Lucy Heartfilia woke up to the sound of birds chirping and the morning rays on her skin. She stretched out, before climbing out of her bed, her own bed. After accidentally participating in the surprise suppression mission the other day, Lucy ended up receiving part of the reward for defeating the Dark Guild, finally allowing her to save enough for her own apartment.
Thinking back to Eisenwald gave her a bad taste in her mouth. While they may have caught all but one of the Dark Mages, the one that got away had one of the deadliest objects ever made in his possession. But despite that, the Guild Masters were all still alive, so she supposed everything was fine for now. What really bugged her was that odd forest fire. The purple flames were impossible to put out, and even Natsu couldn't eat them. They ended up having to stop its spread by cutting off the fire from the rest of the forest and just let whatever it had touched burn away.
Shaking her head and focusing on the present, she looked around her new bedroom. While 70,000 Jewels a month was not a cheap price, it was certainly worth the price, and she didn't want to live of the Strauss's hospitality forever, even if she enjoyed living with them for the past couple weeks. She changed into a new set of clothes, grabbed her spirits keys, and opened her bedroom door ready to start a new day…
"Hey Lucy, about time you woke up!" Only to find Lisanna laying down on her couch, ready to greet her.
"AHHHH!" Lucy shrieked at the surprise visitor in her home. "What the hell are you doing here, trespasser?!"
"Trespasser? Fairy Tail members are family, so there's nothing wrong with visiting family whenever you want." Lisanna said, with a mocking hurt tone. "Besides, someone had to make sure they didn't burn your house down."
"That doesn't mean you can just break in! Wait, who's they…?" Lucy turned her head to the left to see Natsu doing crunches on her apartment floor, while Happy rummaged through her drawers.
"Hey Luce! Huff… Thanks for letting us drop by and warm up. Huff…" Natsu said between reps.
"I DIDN'T! What are you even getting warmed up for?!" Lucy asked exasperated.
"Oh yeah, I guess you weren't there for it." Another voice said behind her, and Lucy turned her head in alarm. To her horror, Grey stood in her kitchen wearing an apron, and only an apron. "Erza said she'd fight Natsu if he went on the Eisenwald mission."
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU WEARING!" Lucy shrieked.
Grey looked at her nonplussed. "An apron? I thought you'd want breakfast before we leave. How do you like your eggs?"
"…Scrambled." Lucy answered plainly, before sighing and plopping down on the coach next to Lisanna. She supposed there were worse things in the world to wake up to than a half-naked man making you breakfast. She'll just have to remember to have Natsu burn that apron later.
Fifteen minutes later and one incredibly awkward breakfast later, Lucy and the gang walked up to the Guild Building. Outside the building stood a crowd of Fairy Tail Mages, waiting for the big fight. Cana could be seen taking bets off to the side, and some of them were already drinking. Upon the groups approach they spread like a wave, revealing Erza standing stoically in the center of the crowd, a sword planted into the ground. Wendy was next to her sister, glancing between her and Natsu.
"You're finally here. It's been a while since we last fought, huh Natsu?" Erza grinned.
"That was when we were kids! I've changed a lot since then!" Natsu shouted.
The crowd began to form a circle around the two as they bantered. Lucy took a few extra steps back, knowing that collateral damage probably wasn't in either of the redhead's minds.
"I'll admit you might have changed when it comes to your physical prowess, but you haven't aged a day when it comes to the mental side of things." Erza reminisced with a grin on her face.
"Are you calling me stupid? I feel like you aren't taking this seriously!" Natsu said annoyed, before quickly developing a scary grin. "Maybe this will get you motivated. How about a bet, whoever wins gets to teach Wendy to fight again first!" He declared, pointing a finger at his fellow Dragon Slayer.
"What?!" Wendy looked at him shocked.
Erza suddenly stopped smiling, and the circle around the two Mages got suspiciously larger. She let out a hum, before drawing her sword. "I see. So you want me to take this seriously?"
Wendy immediately tried to ease the growing tension. "Guys, please! I'm sure you can both-"
"No, it's fine Wendy." Erza said, before Requipping into her Flame Emperor's Armor and pointing her sword forward. "Now, come at me Natsu!"
Makarov now stood between the two, staff raised above his head. "Alright now, try not to hit too many buildings." He told them, producing a rambunctious laughter from the crowd. "Ready…Set…G-"
"Hold it!" A voice called out right as the fight began. Natsu and Erza practically tripped stopping themselves at the sudden declaration. The crowd parted from the direction of the voice, revealed a bipedal frog, dressed in a set of professional garbs. Two soldiers stood stoically behind him. "I'm a messenger from the Council. Are you two Erza Belserion and Natsu Dragneel?" He asked.
"Yeah, what of it?!" Natsu yelled, upset at being interrupted.
"Please Natsu, show some respect. Is this an important matter? We were in the middle of something." Erza asked.
The messenger nodded. "Yes, very important. With charges of property damage, arson, grand theft, and a dozen other incidents following the Eisenwald incident, the Fairy Tail Mages Erza Belserion and Natsu Dragneel have been place under arrest."
Erza just stared at the messenger in shock. "…Eh?"
"Both of you are to be brought to the Council's Fiore Branch for the trial and further questioning. Come along now." The messenger continued, as one of the soldiers behind him produced a pair of handcuffs and walked towards the two.
"What the hell?! The Council can shove it!" Natsu yelled, before swinging a fist back, aiming at the approaching shoulder.
"Natsu!" Erza yelled in surprise. Even she knew that hitting a Council worker was tantamount to suicide. But before Natsu could finish swinging a hooded man in Rune Knight gear appeared behind him, grabbing his arm, and pinning him to the floor. The mysterious man then pulled out his own pair of anti-magic handcuffs and slapped them onto Natsu's wrists. "Gah?! Who the hell?"
"Ah, thank you Doranbolt." The messenger said nonchalantly, before turning to Erza. "I do hope you'll come a little more peacefully."
"The Mages Trial will now begin. Defendant Erza Belserion, you shall take the witness stand first."
Erza and Natsu quickly found themselves standing in a large courtroom with the ten members of the Magic Council standing above them, and the Chairman even higher. While they were not here with their real bodies, their Thought Projections allowed them to all be in attendance for important matters such as this. The only people in the council member's actually in the room was the messengers acting as stenographers and a few Rune Knights, including the one that had captured Natsu. He stood close to the two, and Natsu kept shooting death glares back at him.
"Defendant Erza Belserion, concerning your actions the other day against the Dark Guild Eisenwald, there have been many complaints regarding your actions." The Chairman said sternly, face shadowed by his oversized hat. "According to the Onibus Town station conductors, you incited a panic in the town, resulting in a stampede that caused untold damages. Later, your group was witnessed riding a locomotive that was later found all the way in Clover Town. Then, there was all the damage to the forest in Clover Town by what are reports claim was a 'mysterious fire'. And finally, in the end, you failed to even recover Lullaby, which could have resulted in untold calamity! What do you have to say to these claims?"
"I'll tell you what I think!" Natsu started yelling. "I think you're a bunch of ungrateful-"
"Silence! It is not your turn to speak yet!" The Council Member in the center, Org, yelled back.
Erza shot Natsu a serious glare, and he quieted down, grumbling under his breath. She then turned to address the court. "I told everyone of the danger of Lullaby as to prevent any casualties in the town, as Erigor had stated he planned to use it there in the town. We had to… borrow one of the trains to chase after the Dark Mage with Lullaby. As far as I could tell there wasn't any damage to the train, this time. The damage to the forest was to prevent the spread of the fire, which couldn't be put out through normal means." She explained. "Letting Lullaby slip away was entirely on me. That said, I assume that it is no longer a problem, considering you all are holding court instead of panicking."
"Hmph, you should show more respect to your elders." Another Council Member, Michello, said to her left. The man's cat-like tail twitching in annoyance. "But yes, we believe the case of Lullaby to be solved."
"How so?" Erza asked. She heard someone clear their throat, and she looked to the left to see one of the elderly Council Members, Byro, shuffling some papers. 'That man. If what Jellal said is true…"
"In our clean up of the Clover Town forest, we found a tree shaped like a massive demon. It had been burnt into charcoal, but our Mages reported a small trace of Curse Magic on it. Analysis of the fire's spread indicates that the blaze likely originated from that point. Our best guess is that someone found the Mage with Lullaby and burned both him and Lullaby itself to a crisp." Byro told Erza, before turning to Natsu. "We had initially believed you were responsible for this act of pyromania, but it appears you weren't… for once."
"Grrr…" Natsu growled at the man. It was clearly taking all his willpower to not set the court room on fire.
"I see… Wait, demon?" Erza looked up confused.
"Lullaby was an artifact cursed by Zeref himself." Another Council Member, Hughes, informed her. "He was known for using his magic to create living beings out of magic. It appears this turned out to be one. As a expert of magical objects, the idea creeps me out."
"Enough." The Chairman bellowed, silencing the room with his gavel. "If the matters of the case are clear, then it's time for sentencing. You all are guilty, take them away!"
"What?!" Natsu shouted in shock, as two Rune Knights dragged him off. "Isn't there supposed more to this stuff? I haven't even talked yet!"
The two had been immediately dragged down to a holding center underneath the Council building and have been left there for the past couple hours. A guard walked by every few minutes to make sure they didn't cause any trouble, but considering they still had magic-nullifying cuffs on, there wasn't much they could do.
"Well, that went better than usual." Erza said happily, sitting patiently in her new jail cell.
Natsu looked at his guildmate in disbelief, crouching angrily in the corner. "Went well? We were tried as guilty! I didn't even get to defend myself!"
"Ah, I suppose this is your first time." Erza realized. "This happens sometimes when there's too many complaints on a mission. Usually there's only one or two of the Council Members telling me off, but considering the danger of Lullaby, they had to all be there to look serious."
"If it's so serious, does that mean we're gonna be here forever?!" Natsu panicked.
"No. Think of it like a parent telling their child to go sit in the corner and think about what they've done. We were told off, but they'll probably let us out any minute now. The Council just needs to look like they're doing their job." Erza explained.
"When you say it like that, it sounds like we're not doing anything at all." An elderly voice said outside the two's cell. Both turned to see Byro, one of the Council Members, standing nearby with one of the guards. The man was as old and small as their Guild Master, and far less intimidating when not staring down at them in court. "Though I suppose when it came to the Lullaby matter, that turned out to be true." He clapped his hands and the guard opened the cell door, before removing the two's cuffs. "Congratulations, your sentence's have been served. Be sure to stay out of trouble for a while, if that's possible for your Guild."
"Seriously?! That really is it?!" Natsu looked surprised.
Byro just laughed. "Let me show you out." He offered, walking toward the exit.
After walking up some stairs and weaving through a few halls, they all found themselves at the entrance to the Fiore Branch Council Building. "I don't remember walking through so many halls to get down there." Natsu said confused.
Byro shook his head. "The Council seems to pride itself on it's convoluted building structure. You should try getting out of the Headquarters by yourself. Now then if that's all-"
"Actually, I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions? Natsu, do you mind going on ahead." Erza asked seriously.
"Uhh, sure. I'll get us some train tickets."
Natsu walked off down the road, leaving just Byro and Erza standing at the entranceway. Byro couldn't help but gulp at the look that Erza was now giving him, like he was prey that had finally fell for a trap. "What… do you want to ask?"
Erza just stared at him for a few more moments. Finally, she spoke. "I heard that you and a few others were recommended as a member of the Magic Council by my mother. Is that true?"
"Yes, it is." Byro answered slowly. "That fact isn't well known, how did you hear about that?"
"A friend of mine. This recommendation apparently happened about four years ago, yes?" Erza continued questioning, brushing off Byro's own. "I was wondering if you could tell me a bit more about your relationship with her."
Byro stood like a deer in headlights for a few moments, but eventually he just sighed and shook his head. "We've only met a few times, but in that time, she changed my world more than you could know. I was a member of a group that was one of the foremost experts in magical items. Despite that, we were unable to make any headway due to a… lack of materials, shall we say. Then one day, she showed up, with ideas of magic that were revolutionary to my people. She insisted that to best make use of my teams' talents we should join the Magic Council, and she put in a good word for us."
Erza looked at Byro with a mixed expression. "Did she say were she was before she met you, or after? Anything that could help me find her?"
The elderly man shook his head. "I'm afraid that her whereabouts were a mystery to me. She didn't always act like one would expect, but she always had a sense of purpose to her actions. Something tells me she'll find you before you find her."
"… I see. Thank you for answering my questions, sir. I'll try to stay out of trouble for a while." Erza thanked the man in a quiet voice, before bowing slightly and walking off to find her guildmate, clearly saddened by the lack of new information. As she left Byro's view, he finally let out a sigh of release.
"That woman sure is terrifying. I thought you were going to drop dead mid-interrogation, old man."
"Ah?!" Byro turned around in fear, only to find the smug face of Hughes behind him, along with an amused Sugarboy. "Oh, you two. So, you all saw that?"
Hughes laughed. "Yep. She's as serious and scary as a certain other redhead I know…"
*Beep, beep*
Sugarboy looked to his arm and noticed the gem on his armband flashing a red light. "Hmm, maybe we should take this conversation elsewhere." he suggested, before tapping the blinking gem on the armband he was wearing. Suddenly, the man disappeared, his Thought Projection fading.
"Well you heard the man, see you back in Era. Seriously though, I'm surprised you had the balls to lie to her face like that without cracking." Hughes waved, before tapping a similar armband and vanishing.
"I don't know what you mean, I technically didn't lie to her about anything." Byro looked at his own armband, taking a moment to appreciate its craftsmanship before tapping it and departing. 'To think that she would be able to build magical items that mimic magic in this world as complex as Thought Projection, if only for a limited time. Don't worry, Erza Belserion, I'm sure the two of you will meet very soon.'
As the sun began to set in Magnolia, Porlyusica sighed deeply as she put away her medicine. Nearly half the Guild had ended up at her door after what was supposed to be a one-on-one duel into a giant brawl. Apparently, it seemed that Erza and Natsu being taken away before a single hit only made the crowd more rambunctious, and some idiot decided to start a fight themselves.
Bunch of idiots. And people wondered why she hated humans.
*knock, knock*
The familiar sound of someone knocking on her door reached her ears, and she bit back the urge to simply yell at the poor soul to go away. However, she couldn't stop herself from stomping over to the door and swinging it open with a stern look.
"Now what?! Can't you idiots stay out of trouble for ten minutes-" Porlyusica immediately went off, only to stop when she had to look down to see her visitor.
"Um, sorry for the inconvenience." Wendy said sadly, fiddling with her hair. "I'll come back later if your busy."
Porlyusica looked at the girl in shock. She hadn't seen Wendy in ages, mostly because the girl had begun avoiding her ever since her mother disappeared. It didn't take much to figure out why. As a fellow recluse she understood there were many reasons why someone wouldn't want to be around others. "It's fine, child. What are you here for anyway?"
Wendy looked up at her nervously. "I-I was wondering…" she stuttered, before slamming her mouth closed and fidgeting.
"Out with it girl! I don't have all day." Porlyusica demanded.
"I was wondering if you could teach me again!" Wendy finally got out, bowing deeply.
"Hmm, is that so?" Porlyusica hummed. "You're not going to run off again, are you?"
"No!" Wendy said defiantly. "I want to help people, that's why Grandeeney gave me my Magic. I can't help people by running away from them."
Porlyusica nodded. "Well said. I suppose I can spare the time for a lesson or two."
"Really?! Alright, what's first?" Wendy asked.
"Nothing, it's almost sunset. Did you expect me to just drop everything and give you night lessons?" Porlyusica shook her head in disbelief.
"Oh, sorry. I guess I'll stop by tomorrow…" Wendy said with a dejected look in her face.
'Damn brat, don't make that face.' Porlyusica winced, before sighing again and turning to walk inside. "I suppose I still have to clean up from the mess you all made earlier. If you have the time to hang around here, you might as well make yourself useful."
Wendy suddenly looked back excited. "Of course!" She ran in after her new mentor, closing the door behind her.
Just behind a tree on the outskirts of Porlyusica's house, a man covered in cloaks and bandages, with a bundle of staves on his back, watched the event pleased. "Wendy, I'm glad someone can be there for you."
The sound of rustling cloaks and armor rattling could be heard. He turned to see another equally disguised figure approach him. Instead of a half-dozen staffs, this person had a few plates of armor attached to them, and some sort of long weapon wrapped tightly in a cloth on their back. "Are you ready to go Je- I mean Mystogan." A muffled, but clearly feminine voice said.
Mystogan turned and walked off into the forest. "Yeah, we've got a lot of work to do, Sieglinde."
In the dead of the night, a strange girl walked down a hallway with a spring in her step, humming a strange tune. The walls were all cracked and mossed over, hardly the ideal environment for her experiments, but she couldn't be choosy. After all, not every place had temples dedicated to gathering the magical power of the moon itself.
"Hey, Lamy!" A rough voice yelled down the hall. She turned her head, bunny ears flopping to the side, to find a muscular man bearing over him. "Don't you have work to do? It's a bit hard to keep an eye on you when you keep running around this place."
Lamy just laughed at the man, producing a sound that grated his ears. "Oh, don't be like that Doriate, we're in no rush. I thought you all at Succubus Eye would love the chance to work with us for as long as you could?" She questioned, turning down another corridor.
Doriate just growled, before chasing after the odd girl again. "Don't mock me. You know we're only here because you promised to make us demons afterward."
"Ah, yes. Well then, you'll have to wait until my current experiment is over. Unless you want to risk turning into a mindless monster." Lamy told him, finally turning into one of the rooms. It was filled with plenty of magical equipment that had skin and eyes, glowing and pulsing as if it were alive.
"About that, don't you think that she might cause a bit too much attention to be drawn to us? Someone's bound come looking for her." Doriate complained.
"That's what you're here for, aren't you?" Lamy shot an annoyed look at his constant pestering. "Besides, we can't let a fish this big get away."
The two looked in the center of the room, where a giant cylindrical glass tube sat, the fleshy bits around the room wrapping around it. The inside was filling with a strange glowing fluid, and floating within sat a sleeping Mirajane.
Lamy plastered her face against the glass, developing a monstrous grin. "Such a pretty girl. It disgusts me. I can't wait to turn you into the ugliest demon imaginable!"
Next Chapter: Demons of Galuna Island
