The next day, right after school, the girls prepared to go into the Other Realm to attend the Blood Moon Celebration, though Erza and Juvia still could not help feeling a little hesitant about going. Lucy had told Anna and Derek that they were taking Juvia on a tour of the Other Realm, Derek of course had reservations about this but Anna convinced him to go along with it, provided that Erza and Lucy look after Juvia and not do anything reckless or dangerous.
"It's not a school night so you can stay out later than usual but be back home before midnight." Anna instructed. "Understand?"
"Yes Nanny." All three girls said.
"I mean it, no coming home until dawn, no hexes or curses, no dancing naked under the full moon."
"Oh really Nanny Anna." Lucy scoffed. "Not even I would do that."
"Alright." Anna said. "But I'm serious, if either one of you is not home by midnight or refuse to obey any other rules I've given you for tonight, you'll be in a more trouble than a two-eyed newt at a witch's convention"
With that said, she left the girls to get ready for their trip. You didn't have to wear much to events such as a Blood Moon Celebration, in the case a witch, a simple dress and her clock will do just fine. But Lucy believed in looking your best even in your simplicity, so she took care to brush and braid both Erza's and Juvia's hair and she weaved three wreaths for them to wear using plants and flowers from Anna's garden. She used Ivy and Witch-Hazel for Erza's, Ivy and Primroses for Juvia, and Ivy and Bella-Donna for herself. Not only were wreaths like these pretty to wear, but it was said that wearing a wreath under moonlight would bring about good fortune.
"I'm still not sure about this." Juvia said putting on her blue cloak. "I mean you said that there are vampires and werewolves here right? What if they try to eat us or something?"
"They won't." Lucy assured her. "The Blood Moon Celebration is an ancient truce between magic users and monsters. They come together peacefully to cheer and make merry. And they are strictly forbidden to harm each other until the celebration is over. If any monster or magic user breaks that rule, they are sentenced to a hundred years as a mere mortal."
"I didn't know that." Erza said. "How do you know that?"
"Just because I struggle with my grades, doesn't mean I don't want to learn about stuff. Especially information that's hush-hush."
"So no one is going to try to hurt me?" Juvia asked.
"Nope."
"But if they try, we'll turn them into snails and serve them escargot." Erza chuckled.
"Gross!" Lucy and Juvia gagged.
"So um which part of the Other Realm is this shindig being held?" Gajeel asked.
"Somewhere between the moonlight forest and the pumpkin patch." Lucy said.
"Really? Because just a couple blocks from that area is where my old poker buddy Elfman lives and I've got a touch of cabin fever, so can I tag along?"
"Absolutely not." Lucy said.
"Why?"
"Because we need you here to cover for us. We can't leave it up to Laxus, he's a terrible liar."
"I am not!" The rabbit denied.
"Oh no? What about the time I asked you to lie to my father about me having a dentist appointment when I was really out seeing my boyfriend at the time? You told Dad I was at the dentist and he asked which doctor was I seeing, and you said..."
"Dr. Boyfriend." The rabbit admitted shamefully.
"Exactly. Gajeel is a better liar, therefore if something happens, he can cover for us."
"But I haven't been to the Other Realm in years." Gajeel complained. "It's so boring over here in the Mortal Realm and I'm sick of not being able to talk in public."
"I'm sorry Gajeel but you're not coming and that's final. Now be a good kitty and go take a nap or something."
Gajeel glared at her with his yellow eyes, then he bounced off the table and went upstairs to Juvia's room where he had intended to just curl up on her bed and sleep. But when he spotted her bag sitting right next to her broom stick, it gave him an idea. He quickly crawled inside Juvia's bag, hiding himself underneath the few objects she had already placed inside. Ten minutes later, a bat came up to Lucy's window and once allowed entry, it turned into Natsu.
"Ready to go ladies?" He asked.
"Just let me get my bag." Juvia said.
Once she retrieved her bag from her bedroom, Erza and Lucy led her and Natsu across the hall and into the linen closet. Once inside, the vampire and half-mortal witch stared at the sheets and towels stacked neatly on the shelves at the back of the closet. Were Erza and Lucy playing some sort of joke?
"Lucy." Natsu said.
"Yes."
"This is a closet."
"I'm aware of that."
"Why are we in here?"
His answer came in the form of a sudden, blinding flash of light and a tooth-rattling rumble. Then there was a sense of rushing and Natsu and Juvia found themselves stumbling around in the closet.
"Oh I think I'm going to be sick!" Natsu groaned, trying to keep his lunch down.
"Earthquake!" Juvia cried, covering her head in a panic.
"No. Not an earthquake." Erza laughed, she and Lucy standing perfectly still despite the intense motion happening around them. "We're traveling by closet. The cheapest and fastest way to go."
Finally the rushing stopped and Natsu and Juvia were thrown on to the floor.
"Okay that hurt." Natsu said. He stood up and helped Juvia to her feet. "Are you alright?"
"Yes. Thank you." She said.
"Everyone." Lucy said putting her hand on the door knob. "Welcome to the Other Realm."
Lucy opened the closet door and what lay on the other side was beyond anything Juvia could have ever imagined. At first it looked like any other New-England small town, like the one where she lived. It had shops, houses, schools, a movie theater, a dental office, a barber shop, a health spa, even their own city hall. But Juvia quickly learned right away that this was no ordinary town, because instead of seeing people walking around, she saw all sorts of strange and unusual looking creatures. Creatures that she never thought could be real. Mummies, Ghosts, Goblins, Trolls, Pixies, Vampires, Werecats, and Werewolves.
"Wow." Juvia said in awe of it all.
"What do you think?" Erza asked her.
"I think it's like Nanny Anna's stories have come to life right before my eyes." She replied. "It's amazing. But are you all absolutely positive that none of them would harm us?"
"What do you have to fear from monsters?" Natsu asked her. "You're a witch, aren't you?"
"Well yes but I'm just getting used to that part."
"Huh?"
"Natsu, Juvia is half mortal." Lucy explained. "And she's spent the last sixteen years living a mortal life in the mortal world. She just found out she's a witch only a few days ago and she's kind of having hard time adjusting to it."
"Oh...Well in that case, let me give you the 411 on monsters. You see, most of the time monsters are like spiders. Some are real nice and some are not so nice, but all of them are creepy and crawlie."
"Oh dear." For a moment all the color drained from Juvia's face.
"Was that supposed to help?!" Erza snapped at Natsu.
"Yes." Natsu said. "Do you think it worked?"
"Does it look like it worked?" She said referring to Juvia's now trembling form.
"Um...No."
"Why don't we just go on over to the celebration?" Lucy suggested. "Don't worry Juvia, once the music and the dancing starts, you won't have a care in the world."
Lucy held Juvia's hand as they walked, it calmed her a little, just enough to stop her from shaking. She kept close to her cousins, and avoided interaction with others as much as possible. However she and the other two witches were soon drawing a lot of glances from the residents of the Other Realm. This was normal though for Erza and Lucy because as everyone knows there is no girl more lovely than one who descends from the Fiore bloodline. They couldn't help but stop for a moment to admire the beauty of the witches.
All three girls could feel their stares but while Lucy was flattered and smiled at them, and Erza was indifferent and just ignored them, Juvia felt uncomfortable. She thought they were all looking at her because they thought she was weird or maybe considering her as a meal choice. She did her best not to acknowledge them. Although, just as they were arriving at the location of the gathering, she felt one look on her in particular that urged her to see who it belonged to her.
She looked over her shoulder and at a distance, she spotted a very unusual-looking young man with his eyes directed at her and her alone. He had thin black fur all along his arms and hands, matching canine ears and a tail sticking out from his pants. The black hair on his head was slightly spiked and he wore no shirt but he did wear a dark-blue jacket, pair of black pants and boots, and a silver chain with a cross around his neck. When he noticed her staring back at him, he flashed her a smile, showing him his mouth full of canine fangs. Juvia looked away frightfully.
"What's wrong Juvia?" Erza asked concerned.
"That guy's staring at me. I think he might want to eat me." She started trembling again.
The others looked behind her and Natsu made a nasty look.
"Oh that's Gareth, the local punk." He hissed venomously. "I should have known he'd be here tonight. Blood moons are always full ones."
"Friend of yours?" Lucy asked.
"Hardly. He and I have been bitter enemies since we were thirteen, when he beat me at the annual Harvest Hunt."
"Is he dangerous?"
"No. Just annoying. He thinks that he's some big shot because his old man was the alpha of his pack and because he's the only werewolf in the world immune to Silver."
"But that's impossible." Erza said. "Silver is a werewolf's greatest weakness, there's no way he;s immune."
"That's what history says but look at him. He's wearing a silver chain and it's not burning him."
"Strange. I wonder how he gained that type of immunity."
"I don't know and I don't care. Just stare at the sidewalk and don't make eye contact. The man is nuts."
Juvia pulled the hood of her cloak over her face, hoping that no one else would be able to see her. She was already starting to regret this.