Lucy and Bacchus got off the train at Lupus Run. Lucy had never been to the town before but it looked pleasant enough. There was a cobblestone street lined with shops, inns, bars and restaurants. Most of the businesses were closed but a few lights were still on, providing a place for the night owls to socialize. The next train for Magnolia didn't leave until the morning so Lucy would just have to find some way to deal with Bacchus until then.
Bacchus reached down to take Lucy's hand but she pulled away. He frowned and pretended to pick a piece of lint off his coat. They walked down the street for a few minutes in silence.
"So, what would you like to do?" she asked.
Bacchus raised an eyebrow at her and smirked.
"Let me rephrase that. How about we see what places are open?"
Bacchus may a small, mocking bow. "Whatever my lady desires."
Lucy shot him a dirty look and walked towards the closest business with lights on. It was an inn. She kept walking without slowing down and came to another storefront that was lit up. It was a little karaoke bar called Howl at the Moon.
"What do you think?" She nodded towards the bar.
"Sounds like my kind of place." Bacchus put his arm on Lucy's back and ushered her into the bar before she could protest.
They grabbed stools at the bar and Bacchus ordered two glasses of wine. Lucy wasn't much of a drinker but she didn't protest. She enjoyed an occasional drink and she could make the single glass last the whole night if she sipped slowly.
She glanced at Bacchus's glass. It was already half empty. A thought suddenly occurred to her. If he got drunk, which from previous encounters seemed very likely, maybe she could ditch him and find a place to sleep. She checked the time. It was already 11pm. Even though she had spent most of the day sleeping off the hallucinogenic spider bite, she was still tired. She needed to do something quickly, before she was completely worn out.
"So, what's it gonna be?"
"Huh?" Lucy turned her attention back to Bacchus. He had been speaking to her but she had missed everything he said. "I'm sorry, what were you saying?"
If Bacchus was annoyed, he hid it well. "I was asking what you were going to sing?"
"Oh." Lucy laughed nervously. "I'm not really much of a singer." She looked to the front of the bar where the karaoke equipment was set up. The DJ was talking to one of the waitresses and no one was singing. They must be taking a break, thought Lucy.
"Are you going to sing something?" The thought of Bacchus singing karaoke was amusing. I might even enjoy seeing that, Lucy mused.
He shrugged and downed the rest of his wine. He motioned for the bartender to get him another. "Would you like me to?"
"Sure." She fought to keep her voice neutral but she could feel a smile tugging at her lips.
"Well, then maybe I'll have to sing something for you."
He reached down and took her hand, positioning it so her palm faced upwards. He ran his finger along one of the lines in her hand. Lucy tried to jerk her hand back but he held it firmly.
"I won't bite, relax," he scolded.
Lucy forced the tension out of her hand and tried to remain calm. Bacchus traced the line in her palm again. "This line shows the major events in your life."
Lucy rolled her eyes at him. "If I wanted to get my fortune told, I'd ask Cana to use her tarot cards. You remember Cana, right?"
Bacchus tapped his finger against his chin. "Ah, yes. The brunette with a nice rack. I'm surprised she lasted as long as she did. I was actually hung-over the next day."
Lucy scoffed, remembering the first time she had ever heard of Bacchus. He had challenged Cana to a drinking contest. No one had thought he stood a chance but after a couple barrels of alcohol, the resident Fairy Tail drunk had passed out. Bacchus had taken the opportunity to relieve her of her bikini top.
"Well, you don't seem to regret what you did to her," she mumbled.
"I'm not. She lost."
Arrogant bastard. Lucy tried to take her hand back but Bacchus was still holding it. He was looking at it as if he were reading an epic novel.
"Find anything interesting?" Lucy let tone show her irritation.
"Most of it's the usual sort of thing. You've suffered the loss of two loved ones. You've lost a fortune but will reclaim another." He paused. "This is interesting…"
Lucy's heart was pounding. She lived in a world of magic so it shouldn't have surprised her to hear Bacchus rattle off two intimate details about her life but it was still unnerving. The two loved ones were most likely her parents and she had been born rich, only to run away from it.
"What?" she breathed, unsure that she wanted to hear the answer.
"Your spiritual energy." He grinned at her. "The line that measures it splits in two."
Lucy relaxed. "Well, I suppose that makes sense. My magic calls to another realm." Bacchus released her palm and she looked at the line that he had been tracing. She looked but up at Bacchus and was startled to see his eyes blazing with intensity. He held out his palm to her for her to examine.
"You have the same split in your spiritual energy line." She blinked up at him, confused. "But you aren't a celestial mage. Your magic is physical."
Bacchus grabbed his wine and took another large swig. He set the glass down and started to tap his fingers against the bar. "That's true, but I have been to the spirit world."
"What?" Lucy couldn't hide her shock. "You've been to the celestial spirit world?" As far as she knew, team Natsu were the only mortals to ever visit there.
Bacchus laughed. "No. I've been to the human spirit world. When I was younger, right after I became a full fledged mage, I stole an S-Class flyer and went on an unauthorized mission."
Lucy nodded. "I did the same thing," she said softly.
Bacchus's jaw dropped. "Damn Barbie, I didn't pin you as the type of girl to break the rules."
Lucy blushed. "Well, I didn't steal the flyer. I went on the mission to back my partner up." Her, Natsu, Grey, and Erza had all made their way to Galuna Island. It was one of Lucy's first missions. "Anyway, please continue with your story."
"Oh yeah, right. Well, I went on an unauthorized mission. A book that was believed to have been written by Zeref was stolen from a wealthy merchant's collection. I tracked down the thief but he was an extremely powerful wizard. He cast a spell that filled my lungs with water. I drowned without even getting wet."
"But you survived it. Otherwise you wouldn't be here today."
He nodded in agreement. "Yes, but for a couple minutes I was technically dead. I would have remained that way if a civilian hadn't given me CPR."
"Damn," whispered Lucy.
"Yeah. But I don't regret it. It was incredible. I felt like I was connected to everything. There was no fear, no sadness." He looked down. "That experience changed my life."
They sat in silence for a few moments. Lucy was surprised that Bacchus was sharing so much information about himself. She cleared her throat and ventured another question. "What about Zeref's book. Was it ever retrieved?"
Bacchus shifted in his seat and frowned slightly. "Yes, it was eventually recovered," he said tersely.
Lucy sensed the tension so she searched for some way to change the subject but came up blank.
Bacchus sighed. "It was Laxus."
"What?"
"It was Laxus who eventually got the book back." Bacchus took another drink of wine. "He became an S-Class mage before me, even though he is a year younger than me."
"Oh."
Their conversation was interrupted by the DJs amplified voice. "Allllllll right everybody. Are you ready for some karaoke?"
The crowd clapped and there were a few hoots.
"Okay, up first we have the lovely Miss. Lilly!"
A girl with obviously died blond hair came up on the stage and sang "Like a Prayer" by Madonna. While she was singing, Bacchus made his way up to the DJ and filled out a request form. Wow, he's actually going to sing. Lucy had never sung in front of a group before and wasn't about to start. Bacchus came back and polished off the rest of his wine just as the girl was finishing.
Everyone clapped and the girl left the stage.
"And up next, we have the Drunk Falcon. Mr. Bacchus!" People clapped and Bacchus made his way up to the stage. It may have been Lucy's imagination but she thought he looked a little unsteady on his feet.
The music started and Lucy snorted when she recognized the song. She covered her mouth and was glad no one was close enough to hear the unladylike sound.
The smooth notes of Caribbean Queen by Billy Ocean started to play.
A snare drum beat that probably came from a keyboard filled the room. Bacchus started moving his shoulders to the classic song. His face was completely serious but his eyes showed amusement. Everyone in the bar started to clap.
And then he sang.
The palm magic user actually had a nice voice. He played to the crowd, putting a lot of expression into his movements. Whenever the chorus would sing "and our hearts would beat as one," Bacchus would put his hands over his chest and lift his fingers as if his heart were beating too strongly. During the phrase "no more love on the run," he actually broke out into the running man. It was ridiculous. Lucy laughed so hard tears pricked at her eyes.
Suddenly, an obviously drunk young lady ran up on the stage. and started to dance with Bacchus. She was cute, Lucy noticed, in a pixie-like way, with short chopped brown hair and matching large brown eyes. He obliged her and spun her around with one hand. She tried to wrap her arms around him but an angry man came and pulled her off him. Must have been her boyfriend, thought Lucy.
Bacchus pointed at a table of girls and they squealed. The man is going to start a riot, mused Lucy. Who would have guessed karaoke with Bacchus could be so fun.
He sang the last verse, making direct eye contact with Lucy.
Caribbean Queen
Now we're sharing the same dream
And our hearts they beat as one
No more love on the run
The intensity of his gaze made Lucy squirm but she clapped with the crowd when he finished. He bowed and made his way back to the bar where she was sitting.
"You sure know how to put on a show."
"Well, I have a beautiful muse by my side."
Lucy frowned and looked away. She wished Laxus were there. This was starting to feel like a date.
The girl who had danced with Bacchus wobbled over.
"Hey honey, you're cute." She wrapped her arms around his neck and slumped against him. "I haven't seen you… hic… around these parts before. I'm…hic...Winona." She was very drunk.
"No, me and my date are just visiting." He wrapped his arm around Lucy and she stiffened.
Winona peered at Lucy as if she were seeing her for the first time. "Oh, hi," she mumbled. She turned back to Bacchus. "Are you gonna sing again? Do you take requests?" She lowered her voice conspiratorially. "How about, I wanna sex you up?"
Lucy was pissed. It wasn't that she was jealous, but the girl was clearly disrespecting her. If this had been a real date, she would have crossed the line.
"Geeze, could you be any more desperate?"
The girl stared at Lucy, swaying heavily on her feet. Suddenly, she reached out and shoved Lucy in the shoulder. It was surprisingly forceful.
"Hey!" Lucy shouted.
Winona reached over and pushed her again.
"What the hell's your problem?" Lucy couldn't believe how stupid she was acting.
The girl went to shove Lucy again, this time with both hands, but she tripped and fell forward. They both went tumbling to the floor. Winona starting slapping wildly at Lucy. The celestial mage didn't want to hit her so she tried to block the feeble attacks. She saw movement above them. Bacchus reached down and yanked the brunette off of her in one easy motion.
"What the fuck do you think your doing?" It was Winona's boyfriend. Shit.
"Your girl was getting out of line. You should take her home." Bacchus crossed his arms over his chest. He looked relaxed but Lucy could sense tension in the air.
"Oh yeah, city boy? Well this town is my home and I don't like you and that bitch showing your ugly faces around here." He motioned towards Lucy who was still on the ground.
I am not bitch and I am NOT ugly, she thought sourly.
"Look, we don't want any trouble. We'll find some other place to go." He reached down to help Lucy off the floor. The boyfriend moved. It looked like he was going to shove Bacchus but the palm magic user was too fast. He brought his fist around into the larger man's gut. He crumpled to the ground, making gagging noises.
Bacchus helped Lucy off the floor. "Let's get out of here." She nodded and they started to make their way towards the exit.
The man on the floor called out after them. "You'll regret that asshole."
Bacchus flipped him the bird without looking back. "Fuck off." They let the door close behind them as they left the bar.
Luffy fan: Special thanks to randigirl for editing this chapter in just a few hours. I am heading out on vacation so there probably won't be another update for at least a week (unless I find some time).
Thank you to everyone for making this my most reviewed story. I have some good ideas for the next couple chapters.