A/N I just wanted to put this note here to explain my thought process of Sin's drug rings. I have in a way took the real Central American drug cartel and the 1950's/60's Mafia and made a baby, not a pretty baby anyone wants to cuddle but one that has the hints of the Spanish language and thick New Yorker accent. I am not trying to romanticize this in anyway.

In my mind, Sin is a Spanish decent country but with the huge economic boom in West Nitespring, it's just like New York with all the different cultures. It's a giant melting pot of cultures that America was/is supposed to be. I've only introduced a few of my OCs in this story thus far and they are Boscan. Tommy was born and raised in Pelerno that Desna created and Nick was born in Sin but raised as much a Boscan as possible, while Piper and Riko are native of Sin hence my terrible Spanish I've tried to incorporate (High school Spanish 25 years ago, oops, I dated myself). I'm not saying anything about Sam at this point.

Thanks for reading. Please leave reviews. Anything that will help me with the Latin culture would be great.

Chapter 3

Snake on an Airship

Piper was out on the deck of the airship as it came into dock as Capresa, Minstrel. Looking over the deck, the lights of Capresa were beautiful with the sun setting off into the west. She felt Flick curling up inside her loose bun on her head. It was getting cooler at night so he would retreat up into her hair. He was still small enough to fit in one of her hands. Her supply of pinkies was holding well for this two-week trip. There was still about 4 days on the air ship and 1 day on a train and she would be in Magnolia with her Papa. She watched the people board the ship. She found people watching just as fun as her research and playing with Flick. She noticed some commotion at the loading ramp. A raven haired man and a pink haired man arguing vehemently over something but before things got to heated a redheaded woman and a blonde woman separated them before they boarded. The rest of the people boarding were nothing memorable.

Piper pushed off from the rail the boarding was nearly complete. She headed to the restaurant/bar that was onboard. She figured she would find either Nick or Tommy there getting dinner and a drink. She threaded her way down below deck through the newcomers. The Air Oasis was packed tonight due to those getting settled onboard. She made her way to the bar and took an open stool, ordered a water, and looked over the dining area to see if she could find Tommy or Nick. She didn't see them but went ahead and ordered a to go burger and bottle of wine.

"Is this seat taken?" came a deep smooth masculine voice. Piper turned and seen it was the dark haired man from the tussle at the loading deck. She didn't see any of his entourage with him.

"No, it's free." She said. She heard him order a scotch no ice. She was absently stirring the straw in her water when the bartender brought the man his drink. She was surprised when the made his own ice cube for his drink. "Thought you didn't want any ice in your drink? You just out some in there." She asked with a little grin as she looked as the man.

"Heh yeah. I just like to make my own. I'm Gray by the way." Gray offered with a smile.

"Piper. I'm just waiting on my dinner to go. I can't make my own ice…" Piper said with a nervous laugh. Oh my Gods Piper way to sound like an idiot in front of this mage who could freeze you in place.

Gray laughed, "It's all good. I only know a one other mage like myself. What magic do you use anyway?" His dark eyes met her yellow ones and Piper was drawing a blank. He wasn't being flirty or ostentatious. He was just making some idle conversation.

After a pause Piper's brain got back into gear, "Uh…well…uh…don't…use magic that is…I'm not a mage. I'm just a regular mundane human." Piper stammered. His reaction was not what Piper was used to.

"That's cool. I wouldn't call yourself mundane. I bet you do something important where you are from. I only asked because of the guild mark on your forearm." He smiled at her. "Your accent is nice too. Where are you from anyway? I can't place your accent."

Piper was caught off guard. She completely forgot about her guild emblem. She smiled, "Oh I'm from Sin. Our guild, the Red Foxes, accepts mages and non-mages. My brother is a mage. I did not inherit that from our parents. I studied hard to earn my PhD in biochemistry and toxicology at the University of Sin in West Nitespring." Piper felt at ease talking to Gray. He had such a calm demeanor and so easy to talk to. They continued to talk. She found out that he was returning from Minstrel with his team and that he was in Fairy Tail.

The bartender brought her order to her. "Oh this is me. It was nice talking to you Gray. I'll see you around the airship. I have four more days until we get to Hargeon. That's my stop."

"Uh…do you care if I walk you back to your room?" Gray asked hesitantly. He honestly liked talking to Piper. She was smart and funny. She didn't talk to herself like Juvia did or do that other creepy shit the water mage would do.

"Sure…" Piper was surprised because typically when mage finds out she isn't one they try to leave the conversation quickly. Gray though he seemed to like to talk to her about things that didn't involve magic. He asked questioned about her. Piper enjoyed it. Her other problem with dating not that she was considering this a date, her intelligence wasn't scaring Gray away. If her not being a mage ran the men off her intelligence did. She felt like she was a double edged sword to keep mean away.

As they walked to her cabin, they continued talking about her work with snakes and her theories on how she was trying to manipulate snake venom for more than anti-venoms. "This is me. I've had a great time talking with you. Hopefully we can talk more." Piper said with a genuine smile.

"Yeah I had a great time too. See you around." Gray smiled back. He walked off toward his cabin Erza told him was theirs. He went to the bar to get a drink and to get away from Natsu and his big mouth. He started running his mouth again just as they were boarding the airship about something Gray couldn't even remember. Erza and Lucy had to break them up again. He was so frustrated. He just needed some space from his longtime friend. He loved him like a brother but sometimes your brother knows the right buttons to push to send you over the edge. They had been on a mission for almost a month in Minstrel. He just wanted to be away from the pink haired dragon slayer. When he walked into the Air Oasis bar he wasn't looking for women like he would sometimes. No, he was just looking for a stiff drink, but he found Piper. A smart woman that wasn't a mage and had a PhD in biochemistry. He'd be the first to admit it, he didn't understand most of what she was talking about but he didn't care. He liked having a conversation with someone that wasn't about magic and the end of the world for once. It was nice to forget about everything that had happened after the Alverez War. He was so lost in thought about yellow citrine eyes and deep purple hair that he didn't notice the pillow that smacked him in the face when he walked into his cabin.

"Ice balls! Where you been?" Natsu asked with a wicked grin on his face "And why do you smell…like scotch and…a lady? I know you didn't get lucky because I would smell that too, hehe"
"Shut it flamebrain! I'm tired of your big yap!" Gray tossed back at the dragon slayer. "Even if I did get laid not like it's any of your business. Besides, you don't even like girls like that anyway." Gray hissed.

"Natsu! Gray! Enough! Lucy and I are tired and you two are irritating me worse than sand in my underpants!" Erza warned an edge in her voice that made the two men settle down. She was already curled up in her bed in her fuzzy pink top and pants with crosses on them half asleep.

"Natsu leave Gray alone you've done nothing but egg him on the whole time. I know you two like to pester each other but Erza is right we are exhausted. That mission was tough." Lucy said with exhaustion creeping in her voice. She had an oversized t-shirt on with loose shorts. She crawled in bed the other bed after brushing out her blond hair. "Now go take a shower Natsu you stink. Make sure you wash EVERYWHERE or I'm making you sleep on the floor." She groaned as she tossed a blanket over her head.

"The girls are right man, we're both tired and Lucy's right, you ARE ripe, dude. I'll take my turn when you're done." Gray said with his own tiredness in his voice.

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Piper had finished her burger and fries when Tommy came back from somewhere. Her clothes were a little disheveled, lipstick worn off, glossy eyed and walking a little off. She came over to where Piper was sitting and stole a fry. "Chica, what are you doing still up? Are you still researching your little friend? Where is he by the way, I don't want to get bit."

"Geez, Tommy who got ahold of you? You look like you've been fucked seven ways from Sunday…" Piper said as she looked over her friend with a slightly alarmed look on her face. Tommy was the one that left the other person looking like this not the other way around. "Should I get Nick? Wait I haven't even seen him…were you two together?"

Shadows moved in the room and a man appeared from the shadows. He startled Piper, who jumped up and was frozen with fear by the sudden appearance of a stranger in her room. She halfway climbed up on the desk she was sitting at to try to get further away. "Seven ways from Sunday…hmm…never heard that one…" the man said with a smooth cocky tone in his voice. He had the same accent Tommy did. Tommy wasn't upset that he was here either. He turned around his wine colored eyes met her wide yellow eyes. He had shoulder length dark hair that was streaked with red. He was wearing skintight black leather. If Piper wasn't scared shitless right now she would have found the man very attractive, but since the break in at her apartment she was still feeling a little skittish about men just appearing out of nowhere in front of her.

Piper's brain had flipped into the flight part of fight or flight. Fear had gripped her. She didn't know how to get out of here so she started begging for her life. "Ombra della morte por favor no uccidermi. If you want to come and make drugs for you I will if you don't kill my friends. I promise I won't run from the cartel anymore…please just don't kill us…" Piper had slide to the floor in a heap sobbing.

The man went to reach for her but Flick had darted out of his mama's hair took a tiny stance with his wings flared out weaving back and forth daring the man to touch his mama.

"Vander! Get back that little guy is…" Tommy started but was interrupted when Vander held a hand up to silence her.

"Shh…hey little guy. I'm not here to hurt your lady friend…I just wanted to talk to her…" Vander said to the little serpent that was still in a defensive posture. He let the shadow armor over his right arm disappear to show his clan tattoo. "You know what this is don't you little guy…you know I won't hurt you or your mama here."

Flick weaved back and forth. He looked at the human that was trying to get his mama. He heard his voice. He felt his magic, but when the man showed the tattoo in his skin Flick recognize the shape. It looked like him, a winged serpent. Flick relaxed and slithered down around Pipers hand and looked up at her. He felt her fear but he couldn't talk to her. He would have to the let the human do it.

"Ok great, see your little friend trusts me so how about you trust me…sweetheart. I'm not part of a cartel…" Vander said with a soothing voice. He didn't mean to scare the woman shitless. Her friend Tommy invited him over after they had their fun to hopefully get her friend to relax and who was he to not aid a woman who was in need of relaxation. He also didn't expect the woman to have a baby havati serpent living in her hair. He hasn't seen one of those in forever.

"You swear you aren't with the cartel?" Piper asked the man that Tommy had called Vander with a meek voice. She was still riding the adrenaline dump after seeing a man appear out of nowhere. She knew mages could teleport but she wasn't used to being around mages. She was university professor and jogged to work every morning.

"Ha ha no pretty." Vander offered his hand and Piper took it. His laugh was nice smooth and infectious. Piper couldn't help laugh with him. It was a nervous laugh at first but then she just started laughing at the whole thing til her belly hurt.

Piper and Tommy had told Vander what had happened in West Nitespring. He apologized again for scaring Piper to death. He did offer told Piper what little he knew about Flick. He told her his clan, the Husen Clan, revered them. He didn't know much because he was a small child when the tragedy happened to his clan. Once he got back to Pelerno he would send her the information to her laptop. Piper informed Vander that there may possibly be an illegal animal trade ring in Bosco. Since a havati serpent shouldn't be anywhere near Sin.

"Piper are you sure you wouldn't like to experience how one relaxes in Bosco?" Vander asked with a husky tone in his voice.

"No, gracias buenas noches sombra." Piper said as she turned in to her bed.

"Ok well back to my cabin then. Buenas noches señoras" Vander said as his disappeared into the shadows.

"Tommy, who is Vander and is he a teleport mage or something? He's obviously a horny guy. He he. And he isn't bad looking." Piper asked Tommy when she got out of the shower.

"Oh Piper I'm sorry I really didn't properly introduce you to him did I. That, chica, was the Vander Pradesh from Bosco. And you are the only living breathing single woman that turned the man down for sex…not only is he sex on legs but he's the only shadowquip mage that anyone knows about and last I heard he was still a Blood Hunter. You're lucky you ran into him so he could tell you about your little Flick." Tommy told her with a dreamy sound in her voice.

Nick came into the cabin soon after the girls were getting ready for bed. He came in looking like Tommy did earlier, disheveled, lips swollen and walking a little off. Tommy said one word, "Vander?"

"Yep…" Nick managed to get out as he ambled to the bathroom for a shower.

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The next four days on the airship went by uneventfully. No one else popped out of the shadows or anything else to scare Piper. She met a few more mages while on the way to Magnolia. She met the rest of Gray's team, Natsu, Erza and Lucy. She had found out that they were heading to Magnolia as well. Their guild, Fairy Tail, was based there. Flick had found a new friend with Natsu because he was much warmer than Piper would ever be because of his fire magic. He never strayed too far from her though.

"So Piper you haven't told us what type of magic you use. I bet you are like Nab or Bix or yeah Cobra…talk to souls or at least hear them, that's how Flick talks to you" Natsu surmised at no one as he rubbed his chin.

Piper spit out the water that was in her mouth, "Oh my god, sorry! Talk to souls that…that is the talk of evil. Only seith mages do that. I have never heard of a 'nice' seith mage. I'm not even…" Piper was cut off.

"Natsu, that was rude of you to assume someone magic. It's like asking a lady her age. She will let you know when the time is right." Erza said as she cut off Piper.

Piper was wiping up the water that went everywhere. Thankfully she didn't spit it on anyone. "El loco piensa que soy un mago seith, un mago seith de todos los magos uno de esos malvados. Dioses me ayudan." Piper mutter under her breath.

"Yeah sorry about Natsu. His filter between his mouth and brain I don't think ever formed. He means well and all. He has his mature moments but most of the time he runs off at the mouth." Lucy offered an apology with a smile. "If you don't mind me asking, why do you consider seith magic evil? We have two in our guild. They aren't evil. One can be a little pervy, but never evil."

"Oh sorry. West Nitespring is an international port for sea and air. So along with the legal trade goods, my guild has been working on keeping the illegal trade 'goods' from being moved. Sam , our guild master, works hard at trying to break up slaver rings. Human trafficking is worst here now that the Steel Council has cracked down on it in Bosco. Sin geological nearness to Pergrande makes it a perfect import area and a few days on an airship to Joya. Magical animal trade is there as well. It's illegal in Sin but it doesn't stop the traders. Souls are also traded in there as well. It makes a perfect little set up for seith mages. Keep human and animals under control or just take their souls for that market. A seith mage can make a killing there literally and monetarily. I'm wanted there for my skills in biochemistry to make designer drug for the drug cartel. That's why I'm going to go stay with my papa for a while til Sam can get things figured out. He told me it's safer with papa and Lucas."

"Oh that's horrible. No Bix and Nab aren't like that. Bix is a fun loving kinda guy. If he hears about what happening in Sin he might talk the Thunder Legion into going there and help your guild take care of those seith." Lucy said with sympathy in her voice.

Flick came over and curled around Piper neck. He had grown over the 2 weeks they had been on the air ship. He was now about twelve inches long. He was able to fly a little distance, but Piper only let him fly while they were in the cabin. She figured causing mass hysteria on an airship wasn't a good idea. Nick and Tommy were still around and checked in with her but were hanging back allowing Piper to be independent. Piper appreciated it. She didn't want to use them as a crutch. Tommy and Nick had met her new friends from Fairy Tail.

They docked at Hargeon. Piper said her goodbyes to Tommy and Nick, slung her bag over her shoulder and headed for the train station for Magnolia. The weather was warming up it was closer to summer now. Flick was getting more active due to the warmer weather. She was able to find a local pet shop that sold food for Flick since she was running low before the train departed.

Piper wasn't aware of the man that was following them. No one would have been. He looked like an everyday mundane human like Piper herself. He was paid well by an unseen mage to follow a purple haired woman from Sin and report back. He was given a picture. He was told not to interact with her only to follow her at a distance.

Flick took notice of the man in the red and gray striped hoodie. He noticed that the man never came close to mama but he was everywhere that mama was. He adjusted himself on his mama's neck to keep watch of the man. He knew he couldn't talk to mama but he tried to talk to the warm pink hair dragon, but his thoughts were jumbled and difficult to push through. It was like they spoke two different languages. He would keep guard and wait til he could try to speak with the Bix or Nab creatures the pink haired dragon mentioned. He relaxed a bit when he noticed the dark hair ice mage walked up to his mama.

"Piper, there you are. Did you get what you needed for Flick? The train is leaving in about 5 minutes." Gray asked Piper.

"Oh yeah. I was just looking at the other stuff they had for reptiles. Kinda limited here. Do you think Magnolia will have a better selection?" Piper asked with a slight disappointment in her voice.

"I honestly have no idea. I've never owned a pet let alone a snake." Gray said as they hurried to the train.

Gray and Piper boarded the train and walked to the car that the train company set aside for the Fairy Tail guild due to their knack for attracting trouble. When they entered the car, Gray was confused at the scene unfolding in front of him. Natsu was consoling a sobbing Lucy while Erza was rubbing her back doing her best to calm her friend down. Lucy's Lphone was on the table. Natsu's green eyes meet his dark blue ones, he just shook his head.

"Guys what happened? Why is Lucy crying? Whose ass do I need to go kick?" Gray said through a clenched jaw.

Piper traded seats with Erza at soothing the petite blonde. Erza took Gray outside the car so not to upset Lucy any further. "Gray, before I tell you what happened you have to promise me what Natsu and I promised Lucy before she told us, ok. You have to promise not to do anything stupid that will put yourself or anyone else in the guild in danger. Do you promise?" Erza pleaded with Gray.

"I'm gonna kick his scaly ass…" Gray gritted. Erza grabbed him by the shoulder and shook him and made him look her in the eyes, "Promise me Gray, this is Lucy were talking about. She knew the risked dating a dragon slayer. She went through it with Natsu before we knew he was gay."

"Fine I promise I won't kick Erik's ass when I get back to Magnolia. Does this mean he found his mate or something?" Gray asked with an angry edge in his voice.

"I don't know. She doesn't know. He's not even in Magnolia right now. I agree he took the coward's way out and did it over the phone but Lucy knows that if she isn't a dragon slayers mate and they find it this could happen. You know I want to kick his ass just as much as you but we need to be there for Lucy, ok." Erza returned the same angry edge.

Their anger subsided when they heard a familiar giggle coming from the car behind them. They returned to the car behind them to see that Flick had helped the celestial wizard with her heartache by playing with her. Piper smiled at the two when they came back in. "Flick decided he wanted to help make Lucy feel better. So he is going to hang out with her for a little bit I guess." Piper giggled as the snake was wrapping itself up in golden locks and used his little tongue to tickle her cheek.

The next morning the train pulled into Magnolia. Piper had finally made it to Magnolia. She disembarked from the train and her Papa and Lucas were waiting for her. She practically jumped into Oscar's arms. She was wound up in both Oscar and Lucas hugs. The emotions she had from 2 weeks ago, all came back and the reason she was here in Magnolia. She started crying again for the first time since she left West Nitespring. "Oh no no mi dulce niña. You are safe know and we all know that Sam and the Foxes will find who did this to you." Oscar whispered in her ear and he held her as she cried.

Team Natsu had let the family have their reunion, before Lucy called out, "Piper when you get settled come to the guild hall and meet the rest of the guild, ok." They waved to the family as they made their way to the Fairy Tail guildhall.

A/N Again I apologize for my terrible Spanish and poor use in sentences. I feel that if I don't use the pieces of Spanish in some of Piper's language I wouldn't give the character justice. I know this is a short chapter as well. BUT…Piper made it to Magnolia YAY!

Thank You Desna for help with Flick. :)

Some translations:

Ombra della morte por favor no uccidermi: Shadow of death please don't kill me

El loco piensa que soy un mago seith, un mago seith de todos los magos uno de esos malvados. Dioses me ayudan: This crazy man thinks I'm a seith mage. A seith mage of all mages. One of those wicked ones. Gods help me.

Oh no no mi dulce niña: Oh no no my sweet baby girl