Hello, hello, friends!

December has definitely gotten away from me, I still feel like it's August (aside from the currently -20 weather outside...)
Anyway, sorry for the late update, I landed myself in the hospital for a bit and fell behind in school because of it, so it's been a ride haha.

50 Chapter mark!

~Onward

50

-The Reporter-

Natsu sat with his back leaning against the large window of the train, his legs kicked up over his girlfriend's lap. Across from them, Haru was reading a newspaper he'd picked up at the station in Crocus and Mira slept soundly against his shoulder. Lucy was humming softly to herself as she jotted down some notes about the events of the Grand Magic Games.

Their time in Crocus had been a whirlwind.

During the night of the party, Tomie had confirmed the rumours floating around about the Games being concluded for the year, without any official winner declared. Participating Guilds and fans alike had delivered quite the backlash, Natsu himself had loudly vocalized his displeasure at the news. But in light of all that had happened, the King impressed that it would be best not to further antagonize the Dark Guild network by resuming the events.

Despite that, Fairy Tail had been hailed as the unofficial winner of the Games, after all, they'd taken down Sabertooth, and the Wizard Saint Jura. They'd also claimed the most victories in the battles and the events. Had the final event played out uninterrupted, it would have taken a stunning upset for another Guild to tear the win from Fairy Tail's hands.

Over the past few days, the light mages had continued to rebuild, and the Capital was well on its way to full restoration already. At the very least, Crocus' citizens had homes and businesses to return to again. The reporters had also stayed around, chasing various top-performing mages for exclusives, photos, interviews and otherwise for their respective papers. And over that time, though no sign of Tartaros had surfaced, other Dark Guilds seemed to be taking the news of dark mages crashing the Games, as notice of Era's inability to maintain their order…

Requests for aid against increasing dark mage activity, had been flooding Guilds all over Fiore.

And so, Fairy Tail, and the top guilds of Fiore, exchanged their farewells and departed home.

Natsu observed the subtle lines of tension in his partner's jaw as he turned the page of his paper. "More dark guild activity, Haru?" he asked through their link.

Haru glanced up from the paper, "Actually, it seems a couple prominent dark guilds have vanished in the last 24 hours…"

Raising a brow, Natsu absorbed the unexpected information. Haru's eyes were back on the paper in front of him, expression pinched in thought. "What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking about Raven Tail…"

"What d'ya mean?"

"Raven Tail had been taken under Tartaros' mark. Meredy said she lost all memory between meeting the Macro demon and arriving at the Games, so it wouldn't be a stretch to say Tartaros could be behind these apparent disappearances."

"What are you two discussing?"

Natsu tore his attention from his fellow dragon slayer and found Lucy flicking the end of her pen against her chin, an amused look on her face. Haru shrugged, and passed her the paper, "Page 3."

As Lucy accepted the paper and began reading, the door to their booth slid open, revealing a rather flustered looking sky slayer. "Wendy? You, okay?" Lucy asked, letting the paper go unread for a moment.

"Troia doesn't work on them!" she announced apologetically.

The group, including Mira who was now rubbing a knuckle across sleepy eyes, exchanged looks before looking back at the teen. "Gajeel and Laxus adapt to the spell, already?" Haru pondered. Natsu just chuckled, thinking about the ever-cool lightning mage's image.

Wendy shook her head, "They're fine… Apparently, dragons don't handle transportation much better than dragon slayers though…" she explained.

Natsu gaped, "oh THIS, I have to see!" he declared excitedly, jumping to his feet to peel passed the alarmed girl.

Taking off down the aisle, Natsu followed his nose to the dragons. Lucy's words followed, trying to dissuade him from taking enjoyment in his father's motion sickness. He threw open the door to their booth and found Igneel, King of Dragons, laying on the floor between the benches, whining childishly. "Son, why didn't you—urp, warn me, about this—hell on Earthland?!" he attempted to bark.

Glaciea was curled up in the fetal position against the window to his left, muttering similar sentiments about unusual forms of torture. Sienna sat cross legged on the seat next to her, using a magazine to fan the dragoness' flushed face.

Natsu keeled forward in uproarious laughter at the scene, "Oh, how the mighty fall, eh Dad?"

"Why did people even build these monstrous travel-contraptions?!" Igneel complained between waves of nausea. "Flying is so much—" he rolled again, wrapping his arms tighter around his midsection.

Natsu dropped to his butt in the doorway, wiping tears of laughter away, "People, generally, can't fly, Dad."

"So, they willingly get on these death traps by choice?!"

"Most of us aren't as weak-stomached as you, Pops."

"Natsu!" Lucy smacked the rolled-up newspaper Haru had lent her, into the top of his head, "stop bullying your father! I shouldn't need to remind you, it wasn't so long ago, that you were the one on the floor," she admonished.

"Luuucy, you are a bright star in this cruel world!" Igneel cheered dramatically, reaching for one of the bottles of water that she produced for the nauseated pair. Lucy stepped over Natsu's leg and helped Igneel sit up, while the fire mage continued his bouts of laughter undeterred.

Igneel chugged the water and slumped back against the seat, eyeing Natsu derisively. "You could do better Lucy…" he muttered.

Natsu snapped to attention, a vein popping on his forehead, "What was that ya overgrown lizard?!" Springing to his feet, he jabbed a finger at his father's nose, "you can't even sit up on your own right now! –Shouldn't go picking fights you have no hope of winning…"

"Natsu…" Lucy growled warningly.

Rolling her eyes, Lucy turned her attention to the earth slayer across from her, "So, Troia seems to have done the trick for you at least?"

Sienna looked at her, nodding sheepishly, "Honestly, I feel kinda guilty that it only worked on me…" she admitted.

"Woah! It's true! Dragons really are pathetic!" Happy announced boisterously, appearing to hover over Natsu's head.

Dragon and slayer alike turned irritated looks on the blue cat. Happy didn't look the slightest bit sheepish over his outburst, opting to further antagonize them instead. "What? Cats, are the best, ya know!"

As Natsu predictably fell for the taunt and dissolved into an argument with him, Lucy stood to pull Igneel off the floor. She'd just managed to get him settled on the bench adjacent to Glaciea, when a familiar obnoxiously loud call echoed down the hall.

"So COOOOOOOOOL!"

Natsu flinched, fists clenching as he leaned back to glare down the aisle, "That jerk is here?!"

"He is Fairy Tail's biggest fan, it's really not that surprising he'd follow you back to Magnolia… I mean half your guild is currently in this car and unable to flee his… uh, enthusiastic attention?"

Lucy snickered in amusement, she supposed with most of Fairy Tail's most rambunctious on the train, it would be too much to expect a quiet trip to work on her writing… Then suddenly Haru was shoving Natsu into the room and sliding the door shut forcefully. Yelping in surprise, Natsu toppled forward, knocking Lucy back onto the floor in a heap with him. Landing with his face squarely buried in her chest, she blushed immediately. "HARU! What the hell?!" she snapped furiously as she tried to dislodge her boyfriend.

The water mage paid her no mind. He was too busy pressing himself snug to the wall, peering out the small square window to scan the aisle beyond. When he didn't answer, she blew out an exacerbated breath and shoved Natsu off her. "Haru, what are you doing?" she asked again.

Glancing at her sidelong, he grumbled, "Jason has been after Mira about a couples exclusive," he replied with air quotes.

"So, you're hiding," she ventured, with a teasing grin.

"Mmmhm."

"You know this is your own fault, right man?"

"Natsu has a point," Sienna added mirthfully, "you did kiss her in front of the entirety of Domus Flau…"

"He loooooooves her!"

Haru groaned loudly and slumped back against the door. The group broke into laughter at his expense, even Igneel chuckled along with them despite his motion sickness.

Knocking at the door had Haru spinning comically, but it was just Mira standing outside the door, waving with the curl of a couple fingers. She slid the door open, "Coast is clear… Jason seems to have weaseled his way into an interview with Master and Laxus about Fairy Tail's future after our 'unofficial win.'"

"That should keep him entertained for a while," Lucy said, her eyes crawled over her companions squished into the cramped space, derisively. "Well, as much as I like you all, this room is a little tiny for seven—"

"Hey! Stop forgetting about me!"

"Ya know Luce does that on purpose, pal? Can't expect to be teasing everyone an' never be teased back…"

"But Natshuuu, Lucy's a meanie!"

"Seven and a furball," Lucy corrected dismissively, "anyone up for a visit to the dining car?"

. . .

Lucy sighed contently as the deep red liquid of the bottle of wine Mira had procured, hit her pallet. The dining car was much quieter than the car Fairy Tail's members were overflowing in… not that that surprised her in the least. Noise was sure to follow her guild wherever they went.

By Lucy's estimation, they still had almost two hours of travel before they'd arrive in Magnolia, and she was happy to take advantage of the space and quiet. Afterall, it was only a matter of time before Jason inevitably showed up and threw the dining car into equal chaos…

The group had left the dragons curled up or sprawled over (in Igneel's case) the benches to rest. Mira had eased their discomfort with a simple sleeping spell, which to everyone's pleasant surprise, worked just fine on dragons. Natsu sat to her right, scarfing down a sandwich, packed thick with meat and Happy with a fish, inhaling his food just as fast. Haru sat directly across from her, with Mira and Sienna to his left, each sipping a glass of wine as well. Views of the vast, unmarred countryside slid by in the window edging their table, sun, and bright blue skies overhead.

"So, Sienna, have you ever been out to Magnolia?"

Sienna brushed a finger along the base of her wine glass, her copper eyes finding Lucy's, "Never," she admitted. "Precht found me when I was just a child, after Terrene—uh…" the brunette paused, mulling over her thoughts, "anyway… he kept us on the Guild air ship most times or in the middle of nowhere. Easiest way to guarantee absolute loyalty: ensure no outside influences."

Lucy caught Haru's eye across the table, he looked as dejected as the earth mage did at the statement of her past. Lucy knew all the dragon slayers felt the weight of their separation, it should never have happened, but it had. They wouldn't have remembered each other, but at least they would have been together to make new memories and protect each other. Maybe Sienna wouldn't have ended up in a dark guild, maybe Haru wouldn't have crossed paths with Deliora, maybe Glaciea wouldn't have lost her son…

Mira patted the arm Sienna had resting on the table. Smiling at her appreciatively, the brunette deflected, "Anyway, I'm excited to see the town you all call home! I've heard Magnolia's beauty rivals the capital."

"Magnolia is stunning, I'm sure you'll love it. How long will you be staying?"

"I'm not really sure actually," she admitted.

"Last I heard, Dad was talking about departing with me 'n' Haru when we leave for our mission. Seems we're all headed North for a bit."

Lucy hummed around another sip of wine. "Well, that gives us a couple days at least, I'd be happy to show you around!"

"Yes, me as well!" Mira agreed. Excitedly, the girls took to planning their next couple days, volunteering the guys for various activities as well. They were just starting their third bottle of wine when the train's whistle broke their chatter. Lucy glanced out the window to find the sparkling blue ocean marking the horizon as the train approached Hargeon station. It wouldn't be long before they'd be home now.

Lucy desperately hoped they'd be able to forget the stress of the dark guild uprisings and simply relax the next couple days before the dragons left to catch up with Weisslogia and Metalicana. After everything that happened since their return from Tenrou, she felt like Dragon Soul deserved some peace and lazy fun.

3 Days Later

-Era-

The meeting hall's large double doors swung open, followed by a pair of amphibian emissaries who stood to either side as the Council members began to filter out of the chamber within. The men and women moved with slumped posture, a far cry from their usual arrogant strides. The meeting had gone far longer than any of them had expected, spending much of that time locked in deliberation. They'd struggled to come to any compromising decision about the escalating attacks from the dark guild network, as well as the sudden disappearance of others. Of course, this decision had had to be unanimous due to the sensitive nature, so they were stuck in meetings well into the night.

Lehar groaned, and ran a hand up over his forehead, pulling deep blue hair back into any semblance of professionalism. Rohan walked next to him, arms folded and looking more emotionally reactive than Lehar had ever seen him. The man had always been as blank as stone and any words he did utter, which were few and far between, mirrored that same stony demeanor. "They're making a mistake."

Watching his fellow commander and partner of the last two years, Lehar found himself in slight awe of the anger he heard in the man's tone. "Then why did you vote with them?" he asked.

"Why did you?"

Fair point. It didn't surprise him that Rohan knew they shared disapproval over the outcome of the Council meeting. Rohan's background had been in intelligence and interrogation, prior to joining the ranks of Rune Knights' Division Commanders. He'd been part of a clandestine unit that most of the council associates themselves weren't even privy to the existence of.

Lehar blew out an exacerbated breath, "It was the lesser of the evils being discussed as potential solutions, and it was clear we weren't going to change those stubborn fools' minds." Both men let their gaze drift in their colleagues' direction, walking in a knot just ahead of them. They were still bickering about the potential ramifications of their final decision, if it was too strict, or not strict enough, or what have you…

"Better we use our time to investigate what is actually going on." Lehar concluded.

"You think this is Tartaros," Rohan stated certainly, already back to his stony visage.

"Well, I certainly don't subscribe to the idea that some random vigilantes are behind this."

"Why would Tartaros be wiping out dark guilds though? They were one of the heads of the Balam Alliance, it doesn't make sense."

"We should contact Jellal. See if he can get us in touch with Ghost—" Lehar grumbled under his breath, "—much as I hate the idea of cooperating with the likes of them."

Rohan gave a curt agreeance. His partner wasn't the rule stickler that Lehar knew himself to be. Rohan certainly didn't grasp his issue with the mysterious group that had randomly begun hunting the demons over a year ago. To be fair, Lehar didn't quite understand his own adverse reactions to Ghost, maybe it was simply the not knowing, rather than the band's rogue refusal to follow the proper channels set out by the Council.

The rest of the council associates had begun peeling off in various directions, returning to their own offices or sleeping quarters for the night. Lehar and Rohan emerged into the sprawling foyer of the NMC headquarters. Ahead, the monumental entryway loomed, leading to long stretches of stairs that ran up the mountainous plateau. Wide corridors to either side were punctuated with large open-air arches revealing the dark skies beyond. The pair pulled the doors closed behind themselves and waved politely to a pair of admins seated behind a large marble counter.

"I'm going to get some rest before shit hits the fan tomorrow," Rohan grumbled. He held up a hand in farewell as he parted ways, disappearing down one of the corridors without another word. Lehar watched him go as he continued to mull over the events of their meeting… A curfew—to protect Light mages—yeah, because this'll go over well… They'd surely be dealing with plenty of furious outcry from the legal guilds after the announcement tomorrow— correction, this— morning. Growling to himself, Lehar spun on his heel to stalk off to his office. No way he'd be able to sleep with his mind racing, might as well get some work done.

"Excuse me sir—" a voice called apprehensively from somewhere behind him.

Lehar halted, looking back over his shoulder to find one of the emissaries approaching him, he turned fully to give the amphibian his attention. "There are people requesting a meeting with you, sir, shall I tell them you are busy?" His honest knee jerk reaction was to tell the frog to send them away and follow the proper procedures laid out for those seeking his time. But it was well past midnight, and given the recent events, his curiosity quickly squashed his initial irritation.

"Show them to my office."

. . .

Lehar dropped heavily into his chair behind a large wooden desk, his very messy desk. Papers, articles, and various research covered the entire surface in large piles. He rubbed his eyes, wondering how long it had been, since he'd actually gotten a full night's restful sleep. Shoving paperwork to the side to clear space, he prepared to receive his mystery guests.

"Enter," he responded to the knock sounding on his door. The same emissary from earlier pushed the door open with a bow of its head and waved two men in. One with tussled dirty blonde hair and piercing blue eyes offered their gratitude for agreeing to meet with them so late. The other nodded at his companion's words, but remained silent, he had messy dark hair pulled back into a knot at the nape of his neck and strange gold eyes. Both were clad in well-worn traveller's cloaks, over tightly fitted deep blue tops that hinted to strong muscle beneath. They introduced themselves as Kai and Soren respectively as Lehar stood to shake their hands over his desk.

Lehar gestured for them to sit, "What can I do for you?" he asked, trying, and failing to get a read on the pair. He didn't sense any magic power from either, and yet, he got the distinct impression they weren't your average citizens either. So, he strongly doubted they were simply seeking his intervention for magic being used recklessly, or for extortion, or petty dark mage activity… or any number of the usual concerns that seemed to land people in his office.

The blonde—Kai, he'd said, spoke up first in a flat tone, "Tartaros is making their move."

Magnolia

Erza wore a wicked grin across her face, and Lucy eyed her friend with bated breath, wondering for the hundredth time why any of them ever let the sadistic redhead talk them into playing her favourite party games. What was wrong with a laid-back girls' night consisting of some buzzed-to-drunken conversation and good company? It was late into the night, or very early into the morning, and the girls were currently sprawled around on the couch and floor of the Twin Dragon's spacious living room. The guys were off on an (apparently straight forward) mission for the Eclipse Team, so Lucy and Mira decided to offer up their home for a girls-only party. They both spent enough time here, that it was practically their home as well by this point.

From her spot stretched out over the floor with a couple pillows stacked under her arm, Lucy took another large gulp of her drink as Erza leapt to her feet, holding the King's stick in the air victoriously. Erza was well passed the tipping point of drunk by this time, and the girls exchanged nervous glances. They knew all too well, the more inebriated Erza became, the more bold her dares and commands became.

"I command three and four to describe…" she paused dramatically, glancing around the girls flopped comfortably about the room as her grin widened, "your most secret sexual fantasy!"

Each of the girls cautiously peeked at the numbers on the sticks they'd drawn, and a few relieved breaths sounded, Lucy's included. Then Juvia held up her stick and announced that she was four, seeming completely unperturbed with sharing her fantasies. But beside her Levy groaned loudly and tossed her stick back at the empty cup in the middle of the rug. "Why me?" she groaned.

Without any hesitation or shame, Juvia piped up, "Juvia's fantasy would be anything where her darling Gray professed his undying love and made sweet love to her all night, peppering her skin with love bites… fingering her with iced fingers while he sucked on her boobs… pressing her up against the wall in the shower… taking her—"

"I think we got it Juvia," Mira interrupted, giggling with a tilt of her head and a hand on her cheek as she smiled back at the bluenette. Juvia would likely go on describing every sexual fantasy she'd ever let herself indulge in since meeting the ice mage, if they let her.

The water mage smiled brightly and began rambling about how sexy and amazing her Gray was until Erza cut in, "Levvvy?" she slurred with giddy excitement.

The other bluenette let out an uncomfortable squeak as all eyes turned to her, the corner of her lip twitching in discomfort. Her eyes darted around her friends, "Well, I uh… I don't know."

"Come on Levvvy, we won' tell anybody—promise!" Cana vowed, words boisterous and punctuated with the occasional hiccup to bely her drunken state. Levy eyed the brunette suspiciously before her eyes trailed over to Mira with the same expectant look.

Their resident gossip gave a sweet smile, "You all, have dragged enough of my secrets out already, I think we're all in agreement. Anything said in this circle tonight, will stay in this circle."

"And I will punish anyone who breathes a word, accordingly!" Erza threatened, throwing a fist over her heart, though the effect was slightly diminished by the deep flush on her face and the drunken sway to her movements.

"O-okay…" Levy trailed off, she chewed on her bottom lip a little as her cheeks went an even deeper red, "I uh, I kinda wonder what it would be like to… for, um, for Gajeel to take me against the wall—I mean, I'm so small, and he's so much bigger, and strong, I think he could carry me—" she abruptly cut off her explanation by slapping a hand over her mouth. Her eyes going wide as saucers at the sound of her friends' coos and Cana's resulting lewd comments.

"Levy, girl! I didn't know you had it in you!" Cana was cheering.

Mira leaned forward conspiratorially, having not yet caught onto any hints of the petit girl's crush on another of their resident dragon slayers. "Levy, how did I not know this?! Why didn't you tell me?! –Dragon slayers are such a handful you know," she added with a coy smile, Lucy nodded, agreeing subconsciously.

The script mage seemed to be recovering from the peak of her embarrassment as her eyes skipped between Mira and Lucy now. "Uh, now that you mention… I've actually been wondering," she started, and the girls all fell quiet, brows quirking in curiosity, "does dragon slayer stamina carry over to…"

It seemed the game was temporarily derailed as all the girls gave various delighted squeals and their heads whipped in Lucy's or Mira's directions. Lucy deadpanned, 'how in the hell did this just get turned around on MY sex life?!' she thought dryly. She shifted her attention to the white-haired girl to see if the other half of her friends' focuses would spare her the embarrassment of having to answer.

Mira prodded her lip with a finger, mirth dancing in her eyes, "Carry over to what Levy?" she asked innocently.

Jaw dropping and blush returning with a vengeance, Levy sputtered incoherently for a moment, "Oh come on, you know exactly what I mean!" Mira still didn't rescue her from the hole she'd inadvertently dug herself into, and Levy finally growled out uncharacteristically, "in bed, damnit!"

Erza had adopted her wide catlike eyes as she became more enthralled with the turn in conversation, and the other girls wore equally interested expressions, all subconsciously leaning further into their circle. Mira shrugged a shoulder, before shamelessly admitting, "It's hard to keep up with some times… sensory overload, honestly." At the sound of various giggling and resulting shrieks of excitement, Mira glanced over at Lucy, a mischievous grin splitting her face, "I'm sure Lucy can attest?"

Eye twitching at her friend calling her out as well, Lucy narrowed her eyes at the She-Devil and scanned the faces of her guildmates out of the corner of her eye before releasing an exaggerated exhale. "I will get you back for this, Mira," she vowed to the other girl's increasing amusement.

With a blush to rival Levy's, Lucy caved, "Yes, that stamina definitely carries over… to a nearly insatiable level…" pursing her lips, she took another swallow of her drink. "But more than that, it's Dragon passion. There's just something raw and possessive about it. Like if a dragon loves something or someone, they put every ounce of their being into showing that. Sex is apparently, no different." Lucy noticed Mira nodding fervently in agreement to her side, reiterating her previous sentiment, 'thus the sensory overload.'

Levy seemed lost in a daydream now, the heat remaining in her cheeks and her eyes unfocused as she slumped back into the couch she was leaning against. Lucy reached forward to drop her stick back into the game cup, hoping that would shift the focus back to the game, and off her boyfriend's prowess between the sheets.

But with both Cana and Erza in the room, she should have known better than that.

With a bark of laughter and an enthusiastically wild gesture that had wine sloshing out of her oversized glass, Cana proclaimed, "That's great and all, but the burning question on everyone's mind…" Lucy gulped, preparing herself for any number of her friend's sexually charged and tactless questions. "Do the physical enhancements of dragon magic present in other places?"

Upon receiving a blank and subtly irritated look from Lucy, Cana bluntly inquired, "What are our boys packing, huh?"

Lucy's eyes bulged and she keeled forward, choking on the swallow of wine she'd just taken and dissolved into a coughing fit. When she caught her breath and her eyes trailed back up to the brunette across from her. Cana's smirk had grown wide, and she held her hands up in front of her with each pointer finger extended, miming potential size as she drew them apart.

"I am not answering that!" Lucy snapped, eyes trailing over to her fellow spotlighted friend to gage her reaction. Mira was finally sporting a notable blush across her cheeks as well, but to Lucy's dismay, she still seemed to be considering whether to answer.

After some pondering, Mira settled on a subtle admission, alluding, "I am more than satisfied." Lucy could practically see Haru shuttering under the unknown attention, wherever he was this night… Mira's subtlety received Cana's indignant complaints of an implication not being a real answer. Unsatisfied, the drunken brunette whirled on Lucy again, but the stellar mage remained tight lipped in her embarrassment.

"Oh, Natsu's big too," Mira supplied nonchalantly, pulling a yelp of embarrassment from the blonde.

Lucy rounded on the mischievous takeover mage with a bewildered look, "The hell Mira?!" wondering how in Earthland Mira would know such a thing.

With another shrug of her shoulder, Mira gave her a sly smile, "Edolas? Your man pitches a tent that's hard to miss."

Lucy immediately felt the heat in her cheeks return with a vengeance, flashing back to the morning after the final battle for the Royal Guard. She buried her face in a pillow with a dejected whine as she prepared for the inevitable questions about the untold stories of Edolas.

Era

He was gawking like an idiot, he was aware of this, but he simply couldn't wipe the bewildered look from his face.

Of all the things Lahar had expected his visitors to want to speak to him about, Tartaros had not even been a consideration. The name 'Tartaros' was commonly known among the general population, but only as farfetched rumours about a band of demons. Tales and speculation of the dark guild were reduced to not much more than a scare tactic used on misbehaving children…

Lehar forcibly closed his jaw with a click, Kai was watching him intently, his elbows resting on the arms of his chair with his fingers splayed in front of him. The dark-haired man, on the other hand, seemed relatively disinterested in his reaction. Though the bouncing of his knee hinted to anxiety, or perhaps just impatience.

Schooling his expression again, Lehar leaned back in his chair, "The supposed demon Guild?" he asked, trying to sound nonchalant. "Aren't you two a little old for children's stories?"

"Cut the shit," Soren said sharply. The bouncing of his knee halted as those strange gold eyes snapped over to Lehar, "we both know Tartaros is behind the sudden disappearances and eliminations of high-profile dark guilds all over Fiore."

He would not allow himself to gawk again. Lehar narrowed his eyes, studying the two. There were very few people or organizations who knew about the true existence and threat of Tartaros. He briefly considered the possibility that the men were with Ghost but dismissed that out right. There was no way two with no hint of magic power could possibly be affiliated with the power demonstrated frequently by the rogue group. But outside Ghost and Fairy Tail,—it irritated Lehar to no end that a bunch of rash and disobedient mages always seemed to know so much—and the NMC themselves, he couldn't think of anyone who could have stumbled on to the reality. Hell, most of the Council had even refused to consider the idea that Tartaros might be behind the recent activity just an hour prior, they insisted it was just infighting among the dark guilds.

All that considered, who on Earthland were these two? And where did they come from?!

Soren clicked his tongue, and his knee started bouncing anew, drawing an irritated look from his companion. The blonde said nothing though, looking back at Lehar again, "Look, you can deny your knowledge of Tartaros all you want, it makes no difference to us. We simply came to warn you that we believe Tartaros is planning a strike against high profile institutions around Fiore. As the governing force over all mages and magic tools, the NMC stands to be a likely target."

Yep, he was gawking again.

Damn these two. Now he was getting pissed off. "Just who in the hell are you?"

"We aren't friends, and we aren't enemies, that's all you need to know."

A vein throbbed on Lehar's forehead, the nerve! He had half a mind to take the pair into custody on suspicion of—actually, that made sense. Lehar hummed in thought, and his pause didn't seem to discern his guests in the slightest, Kai still watched him, and Soren stared blankly at the ceiling.

"How do I know this isn't a trap?" he asked, "knowledge of Tartaros is carefully controlled, there are very few who know even hints of the truth. So, I'm sure you'd understand if my suspicions lead me to believe you could be with Tartaros," he declared. Lehar observed their reactions closely, but neither man so much as batted an eye.

In fact, Kai had the audacity to shrug, "We could be. I suppose it is up to you if you want to trust our information. But whether we are telling you the truth, or not, it couldn't hurt to increase your security, could it? It is sorely lacking after all. It would've been a simple task to bypass your emissaries and the sparse guard detail… if we were Tartaros as you so implied, well…" he trailed off, and Soren chuckled lowly.

"Are you threatening the Magic Council?!" Lehar asked incredulously. Their insolence was infuriating, no one talked to the Council like this… a certain guild popped into his head at the thought, but he dismissed that quickly.

"Not at all. In fact, if you'll recall, we just warned you of the real threat to your Council."

"That does it, I'm taking you two in for questioning."

Both men stood in unison with an unconcerned air, "Do as you like with the information we've provided—" Kai started.

"But we have no more information to share, so further questioning would be a waste of all of our time," Soren added as they turned to see themselves out of his office.

"HOLD IT. That wasn't a request!" Lehar growled, reaching for a couple sets of cuffs.

Kai had his hand on the door, Soren just a step behind, they both paused momentarily.

Soren glanced back over his shoulder at him with sharp eyes, "And we weren't asking your permission to leave," he returned bluntly. Lehar launched himself across the room at them, but in the same instant, the blonde had tossed the door open and with departing smirks they had both vanished.

An odd sensation washed over him, but he'd seen no actual sign of any spell or otherwise. Lehar stepped out of his office and stared down the long corridor, there was no sign of anyone or anything. He cursed internally and threw his fist into the wall in frustration. If he was right about them, it would explain why the mystery men had dared waltz into the Council brandishing such claims and bold attitude, despite having no magic with which to defend themselves. –If, in reality, it was curse power they wielded.

. . .

Soren stopped halfway down the lengthy stairway that led up to the imposing structure of the National Magic Council and Kai slowed beside him. Planting his hands on his hips, the raven-haired man turned to look back up at the pristine building with a scowl, the night was dead silent around them, having not raised even the smallest commotion when they escaped. Soren turned to look back at his companion, the blonde was facing the opposite way, looking out over the city of Era sprawled below.

"Do you think they will heed our warning?" Kai asked without glancing away from the sleeping city.

Shrugging, Soren passed the other man, his cloak billowing back as he started down the stairs again, "With those stubborn blowhards, who can say?"

"You do think Lehar will bring the news to the Council then?"

"Lehar is nothing if not a stickler for procedure and hierarchy, he'll relay the information." Soren paused, gold eyes flicking back momentarily, "unless Rohan gets involved first…"

Kai nodded thoughtfully as he followed on the terse man's heels, he sighed, "The Council's obliteration would throw Ishgar into chaos, but honestly, it's the people of Era I'm most worried about. They'd just be collateral damage in the eyes of those Council cowards in the event of an attack…"

With a grunt, Soren paused in his steps again, "We could stay for a few more days, keep watch, and see how the Council responds, if they fortify their defenses…"

"And if they don't?"

"Hopefully, we won't have to answer that question," he said shortly, "come on. Let's get going… we're already late."

The pair fell back into silence, picking up their pace as they retreated to their inn for the night. The streets were deserted at the early hour, and only the odd home had windows glowing with amber light. By the time they reached their room, they were both feeling the weight of their excessively long day, but they couldn't sleep yet.

Kai crossed the room, stifling a large yawn behind his hand, and fished a lacrima comm out of his bag. He set it on the desktop in front of him and connected the call, leaning back in his chair to ensure Soren could see as well.

Static pulsed in the crystalline orb as they waited. "Fuck, I'm tired… and hungry…" Kai chuckled, glancing back over his shoulder at the other man lounging on the bed behind him. "This check in better be quick, I want to call Magnolia too…" he muttered.

"Little late for that isn't it?" Kai asked, "the girls would probably be asleep."

Grumbling over the logic, Kai felt the slight flutter of magic washed over him as his partner released the suppression on his magic pressure. Soren's transformation faded, black locks washing back out to the familiar pink, just as the call connected.

"Natsu, Haru, how is Era?" Hisui's voice chirped.

The Twin Dragons turned from their conversation, fixing their attention back on the lacrima comm to find the green-haired princess smiling back. She looked completely untouched by the exhaustion they both felt. "Hisui, be honest, are you human?" Natsu joked over Haru's proper greeting.

"A ruler musn't be seen by their adoring subjects looking tired, Natsu," Hisui replied in a mock-regal voice before breaking off in giggles. "Seriously though, Arcadios took the first half of the night. I've only been up for an hour," she explained. "So, tell me, how's the mission coming?"

"We managed to get word to Lehar, but he wasn't all that…" Haru paused, "trusting?" he decided on, glancing back at Natsu.

"Oh?" Hisui asked.

"He tried to arrest us," Natsu said with a bark of laughter.

The princess rolled her eyes, "And I'm sure I wouldn't be far off base to guess that you weren't any less flippant with the Council than you normally are, undisguised… so that makes sense."

"Oi! Haru was just as bad!"

"You two are impossible sometimes."

"You love us," Natsu sang back in counter.

Hisui ignored the comment, "I will have Arcadios send word of an anonymous threat to the NMC as well, maybe a second warning from the Capital will get their attention."

"That's a good idea, meanwhile, we are going to stay a couple more days to see if the NMC actually prepares for a potential attack…"

"And if they don't? I don't need to remind you, we need you two to stay hidden still."

Haru watched Natsu's grin stretch wide enough to reveal his canines, "Then we demonstrate how sorely lacking their security really is, as Soren and Kai! Lehar already accused us of being demons anyway!" he declared boisterously.

The princess paled, "uh… I'm not sure I like where this is going…" she said concernedly.

"Actually, that isn't a bad idea," Haru said, gaining Natsu's surprise at his agreement. "It would be a fairly simple task to infiltrate and take a hostage or two… Natsu can use some basic curse power to freak 'em out, and we can flash step out of there as soon as reinforcements arrive. Just enough to put the pressure on."

Hisui didn't appear anymore pacified by the idea, but she nodded slowly despite that. "I trust you two to do whatever you think you need to… let's just hope it doesn't come to that."

"Agreed. Is everyone else in place?" Haru asked.

Humming in the affirmative, Hisui angled her own lacrima comm down the large marble table of the Eclipse Team's usual meeting place. Laxus sat at the end with his legs kicked up over the top and Freed sat beside him, both raised a hand in acknowledgment. "Laxus and his team arrived this morning," Hisui told them, "And Kagura's and Jura's teams have also reached their locations."

"That's good to hear—"

"You owe me one, Natsu!" Laxus announced.

"Yeah, yeah, spark plug. Drinks on me when we get home," Natsu said, laughing.

"Well, you two look exhausted, so if there's nothing else, I will let you both get some rest… Keep us updated on the Council's moves."

"You got it, g'night Hisui!"

Magnolia

Why she never seemed to learn her lesson when it came to allowing Cana to influence her drinking habits, Lucy will never know. Like how she was certain she'd never figure out why they always eventually fell into playing Erza's party games, despite knowing how far they went, every. damn. time.

Seemed to Lucy, that her current company were feeling the effects of girls' night as acutely as she was… Mira and Erza walked to either side of her and both girls glared at the cat singing mockingly at them as he flew in circles overhead, just out of their reach.

Most of their friends had stumbled home drunk after swapping stories and giggling over anything and everything… though the males of their Guild had tended to be foremost in conversation topic. Erza had ended up passing out right on the living room floor, and Lucy and Mira hadn't had the heart to wake her up to send her across town to Fairy Hills. Besides, they'd honestly both been too drunk to want to trek home either. So, all three just slept at the Twin Dragons' home.

Erza threw open the doors of the guild and the few people inside froze momentarily at the look on her face. "Someone, get the strawberry cake, quick!" one of their guildmates randomly begged, hoping to appease the redhead's apparent mood. Erza perked up a little as Kinana promptly slipped a slice of strawberry cake onto the bar top.

Lucy and Mira followed her and the barmaid, having taken note of their equally sluggish energy, was already sliding a couple mugs of coffee toward them. "Well, you all look like you had far too much fun last night, what happened this time?" Kinana asked, giggling as she and Mira each slumped down onto a bar stool and immediately took long swallows of their coffees.
"Erza happened, but what else is new?" Lucy said, jabbing a thumb in the scarlet mage's direction. Erza didn't bother to refute the comment, as she forked mouthfuls of cake into her mouth with little of her usual polite etiquette.

"Worth it," she chirped after swallowing the last bite of her cake.

Rolling her eyes at her friend's nonchalance, Lucy lifted her mug to her lips and flicked her eyes over to the guild doors as they swung open. She paused mid sip and lowered her mug, but kept it in her grip, "More media coverage…" she pointed out with slight amusement.

A young woman stood in the doorway, a purple-hued lacrima crystal cradled in the crook of her arm and a press badge clasped to her belt. Reporters had been showing up randomly over the last few days, each visitor from media outlets of both significance and obscurity, all vying for exclusive interviews with the triumphant mages.

Sorcerers' Weekly had quickly claimed an exclusive contract with Makarov as soon as Fairy Tail had been hailed the as the unofficial champions. As such, they had the rights to most of the highest-demand stories and interviews before the Fairies had even left Crocus. Those stories included the previously unknown romantic attachments of the Twin Dragons, much to Haru's chagrin.

The water slayer had continued to ardently avoid cooperating for any the requested interviews, so Mira had attempted to bribe him and eventually, Makarov flat out coerced him into it. These kinds of stories were, after all, great publicity for the Guild. Lucy was actually looking forward to the exclusive, Sorcerers' would be hosting them at Akane resort. It seemed likely to her, they would spare no expense in pampering the foursome for two solid days during the whole process.

Lucy watched as Mira crossed the Guildhall to greet the young reporter. She explained apologetically to their visitor that most of Fairy Tail's mages were off on jobs right now, after taking so much time off in preparation for the Games. It was a solid enough reason to distract from the dark guild activity that demanding many mages' attentions these days. Only the girls and Happy, Shadow Gear, Gray and Juvia, Kinana, Laki, Jellal and Makarov were currently present.

The reporter dismissed her concern, shaking her head slightly, "Oh it's fine really, I was actually hoping I could talk to Fairy Tail's Valkyrie Trio."

"Valkyrie… Trio…?" Mira asked with a tilt of her head, turning to look back at her friends with a questioning look. Lucy had no idea what the reporter was talking about either.

"Have you not heard?" the girl asked in a monotone. She pulled a notepad out and flipped a few pages, searching through her notes, "Titania, Astria, She-Devil… the Valkyrie Trio, our female readers will surely love it."

Meeting Erza's eye sidelong, Lucy pursed her lips. Astria, that name she'd heard by now, the Games' fans had bestowed that alias on her after her battle with Meredy… Ruler of the Stars, the Valkyrie thing was a new development though. But something else was itching at Lucy's attention more. She leaned toward her redheaded friend, "Doesn't she seem oddly subdued?" she whispered.

With her attention still on Mira and the reporter, Erza nodded slowly, "Most of the reporters we deal with do have a certain… exuberance to them. It's possible she isn't a fan though, and is just simply doing her job," she responded with a shrug.

Lucy was not pacified, she'd been a journalist herself after all, the woman's behaviour just wasn't professional. Even if she wasn't their biggest fan, most reporters would try to at least ask for interviews with some level of enthusiasm. This girl was so lack luster, she seemed all but dead.

Mira turned and gestured them over to a table at the Hall's center, and Lucy only felt more disconcerted the closer she got. This woman's eyes were dull, lifeless, as she set her lacrima crystal on the center of the table. She sat down between Erza and Mira and answered the reporter's robotic questions that were read from a list in her notepad. Still the reporter conducted herself with a complete disinterest. The purple recording lacrima pulsed dully while they spoke, and Lucy gazed at it, transfixed, even as she vaguely listened to her friends' answers.

"Lucy—"

"Mavis?!" Lucy asked mentally, eyes widening at the sudden voice reverberating in her mind. Mavis didn't usually reach out to her, the First's residual magic didn't have enough power to converse often. She was always just kind of a presence, deep in Lucy's subconscious. "What—"

Lucy's eyes widened when she suddenly noticed the reporter's eyes kept flicking to the lacrima, a noticeable anxiety increasing in her lifeless eyes. Eyebrows pinching together as Mavis' voice snapped through her mind again with an intense urgency, "Lucy, something's wrong—"

The speed of pulsing energy the lacrima emitted steadily increased to a rapid flicker and Lucy sucked a harsh breath in as adrenaline flooded her veins.

"EVERYONE, RUN!" Lucy screamed as she launched to her feet, her guildmates' eyes shot open at her abrupt terror-riddled outburst.

But it was too late.

The lacrima orb gave off a blinding white light, power pulsing outward before the entire guildhall exploded.

A/N. Been awhile since I've left you all on a cliff hanger.

Anyway, a couple quick points: 1. Yes, I am aware the canon train line does not go to Crocus, assume in this AU it was extended over the time skip at some point. 2. For anyone who forgot about the guys' transformation magic, I refer you back multiple chapters, during the Eclipse Gate/Grimoire arc.

Alright, that was the last fluffier, set-up chapter, and now the Demons take stage right. Any predictions/things you're hoping to see?

I hope you all have a great Christmas, or whatever holidays you celebrate, and I will see you all in the New Year!

Shout outs to: MPrime, AliceCullen3, EternalFlame, Valerioux, Joker D. Zero, kkitz, Tchu-chan, FireShifter, and guests for your reviews! You all know how to make a writer feel loved!

'Till next time,

R&R

xx. Loka Muse