Chapter 23

Onix blinked, did Sting just flip her? That little bastard. Growling, she grabbed the ankle near her ear and yanked on it so the owner fell to the floor. The scent of copper was mild but alerted the bluette to the raging Lucy currently giving Lisanna a bloody lip. This wasn't meant to happen. Celestial Mages were meant to be able to hold thousands of Demons as well as their Keys. She shouldn't have been this angry so early in the exchange. Unless-

This was serious.

Onix launched herself back onto her feet, not caring about the rip in her skin. The blonde didn't seem to realise that the white haired mage was unconscious. Zara smirked at that, her eyes widening in amusement. Another hand gripped her elbow and was about to knock her off gravity. Countering it, she shook it off before landing a kick at Sting's stomach. The force sent him back, crashing into Natsu who was recovering from the shock of a Demon eating his magic energy.

Our favourite Celestial Mage continued with the beating, eventually gripping the girl's shoulder and throwing her across the arena and into the brick wall. Since when had she gotten this psychotic? Weren't her nakama everything to her? Shouldn't she be stopping? The blonde stopped her descent towards her ex-friend and focused on the murmurs coming from the crowd. Lucy's senses had dulled considerably, drunk off of the sight of blood rolling off of her hands. Cocking her head, she felt feathery fingers dance across her palm, cold against the immense heat. Onix nodded at her, letting her know she wasn't alone in what they were both thinking.

"Time Out!" They both screamed much to the confusion of every guild except their own.

Liz twisted her white hair around her index finger, she'd had it cut recently so that it rested just below her bust. Venus stared out of the window of the cafe they'd decided to rent out for themselves, her slitted, green eyes challenging anyone who attempted to open the door labeled: Francois Boutique, Open My Darlings!

In all honesty, Ruki and Rosie quite liked the man who ran it. Even if he was a little 'over enthusiastic about clothed.' 'Batted for the other team.' Those two days of shameless flirting from Iris had gone completely unnoticed yet she'd thought she was doing well. Twisting her glossy, black hair. Batting her eyes. Pushing her chest out. So when Francois boyfriend came over, embarrassment was an understatement.

Lucy's blonde hair was sprawled across the table as she groaned into it, her head resting. Onix was busy shoving cake into her mouth whilst Memory and Angeline had decided to plait their Mistress's hair to calm her nerves.

"I can't believe I did that"

Great, she's off again.

"I told you Luce, it isn't your fault you went completely bonkers and nearly killed Lisanna" The bluette consoled half-halfheartedly, her mind fixed on the keys whilst her eyes and stomach on the strawberry icing in front of her. Another groan was emitted from Lucy's mouth.
"Gee, thanks Onix"

"No problem" Unaware of sarcasm was one reason she enjoyed talking to others freely. Nobody would say anything straight forward.

"I don't even remember going loose, thank god they let us take a two hour break"

Rosie hummed in response, giving herself a mustache using her blonde hair. Ruki spotted her and began to copy with her tanned strands.
"Hey, isn't our time up now?" Iris asked, her arms hugging Eden from behind who-surprise surprise- had her blonde head in a book.

Once again, the crowd cheered as Sting, Natsu, Onix and Lucy stood in the arena. All too aware of the puddle of blood smeared on the ground and wall. The canon blew.

Lucy took her stance, prepared to rush in and start beating Sting when it happened. Natsu charged up, arms ablaze. Onix had to swerve, losing her balance once her opponent shot a beam of light in her direction.

"Shit!" The girls swore in sync.

Something hitting the floor was what made the Hex Dispeller look to the side. The Celestial Mage was lying under a certain pink haired idiot, dodging his flaming fists. A collision between her skull and a fist brought her attention back to the fight at hand.

Sting was coming for her.

And not in the way she'd hoped he would.

She ducked and the Light Dragon Slayer tripped over her form, landing face first into the dirt. A laugh threatened to tear her throat, so instead she ran over to her sister. Rugby tackling the Fairy Tail member seemed appropriate. The two flew off of Lucy, allowing her to move once again.

"Thanks!"

"Welcome!"

Onix gasped, sweat rolling down her face and onto the sand. Natsu was better than she expected, almost as if this was more important than Dragon Mating Season. She pondered what he'd do if Lucy hadn't disappeared from his life. The celebratory month had passed already, and questions of whether or not he'd successfully tracked down his 'promised one.'

A sickening crunch came from behind her, noting it was her own body caving in to the punch directed at her mid-back. Boys. I swear to god. Onix blinked away tears as she dropped, something blonde was running from someone salmon. Looking up, a figure came into view. Their facial features were blocked out because of their decision of standing in front of the sun. The cold feeling of claws brought her out of the trance as her heart rate picked up. It was like back then, when he'd tried to kill him. Her brother. Almost like a switch had been flipped, her mind set into overdrive.

Zara rocketed upwards, grabbing his neck and sending her nails in through the skin. Cocking her head, she released him. Sting had always been strong, but as soon as someone hit his weakness...Well you understand. Zara kicked his abdomen, rendering him motionless from the black stars dotting his vision. Straddling him, her hands found their way to his throat again, putting pressure there. She brought her lips down to his ear.

"I win"

And bit the flesh softly, teasingly. Grazing upwards, Zara planted a kiss on his cheek.

Lucy backed up against the arena wall. Out of ideas as she saw Onix already hit Sting and doing something to him which was probably indecent. The blonde gripped her Gate Keys, instinctively reaching for the Demon one. It wasn't there. Panic coursed through her veins as the next key seemed to draw her to it.

Loki.

Running further away from the panting Natsu, she drew the key out of it's sheath. "Gate of Leo! I open thee! Come forth...Leo!"

That familiar bright light enveloped the area around her, until the crush of Angeline appeared. Freaking showoff.

The Salamander was still trying to process what was standing in front of him. How did this girl have Loki? Wasn't he Lucy's Celestial Key?

Meanwhile with Erza

No, panicking would be an understatement for what was happening right now. They just had solid evidence that Lucy hadn't killed Elfman, meaning they'd kicked her out for no reason. Guilt tore up her insides, she'd known that day that something was off about the whole thing. Even Natsu had suspected it, though because of the Dragon Season, his hot temper had come back into play and he'd just exploded. Her fingernails were already bitten down to the nub,

"I'm so sorry Lucy" She said, looking out of the train window. She was sixteen minutes away from the Wizard Tournament, from exposing Lisanna and legalizing the search team already searching for their missing comrade, something they'd wanted to do so from day 3. The red haired mage stared out onto the green land covering the side of the track leading off into thick foliage. The train halted to a stop, toppling slightly before increasing it's speed for the city in the distance. Curious, she wrenched open her cabin door and peered out the opposite window, catching a glimpse of whatever was trying to run them off of the track.

Well shit.

It wasn't when the canon was fired did they know they'd won, it was when their sister's shouts of triumph cut through the atmosphere. Grinning, the two Mistress' pumped their fists into the air. The crowd cheered.

"Demon Tears wins!" The announcer blasted through the speakers. Onix reached out for Sting's hand and hoisted him up before dragging him somewhere quieter. Lucy smirked as she had a slight idea of what she was going to tell him. Breaking one of her own rules really wasn't expected. Rule 7: No Dating Boys. They'd even had to repeat oaths so she was convinced they wouldn't leave her behind with relationships. The Celestial Mage stretched upwards.

"Where did you get that key?"

She froze, turning around mechanically. "Hm?"

"Leo. Where did you get that key?" Natsu's eyes had hardened, mutely threatening that if she lied he'd tear her limb from limb. When it came to the friend he wanted back home so he could hug her again, Natsu wasn't going to accept excuses.

"I don't know what you mean"

"Cut the crap" Lucy flinched at the use of language from her Natsu. Wait, 'her'? "I have someone I want to find and she had that key"

"Like I said, we'd offered someone from Fairy Tail a spot in the guild and she'd turned us down" Lying seemed good, "I suggest you stop looking for this mystery woman whilst you still can"

A growl left from the teenage boy standing a few feet away. His arms were crossed over his chest, reminding her of the toned muscle present for her to see. When was the last time she'd had those arms wrapped around her waist as she slept? Lucy shook the thoughts away.

"I'm warning you. Tell me what I want to know!"
"Why? So you can throw it out of your head like you did to me?!"

Attention! Calling all Artistic Personals!:

I was wondering if anyone would draw one of the OC's? Or perhaps the original owners of them wouldn't mind doing it? I've been asked since it seems easier to remember what they look like instead of having to go back to previous chapters to recall what they looked like.

PM me if you're interested!

Attention! Calling all OC Making Personals!:

I need some creators for upcoming OC's, preferably 3-5 so that there is a good number. These OC's will be put in upcomming chapters with kick ass roles. If anyone wants to submit an OC, they'll have to be really descriptive about how they look and how they act as well as love interests, how they met and all that stuff!

PM me if you're interested.

Thanks for reading! R&R

-Fae-chan