Chapter 2:

They had left almost immediately. Bix had went to the S-class board and grabbed the request, it was quite vague. Only mentioning that part of the reward was a golden zodiac key, and that they wanted the guild to break some sort of curse on Galuna Island. Apparently it had been sitting in the guild for a while, no one having a need for a celestial gate key, and Galuna Island was known to be home to quite the terrifying monsters.

At least leaving on a mission right away made it so she wouldn't have to go house hunting just yet, and she had only paid for one night at her hotel which was good for her considering they were leaving now. Virgo was holding all her things still, so she wouldn't have to worry about her luggage either.

Finding Virgo's key on the same day Duke Everlue was looking for it was a boon. Lucy had been able to watch as the Duke made a fool out of himself trying to demand to know who had bought the golden key and getting violent with the shop owner when he wouldn't give away customer information. It had led to the Rune Knights getting involved and the memory of seeing that disgusting man dragged away in cuffs had kept her happy for days. Unfortunately he didn't stay in jail and his brief arrest wasn't enough for her father to think of someone else to be her husband. Lucy was never going to risk that man finding out she was a celestial mage and risk him stealing her keys, so she had left.

Being on a Heartfilia train line so soon after she had faked her kidnapping, was difficult. Lucy was constantly jumping whenever someone new passed them by and she knew she wasn't really giving a good impression to Bix's team. They must think she was a jittery mess who would be no help to them when it matter. But she was just so terrified that someone would recognize her as the missing Heartfilia Heiress. Especially considering the fact that her most recent photo and portrait were on the exit and entrance to every compartment of the train. Making sure there was no way anyone would miss them. Each saying the same thing. Have you seen this young woman. 1 Million Jewel Reward for information on her safe return. Being so close to images of herself when her face hadn't been changed had been driving her up the wall.

"First time on a train Luke?" Ever asked. Her face might be showing an expression of boredom, but it was clear that she did actually care. It was odd that this woman could look so indifferent and sound so caring in the undertones of her voice at the same time. If Lucy hadn't been trained to detect these nuances she would have missed it and thought the other woman was trying to be rude.

"No. Just a bit uneasy. The Heartfilia family is the one who owns these trains and the head has been acting a little unstable since the heiress was kidnapped. Constantly having the trains stopped and checked by Rune Knights, but due to the constant searches dark mages have also been attacking more often thinking they might find something interesting. No one in the dark guilds seems to believe the Rune Knights would be searching for one lone girl. Honestly I don't really understand why either."

Freed was nodding his head in understanding, "I don't quite get it myself, there have been rumors in high society for years that Lady Heartfilia wasn't actually Lord Heartfilia's biological heir. He and her mother were just suddenly together and married out of nowhere, the deceased Lady Layla Heartfilia had already been noticeably pregnant when they announced their marriage to high society. There have also always been rumors that the young Lady Heartfilia was constantly locked away in her family manor rarely leaving it. All anyone really knew about her was that she was the spitting image of her deceased mother."

It was surprising to Lucy that Freed knew that much about her family. Sure the young man gave off that raised as a noble vibe, but he had become a guild mage so she hadn't thought he would have much information about her. She would have to be very careful around him. With his intelligence it wouldn't be surprising if he somehow found out who she was.

"Eh who cares about some missing Heiress. Unless if we get a job to search for her she has nothing to do with us; and it's not like any of us have reasons to fear the Rune Knights. There's no fucking reason to be worried or uneasy. You should be thinking more about the mission and how to pull your own damned weight!"

Blunt seemed to be Laxus's preferred form of communication. Instead of offending Lucy it was rather refreshing not having someone bending over backwards pretending they wanted to please her when they could care less about her. He would make a good friend if she ever got him to warm up to her.

Plus even with her bringing attention to a picture of herself they didn't seem to recognize her, but then again that could be because she was still hiding half her face and wasn't hiding her real eye color. Jude had hated her violet eyes and made her wear a glamor, the only magic he would allow in his house, so that the rumors about her would be lessened. To Lucy her eyes were a clue to her biological father's real identity, she had to have inherited her eye color from someone, and her mother had the chocolate brown eyes she had spent most of her life looking into.

The rest of their journey to Galuna Island was rather uneventful, with Laxus drifting off to sleep, Bixlow going off to somewhere until the train stopped, Freed working on reading a book, and Evergreen was reading a couple magazine's. It had been peaceful to watch how the team was when they relaxed, but she did wish she had been able to talk to them a bit more. Even Laxus's bitter grumpiness would have been better then the almost silence. With her upbringing the thing Lucy hated the most was silence.

Then heading across the sea in a rickety boat, with the only fisherman brave enough to approach the cursed Island. It was cramped and Lucy had spent the entire journey afraid that the way she was pressed up against Laxus and Bix one of them would figure out that her body was more feminine then it should be.

When they arrived at the Island Lucy's breathe caught at the beautiful sight. Greenery everywhere, an island paradise. Rare flowers blooming on hills and most of it looked untouched by man kind. It was hard to imagine that such a beautiful looking place would be cursed. This was the type of place she had always imagined running away too when her life as Lucy Heartfilia had become too much for her, long before she had come up with the idea to become Luke.

"Bix you go with the newbie to look around, the rest of us will go meet with the client."

Lucy glared at Laxus at being sidelined like that. Not understanding the point of having a look around when they didn't even know what they were looking for yet. It was annoying and a waste of time. Clearly Laxus just wanted to get her out of the way.

Following Bix she felt a pull towards the center of the island. Her magic tugging at her insistently as if she would be lost if she didn't follow along it's path. She could barely hear Bix calling out to her wanting her to stop as she started sprinting away following the dark and light magic entwined, dragging her towards something only she could do.

"We should go this way," she yelled back at him knowing that unlike Laxus Bix would listen to her. They had worked together often enough that he trusted her instincts. It had saved both of their hides more then once.

Magic was flowing oddly from the center of the island making Lucy's magic tingle in an odd way, she had never felt anything like this from a key, but at the same time there was someone calling for her. Begging for her help. Putting on a burst of speed she was glad that she had been training on and off with Bix, otherwise she might never have been able to go as fast as the magic was pulling her.

"Luke, slow down!"

"Can't."

Lucy just kept running not even caring that to keep up with her Bix was vaulting through the trees, his babies flying beside her at their max speed. She didn't understand why Bix wasn't just using them to get to their destination, she had seen him ride on his babies before and knew he could hold on even at their current speed. Honestly that man was like a demon with how flexible his body was.

The magic even lead her through a cave system and Lucy paused in shock at what was right in front of her. Deliora a demon from the book of Zeref, Lucy's mother had made sure Lucy studied all of the demons, never wanting her daughter to be caught unaware by them. Although it seemed that someone had caught Deliora unaware instead. He was encased in ice that seemed to literally be pulsing with life.

Feeling another pulsing Lucy stared at Aquarius key, not even realizing she had pulled the key out. Just knowing that Aquarius was needed.

"What do you want Brat?" Her rough spirit demanded before her eyes landed on the ice and she literally paled. "Are you trying to get yourself killed!? That is Deliora! You're strong, but not strong enough to deal with a demon."

"I now Quari I'm not stupid. But there's something odd about the ice and my magic is demanding we do something."

It was a curse of celestial magic, sometimes she just couldn't help but follow her instincts. Her magic giving her missions at times. All she knew was that the ice in front of her needed to be melded into something else, something that only Aquarius could do.

"Of course it's odd the ice is a mage. Whoever it was used an ancient spell that turned their body into a living cage, the ice can't be melted by normal means, but clearly someone is trying to waken Deliora. It's possible he is to weak to fight, but are you sure you wish to risk freeing him?"

"I don't have a choice Quari, my magic isn't allowing me to move from here."

Lucy smiled sadly at the curse her spirit gave out, she knew Aquarius wanted to keep her safe due to her ties to Lucy's mother. Aquarius hated being called Quari, but Lucy would keep calling her that to her face until Aquarius stopped calling her brat instead of her name.

"You're going to do something stupid aren't you Luke," it wasn't a question. Bix was used to her rashness by now.
She didn't want to put him in danger though. Bix was her only real friend, outside of her spirits, someone who became friends with her by chance, not because they were in constant proximity. Besides sometimes she needed someone who understood human nature in a way her spirits never could. Lucy swore his friendship was the only thing that kept her sane at times. He was the brother she had always wished she had.

Sure he wasn't exactly what she had imagined. Back then she had thought a brother would only be her protector, someone to keep her father from going overboard, who would make sure her marriage wasn't one she would perish from. He'd get her advice on women once he was ready to start courting. They'd have an unbreakable bond.

The last part was the only true part of what Bix was like. Sure he'd protect her if she was in danger the times they had ran into each other, but he also had been protected by her. He trusted that she was strong enough to stand beside him in a fight. Honestly it was a much stronger relationship then the one she had imagined, but her imagination was what a noble brother would have been like. Bix might be the son of a famous ambassador, but he certainly didn't act like any noble she knew. It was quite refreshing actually. Lucy had a feeling even if she had met him as a woman instead of a man they would still have the same relationship they do now. He respected Evergreen too much to treat her differently just because of her gender.

"You should go Bix."

"No way Luke. Bossman would kill me, but also I'm not going to let you get hurt on your first official mission. If you need to do this I'll cover you."

Despite his words she saw him press the emergency beacon on his comms unit, but he didn't ask her to wait for the rest of his team. She appreciated that he was standing by her.
"Quari please."

"I'm only doing this because of the magic pull Brat, I know until you do you can't move, why did you have to be as noble as your mother." Her grumbling was mixed with concern, the way she showed her love. It was the first time Aquarius had actually compared Luccy to her mother in anything other then her appearance.

"You might want to keep the babies close Bix, this is going to cause a backlash."

Bix nodded his eyes glowing under his visor as he called the babies back with his magic, tethering them so that they couldn't be blown away as long as he concentrated on them. When he had first told her he was a seith mage he had looked resigned as if thinking she would turn her back on him. Honestly she was fairly certain there had been tears in his eyes as she had just shrugged and gone back to munching on the cake she had just bought. By that point she had known him well enough to know he wouldn't use his power to hurt innocent people and that was all that mattered to her.

Seeing that they were ready Aquarius grabbed her urn and just started swirling magic around the ice encasing Deliora. Lucy watched in fascination as the magic glowed an icy blue, the particles being drawn in front of Aquarius and a vague shape started to form. It was beautiful watching as the ice slowly left the demon and formed a woman right in front of them. Lucy's own magic reaching out and gold started to circle around the demon's body, keeping the black particles that were reaching out from mixing with the icy blue.

Bixlow watched in amazement as Luke and his spirit Aquarius spun their magic. Sure the magic forming in front of the bitchy mermaid was beautiful, but it was Luke that was breathtaking in that moment. Not in a romantic way for Bixlow, but more in the way his brother Kaleb had looked when he had come out of the immaculate light. Luke's hair was a washed in golden light, the rose red color he had come to associate with his friend completely gone, and instead it was like the sun itself was shining off of Luke's hair. His eyes turning into a deep purple with stars glimmering in. It was hard to believe that his friend was human in that moment.

Usually Bixlow tried to avoid looking at people's souls however at this moment he had no choice. His extra brother's (as he jokingly called Luke) soul was just swirling around him. The purity of it, he couldn't even describe the color, instead it was like he was completely washed in peace at that moment. But oddly enough there was another sliver mixed in with Luke's soul, one that had nothing to do with his celestial contacts.

Whatever else he might have thought was interrupted when he heard a gasp and the watery form in front of Aquarius had solidified into a woman. The woman had dark purple hair her eyes were still closed so he couldn't see what color they were. He watched as Aquarius caught the woman as she fell forward.

Turning his gaze away he watched as the demon Deliora just seemed to crumble in front of Luke. He honestly wasn't sure if it was some kind of reaction to the unknown woman's magic that had kept him prisoner, or it Luke was more powerful then even Luke realized.

Darting forward Bixlow was prepared to catch Luke if needed, but instead he watched as Luke calmly pulled his magic back towards him. The black particles completely gone.

"How is she Quari?"

"Alive, but I'm no healer brat."

"Yeah I know."

Lucy was prepared to say more, but was interrupted as Bix's team came running towards them. A thunderous look on Laxus's face. He really did seem to suit his lightning magic personality wise.

"What the hell did you do newbie and who is that?!" he growled. The sound again affecting her more then she allowed to show on her face. Laxus's face changed to a look of confusion as his nostrils flared almost as if he was smelling something, whatever it was Lucy couldn't smell it.

"Laxus..."

"Not now. This idiot I just know he put you in danger!"

Rolling her eyes Lucky growled at Laxus, "you don't even know the situation and you're being a jackass. I really don't understand how you ever won Bix's loyalty!" He irritated her. Made her feel a million different things at once. Now though she was certain they'd never end up friends. To him she was just scum under his foot. Only worth noticing to berate.

"Bix had the choice to go back to you guys. He's a big boy I didn't force him into anything. And I don't have to put up with your attitude King Laxus," she said sarcastically with a little bow. "Now did you guys find out what we have to do for the mission?"

"Luke just tell him what you..."

"It doesn't matter Bix. It had nothing to do with the mission so it won't make a difference."

The look he gave her made her feel like she was kicking a puppy, making her realize for once he wasn't wearing his visor. Considering he wasn't freaking out yet she figured he didn't even know he wasn't wearing it. He hated when people saw the mark of his magic on his face.

"Yeah we found out what we need to do."

"Thank you Evergreen."

Lucy listened carefully as they explained ignoring Laxus's glares.

Before they could leave she hoisted the woman out of Aquarius's arms and let her go back to the Spirit world. Moving the woman to her back carefully. Ignoring Laxus's demands that she abandon the unconscious woman since she would just get in the way of their mission. Even if her magic hadn't led her to this woman Lucy would never leave anyone vulnerable and unconscious in the wilderness.

She was just glad she had the physical stamina to carry her. All thanks to the training regime Bix had built with her over the years.

As they left the cave she wondered why the people who had been trying to melt the ice from Deliora hadn't appeared, but she figured it was better to just leave it. Who knows whether it was because they had revenge on their mind or worshiped Zeref. No it was much better they hadn't appeared.

The walk back to the compound was long, but Lucy didn't complain once about the woman's weight, although Bix had offered to carry her instead multiple times. Lucy didn't want to seem weak in Laxus's eyes. She wanted to earn the asshole's respect Stars knows why. After that it was kind of a blur for destroying the weird haze barrier around the island. Lucy honestly couldn't recall exactly what they had done no matter how hard she thought about it.

No instead she seemed to operate on auto pilot and as soon as Laxus declared the mission over she found herself falling. Realizing that she had over extended herself physically and magically as she lost consciousness. Only feeling the weight of another person on her as she landed harshly on her stomach before all went black.