Chapter Two
Groggily Lucy acknowledged Horologium sounding the hour of four from within his key. She felt a headache coming on. The sun had not yet risen, and she got up to get ready. With some displeasure, she noted the stench of boar was overwhelming. The barkeep, Jax, had said something about a small water closet at the end of the hallway with a tub. She gathered her things and headed down the hall.
When she got into the poorly kept bathroom and turned on the tub, the water ran cold. In fact, there was no separate hot and cold, just on. Bracing herself, she washed up as quickly as she could. It was surprisingly refreshing. Having gotten changed, she went downstairs.
Nobody was there yet, and so she had to heave the front door open with quite a bit of effort.
When she was out, she caught her breath as she stared at the mountain. Lucy thought that there wasn't anything particularly 'ominous' about it. As she walked along the dirt roads of the village she admired it's steep rock walls and strong stance against the desert. Life seemed to cling to it in stark contrast to the endless sands.
Soon the small building came into view. It was probably the tallest in the village by virtue of its bell tower. The first signs of dawn were creeping along the landscape, and she hoped she would not be waking up father Sky as she rapped on the large wooden doors. Lucy thought she heard an incredulous scoff from the other side and definite movement. She was not waiting long before a tall and thin man opened up one of the doors.
"What is it- Oh," father Sky looked to be slightly confused and then shrugged it off. "Good morning, I think. My name is Sky. What can I help you with at this fine hour?"
Lucy blushed a little bit at the sarcasm, but smiled warmly. "Um, I came here looking for a friend. I was told someone saw you speaking with him, a blonde mage? I was hoping you might be able to help me."
Father Sky waved her in, and Lucy stepped inside. With a rather loud thud the door was pushed back into place. Sounds echoed oddly in the empty stone church. There was not much on the walls to absorb noise, just a few paintings. Wooden pews filled the small space before a pulpit and she noted only two doors to side rooms. Father Sky sat down in the middle of one of the pews and gestured for her to sit. Next to him there was a mug of coffee that he had left behind that he was already half way through. A small satisfied smile grew as he drank from it.
"Excuse my manners," he apologized.
"It's not a problem, I know it's early, I'm just glad I didn't wake you."
"Your friend keeps an earlier schedule as of late," the man grumbled.
"Do you know where Laxus is right now? I'd like to speak with him," Lucy with no small amount of excitement. Sky winced slightly at the shift up in octave. Taking another deep drink of his coffee, he then shook his head.
"I can't tell you exactly, but I know your friend is somewhere on the mountain. He came into town about a week ago with some others asking about it. Somebody directed them to me, and I have given them all the information I can, but nothing came of it. There is some mention of a city in the books I've collected from those who've claimed to have seen it. But it's all riddles and generalizations," he gestured to the door closest to them. "I am in charge of maintaining the village's small library, through that door over there. Your friend has become a little obsessed I think, and I offered to keep him for the duration of his search. The barkeep felt uncomfortable keeping so many Fairy Tail mages under one roof. He's been staying with me for a few days now, after the others left, and I don't see the bookmark on any of the tomes making progress. I think he's given up on reading and is waking up early to probably comb every inch of the mountainside. I doubt it'll do much good though."
"Why do you say that?"
"Anybody who's stumbled upon this city was not looking purposefully for it. Lately there have been more sightings, but anytime they return to look, they can't find it. I went up yesterday to check on your friend, but it didn't look like he'd made any progress except on exasperating his own sanity."
"Do you think he'll be back later?"
Father sky chuckled, "He'd better, I'm not going back up there to find him. He's actually been staying in the study, as I've no spare rooms." Lucy looked around again at the small church, and she wasn't surprised that the man hadn't much room to keep guests.
"Do you mind if I take a look at some of these books?"
"Absolutely. They're for everyone to read and borrow as they please."
Fishing around in her purse, Lucy found her gale force reading glasses and headed off in the direction of the study. She paused just before the door, and sheepishly inquired, "I am afraid last night was a bit of a late night. Do you have any more coffee…?" The man nodded knowingly.
"As soon as I'm done with this cup, I can bring you some to the study."
"Thanks!" And with that she disappeared into the library.
Lucy had originally separated out some books that were clearly supposed to have been from the mountain. Quickly she went through a stack of five, but they were as father Sky had said, full of literal riddles. For some context, Lucy had decided to delve into the rest of the library. Time must have been going by quicker then she thought, for when she looked up at her cup of coffee it was cold. Father Sky had placed it on the desk, saying something about going to the schoolhouse to help with the children, and then walked out.
Not being completely aware of what had snapped her out of her reading trance, she was shocked to see none other than Laxus open up the door to the study. He seemed equally surprised. Turning down his sound pod, as she could hear it from over here it was so loud, he addressed her curiously.
"What are you doing here Lucy? And why do you smell like a pig pen?"
Laxus folded his arms while he waited. Lucy ignored the insult and took a moment under that intense stare to look at how he had changed since she'd last saw him. Laxus had dark circles under his eyes now, or at least darker than normal. She noticed he was distinctly dusty. It was evident most on the fur edging of his coat. Seeing her stare, he absent-mindedly brushed at the trim as she responded.
Good, now she could tell him how he needed to come back- "I'm here researching for an article on the faery city," she lied, but not quite registering why. Lucy was certain she had meant to say she was here to talk to him about reforming the guild, but those were not the words that came out! "I'm an editor for the Weekly Sorcerer!" She added with pride. "I heard you're here looking for the city too?"
It didn't take a genius to pick up on her anxiety. Laxus let it slide, smirking slightly in amusement. Having superior smell and hearing meant he was used to knowing more than he let on. There were some tells no one could learn to hide. "Yes, I sense something powerful in the mountain. I've been looking for an entrance for a while now, but you knew that."
Lucy nodded, and blushed slightly under that distinctly knowing stare. "Yes, and I've done some research on the subject."
"I see," he interrupted with a nod to the growing piles of books. At this point, it looked as though she were building a book fort.
"I've separated out the few which reference it, but they're riddles. I think I've gotten what I can from though…"
"Freed looked over this one a week ago." Pulled out a book without a title, sending the stack it was under tumbling. With reverence for the books, Lucy caught them and reset them on the desk.
"Freed mentioned a riddle about water-"
"Runs smoother than any rhyme, loves to fall but cannot climb!" Lucy quoted effortlessly. Laxus raised an eyebrow, and Lucy coughed and gestured for him to continue.
"But there's no sign of an entrance near the river. The book also mentions electricity, but the whole mountain smells of ozone, there's no one place…" He paused, for she looked ready to say something again.
"I drift forever with the current down these long canals they've made, tame, yet wild, I run elusive multitasking to your aid. Before I came, the world was darker, colder, sometimes rougher true, but though I might make living easy, I'm good at killing people too."
Chuckling a bit at the word for word quote, a smile forming for he was particularly fond of that riddle, he added, "Anyway Lucy, that's all I know."
"Well, perhaps someone else can put this in context for us. We should find a person whose been there and back…"
"We?"
"It will be easier with a second perspective," she pointed out. "Why are you here by yourself anyway?" To make her point, she leaned to either side as if to try and spot an imaginary following. Laxus looked intently at a corner of the ceiling.
"I didn't want to waste anybody else's time. This was all about just a feeling I had."
It was Lucy's turn to ignore an obvious cop out answer. "I'm here for an article, it's my job."
Laxus relaxed, letting his arms drop to his sides more casually. "In that case, where to?"
Peeking outside past a thin curtain, she noticed it was midday. "I got in this time yesterday and everybody was at the bar. We should definitely start there," she said confidently.
Moving out of the doorway, Laxus stepped aside for Lucy to take the lead. When they got to the bar however, she looked embarrassed. "Would you mind grabbing the…?" Laxus opened the door as though it were nothing. When they got inside Lucy noticed some familiar faces.
"Hey sweetheart, care to join us for some more drinks?" The mason, Tucker she now knew, was wearing a wolfish grin. He pushed his drinking buddy, Rufino, a spot over for her.
Lucy smiled and waved to them as she approached the bar. "Sorry guys, not tonight. I was hoping for some information."
As she got closer, Rufino reached over and pinched her on the arm playfully. "Aw, come on hot stuff, can't you spare just half an hour of your time for us? We had such fun last night, didn't we?"
Tucker started to feel distinctly uncomfortable as he noticed Lucy's friend. Arms folded, Laxus had fixed a glare upon Rufino. There was something familiar about the feeling it inspired. Kind of like looking up at the mountain for too long. Plastering a friendly smile over his face, Tucker switched gears and started smoothing things over.
"He's had a couple drinks already, don't pay him any mind Lucy. What do you need to know?"
When it looked like Rufino was about to interrupt and dig himself a bigger hole, Tucker elbowed him. Lucy did not seem to notice the shift in their demeanor.
"My friend and I are looking for the entrance to the entrance to the faery city. Do you know anyone who's been?" Tucker nodded and pointed to a thin younger woman by herself at a table. Her eyes were locked on her mug as if willing to disappear into it. "Thanks guys, I'll see you around," she added with a wink.
"Her name is Michelle," Tucker added. As Lucy made a beeline for the table, Laxus lingered for a moment. Rufino turned away from the glare towards the bar and ordered a strong drink. Following an oblivious Lucy, Laxus noticed with satisfaction nobody else was trying to get her attention. She was single mindedly pursuing her lead, which did not see them coming as introspective as Michelle was.
"Hello, Michelle is it? I'm Lucy, and this is my friend Laxus." Finally acknowledging them, Michelle looked a little surprised to see her standing there.
"That's me," She answered, slurring slightly and perhaps a little bored.
Noticing her cold demeanor, Lucy infused as much charm as possible into her voice, trying to get her to open up to them. "We heard you may know something about how to find the entrance to the city?" The sweet tone would have probably worked better without an annoyed looking Laxus behind her. Thankfully, their interest in the subject was enough to get Michelle talking.
"Yes, I remember it was near water. The entrance was a large mouth of something carved in stone… It had mossy scales and fangs longer then I am tall. It had the most terrifying crystal eyes that stared into your soul…" Michelle drifted a bit, getting lost in the memory. Lucy politely cleared her throat.
"You mean by the river, right?"
Michelle furrowed her brow in concentration. "There are no other water sources on the mountain. But the thing is I've looked since and couldn't find it." Her voice had started unsure but gained confidence as she added, "That must be it, it has to hidden somewhere near the spring of the river."
Scoffing a bit, Laxus pressed her, "Anything else?"
"Sorry," Michelle responded with a tired shrug. Turning back to the mug, Lucy knew Michelle had ended the conversation. Grabbing an empty table, Lucy stopped to think a moment.
"It's definitely not the river," she declared as though stating the obvious.
"That's all anybody says, water," Laxus pointed out as he leaned back and put his feet up. Jax halfheartedly protested from the bar.
"I have more confidence in you then that Laxus, you would've found it by now if it was," Lucy replied diplomatically.
Laxus shrugged it off. "What's your idea?"
"Describe the mountain to me?" She prompted as she dug out a notepad and a quill.
"There's the river, bushes, and dirt," he commented dryly.
"Seriously."
"I don't know. I focused on the closest side, it had a cave where the river springs from and that's about it." He paused to see if that was sufficient. He saw that she still had her quill poised in anticipation and sighed. A headache was coming on. Rubbing at his temple he added, "There's a cliff on the south side, the north is just a slope, and the east is…"
"And the east?"
Taking his feet off the table, he started rubbing at his forehead with both hands. "I just said," irritation creeping into his voice. Lucy however looked as pleased as could be.
"No you didn't, that's it. Let's go," she concluded, hopping up and snatching up one of his hands and pulling him up out of the chair. Laxus didn't resist initially. Her determined stride was cut short however by the door. Obligingly, he opened it, and stopped a moment to hang his coat with a word to Jax about making sure it was there when they returned, only to start being dragged off again.
"I got it, I'm going," he huffed. Lucy paused, her cheeks heating up as she released him. Lucy knew that she had a tendency to get overly excited while investigating such things. An uncomfortable silence formed.
"You should stay here while I check it out," he said finally. Laxus looked away to avoid the crushed look.
"Why? I thought we were going to figure this out together…"
"It's too dangerous," Laxus interjected. "I can feel it from half a continent between us. I am going to beat this thing and get stronger."
When he looked at her from the corner of his eye to gauge her reaction, Laxus saw her square up her shoulders. Instant regret flooded him. "And what about me? I'm just going to sit here and wait for you to tell me all about it when you get back?"
"I came out here to better myself," He pointed out, striding meaningfully away from her. Lucy bit her lip as she felt her own loneliness rise up. She couldn't let him walk away, just as she was starting to feel like she was home again.
"I won't get in the way! Please, let me help. I miss being part of a team." She winced at the sound of her own desperation. Laxus paused to look over his shoulder, before turning back to watch where he was going.
"Do what you want," was all he said. Lucy smiled brightly, her spirits instantly lifted, and she hurried after him. She noticed as she drew within a few feet of him, he seemed to evade her, quickening his pace or moving to the side. Shrugging to herself, she broached the subject of their plan now that she was officially on board.
"I think we should record on paper all we see and do. Maybe we can outsmart whatever spell is hiding the entrance." The notepad and quill had never made it back into her bag. Eagerly she resumed making her notes. "Which side should we use to go around?"
"The north."
Another pause in conversation stretched out as if into infinity. A map had soon developed on her paper. Every now and then Lucy would stop and look out at the landscape. Suffocating heat penetrated every pore of the mountain, making it shimmer. There was a host of wildlife tucked into the shelter of crevices, shocking her by the sheer density of their numbers. At one point, she had spotted a lion resting under the shade of a scraggly tree over a cliff. They had made a point to avoid its trap, more for its sake then theirs. Lucy could scarcely bring herself to be worried about such things with the lightening mage around. But, she was impressed that such a large carnivore appeared to be getting by in the midst of the unforgiving territory.
They navigated the best paths for a while, but soon their choices became slim and dislikable. Loose dirt covered sharp boulders, their hard gleaming edges poking up through the softness of the soil with malice. Lucy found it hard to concentrate on writing between cautious glances at where she was putting her feet down. Laxus on the other hand was clearly suffering in the heat. Whenever Lucy stole glances to see how he faired she saw ever increasing amounts of sweat. It was probably a poor choice of timing, as she was not doing much better, but Lucy knew he was just as eager to get to the heart of the mountain. Her eyes lingered perhaps a little too long on the way his shirt was clinging to him.
She squealed as her footing predictably failed her. An edge of the path they were on gave way, right where she had put her weight down. Having made her peace with her soon to be close acquaintance with one of those sharp rocks, she was of course slow to realize she was hanging by her wrist.
Hoisting her back up to eye level, Laxus said sternly, "Pay attention to where you're going," before setting her down onto a stable portion of the path. Lucy's face flushed a bright red, feeling like a burden, and she fell in step much further behind then earlier. They went on like that for a while before he stopped to address her wallowing. "How am I supposed to keep an eye on you from half a mile away?"
It sounded like a practical statement, but it was softened by an arrogant smirk. Trying to regain her earlier confidence, Lucy smiled back; hoping feelings of cheeriness would follow the act. "I can keep myself out of trouble." Still, she did pick up her speed as requested. Satisfied, Laxus resumed walking, adding, "We're almost to where my memory gets hazy. I hope this idea of yours works."
Ahead were ever thickening tangles of bramble, interspersed with trees. Lucy noticed they seemed especially unforgiving, with their thin broad canopies interspersed with inch long needles. Even the twisting bark of their trunks seemed dried out and gnarled in a sinister fashion. The shade however was much appreciated. As they got further in a dense bedding of the needles covered the ground, threatening to go straight through a shoe sole if one put their foot down wrong. Lucy was just recording how the path was turning when she realized she had not written anything at all and was just walking while staring at a blank page.
"Laxus, do you hear water running?"
He stopped, face scrunched slightly in confusion, as just now his mind had been completely blank. With his superior hearing, he noticed there was indeed the sound of water further down the side of the mountain. The exact location evaded him, but he relayed it to Lucy and they shifted course to a clearing of the brambles heading down the side of the mountain, but it was not what one would call a path.
Progress was painfully slow. It only took a few minutes for their focus to shift and Lucy would have to reacquaint Laxus and herself with the task by reviewing her notes. She wouldn't have said so aloud, for it must've been hard on him to depend so much on this tactic, but it made her feel useful. She was in genuinely high spirits when they stumbled upon a cave.
"The sound is coming from in there," Laxus told her, confirming their suspicions. This was indeed their destination.
Author: Thanks for your input, everyone! I hope you all enjoyed this new chapter. Next one will probably be up within the week, see you then!