"I'm so sorry…." Her attention was dragged to him, and she abruptly felt like crying. All the anger that had been propelling her forward leaked away to be replaced with deep regret and pain at failing her spirits so thoroughly. A few tears sneaked out without her permission.
"The other mage captured me and took my keys. I tried everything I could to keep them! I promise! But it…I just…it wasn't enough. I'm still too weak…"
She paused to wipe her eyes and gritted her teeth as the other woman laughed at her, making her feel even more pathetic. Sucking in a deep breath and nearly choking on herself, she cried, "I'll get them back! I'll get all your keys back! I promise!"
Her voice cracked painfully in her raw throat and she winced, her eyes watering with pain.
Leo's eyes were wide and sad, and she saw them dart over her body, lingering on her blood-smeared raw fingers and her bloody and bruised neck. A blood vein started visibly pounding in his forehead, and his teeth ground together almost audibly. Every line in his body tensed, and she could feel rage pulsing from him in waves.
For a brief second, she thought he was mad that she had lost his key, but that idea flew out of her mind as he croaked, "No…don't cry Lucy. It's not your fault. I was the one who failed to protect you…"
The other mage sneered and looked confused. "What are you two blabbing about?!" Her head swung to send Leo a glare, and she ordered, "Shut up would you?! Just attack already. You're my spirit now, not hers. So obey your master!"
He turned burning eyes on her and lifted his lip in a snarl. "We haven't made a contract Miss Whoever-You-Are. So I'm not yours yet."
She glared right back and waved his key under his nose. "You belong to me! And a celestial spirit cannot deny the holder of their key a contract. So name your terms and get on with it!"
"Alright. Here are my terms. I will do whatever you want, come whenever you call, and my only term is that I will not fight or harm Lucy in any manner whatsoever. Accept or Decline at your leisure."
Lucy almost laughed at the expression of absolute rage on the other mage's face. It was completely within Leo's right to name terms such as the ones he just did, and there was nothing the other woman could do about it. It also showed his absolute faith in Lucy – that he felt safe in making a contract like that…it meant he fully expected her to get his key back.
Gnashing her teeth, the other mage spat, "Fine!" and closed his gate with a flourish.
Turning to Lucy, she growled, "Your spirits are just as annoying as you. Spurning his new master just out of spite. Ha! I'll teach him manners soon enough. Maybe I'll make him break his own fingers or gouge out his eyes…. It'll all heal quickly enough, but he'll feel the pain just as much, and I can make him do it as many times as I want."
Blistering rage pulsed through Lucy, and she snapped her whip with hands that shook from fury. The other woman's eyes widened as the tip popped an inch from her face. Apparently she hadn't noticed Lucy draw her whip earlier, or else hadn't expected her to actually use it, because she stumbled back with shock and gasped.
"Wh-what the hell?! You're a celestial mage like me! Why in the world would you have a whip?!"
The comment sharply reminded her of Angel, and the memory did nothing to make her mood more pleasant. How many celestial mages were out there who made their spirits do all their dirty work? It only made Lucy even more furious.
Practically spitting with rage, she hissed, "Because I fight along with my spirits! I don't just leave the grunt work to them! Now hand back over my keys, or I'll have to show you just what I can do with this thing!"
Grinding her teeth, the other woman reached for another key, and Lucy's stomach bottomed out as she saw the telltale red color of it.
"Open! Gate of the Dragon!"
Lucy felt a burst of heat from behind her and spun to see flames licking at Natsu.
He just grinned and said, "My gate's already wide-open, Dumbass."
"You're the spirit attached to this key?! Why are you still out after Lucy lost it?!"
"I never closed it, and until someone else summons me, I'm still hers. She's the last one to open my gate, since ya can't open something that's already open. Besides that, I'm a contestant in this stupid little game of yours, and it's been preventing me from going back."
The first part of that explanation didn't even make complete sense to Lucy, but she was willing to go along with it if it kept Natsu at her side. However, when she turned to look at the other woman, she could already see the gears working in her head, and watched with some dread as her confused expression switched to smug.
"Fine then!" she hissed, and pulled up a huge complex-looking magic circle in front of her. She fiddled with it for a brief moment and then dispersed it. "There! That just nullified you as a contestant. Now! Close! Gate of the Dragon!"
As if on a pivot, Lucy's head swiveled back to look at Natsu. His eyes narrowed and he grunted, heat leaking from his body in massive amounts. Flames licked across his skin and he growled, crouching under some unseen force, and every muscle in his exposed body went into high relief as he tensed. Lucy then looked back at the opposing mage and saw how she was sweating and struggling, her power glowing white-hot around her body as she tried to close his gate. They were in direct competition, power against power. Lucy knew from personal experience how impossible it was to close his gate if he didn't want to go, and – judging by his fierce grin – he wasn't feeling too much of a threat.
"Why are you fighting so hard to stay by her side?! I have your key! I am your rightful master!"
"No fucking way. I belong to nobody but Lucy Heartfilia!" he yelled right back, shocking Lucy out of her wits. She hadn't even thought he knew her full name.
There was a burst of flames from him and then an answering blast from his key, which knocked it clear out of the enemy's hand to sail smoking through the air. Meanwhile, she cried out and grabbed her hand, looking like she was in some serious pain.
She recovered from the burn before Lucy could take advantage of her distraction, and she grabbed another key which summoned forth a huge bush with lots of vines. It was just a silver key spirit – but it looked pretty nasty all the same. A massive rose blossomed under her feet while thorny vines sprouted all along the ground around her. One vine snapped towards Natsu's key and returned it to her open palm.
"I see that I'm going to have to beat the two of you down a little before you submit…." she heaved, her breath coming hard and fast.
This other woman was probably the strongest celestial mage Lucy had ever gone up against, but even so, she was starting to get tired. She had already fought Erza and Jellal after all, so there was no way she wasn't already worn down.
The vines from the plant lashed out and hit the ground, tearing it up, and then kept coming, reaching for Lucy. She tensed and took a defensive position, armed with her whip and readying for impact. Instead of being lashed from the front though, she was knocked over from something behind her. Gasping, she fell to her hands and knees… and when she tried to sit up, it was only to be pushed down once again. She craned her neck to see over her shoulder, and saw Natsu crouching above her, his wings spread like an umbrella to ward off the vines.
After the first few hits – which were hard enough to rock him into Lucy – fire erupted from his skin, and the vines began to burn and fall away almost before they even touched him. Of course Lucy wasn't overly enthused about being stuck under him while he lit up like a bonfire, but at least he kept it mostly to his back, so she wasn't too worried about being lit up. Still, she huddled close to the ground just in case.
The vine attack didn't last long, probably because the enemy realized that she wasn't accomplishing anything. When they stopped coming, Lucy peeked out from under Natsu's wing to see that the rose bush thing had vanished. Slipping out from under Natsu, she stood back up – with him following her lead and getting to his feet behind her.
Apparently their opponent was really incensed by the fact that Natsu wouldn't follow her commands and was fighting against her, because she tried to close his gate yet again – instead of summoning a different spirit, which was definitely the smarter move. Lucy knew from personal experience that it was easy to completely drain all your magic power trying to close his gate, and she was thoroughly unsurprised when the same thing from before happened … a load of growling and heat and nothing else.
Magic power flooded the space between the mage and the dragon as she tried to master him.
Electricity seemed to set the very air ablaze, raising Lucy's hair on-end, and a powerful wind picked up, almost knocking her off her feet. Holding up her arm to guard against some of the wind, she leaned into it and started slowly walking forward towards the enemy – even with flames licking her back and the painfully tingly feeling of celestial magic popping across her front. As Lucy got closer to the other mage, she had to squint as the bright light coming from her made it almost impossible to see.
Still, she continued pressing forwards – fighting the powerful magic trying to toss her flat on her back, and probably across the room – until she was right in front of her opponent.
Rearing back, she did her best to gage where the enemy was, and then let loose a stiff right hook, managing to plant it right in the other mage's face. All the magic shut off like a light switch had been flipped as she staggered back from the blow, a hand over her bloody nose and a shocked expression plastered across her face.
Clenching her fist, Lucy took a stance and snarled, "Give me back my keys!"
She followed up the demand by cracking her whip across the other woman's body. Her opponent cried out, "Open! Gate of the Black Turtle! Genbu!," as she fell back, guarding her face with a raised arm.
Lucy was already rearing up a leg to slam into her in what should have been an impressive Lucy Kick, but her foot never connected. Or rather, it connected with something other than the woman she had been aiming for. Instead, it slammed painfully into a clear green barrier that suddenly popped into being. Hexagonal lines of light sparked across the magical barrier from the spot she had kicked, but it did nothing else – aside from practically breaking her foot.
She fell back with a curse.
The other mage had summoned a mythic spirit this time…and Lucy immediately knew he was going to be a pain in the ass.
She quickly sized him up – taking in his tall muscular stature, wet green hair, sharp shark-like teeth, and the two tattooed lines streaking back from the corner of his right eye. He wore black pants and nothing else, and his soapy skin suggested that he'd possibly been in the middle of a shower when he was summoned. When he turned to look at his master, Lucy noted a large black tattoo of a stylized turtle shell stamped across his entire back.
"You know I don't like to be summoned Aster…" he droned, turning unimpressed droopy eyes and sharp teeth on his mage – whose name was apparently Aster. He looked shockingly cranky, and certainly didn't sound overly happy when he addressed her.
She scoffed at him and didn't even respond. Instead, she turned gloating eyes back on Lucy. "Genbu the Black Warrior possesses an unbreakable shield…. There's no way you can touch me now. Which means I'm free to cut you down at my leisure!"
When his mage ignored him, the spirit sighed and turned his back on her as he rolled his eyes. "And you know I don't like that stupid name…. Bitch…what a pain in the ass."
Though his appearance was intimidating at first, his overall posture and expression now were…not. If anything, he looked bored out of his mind and even picked his teeth with a sharp nail as he proceeded to ignore absolutely everything and everyone on the field of battle.
Lucy didn't have time to pay too much attention to him though, because the rose bush was once again making an appearance, and she had to dive for cover. It caught her around the ankle and started to drag her back, but Natsu made a mad dash and threw himself at her, grabbing her outstretched hands. He dug his heels in and started playing tug of war with Lucy as the rope … which wasn't fun for her in the least. That thorny vine was tearing up her ankle, and she felt like she was about to be ripped in two by the powerful spirits.
Natsu spat a ball of fire at the bush, and though the flames dispersed when they hit Genbu's shield, they still fried the vines that had caught Lucy, and she dropped to the ground face first.
The fire must have caught Genbu's attention, because he suddenly participated in the battle with a comment. "Oh…you must be Dragneel the fire dragon. I'd heard you finally found yourself a mage."
"That's right bastard! And I'm gonna be the one to break that 'impenetrable shield' of yours!"
There was a long pause, and Lucy risked a look back over her shoulder at Genbu … only to stare in shock as the uninterested spirit abruptly yawned. It wasn't even a pretend yawn, the gesture seemed like an actual, really real yawn – complete with watery eyes and everything. He seemed to have stopped listening too and had started digging in his ear with a claw, searching for wax or something.
When she glanced back at Natsu, he had a blood vessel pounding in his forehead as he glared at the other spirit. It came has no surprise when he launched himself at the green barrier, making it light up like a neon sign. The harder he hit, the brighter the lines that crawled across Genbu's shield, and soon the pattern started to remind her of the hexagons on a turtle's shell. Which made perfect sense.
But no matter how fiercely Natsu attacked it, the shield remained unfazed. Even when Natsu transformed partially, he couldn't scratch it. In fact, he only seemed to succeed in hurting himself against the infuriating green barrier.
"Natsu! Stop!"
He reluctantly pulled his punches a little, knuckles bleeding freely and his breath coming hard and fast as he continued to glare and snarl at the unconcerned spirit.
"If you're done…shall we continued?" Aster asked, sounding snarky and amused at the failed attempt to break her spirit's barrier.
Reaching for another key, she summoned her pack of wolves, and in a blinding flash of light and a flood of mist, the whole wolf pack from before appeared out of nowhere. The alpha stepped forwards of course, and golden eyes instantly latched onto Lucy and thoroughly looked her over, scanning the injuries speckling her body. The white celestial wolf seemed amazed and shocked … but also disappointed and concerned.
Coming face to face with the spirit that Lucy had promised she would free, she felt her stomach clench with guilt for not having completed her promise yet.
"I'm glad you made it this far," was all the wolf said, but it was obvious she was worried that Lucy wasn't going to succeed.
"I still intend to keep my promise. And even if I die trying, my friend has also promised to get your key back." Lucy assured her and gestured back towards Erza – who also nodded solemnly.
The wolf's eyes widened and sharpened, glistening with something that looked like amazement, respect, and possibly wonder. Before she could say anything though, her idiot mage interrupted them.
"What are you doing, you dumb animal?! I didn't summon you to talk to them! Kill them!"
The entire pack had already surrounded Natsu and Lucy, while the alpha hadn't moved from her position standing directly in front of them. For a long moment the white wolf just stared into her eyes, gold into brown… and so, Lucy clearly saw when she made her decision. The sharpness of her eyes solidified into clear conviction, hope, and belief.
"No. We will not fight."
Her pack all pricked their ears and looked between Lucy and their alpha in shock. They obviously hadn't expected her to say that, but dutifully backed off.
"WHAT?! You dare to disobey me yet again?! Haven't you learned your lesson by now?!" the other mage shrieked, sounding absolutely incensed. She made them all disappear with a sharp gesture of their key.
The wolves and their mage weren't the only surprised ones either. Natsu whistled low behind Lucy, and even bored Genbu took notice. His droopy eyes widened, and he glanced at her, blinking a little in surprise.
"Fine! How about this?! Open! Gate of the Spider! Arachne!"
A strange half-woman/half-spider emerged, cringing a little as she did. She looked pretty beat up, which meant that whoever had defeated her must have done a really thorough job since she hadn't healed all that much in her realm.
She turned eight red eyes on the mage and silkily said, "I doubt you want my assistance in my current….state…" She shot Natsu a foul look – which answered the question of who beat her up – then turned back to her mage. "I don't think I'll be much use to you."
"I'm not in the mood Arachne. Either attack those two or suffer later."
A scowl ruined the careful image of servitude on the spirit's face. "Let me rephrase then…. If you try to make me do something I don't want to, then I'll have to break our contract, and you wouldn't want that…now would you? What was the price again for breaking our agreement?"
Aster paled a little and wordlessly sent the spider woman back.
Lucy didn't really understand what just happened, but it was definitely clear that this woman's spirits didn't like her across the board, and she just couldn't resist taunting her a little.
"It seems you're having some trouble with your spirits…. Maybe if you treated them a little better, they would be more loyal to you."
"You've got a talent for making spirits turn against their mages, Luce." Natsu laughingly added, and Lucy turned to scowl at him.
"Hey! That sounds mean! You know I don't do that!"
"Yeah you do. It's only natural for them to wanna be with a caring mage like you, when they've got a crappy mage like that."
"True." She had to agree, and then turned back to the crappy mage in question. "Now listen here! I'm going to free your spirits and then give them the choice to stay with you or leave! How many do you think will stay?"
"Probably none…she sucks…" Genbu answered for his mage, once again looking bored.
Aster gasped and looked positively offended. Lucy, meanwhile, choked on a shocked laugh that escaped her.
"LUCY HEARTFILIA! I will CRUSH you!" the other mage bellowed, looking downright livid.
Suddenly, Genbu jerked a little and weirdly blushed.
"Wait…you're Lucy Heartfilia?!" he sputtered, suddenly paying much closer attention.
"Uh…yeah?"
"Oh…well…in that case…you know…I'm, uh…just gonna leave now." He was definitely blushing now, and suddenly disappeared, leaving his mage behind with a flabbergasted expression on her face.
There was a long silence, and then Natsu burst into laughter. "Well look at that…another spirit abandoned you! How surprising!"
The other mage rounded on him again. "You think this is funny?! Once I've defeated her, I'll force your gate closed and then make you tear your precious little mage apart piece by little piece! How would you like that?!"
"No way…not happening." Lucy responded for him, and her whip snapped up to crack across the other woman's face. It knocked her back and she screamed bloody murder.
"You are not going to hurt any of my spirits, EVER. Emotionally or physically." Lucy continued, her voice harsher than she remembered it ever being before. With every word, she cracked her whip again – driving the other mage back step by step until she stumbled and once again summoned her rose vines.
Lucy was immediately caught up in a vine-versus-whip fight, and this time managed to hold her own. The poor vegetation spirit was still pretty crispy and lacking vines, so she only had a few to contend with.
"I could never lose to someone like you! I would never, EVER, let my keys be used by someone as cruel and twisted as you! I've already defeated one sadistic celestial mage, and you're no different!"
She finally managed to snap her whip in such a way that the tail curled around Aster's keys and ripped them clean off the other woman. Unfortunately, a vine snagged them in transit, and both keys and whip went flying. Natsu fried the rose bush – and accidentally destroyed Lucy's whip in the crossfire – leaving both mages weaponless.
At that, Lucy grinned, and could only imagine how she looked right now. Probably really, really, really pissed. She took a fighting stance, staring the other mage dead in the eye and making a 'come here' gesture with her fingers that she'd seen Natsu do a thousand times.
"Neither of us have keys – at least none that we can use – and I don't have my whip anymore. So…. fight me fair and square…if you think you can." she challenged with a fierce grin, waiting to see if the other woman would come for her or dive for the keys.
Of course the coward went for the bundle of keys, and Lucy had to dash after her. She managed to tackle Aster to the ground, but the other woman squirmed free after elbowing Lucy in the gut. When they both scrambled to their feet, Aster was pissed enough that she threw cation to the wind and launched herself at Lucy with a screech of fury. Fists, elbows, knees, feet…they all came flying at Lucy, who warded them off to the best of her ability. She wasn't exactly a master at hand-to-hand combat, but she was definitely better than this bitch, and she quickly turned the tide.
Dodging a knee to her belly, she twisted and then landed a vicious uppercut on the other woman's jaw, sending her staggering back. Pressing the advantage, Lucy followed quickly with a roundhouse kick, and then finished the rotation to elbow her opponent in the solar plexus.
Aster sputtered to a stop and bent over, clutching her ribs.
Lucy skipped back, favoring her foot. Even though she could have won right there, she let the other woman catch her breath, and gave her the chance to back out.
"You ready to admit defeat?"
Her answer was a fist to the face, which Lucy blocked – but only barely. A swift kick to the shin, punch to the gut, and knee to the face later, Aster was spitting blood from her split lip and broken nose.
"I'm not going to stop fighting you until you've handed over your keys." Lucy threatened, wincing from her own injuries and wiping away the blood that dripped from some cuts on her forehead. Aster had gone after her eyes with fingernails, but thankfully Lucy had been able to deflect the attack with her forehead.
Another few rounds were all it took to make Aster give in finally. Once she conceded defeat, Lucy stepped past her and bent to pick up the bundle of keys on the ground.
She summoned each spirit and gave them back their key, releasing them from their contract. Only the spider lady declined, but the rest gratefully took their keys and disappeared.
After that was finished, they all limped out of there and left the sad excuse for a celestial mage behind. Thankfully all the traps were easily navigable from this side of things…though the hall of cesspools was still not fun. Still, they managed to make it out with minimal damage, though halfway through – somewhere in the cave maze – Jellal suddenly choked and flushed bright red, as if he was just remembering something. Lucy dragged Natsu with her a bit ahead of the other couple, giving them a little privacy to go over the stuff that had happened while Jellal was apparently under the affects of some sort of drug.
When they finally emerged from the 'shack' back out into the forest, both Jellal and Erza were a little flushed and avoiding looking at each other.
Jellal took his leave shortly after that, and then they all headed back to the guild, Juvia in tow and hanging off Gray like her life depended on it. He didn't seem opposed in the least.
Sneak Peek:
Lucy was surprised. With the way those two butted heads – she was shocked that Gray would think hanging out with Natsu could ever be fun. "You're serious? He thought going on a double date with Natsu would be fun?"
"Well yes. Despite them fighting all the time, they really are quite good friends you know. Of course, he protested at first, but after calling Natsu a few bad names, he admitted that it might be fun."
That got a laugh out of her, because it sounded just like Gray. "Somehow I'm not surprised. Well, okay then! This will be fun."
Juvia grinned and turned to run off again in search of Gray. It was only after she had left that Lucy realized just what she had signed herself up for and froze in the process of taking another sip of milkshake. The cold substance sat in the straw and her mouth as her eyes widened, and she stared blankly ahead for a long moment. She had just unthinkingly agreed to go on a double date…with Natsu…who she had a roaring crush on.
Actually, by now she was pretty sure her crush had turned into something infinitely more dangerous. But that didn't mean that she couldn't still try to ignore the feelings. However… it might be a bit hard to ignore her feelings for him if they went on a date.