Last Chapter:
"The Thunder God and his bride, The Celestial Maiden has descended from the heavens."
Arriving late at the train station, Team Natsu was both disappointed and thankful. Disappointed for four reasons: One, because they didn't manage to finish the job. This will stain the reputation of Fairy Tail. Second, someone else finished it before they do. It's their pride and promise that no matter what, a Fairy Tail Wizard will always complete the task. Third, since they're not the ones that defeated these thieves or bandits or whatever one can call them, there's no money, meaning, no food. Fourth, since they arrived late, they didn't even saw a glance of who were the people that 'stole' their money. They did ask the people who witnessed the whole scene but all of their replies were the very same thing. The Thunder God and the Celestial Maiden. They suspected that those were Laxus and Lucy but what puzzles them the most was the 'bride' part. They asked the crowd to describe their appearances but they said that they were too far from the battle to see what they looked like, just a man and a woman and all they see were bright flashes of light. They stopped interrogating the people. This wasn't their job. They'll call the Rune Knights to arrest the culprits and head back to the City Hall to report of their failure. On the other hand, they were thankful to the people who defeated the bandits. Whoever they were, thanks. Now, they'll be able to continue their search for Lucy.
"Ne, Natsu, what does those people mean?" Happy was the first to spoke. They were walking rather slowly back to the City Hall. The Rune Knights arrived quickly and arrested the criminals.
"Mean what?" Natsu asked half-heartedly. He was walking behind Gray and Erza, both arms crossed in the back of his head, lost in thoughts.
"The Thunder God thing."
"Uhmmm. Don't know about that. Erza, Gray, whatcha think?"
"Nope. No idea. Erza, any idea?" Gray said, not looking back at Natsu and still walking.
"No clue either. Maybe we should ask the mayor." Erza suggested.
It was a good thing that the commotion a while ago caused the townsfolk's' attention to shift. Now, they will be able to enjoy a nice quiet walk, with no people fawning over them and whispering not too subtly behind their backs. Minutes passed and thankfully, they have reached the place. They knocked on the door but before Erza's knuckles touch the wood for a second try, it opened, revealing the man a while ago, beaming a huge smile on his face.
"Thank you, thank you for that!" He was jumping up and down; giddy to get rid of the thieves pestering their town.
"Uhmm…Mayor, If I may, we didn't finish the quest." Erza spoke up, a little too embarrassed.
"What do you mean?" The mayor was obviously puzzled by this and a bit worried that the bandits could wreck another thieving spree in their town.
"The culprits have been already arrested by the Rune Knights but we weren't the one that defeated them. Someone else did. When we got there, they were already down." Erza explained. All of the boys remained silent.
"I understand but I would still want you to have this money." Erza was surprised. Gray and Natsu's attention perked up. They might have matured to the men they are now but money is still money, right? Erza thought about this for a while and then answered.
"No, sir. We can't accept it." Erza said with pride. They have lost some when they didn't manage to defeat those thieves. They refuse to lose another this time.
"B-But…" The mayor protested. He too didn't want to lose his pride. He wanted to pay these children because they have come a long way and besides, the goodwill could boost his popularity in the coming elections.
"It's okay, sir, but we do have a question." Erza remembered the passenger's words a while ago.
"What is it?" The man's ears perked up in hearing something that could do some favor to these children.
"Can you tell us about this Thunder God and Celestial Maiden thing?" Erza was hopefully wishing that it was nothing but a man's spur-of-the-moment statement of awe. If it was, then there's a possibility that it could be Laxus and Lucy in town.
"Oh, that." The man's feature softened. "It was an old legend here in our town. You see, our town believes in deities, particularly in the Thunder God and his bride. Elders said that at the time before Zeref attained his immortality, there lived an orphaned girl, a mortal so beautiful, her eyes were soul-deep, hair that shames the golden rays of the sun, lips as red as the reddest rose and skin as immaculate and gentle as the moon's light. True to the meaning of beauty, her humility and modesty was rooted to her core. One day, the Thunder God happens to take a glance at her and at that second, he knew he loved her. He descended from the heavens to court her like a human, humbled himself despite his immortality. In a month, the girl has fallen in love with him too. Having no one left behind, she was taken to the heavens and made immortal. Legend said that when calamity and destruction comes, one or both of them will come."
"Wow. Man, that sounds over-the-top." Natsu commented. He was also disappointed that it turned out as far-fetched as a myth. Guess that there's no Lucy again. Just when they thought they have a new lead to find her. Natsu just sighed in silent frustration.
"Yeah, I was like that ten years ago…an nonbeliever" The mayor spoke again, face lost in torrent of memories.
"What do you mean?" Gray asked.
"I was a fisherman back then and I still remember it clearly like it happened yesterday. Ten years ago, a demon attacked this town; all could have died in its wake if not for the Celestial Maiden and three of her most trusted Imperial Guards. One was a swordsman whose plumage changes its color from white to black; the other was a dragon with fire so lethal, it burns intensely and last was a magic knight capable of producing hundreds of lances."
"How can you know it was real? You could be dreaming." Happy asked in curiosity.
"I saw them fighting the demon. It was huge and the feel of its magical power was too evil to be a dream. Good thing was, in the end, they defeated it and disappeared. Forever." The mayor finished the story, smiling as he managed to recount the story of his youth.
"Thanks for the information, sir. We will be going now." Erza started towards the door. Natsu and Gray followed and soon all of them exited the building. Now, they will focus on searching for Lucy. With that thought, they happily started a new quest with new-found determination and a hopeful smile.
The mayor, now sitting on his chair and his arms in his table suddenly remembered something. 'Those children remind me of something. No, someone. Who were they?' Suddenly, images flashed through his mind. His eyes bulged in remembrance. He was certain now. 'They didn't change a bit, those children.'
"Thank you for defeating that demon ten years ago." He whispered to himself as he smiled at the memory.
A/N: Helloooo guys! And here's another chapter for y'all. Hahaha. Sorry for leaving that cliffhanger. I really want to put another.
VespraKiora: Hahaha. Sorry for stopping in that part :)
Paname: Thanks for the review. I'm glad you loved it. Here's another chapter. I hope you enjoy this too. :)
xXimmortalXx and AnimeLuver778: Here's the explanation for the last chapter and thank you for the reviews. :)
Paralized: Thank you for loving the story and LaLu is the BEST! :)