A/N:
First Published: June 12th, 2014
Most Recent Revision: September 16th, 2015
Favs/Follows: FairyTailGirl2, Nalugirl, Shinigamidemidragonslayer99, BrittFredlove, December 25th, trueviolet1216, Bentears, and BlueFiestaMockingjayPie
December 25th: When I realized my mistake with the A/N's, I facepalmed so hard. Thanks for the heads up on that. As for the grammar, I revised it yesterday, adding in a couple words here and there. All in all, thanks for reading!
FairyTailGirl2: Nice idea to add a quote! Although I don't have a quote for you, needless to say, thanks for reading. :D
Bentears: Good to know that you're looking forward to more chapters. :D
Birds were tweeting happily as the sun rose and shed light on Magnolia. Some residents of Magnolia were still asleep as it was six a.m. Many consider that time to be a little too early, but not to our resident Celestial Mage. Our dear mage was up bright and early eager to start a new day. Not only did she get to spend another day at Fairy Tail, but also a day to make some contracts! All dressed and ready to go, Lucy grabbed her keys and headed for the door.
She merrily walked to the guild, summoning Plue along the way to greet and squeeze him tight. Lucy, being way too excited, decided to sprint not caring about her makeup and clothes for once. She saw the guild doors in the distance and smiled to herself.
'What a day it's going to be! Not only am I gonna make new friends, I've decided to train to get stronger, too. Yukino really got me thinking…" thought Lucy.
The distance between Lucy and the guild doors grew shorter and shorter as Lucy chose to quicken her pace even more. Finally, she reached her destination only to find it locked.
Lucy internally frowned and thought, 'Hmm, maybe six was a little too early. What should I do now?'
Making her decision, she sat on a nearby bench to wait for Mira or the Master to come open the doors. A couple minutes into the wait, she thought now would be a good time to establish contracts between her and the new keys she received. Knowing her limit and magic power, Lucy summoned only one.
'I should probably focus on that during training.' thought Lucy, knowing that she lacked being able to summon more than one spirit (1). She then shouted 'Gate of the Fish, I open thee. Pisces!'
Two fishes, one white and one black, emerged from the magic seal beneath Lucy. They intertwined with one another as they shot up into the sky. Along with the two fish, a giant, dark colored snake appeared as well.
"Ahh!" yelled Lucy, taken off guard by not only the two, large fish that appeared from the key, but also the ginormous serpent. Lucy was in panic mode as the animals thrashed around, and headed straight towards her.
Lucy froze in fear and shock, as the shadows of the animals grew larger. She crouched down, covered her head with her hands and hoped for the best. A couple seconds passed slowly.
Lucy, surprised how there was no impact, looked up slightly from her defensive position. Standing still and smiling, were two humans. The humans' characteristics astounded Lucy. Thinking about her guild's wide array of hair colors and styles, perhaps not so weird. The serpent was nearby, coiled into a circle like a long, dark piece of rope.
Recovering from her shock, Lucy stood up and looked at the spirits more clearly. The humans looked very different from each other despite being one key. Obviously, their facial features and body showed that one was a boy while the other was a young female adult. The boy had long and spiky gray hair and was equipped with a trident. The woman had long, dark blue hair and had a crown like accessory on her forehead. Acknowledging the snake-ish creature by the humans, it was very large. Lucy didn't know what spirit this was, and therefore questioned it's presence in her mind.
Finally, Lucy spoke to the spirits and greeted the three.
"Hello! I take it you two are Pisces, but who is the other?" Lucy was very curious to see who the extra spirit was.
The woman opened her mouth, but the boy beat her to it.
"That's Ophiuchus! As for us, I'm Genzai while the lady's Mizu. We're mother and son. (2)." said Genzai as he explained who they were.
Saying the first thing on my mind, I questioned, "Can Ophiuchus talk?"
A deep rumbling noise came from the said animal as he slithered up to get a view of the people below.
"Indeed human, I can talk. But before you question why I am here, I'll let you and Pisces talk it out." Ophiuchus then glided back down into his original position and went into what seemed like a nap to Lucy.
Taking Ophiuchus' advice, Pisces began to talk. This time however, Mizu beat Genzai before he can utter a single word.
"I take it that you summoned us for a contract right?" asked Mizu.
Lucy nodded.
"Alright, I'm available on all days except Sunday while Genzai here, is available the whole week. Got that down?"
Using a notebook that seemed to appear out of nowhere, Lucy wrote down the days they were available. When she finished, Pisces started to disappear into particles.
"We'll be looking forward to work with you, Lucy!" Mizu shouted before she and Genzai dematerialized.
Smiling contently as one of her contracts of the day was finished, Lucy shifted her focus onto Ophiuchus. Sadly, the snake was still in its slumber. Mustering up courage, Lucy walked towards the snake and poked it. Weirdly, its body compromised of both scales and metal. It's lower half was covered in metal plating, in shingle like formation while the upper half was regular reptile scales accompanied by a single mark on each ridge.
Annoyed how Ophichus won't wake up, Lucy kept poking him repeatedly in order to awaken the beast. After many attempts, there was a movement from the snake and a very ticked off head appeared in front of Lucy.
"Tch, don't you know any other way to wake someone up?" grumbled Ophiuchus as he uncoiled himself. "Is Pisces gone already?"
"Yeah, they left 5 minutes ago," replied Lucy. "So, why are you here?"
"Be patient, I was just getting there." After an eternity of waiting, Ophiuchus and slid closer to Lucy. "Yukino told you how she gave her keys to you right?"
Lucy once again nodded and pulled out both Pisces and Libra.
Ophiuchus looked at the keys and said, "Hmm, it looks like she forgot to give you my key as well. Did she mention me at all?"
Lucy shook her head and said, "No, she gave me only these," gesturing to them with her hand.
"Well, I guess have to explain it to you myself. You see, when Yukino mentioned how she talked with Pisces and Libra about her predicament and new magic, she also talked to me as well. Saying how she was giving the keys of Pisces and Libra to you, I said that I wouldn't mind giving up my key as well. Turns out she forgot to give it to you." Ophiuchus' key appeared in Lucy's hand. The key was golden and had a serpent coiled around the key shaft (3).
Grateful for another key, Lucy smiled and said, "Thanks!" and tucked the keys into her pouch. Smiling back as much as a snake can, Ophiuchus then disappeared.
Now satisfied with all the contracts made today, she sat on the bench again with Plue snuggled in her lap. Abruptly, she stood up and Plue tumbled to the ground.
"Ah, gomen Plue! I just forgot Libra!" said Lucy. Walking a couple steps away from the bench, Lucy shouted, "Gate of the Scales, I open thee! Libra!"
Appearing before Lucy was a masked woman. She had her zodiac symbol marked on her mask and carried two scales. Curious of the woman, Lucy greeted her and told her she was her new bearer.
"Hello, Lucy. I'm Libra. I'm sure you've seen me before right?"
Lucy nodded and proceeded to ask Libra what days she was available.
"Monday's are off but the rest are fine," stated Libra.
"Alright, thank you Libra. It'll be a pleasure to be working with you in the future."
Libra stared at her with her eyes crinkled up a bit showing she was smiling underneath her mask. After she disappeared completely, Lucy finally sat back down smiling with content.
Her moment of peace was interrupted when a nearby bush rustled. Taken by surprise, Lucy jumped up and looked around to scan her surroundings. Taking precautious steps, she looked into the bush to see the cutest white rabbit. Its pink nose twitched as it sniffed the air. Lucy watched it ever so quietly as it moved to the side only to scurry back into the underbrush not far from it's spot.
"Shouldn't the bunny be brownish? It's practically summer.. " said Lucy aloud. She sent the next moments musing quietly as she waited.
It wasn't until a shout of "Hey!" interrupted her thoughts. Lucy glanced up to the Mirajane and her siblings in tow.
She greeted them with a smile and watched as Mira opened the door with a key. 'Click!' it went.
They four entered and went about doing what they'd do at guild. Lucy's routine included sitting at the bar, doing exactly so as she headed towards it with Mira.
As Mira began her own, Lucy asked, "Could I have a strawberry milkshake?"
"Of course!" chirped Mira. "Let me head to the back and grab a few things."
It was at this time that Happy and Natsu appeared to the left of her, each occupying their own chair. Or, well, the countertop in Happy's case. The duo shouted into the backroom for Mira, asking for food.
Mira returned from the room with a milkshake and a platter and food in hand. Lucy and the two got their dishes respectively.
Mira took this moment to say, "Ne Lucy, before you left today, Levy found something that might interest you."
"Hmm, what is it?"
"She was reading a book about your keys and found something weird. It turns out, that not only is there the 12 Zodiac keys, but also Dragon and God keys!"
Natsu perked up at the word "dragon" and paused from eating. Finding interest in the topic at hand he asked,
"Mira! What do you mean dragon? Can Luce summon a dragon? Can it be Igneel?"
Lucy facepalmed at the barrage of questions and answered them in place of Mira.
"Natsu, I think she means that yes, I can summon a dragon using keys. It's a possibility that I can summon Igneel but it's not for sure. Did Levy find any information about where these keys could be Mira?"
"No, I don't think so Lucy. But once Levy comes in, you can ask her just in case." replied Mira.
"Well, it's about.." Mira glanced at the clock. "Nine, so Team Shadow gear and Master should probably come in right no-"
"Lu-chan!" a voice near the doors shouted interrupting Mira.
"Levy-chan! Good morning!" Lucy got out of her seat and ran to hug Levy. "Mira mentioned how you found some key info yesterday. Is that true?"
"Yup! But I think it's too good to be true! I mean Gajeel spent a while looking for his dragon and if you find Metalicana's key, he might as well stop looking!"
Lucy inwardly smiled and said, "Ho, excited about Gajeel ne?"
Levy blushed and saying words of denial. Ignoring her words, Lucy asked for the book that Levy read yesterday. Stopping her rant, Levy reached into her bag and grabbed the book titled, All You Want to Know About Keys. Saying a quick 'Thank you', Lucy grabbed the book and sat at a nearby table.
"I marked the pages that mention anything about the keys!" Levy then started talking to her team.
Finishing his food in a short period of time, Natsu made his way towards Lucy and grabbed the book out of her hands. Lucy shouted in protest, but Natsu opened the book anyway. Turning the book in his hand, Natsu muttered how much nonsense the book said. Realizing how Natsu can't read, Lucy grabbed and book and told Natsu to sit down.
"Would you like me to read it to you, Natsu?"
Natsu nodded eagerly. Lucy opened to the first marked page and Lucy read aloud:
The Rare Dragon Keys
Long ago when spirits were established and contracts were made, there existed special keys only available to the dragon queen. Where and when the first dragon queen originated remains a mystery, but it was said that the keys were passed down through generations and were kept hidden in a secret vault in the dragon realm. Many believe that when the many dragons disappeared from sight, it was in reality the dragon queen calling upon her dragons for a meeting. The current dragon queen is unknown.
Before Lucy could turn to the next page, Natsu started spewing fire excitedly.
"Lucy! If you find a dragon key, promise me you'll summon Igneel!"
Lucy laughed at his antics, but promised anyways. Natsu then settled back down and waited for the next page.
The Sealed God Keys
When the earth formed, humans were irrelevant. In place of the large population humans, were gods. No, not the kind of god who rules over everyone and thing, but the kind of god who mastered an element, earning its place in the heavenly society. This peaceful society remained intact, but inevitably, a god whose name was Lavet the Magma Wielder, stepped out of line and thrashed about bringing disorder to the chain. Annoyed at the sudden casualty, Maya the Wind Goddess conducted a spell to seal away Lavet. Unfortunately, the spell went wrong and each and every god was sealed, including Maya herself. After the sealing, each god turned into a respective key. The only god remaining is the god we worship today. The god keys are currently in the possession of the Spirit King in the Celestial Dimension. It was foretold that on July 1st, X791, the Spirit King is to give the keys to one of his spirits to give to their master. Once given to the master, contracts are automatically established and the master is able to immediately use their prowess. Mages worldwide are waiting for this day.
"July 1st?" questioned Lucy. "That's my birthday! Ack, shouldn't have said that out loud!" Lucy looked around only to see Natsu smiling.
"Luce! You never told me your birthday was coming up! That's in 2 weeks!" Natsu shouted. He then went and told Mira who had a suspicious sparkle in her eye…
Lucy let out a sigh. Her birthday won't be kept much of a secret now that Natsu and Mira knew. Ignoring the fact that her secret has been let out, she continued reading in her mind secretly missing Natsu's presence.
After the reading the "Sealed God Keys" chapter, Lucy turned to the next marked page only to find it ripped out. Surprised at the treatment of the book, Lucy walked to Levy and asked her about the missing page.
"Nani! When I found this book in the library, it was completely new! The old librarian just gave it to me exclaiming it wasn't something that should be in her library. Hmm…" Levy grabbed the book gently out of my hand and examined the page. She muttered to herself every once in a while completely ignorant that the rest of the Fairy Tail gang entered the guild. Telling Levy she'll be right back, Lucy went over to Erza and Gray and told them about Levy's discovery.
"Hmm." pondered Erza. "Lucy, this is definitely a discovery to look into. Ever since the Nightmare Arc, many Celestial mages lost their keys. Celestial mages are pretty rare now because of what happened. Who knows if you might be the one getting those god keys?" Lucy was left thinking about the possibilities.
After her little speech, Erza walked to the bar and asked Mira for a cake. She sat on the bar eating happily until a chair came her way. She skillfully dodged the chair, but was unaware of the table zooming its way towards her. Taken off guard by the table, she dropped her cake…
Entering death glare mode, she looked around her eyes scanning for the culprit. Her eyes finally landed on Natsu and Gray. Gray was undressed only in his underwear while Natsu was on fire. They were nose to nose, sparks cackling in between them. Still glaring at each other for who knows what fight they got into now, they had no idea of the danger emitting off of Erza. Annoyed at how she wasn't being acknowledged, she bonked them on their heads and yelled how the guild was a place to make friends and not a place to start pointless arguments. Finally finishing scolding the pyromaniac and ice mage, she questioned if they were going to fight again.
"N-no 'mam, aye!" they said in unison.
Lucy laughed at my team's stupidity and walked back to Levy.
"Ne, Levy, did you find out what happened?" Lucy questioned Levy in hopes of getting an answer regardless if it was her book or not.
"Nope, I can't seem to find what happened. I'll have to bring it to the librarian and ask if she has any idea what could have happened." replied Levy as she put the book into her bag and looked up at Lucy. "I'll try to bring it to her tomorrow."
"Thanks! I'm really curious on what was on that page!" said Lucy happy that her friend was willing to visit the librarian.
Lucy gave Levy a quick hug and then went to talk to Erza. The said mage asked if she needed anything.
"Hai, I do Erza. I was wondering if we could go on a mission. The landlady over at my complex said that she needed the money by the end of June or her boss will be mad. I was hoping we could go a mission so the landlady wouldn't have to worry. Not to mention the lack of food in my fridge thanks to Natsu."
Erza thought about it for a moment occasionally dipping her fork down for another bite.
"That sounds like a good idea Lucy. Do you want to pick the mission?"
Knowing Erza has a knack for picking great missions with decent pay, Lucy insisted Erza to pick it out. Erza stood up and walked to the board picking up the first piece of paper she saw. Lucy stood up to follow her in pursuit but found no need as Erza walked back. Erza handed Lucy the paper for her to read as she went to gather up Natsu and Gray. Lucy glanced up from the paper and saw that the two were currently in a competition of from what she heard, a barrel rolling contest…? Lucy clicked her tongue and shook her head. Putting her focus on the piece of paper it read:
HELP WANTED!
A thief has been sighted in Hargeon and has been stealing precious jewels and
artifacts in the Hargeon Local Museum.
Mayor requests that the mages who have signed up for this mission will stay for a week due to the hypothesis that there are about 7 thieves in total. They appear to be on some sort of rotation as there is a different thief each time. They also appear to be mages and have incapacitated our local authorities.
Reward: 500,000 Jewels per person
and a silver key
Lucy grew starry eyed as she realized that the not only was the reward 500,000 jewels, but also a silver key! Lucy wondered what key it could be as she walked to Team Natsu whose ready–to-go luggage was already prepared. Knowing that Virgo had clothes in the Celestial Realm she could wear, Lucy didn't worry about clothes. Handing the paper back to Erza, she said she was ready to go.
"Yosh! We're gonna go kick some thief butt! I'm fired up!" Natsu shouted in determination and ran towards the train. Amusingly, he seemed to forget that they were going to take a train. Erza shouted after him, but to no avail he didn't stop. Gray and Erza chased after him along with Happy as well. Lucy smiled at her team and ran.
Natsu was very uncooperative about getting on the train and needed to be knocked out, courtesy of Erza. The conductor looked at the unconscious Natsu skeptically but gave the group the tickets anyways. The team decided to sit in the train car farthest away from the first car as it included was built without windows. A windowless train car made an easier area for Natsu to barf out of. As they sat in their seats, Lucy made Natsu lay in her lap as it seemed to help him calm down just a tiny bit despite being unconcious. Brushing her fingers through his hair every now and then, Lucy listened to Erza explain the plan.
"Since we'll be staying there for a week and there's 4 of us who are capable of fighting (5), each of us will have a designated day to stay at the museum while the others stay at a hotel. Accompanying the person staying the museum will be another hiding in case the fighter needs back up. For example, if I were to stay and fight, Gray will be hiding as back up. Since there are 7 thieves and 7 days in a week, each of us will have our own day and on the final 3 days, all 5 of us will stay at the museum. Everyone got it?" Erza finished up her explanation and looked at Gray and Lucy if they had any questions.
"Hai!" Gray and Lucy chorused together.
They were scheduled to reach Hargeon in 4 hours. Lucy decided it was a good idea to take a nap and wake up before they left. Her eyes felt heavy and became even heavier as the train rode on. Finally, they closed completely and she fell asleep.
1: Despite the GMG, Lucy can't have multiple spirits out for this fanfic until later when she trains.
2: The wiki never said what Pisces' name was so I just did random ones. Mizu means water while Genzai means current.
3: Search up Ophiuchus' key.
4: An allusion to another anime. Props to you if you can tell.
5: Happy was never an offense type.
A/N
Uh, all I have to say here is: R.I.P. my 5k word plan.
-Angel