This discovery sent me on a study binge of about 24 hours that Wendy had to break me out of.

"Fae we've talked about this, you need sleep."

"I don't need sleep, I need answers!"

We had a standing agreement that I wouldn't hold her rendering me unconscious for my own wellbeing against her when I got to that point. But she did get a very blank expression on her face when I told her what I was looking for, and expressed that she understood my sudden zeal.

Zeref had taken on pupils. Given what I had discovered previously about his character, it was not likely that he would knowingly take on people who would use his knowledge to harm others. Everyone who had claimed to be mentored by the feared Black Wizard had been Dark wizards to a man. But there was a genuine article somewhere who was taught by Zeref. The real Zeref, but who the stories made him out to me.

And we knew at least one of these people. This was old and well buried information, but a live connection to Zeref somehow existed in our circle.

The biggest, baddest, most enduring curse I had ever come across. And there was a potential lead somewhere in my friend group that I could use to find a way to break it.

Would that make him stop crying? Is there still enough of who he was in there to make the effort all worth it?

"This is important to you and could be important for us later. But we have other responsibilities to focus on right now. I don't want my best friend to be out of commission during the Games because she couldn't stop chasing down nebulous and sketchy leads."

The best friend guilt trip worked like a freaking charm every time. And I did have other things I had to do before I could devote all my time to GMG preparations.

-vVv-

"Thank you for coming, Hibiki."

I shook the Blue Pegasus Mage's hand, or I would have. He bowed over it politely, maintaining eye contact and a smile that made part of me feel incredibly flattered and special.

"I wouldn't have missed today for anything, Fae"

And the same uncooperative part of my brain that was so flattered decided now was the perfect time to recall my slip of the tongue and flirting with the older Mage mot too long ago. And even forcibly directing my thoughts towards a safer, nonpresent target in the form of Laxus didn't stop me from turning a very, very light pink.

Mission failed: Blush has escaped containment.

"Who else are we waiting on?"

The speaker was a man who didn't look nearly as anxious as I could tell he was. Kellye's father, Lord Cear, or Tomas, as he asked to be called, had taken the news of his youngest daughter's magic very well. He was however, both thrilled and terrified of this unknown territory he and his family were entering so soon after their scare with Tara being abducted along with some of her peers. He had greeted Hibiki as etiquette demanded, but introductions were going to be left up to me.

"It will only be us, today, sir. Hibiki, this is Kellye's father, Tomas Cear. Lord Tomas, this is the Archivist who will be helping Kellye get her feet under her now that she's got an active Archive."

The Cear family parlor was lovingly arranged by Lady Cear, Rachel, but the woman herself was absent. Tara had withdrawn into herself and was largely shut in and needed to be coaxed to eat or engage with others.

The man shook Hibiki's hand but his gaze turned automatically back to me. The more familiar face was often by default the friendlier face.

"How...will this arrangement work, Miss Celeste?"

He was trying to not be so bold as to demand why I wasn't stepping in as his daughter's teacher when I had already established a good connection with her.

"Because your family has no prior affiliation with any individual guild other than professional work, to have all the prospective mentors come from one guild would be both biased and a narrow scope for Kellye to learn from."

"Which is where I come in." Hibiki stepped up then with all the poise and charm of a host. "Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale and Fairy Tail have a friendly understanding and often cooperate in situations such as this. With a larger pool of wizards to choose from, this will let your daughter have a wider variety of teachers to learn from, with varying specialities."

The father before us gave a tight smile.

"I think your guilds may have missed the boat there, Mr Lates. The first thing Kellye asks me after she says good morning is how soon she can become Miss Celeste's student. The second varies, but it's often asking when she can join Fairy Tail. She's convinced she can join as young as eleven years old."

The faint tone of incredulity in his voice was understandable. I very, very artfully kept my face neutral, knowing Kellye was basing her mental timeline off of my own.

Sweet girl, you do not want my timeline.

Only by virtue of indulgent guild members, uncertain mental maturity and obsessively devoting all spare time towards developing my magic had I been able to survive my own backstory. There was a reason I hadn't had a really close friend until Wendy joined the guild. And the idea of Kellye facing the same mortal peril I had, however infrequent, was not a very pleasant one.

"She would have the option of enrolling in the Young Mages Academy, which is a 4 year course of study, to gain basic knowledge with private tutoring from Hibiki as he is our coalitions Archive Expert, and maybe one to two others. She can also take a 1 year magic literacy course from the same, and spend the rest of her time with as many private tutors as are willing and able to accommodate her, and will learn at her own pace along with her current education. Or she can have her magical education be entirely homeschool based in the form of a select number of full time tutors."

The man was taking in this information but still didn't look like he understood it fully.

"You explained to me that there was a reason behind you not being able to take her on right away..."

Tomas had, with guidance, submitted a formal request through guild channels for advice on how to supply his daughter's new found educational needs. He had sent the request to me at Fairy Tail but there were certain protocols that I had to follow.

For one, I couldn't just step in and take Kellye on as a fulltime student. That typically happened when the current living situation of the student was deemed unsafe or unfit. And Kellye's parents were good people who tried their best to provide good lives for their children. So that was out.

Additionally, I was an active member of one guild and one guild only. The teacher would obviously influence the student to choose their guild over others, even without meaning to. This had been decried as unfair by other guild's who also wanted new manpower joining their ranks. So to keep it fair, everyone had to have some chance to make their pitch to Kellye about where she would decide to go in the future. Or even if she wants to be a guild member at all. Archivists had plenty of options other than working within a guild.

"Her first lessons will be more focused out of necessity. Since she has an Archive, her first lessons will need to be about safely accessing it and learning what her Archives limits and quirks are."

"And what does that look like?"

Hibiki inserted himself here to explain to Tomas what Kellye's lessons would look like based on his experience and current knowledge of her starting point.

There was truthfully no good standardized way of educating wizards in any large number. Certainly didn't stop Fiore from trying, but there was a reason things tended to be passed on from mentor to mentee. It was not firmly planned, it was going to be chaotic and there would be plenty of curve balls along the way. Especially if Kellye ended up developing any magic additional to her own. Hibiki, for example, had some Spatial Magic which was how he was able to track down and store Urano Metria while not being a Celestial Spirit Magic.

"She has had her heart set on learning from you for many years now." The worried father persisted, fishing for some kind of verbal agreement that he would bring to his daughter as assurance that she would get what she wanted.

"Rune Magic does tend to integrate well into Archive. I will not rule it out, but neither can I make promises."

He was looking like a man who had been drafted for war. I tried not to laugh at his woe as Morgana filled me in. He was imagining the fallout of his daughter's disappointment and comparing it to Tara's reactions when she didn't get her way.

Poor man doesn't really know Kellye all that well, does he?

I took pity on him.

"Regardless of whether I am ever her official teacher, I am and will remain your daughter's friend. I will be happy to explain things to her when she comes to me with questions. She's a very smart girl, she'll understand."

The flash of desperate gratitude that traveled over his face spoke volumes.

-vVv-

Kellye still looked a little pale from her recently enforced bedrest, but she was all but bouncing with eagerness. Her hair was brushed and orderly, and while she wasn't in pajamas, she had the rosy cheeked look of a child who had just woken up. And she looked poleaxed with what we had just informed her. That I would not be her teacher.

"Why can't you?"

I shook my head at her question, already seeing the beginnings of disappointment.

"Your core magic is different enough from mine, I wouldn't know where to begin how to help you learn how to handle your magic properly."

"Isn't there an Archive wizard in Fairy Tail? I wanna join Fairy Tail like you!"

And those big green eyes were begging for an answer that I couldn't give. Hibiki seemed to be enjoying the exchange even as he waited for the meltdown.

"No Kelly, we don't have an Archive Mage. Which means, there is a vacancy when you are trained." This made her giggle a little and perk up a little. I reached out and touched the girl's shoulder gently. "I want to help you. I'd love nothing more than to be able to be your teacher. The reality is that I wouldn't be the best first teacher for you, because I don't understand Archive Magic the same way Hibiki does."

She was very obviously disappointed, but she didn't throw a tantrum or pout which I was very proud of her for. I didn't need to explain to her about the intricacies of guild policy, and alliance agreements. All that mattered was helping her understand that just because her life wasn't going to be what she envisioned, didn't mean it would be bad. Or that I wouldn't be a part of it.

"But you can teach me? Someday?"

"My door is always gonna be open for you."

She threw her arms around my neck in a hug with a sound of pure happiness and I bent slightly to make it a bit easier for her to reach. Morgana felt the joy and excitement Kellye was almost overflowing from her body from where she was squeezing me with all her strength.

"I'm gonna be the best Archivist in the world!"

She promised me, slightly muffled by how she was squeezing herself into my shoulder. Hibiki looked on, amused, fond and full of anticipation.

"Shall we get started then, my apprentice?"

Kellye looked up at him, looking surprisingly fierce for a child her age.

"Yes!"

-vVv-

Maybe I was a sucker for nostalgia, but the existing meeting with Kellye had made me think of my own teacher experience. With Freed and Mystogan. I hadn't been too open to Freed, nor he to me, but now we were very close. After considerable ups and downs and a seven year hiatus.

But Mystogan I had liked and been drawn to right away. It was strange to find myself assuming his position in Kellye's life. Strange and sad. Seven years of time was too long to go without seeing him. And unlike the other plane I had visited, Edolas's Time ran more or less parallel to Earthlands. So it would have been seven years for him too. Would he still feel as tall to me now that I'd had a growth spurt? Would there be signs of aging or would they just be marks of maturity as he entered his prime.

I considered it a good sign that I could think of this wistfully and with patience rather than with frustration or anger.

I had sunk years of time and effort into finding Tenrou. I was confident Mystogan would be fine in Edolas. I hadn't had such an assurance about when I would see everyone else again. So conquering that barrier had not been my primary focus for some time. Though I hadn't left it alone entirely. I had eliminated a number of different methods to travel dimensions as viable possibilities for me given my abilities and resources.

Attempting to create a Plane Shift spell had indeed shifted my plane. To somewhere that very distinctly was not Edolas. The Harry Dresden Totem and its supporting items had given me my small patch of the Nevernever, but not access to all of conceivable reality. I didn't have the resources to try and build a Stargate. The MCU Jump Points were not embedded in the fabric of our reality. The various Hyrule parallel dimensions means of access were not suitable either, though the parallel nature of Edolas to Earthland was most suitable.

I contemplated this as I flew back to my apartment to change before heading to the guild hall for some evening office hours. I landed on my balcony and entered, the door opening for me automatically. I took one step inside, then froze.

Morgana, what is that?

The feeling was...shivery. Like being caught between the prongs of a tuning fork. Something about this place was resonating as not right. I pressed my hand to the door frame, going over everything in my apartment to try and pinpoint what was wrong.

And what came back was something I had never experienced before.

Fae...someone has taken our books.

-vVv-

I should have been angry about this. Furious and beyond scared. But I wasn't. I wasn't numb either. I was definitely upset, but the puzzle was engaging enough to hold my attention. And the novelty of the experience was making it hard to pinpoint what the proper reaction should be to this. I knew steps to take, and things to do to address the issue, but all my feelings about it were still tied up in knots. Anger, insecurity, indignation, yes, but also curiosity and eagerness to meet this latest challenge. It was something to focus on that had literally never happened before. I definitely wanted to unpack why this invasion wasn't triggering my paranoia, rage or protectiveness of my living space. Because there had to be some reason-

"Ready to go, Princess?"

The familiar voice of the Poison Dragon Slayer drew me out of my tiny, barely noticeable spiraling thoughts. And by how he was wearing a carefully blank expression, he had done so on purpose. Kinana had moved into her own place towards the edge of Magnolia. Eric had followed her there once we worked the system enough to arrange him to be able to live with her. They were going to be my first stop in the next few days of spontaneous slumber parties.

The Poison Dragon Slayer now stood with my bag slung over his shoulder, dark indigo eyes tracing the walls of the room curiously. He was likely listening to the same thing I was scanning for in my final look before I withdrew to come back with fresh eyes.

The runes that were securing my space hummed along in their unique harmonies, utterly undisturbed. Functioning just as they were meant to. There was no disruption, not a trace of an intruder that I could see.

I had given it thought, and concluded that if I couldn't see a flaw that some robber could exploit, it was because I was too close to the problem. I needed distance from the location to have a chance to see it. So I had asked Kinana and Eric if I could impose on them for a night as I got my rotation of sleepovers set up. First with them, then with Lucy, then Freed, and lastly Natsu. Then I would come back here with fresh eyes. And find the audacious thief who had stolen from my library.

I felt Morgana shift in the back of my mind and assured her quickly.

Murder is nowhere near the top of my list of possible actions.

I am just being cautious.

I couldn't blame her. Bov Oris had triggered my every protective instinct when he targeted Wendy. This was similar, someone had violated my space and taken something very important to me.

And it would be fun to have a chain of sleepovers with everyone. Natsu was already talking about going night fishing.

"Yeah I'm ready. Eric, stay out of my alchemy stash."

"You found a skull cap and a destroying angel mushroom and you didn't tell me?"

The Poison Dragon Slayer looked petulant at his discovery of some of his favorite snacks in the world of toxic fungi. I grabbed his shoulder and hurried him out of my apartment. I knew it was only because of his good will that I could make him move at all, but he moved. He ambled out ahead of me still grumbling.

"I should report you for neglect. Criminal deprivation."

"Contrary to what you sometimes act like, you are neither my child nor my pet."

-vVv-

I hadn't seen Kinana as often since she moved out to live with Eric. She was over the moon to have him back, and I gave them as much space as I could. I probably had been a little distant since I had fixed my privacy filter. But right now, I was reviewing some strategies for the Grand Magic Games.

Reviewing the footage of past games, there was going to be, bare minimum, at least one double battle. I had pulled off a Unison Raid with Wendy and Kagura. But I hadn't quite worked out how to do the same with Eric and Kinana. And if I was potentially going to go into an event where I would partner up with one of my friends, I wanted to make a big splash.

The Naruto headband gets me what I need for Wendy and Kagura. But there aren't many good poison based options in that story. Certainly nothing as major as Wind or Gravity.

A violet head and cool scales made their way up my arm and one of my friends peered over my shoulder at the book and papers that were hovering before me.

"Is Eric not giving you your cuddles or am I just special?"

I asked this as Kinana, about the size of a ball python, wound around my neck and arm in a loose embrace.

:My friend does not hold warmth as well as you:

Parseltongue, and many animal languages I suspected, were incredibly literal when it came to nouns. No one held any illusions that Eric and Kinana were an item. But in her adopted native language, calling Eric her mate or partner did not carry as much weight as being called friend. So that name was what she assigned to him in Parseltongue.

I bit back a snicker at her reasoning, already able to imagine Eric's offended look if he heard her say that. He was still sleeping at the moment.

"You'll break your boy's heart if you let him hear that."

:It is nothing I have not already told him: She peered at my notes, green eyes focusing on the parts of my notes that she could read. :This is for us to hunt together?:

"I think I've worked something out for us to use. You have to be at least 30 ft long, so it's not something that we should save for a rainy day. Better to use it while we have enough strength."

:I can easily hold such a size for a considerable time:

"I'm not just saying that for conservation purposes. In it's best form, this spell could easily wipe out a lot of people. You would be sacrificing a lot of stamina, but you'd get a lot of durability and a gaze ability out of it."

The transformed woman side down my arm, shifting smoothly into her human form

"Then I shall go tickle the sleeping dragon and we'll get busy with testing."

"Perfect, this could easily synergize with his skill set as well."

-vVv-

"Alright, all ready here."

A still dozing Eric leaned against a tree while his girlfriend and I busied ourselves with our practice. I held out a loose page with the magic circle for our unison raid written on it with my power. Kinana took a deep breath and breathed out a cloud of magenta, magical venom that was quickly absorbed into it, making a striking combination of amber and purple.

She was wearing a blindfold I had made for the purpose of this exercise. So her hearing and sense of smell would be dialed up accordingly to let her move without issue.

"A little more."

Another breath of toxins drifted into the air and was sucked in by the magic circle. I tested its levels with a touch and adjusted a few factors to set things to the optimal level. This Unison Raid class spell relied on Kinana's natural ability to turn into a snake, and had my Story Magic providing a new direction for that ability to go into.

"Timeless stories exist about snakes. Old as the world itself. From the World Serpent to a temptor in a paradiscal garden. Now: I call on the one who is called the king of serpents."

I donned a set of mirrored sunglasses, another precaution, and took hold of the paper.

"Story Magic: Basilisk!"

Then I tore the paper top to bottom and released the spell. The Magic circle flew to Kinana, who was ready for what would happen and quickly went full snake, growing larger and larger.

And with a snap, the spell took.

Kinana's standard Violet Dracne look was that of a smooth skinned snake with a pale underbelly and violet scales. And she retained that basic coloring. But the scales of her head gained more definition and a few ridges. Her jaws gained a defined hinge, and the teeth in the back of her mouth grew larger. The kind of jaw to latch on and work venom into the wound the more its prey struggled. A faint green sheen covered Kinana's scales, lending it a unique hue.

By the time she finished her aided transformation, Kinana was as thick as two grown men and over 50 feet long. The dark strip of clothes covered her eyes, which I was sure were now an eerie bright yellow hue. That color was specifically mentioned after all.

I circled Kinana, making notes of the changes she had undergone. If she didn't give herself wings or other extras, Kinana could hold a size of about 30 feet without much issue. This spell seemed to have almost doubled her length.

"How does that feel?"

She coiled up, head swaying like a cobra as she tested herself.

:magnificent! And I hear all so easily! I-:

She paused, tongue flickering as she scented the air. Her head swooped low, closer towards me.

:hatchling, I can smell your magic:

"That tracks. In the Story the basilisk was meant to protect those with magical heritage and eliminate those who did not have it."

I reached out and patted her nose cautiously. The scales were sturdy and surprisingly warm under my hand.

:no, this is more. Before I could discern who was a wizard and who was not with ease. But now, I can smell the power in your attire. The power in the air. And it all is distinct and different in its own way:

I noted down her remarks.

"It could be your senses have expanded to include the various degrees and types of magic in this sense, enabling you to fight almost completely blind. Now, let's go with our baseline. Basilisk venom is supposed to be able to destroy most anything, magical or otherwise."

I pulled out a runic outlay that contained a Story Magic equivalent of Erza's adamantine armor. It projected out a replica of her shields. I'd estimate they were about 70% as durable as if they were made with Erza's Requip Magic.

"Could you apply some venom. Just one bite, no chewing."

Kinana struck the dummy target with alarming speed. But any decent speed was terrifying in a creature of her size which most would think to be slow.

Most snakes when they got to be this large couldn't move very quickly on land. All my memories suggested this was not the case for Slytherin's basilisk. Kinana and I had already discussed what we would be testing. This transformed state, according to my calculations, should last a decent length of time, at the expense of Kinana not being able to change her size or give herself extra wings or heads.

The venom from Kinana's fangs sizzled as it ate through the enchantment I had presented.

Seconds, if that.

7.6 seconds for the enchantment to be completely dissolved.

That was some potent stuff. I could see Eric sniffing the air, still somewhat sleepy but definitely interested.

"Alright. Next test."

-vVv-

Testing had gone well. Kinana and I got a good amount of data on our Unison Raid and some practice. The tricky thing would be multitasking, focusing on the enchantment to let her act freely while not being deadweight in the meantime.

"How did this happen?"

Wendy asked, inspecting the motionless figure that a sheepish snake transformer and I had hauled into her clinic.

"Unison Raid with Kinana, gives her a petrifying gaze attack. And she saw Eric out of the corner of her eye."

I translated for my very embarrassed friend, who huddled closer around my neck and hid herself under my hair in embarrassment.

"So he's petrified?" The Sky Dragon Slayer inspected him carefully, testing his unyielding, stone-like flesh. "This doesn't look like petrification that I've ever seen. He looked normal, just frozen. Almost like he's paused."

She gave me a quick glance.

"This isn't Time Magic, is it?"

Her concern was understandable and I wouldn't hold her caution against her. I was exactly the type of person to go poking into gray area spells such as Time, especially given I had an Arc of Time user to chat with semi frequently.

"The magic circle does incorporate some of our mutual friends' magic, rewritten by me. It was the best way I could think of getting the neutralizing effect without harming them. This is literally a person's personal time being paused temporarily. So their bodily functions with be suspended, they won't starve, get sick, or risk cracking like they would if they were turned to stone."

Wendy rapped Eric's head, a faint smile playing on her lips.

"You've got a cure, I take it?"

I opened my spellbook and pulled out a plant with broad, dark green leaves that were wrinkles like kale, topped with five large petalled lavender flowers.

"Got any earmuffs? I'm gonna need to enchant this thing to scream, and yes it does matter."

-vVv-

Eric was fine. Wendy and I managed to cook up a cure for his petrification. Kinana took him home and I decided to skip crashing at their place for the night. Happy couples tested my filter, my patience and my ability to go willfully blind. I figured it could not hurt me to sleep in my office for a night. The couch was comfortable enough for this reason.

I slept well enough for a few hours. Until Morgana registered there was a presence and woke both of us up.

Matte green eyes were hovering inches away from me.

The undignified yelp I let out made Mavis Vermillion give a giggle as she withdrew from hovering over my face.

"When I find out where you sleep, I'll get you back for this."

I warned her, trying to calm my racing heart as I sat up.

"I look forward to it!"

The first guild master of Fairy Tail flopped down on the end of my sofa turned bed. She looked around the area with a satisfied smile.

"I have to say, your runes are fantastic. I've been looking them over and they are nearly perfect."

I paused in rubbing my eyes.

"When you saw nearly, you mean there was a writing error, a design error-"

If Mavis spotted a mistake, I might be closer to figuring out how someone managed to break and enter into my apartment.

Or maybe I should say just enter. They didn't break anything.

"Oh no. You've long since worked out the kinks in your script. The thing with runes is there is no ultimate form that is universally perfect for every application and wizard."

Disappointed, I sat back with a sigh.

"Yeah, I concluded the same thing."

Levy's Solid Script worked best with concrete nouns and concise word choice. Freed could use concepts and commands easily with Dark Ecriture.

My script worked best when it was used to transcribe a story or portion of a story. I could use single word stories, such as spells from Harry Potter. But they worked better, lasted longer and were more effective with more lore to back them up. It was easy to get wordy.

"What's brought you here tonight, Fae?"

I gave a half hearted gesture.

"Taking a few days away from my place. Going back with fresh eyes."

"What happened?"

I was reminded that while Mavis did stick around a lot, somehow, she was not always present. And I had not gotten a proper answer as to how she was even here. She more resembled a thought projection rather than a ghost, but all the history I could delve concluded that our guild master was dead. And her manifestation wasn't enough for me to get a clear reading off of.

"Someone got into my place and stole the books I was given by the Celestial Spirit King. I barely had started reading them."

Mavis hummed, tapping her lips as she gazed into the distance. Her strange, reflection-less eyes made it hard to tell, but I got the feeling she was zoning out in a way that was giving me deja vu.

"Books from the Celestial library..."

I had a hunch I was seeing the Fairy Tactician applying herself to a problem. And judging by the bright eyes, even though the strange veil that covered them, her single tapping finger and the slight side to side swaying, she was very happy to have something to apply herself too. And I could relate to that. And working on a problem like this with a like minded person could be very fun.

I gestured and my telekinesis rings pulled up some loose note paper from my desk and my pen.

"Target was the books. They were the only things taken. They also happen to be things that people wouldn't think of as worth stealing. Objectively speaking, what I use to make my totems are much more valuable."

I wrote a brief description about the books, the writing leaking through the paper in reverse to let Mavis read what I was putting down as well. The young looking girl nodded, musing in response to my words, reaching out and touching the bottom half of the paper.

"The suspects are everyone who knew that you had these books. So that would be people such as Levy, and other attendees of the party."

"As well as my book binder and the employees who assist him in setting type. They would have had the chance to read some of what it contained."

At a touch, our words were transcribed on the various papers.

"Next to add to the suspect list: those people who had access to your apartment."

I started to write that list, forcing myself to go as objectively as possible. Everyone who had access to my apartment.

"There's a blanket measure based on intent that anyone with a Fairy Tail guild mark can enter, but it tracks whoever does. Unfettered access would be..."

The list didn't look too good. They were either roommates or friends of several years. All of them were people I trusted to not have malicious intent. I did not do business dealings in the apartment. Never had. The lower floors of Fairy Hills were rented out to the local general populace, but they did not have access. I had made sure that they could get into the building without allowing them to even get close enough to eavesdrop on our place.

Names on this list consisted of Kinana, I still hadn't taken her off, Eric, I had added him several months ago, Wendy and Kagura, Carla and our frequent guests: Rogue, Frosch, Sting and Lector. Simon had unfettered access as well. And I had keyed in Ultear and Meredy as well. On the off chance that they needed someplace to go to ground while in the area.

I am not liking the look of this list.

"Given that the list of suspects are all close friends and acquaintances, the probability of them being a culprit is very low. Far more probable is that someone managed to feign the magical signature which your security tracks to allow visitors access."

"I thought the same. But the type of magic that would allow that would be extremely difficult to maintain for any length of time. Spoofing your entire magical signature for even 30 seconds can wipe a person out."

"It wouldn't take very long if they knew what to look for. It's easier to use a door that already exists that to try and build a new one. Especially in a runic layout such as yours."

'A door that already exists.' What about a window? Or something that can be both...a mirror.

I had been experiencing someone moving right past my wards repeatedly over the last little while. Beginning on the same day that Fairy Tail came back.

What time of day did they...afternoon. The Tenrou team had been back for a few hours by then. Nothing more. Word hadn't spread that far yet. Magnolia all knew but hardly anyone else. Not enough connection there to pursue that angle.

The other two times had been when I had my first lengthy talk with Freed, and then a look in while I was at home. And then...nothing since.

"That might be enough..."

I began scribbling down my theory. All the details I could conclude about the three times someone had been gazing through a mirror to watch me. Then my and Mavis's conclusions about the details of the stolen books. Two incidents with the commonality that they bypassed not just my personal security, but also Freed's. And while there was similarity between us it was not that extreme.

I bounced to my feet, feeling a thrill of excitement.

"I'm gonna go for a late night stroll, care to haunt my steps?"

Mavis laughed in utter delight.

"I would love to."

-vVv-

Mavis chatted and discussed what would best go into this type of spell. The invader(s) had hidden their identity each time. If they were all caused by the same person, then adjusting my wards to close that single hole would be simple. If they were different people, then I had a new course of study to pursue. That being; someone was messing with me. I had dealt with a stalker before.

"It's almost as though they know exactly how to avoid leaving discernable traces. Like they know how my power works."

Mavis, hovering over my shoulder as I finished writing a spell to prove a link between the person who looked through my mirror and whoever entered my apartment to steal my books.

"Story Magic is unique enough that knowledge of that couldn't be easy to find. But it is simple enough to intuit your way to conclusions about it."

"And it's easy to come to wrong conclusions."

"The simplest explanation is also the easiest way to get accurate information: Somehow, you must have told this person yourself."

That was an angle I hadn't considered. The details of how my power worked in broad terms wasn't something I shared. Jason in his interviews had asked me occasionally about my uncanny insight. I tried to evade that question playfully. Even as an adult, the knowledge that someone could read your past at a glance or a touch was not a comfortable one. So I'd rather not have that stigma to deal with.

"That list has a lot of crossover with the one of the people who can get into my apartment. It's not a feasible way to narrow it down."

But Mavis was onto something.

Morgana's memories and the stories I knew where technology involved programming and computers, hacking was not always being hunched over a monitor and keyboard in the dark typing furiously. A lot of times, it was surreptitiously getting access to a password, or even a secondary piece of information such as a phone number.

It's a viable theory as to how. But I still need to figure out 'who'.

-vVv-

Disappointment was inevitable in life. Such as right now.

The magic formula to compare two magical signatures was fairly standard in proving a connection between two spells, or a spell and a person. You had two samples and you saw how they matched or if they did. Textbook for the Rune Knights to use when they had someone on hand who could write the formula for them. (I did it for Mest and only Mest. Lahir wasn't quite dead to me this long after Tenrou and with everyone making it back safely. Just mostly dead.)

I was adapting that standard formula with Story Magic to try and match some points in history. These were things that had happened and I could describe them uniquely in my script as a sort of divination spell.

On the one side, the three times my Watcher had looked in on me. On the other, the thief who had stolen books that no one outside of my immediate circle should know the significance of.

And I was posing a question to my magic whether these acts were all perpetuated by the same person.

"That's a no."

I sighed, chin in my hand, fighting a yawn as the lack of slack started to catch up to me.

"So much for that theory. Wouldn't have helped catch them but it just means there's a bigger hole to patch that I expected."

"It could still be useful." Mavis comforted me with a pat of her incorporeal hand on my shoulder. "Rephrase the testing; did these two people gain access the same way?"

It took no more than a few minutes to re-word the conditions and run a new comparison. I eyed the read out of amber script, twirling a strand of hair. Then I sat up and looked closer at the contradictory message I was getting in response to Mavis's query.

"Yes but also no...?"

Can I get an elaboration?

Morgana applied herself to the read out, delving for meaning underneath the written words.

The watcher and the thief did not use the same means of entering. The Mirror spell was only used to observe, though it apparently could have been used to transport the caster. The thief's method of access is still unclear.

She paused, and I could almost imagine Morgana rifling through a new book that floated out of the library's worth of knowledge at her back.

I can say with about 70% certainty that whatever loophole that was used to commit these deeds was the same for both individuals. Thus: yes, they used the same gap in the wording to gain entry. But they both used their own methods to achieve transport, and to conceal their presence afterwards.

I tapped my knuckles on the floor, unsatisfied and intrigued all at once with the contradictory dilemma. I passed MOrgana's words to Mavis and added my own extrapolation.

"The voyeur I've had over the last few weeks could have come through, but kept their distance. Or maybe I should just call them an observer, since they've never tried to catch me unawares or in a compromised situation."

Except for that one time after I got Rilt arrested. That had been my most vulnerable. Someone with an obsession or ill intent would have lingered, watching the moment of weakness and letting it build their sense of intimacy. This person had instead looked away.

"I can't say whether their intentions are pure or not, but I am fairly certain that they don't mean me any harm. I was pretty sure of that from the start, and they've only proved that since then. They've had ample opportunity to catch me off guard, they've been able to find me almost anywhere I go no matter what wards I'm behind, even my own. If they wanted to hurt me, they could have just killed me on the train and made my death into a cliche locked room mystery. Which wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing-"

Fae.

Sorry 'Gana.

"But the thief on the other hand, I can't get a read on his intent."

I rose, pacing a few strides here and there.

"They took books from the Celestial Library. Only those books. I'm assuming they had to know something about how valuable they were for that to be the case. Which would infer he had some idea of what was inside of them. Did he at least flip through them since they were out in the open?"

I turned towards my desk to try and read, again, some clue or hint as to this person's identity.

I froze when I saw a book lying open on my desk. I was so used to that sight I hadn't even noticed it when Mavis and I first came in. I had just skipped right over that. Because the binding and the paper was familiar to me with as many projects as I had given to Colin to clean up or reprint over the years.

The cover was the unique reproduction. The cover of one of the books from the Celestial Spirit Realm that I knew for a fact had been stolen a day prior.

It was one of the nameless titles. A hand written account of the artifacts that the Celestial Spirit King granted to mortals and his subjects. Their personal gates and their keys for wizards to use. The blessed silver that the Clan keys were made out of. The golden keys he crafted for himself and the gates of a blessed metal only found in the Celestial Spirit Realm's furthest reaches called sidium.

The page was open to the section about the gates. I automatically read a few lines as I tried to process how in the world this book could be here again when I knew it had been taken-

-may lead to anywhere under heaven. It is a Spirit's greatest boon from the King that their gate may lead them anywhere they wish. The gift of a personal Celestial Gate to a common spirit is what elevates them to a Celestial Spirit.-

Morgana was taking in this information. I laid my hand on the pages inspite of myself and gasped as the feeling hit me, making my eyes water in sympathy.

Whoever had left this book here had done so out of love. Love powerful enough that none of the efforts they had made to conceal their presence had been able to touch it. It was a love that was frightening in its depths but comforting in it's steadiness. There was guilt and pain under that love.

Loss. Whoever left this here was thinking about a loss they went through.

I wiped some reflexive tears off my cheeks, trying to center myself again and figure out how to breathe around the feeling of my own ribs squeezing me tight, crushing my lungs and my heart.

"What's wrong?"

"Got another data point to register."

I told Mavis, turning back to my still floating magic circle, pen in hand and determination in my heart.

I added a third point to the comparison circle I had drawn. I moved it to an equilateral point to the other two at Mavis's recommendation and carefully tried to find the words to encapsulate the impression I had gotten off of this book. Who had been carried by someone who I didn't know who for some reason, loved me.

I watched the circle carefully.

The conclusion was swift.

My Watcher was the person who had given this book back to me.

You love me? How? I don't know you...

This wasn't like Bov Oris's obsession with Wendy. This feeling was true. Love was one of those things that you couldn't feign with magic and you had an incredibly hard time concealing it too.

I took a deep breath, snapping myself out of the spiraling thoughts of confusion.

Ok. Don't overthink that. Just take it as a fact. Incorporate it into the narrative. What does this mean? Opportunity, means and motive.

"Opportunity: My observer has to know whoever took my books. Otherwise he wouldn't have had the chance to bring this one back to me in pristine condition. Without even a trace of conflict on it. The opening to put the book back was when I wasn't in the apartment. Given their ability to apparently find me, it's not difficult to conclude that they would be able to tell when I was out of the house."

I spoke aloud for Mavis's benefit as I laid down strips of paper around the book and wrote some preservation runes on it to keep that pristine until I could check it for prints or other clues of identity.

"Means: They have a way in that I couldn't block out even with a revision of all my security protocols. Motive...Strong feelings. They care about me. Deeply. When you care about someone, you want their happiness, their safety."

I stared down at the pages as a faint shift came over the air over the book as my runes came alive to keep anyone from touching this book except for me.

"They know me. I don't know how, but they do. Something about this book, this page that they left open for me to find, would..."

I paused, mind moving in all kinds of directions. Snapping into focus.

It's easier to use a door that already exists.

Celestial Spirit Gates.

And far back through the years, the distant memory of Edolas. Where Lucy...had summoned her spirits without a hitch.

Celestial Spirits can access Edolas.

And they can take passengers.

I tore out of my apartment with a whoop of joy and triumph. I could barely feel my feet touch the ground as I ran straight for Lucy's apartment.

I found the right door! It's been so many years, but I found it, Mystogan!