All right chapter 4! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Fairy Tail does not belong to me whatsoever; however, Elaina does as she comes from my imagination.

Previously:

Elaina managed to find her way down to the sewers below the mansion. She hunkered down and pulled out her Gale-Force Reading Glasses, another item she found in the suitcase. With those glasses on, she quickly managed to read through the book.

"Oh, wow," Elaina said to herself. "I knew a bit about what this book held, but I never paid attention to the detail. This is incredible." Just then, Everlue busted through the wall Elaina was leaning against, holding her arms behind her back.

"Well then, please share," he said. "Secrets don't make friends, you know."

"No way in hell am I telling you. You doesn't deserve to know what it is." Elaina grimaced in pain as Everlue pulled on her arms more, hurting not only her arms, but her shoulders a bit as well.

Natsu, please hurry.

Elaina cried out as Everlue bent her body forward to get a look at the book still in her hand.

"What secret does it hold?" he said. "Let me guess, he buried his fortune and there's a treasure map hidden inside. Tell me or I'll snap your arm like a toothpick."

"Not gonna happen," Elaina said through the pain she was feeling before sticking her tongue out. She never felt so bold before. Maybe Natsu was already rubbing off on her.

"Boyo." Then Elaina found herself on her knees with her head on the floor and butt in the air, arms still painfully pinned behind her back. "Now is not the time to get sassy. Listen, I myself commissioned this book's very creation. Therefore, any secret it holds is rightfully my property!" Elaina turned her head slightly to her left, just in time to see Happy fly feet first into Everlue's face.

"Happy!" Elaina exclaimed with joy. "That was awesome." Then Happy's wings disappeared and he landed in the sewer water.

"What's this?" Everlue said. "A flying cat?"

"The name's Happy," Happy said, though it came out more like a gurgle as Happy's mouth was in the water.

"You probably shouldn't stay in that water, Happy," Elaina said, scrunching her nose up.

"But the water feels so good."

"That's sewer water, Happy." Elaina sighed before grabbing Cancer's key and holding it before her. "The tables have turned now. Not sure if I should go easy on you after what you done. If anything, you deserve a good smack and maybe more."

"Oh," Everlue said. "A celestial wizard. But for a reader, you seem to be a bit deficient in your terms of phrase. 'The tables have turned' implies that the weaker party has rallied to claim victory. But there's no way you and that cat could ever defeat me and my diver magic. Boyoyoyoyo!" Then he dove into the floor.

"So he does that using magic?" Happy asked, now out of the icky sewer water. "I had no idea Everlue was a wizard too." Elaina caught of whiff of the stench coming from Happy.

"You seriously need a bath when we get back home, Happy," she said, scrunching her nose again. Then she quickly dodged as Everlue came up next to her, making a grab for the book. She dodged again and again as Everlue made attempts for the book. "I know the whole story, you know. It's a horrible adventure novel about a trashy little character named Duke Everlue."

"You serious?"

"I don't know that I'd call the protagonist 'trashy', but yes," Everlue said before disappearing into the floor and then worm his way into the ceiling. "The story itself is crap. And to think it was written by the great Kemu Zaleon." Elaina gasped as Everlue popped out. "Inexcusable!" She dodged again and then again.

"I can't believe you're that arrogant," Elaina said. "You forced him to write it!"

"Arrogant, moi? The word doesn't begin to apply. To tell my story's an honor, no matter what the circumstances."

"Oh yeah? Then why'd you have to blackmail him to do it?"

"Blackmail?" Happy repeated.

"What's the big deal?" Everlue said, coming out behind Elaina, causing her to turn around. "He just needed some extra encouragement to take the job."

"Oh really?" Then Everlue started to swim in the floor.

"Any fool would have jumped at the chance to have me as their muse. But he had the audacity to say no." Everlue dove down into the floor. "So I have him the added inspiration in the form of an ultimatum." Happy and Elaina turned around again. "Write the novel or his family would be stripped of their citizenship."

"But then none of them would be able to join any of the guilds and make a living," Happy said. "Do you really have the power to do that?"

"I have the power to do anything." Everlue popped up underneath them, making the two get out of the way. "I got him to write it, didn't I? But I didn't like his attitude, so I decided he'd do best writing from a prison cell. Boyoyo. He went on and on about being a brilliant novelist who would never give into threats, but in the end I got what I wanted!" Elaina and Happy dodged Everlue as he continued to bounce off the walls.

"You'd really go as far as to imprison someone to just boost your ego?" Elaina said in disgust. "That's downright inhumane. For three years he was in solitary confinement. Do you have any idea how hard that must've been for him?"

"Three whole years?" Happy asked as he flew overhead. The two jumped back as Everlue popped up in front of them.

"Perhaps it took him that long to appreciate me," he said. "Boyoyoyo."

"You're wrong," Elaina said. "He couldn't bear to spread your lies is more like it. But he had to satisfy your vanity of course. He knew that if he didn't write your character as a heroic champion, then his family would suffer."

"Tell me, how exactly do you know all this?"

"Right here." Elaina held up the book in her hand. "In black and white."

"What? I've read that book from cover to cover and Kemu Zaleon isn't in it."

"Well, if you read it normally, there's no mention of him. But I clearly know something that you don't." Thanks to the series, of course. "Before he was an author, Kemu Zaleon was a wizard."

"He was?" Happy asked.

"What did he do?" Everlue questioned angrily.

"After he finished the book, he used all of his remaining strength and cast a spell on it." Everlue groaned.

"What a dirty trick. He turned a book about a great man like me into a hatchet job? The nerve of that fool!" Everlue lunged forward, making Elaina jump out of the way.

"You need to let it go." She dodged Everlue again. "While it's true that he wrote about all the pain and torture he went through. The chapters about what you did to him, however, are just a small part of this book. Its' secret really has nothing to do with you."

"Tell us, Elaina," Happy said, drool coming out of his mouth.

"What the devil do you mean?" Everlue said.

"Well, let's put it this way," Elaina said. "I'm not gonna give you the book back, Duke Everlue, because it wasn't yours to begin with." She held out a golden key. "Open, Gate of the Giant Crab: Cancer!" The crab spirit came forth.

"A giant crab!" Happy said excitedly. "Oh yeah. Nothing says 'I'm gonna kick your butt' like a crab man with razor claws and tough guy sunglasses." He giggled. Elaina sighed with a small smile.

"Hey, Elaina, how would you like your hair done today, baby?" Cancer asked.

"What?!" Happy was mortified.

"I actually need your help, Cancer," Elaina said. She pointed to Everlue. "It's him. Take care of that guy right over there."

"Whatever you say, baby."

"Oh, so he just makes the bad guys look cooler before they kill us," Happy said. "That's useful. Yeah, you should send him back, Elaina."

"That's not exactly what happens, Happy," Elaina said.

"Open, Gate of the Maiden: Virgo!" Everlue exclaimed.

"He's using your trick, Elaina!" Happy said. Of course Elaina knew. It was after this that Lucy had acquired Virgo's key, meaning Elaina would as well.

"Did I hear my master summon me?" Virgo asked she popped out of the ground.

"Virgo, fetch me that book," Everlue said, pointing to the book Elaina held.

"So she's a celestial spirit?" Elaina asked, trying to sound surprised.

"Baby," Cancer said. Then Elaina, Happy, and Everlue gasped as they saw Natsu hanging onto Virgo.

"Natsu!" Happy and Elaina exclaimed happily. Even though she knew Natsu was gonna be all right, she was still relieved to see it with her own eyes.

"Yeah?" the pinked haired Dragon Slayer said.

"What is the meaning of this?" Everlue said.

"How'd you get up there?" Elaina asked.

"Well, I saw her getting up, so I jumped on her and then all of a sudden I ended up here," Natsu explained.

"Let me get this straight. You grabbed her while she was still inside the house? But that means that you had to have passed through the spirit gate with her. Only that's impossible."

"Elaina, what the heck do I do now?"

"Well, how about do what you do best and finish what you started?"

"Virgo, clean up this rubbish," Everlue said. Natsu jumped down from Virgo's shoulders.

"As you wish, Master," Virgo said.

"Now I'm fired up," Natsu said. "Fire Dragon Roar!" He let out his breath attack as Elaina grabbed onto the whip on her belt. She tied Everlue up with it as Natsu sent Virgo back with his roar.

"Take this, you go for nothing sorry excuse for a human being!" Elaina said as she sent Everlue flying towards Cancer, who used his scissors and made quick work of him. "Whatever heroic fantasy you think you're living is nothing compared to the villainous person you really are."

"Okay, I'm done," Cancer said. Elaina glanced back at the now bald Everlue. "Does this look fabulous or what, baby?"

"Oh yeah," Natsu said, one foot on top of the fallen Virgo. "Way to go, crab man—baby." Then everything started to shake and everything, the ceiling and the entire mansion, started to collapse.

Luckily, the three managed to escape. While Happy gasped at the falling building, Elaina cringed at the sight.

"I like your style," Natsu said. "Out with a bang. You are definitely gonna fit in at Fairy Tail."

"But aren't we supposed to not destroy stuff?" Happy asked.

"It seems that you can't really avoid that in this guild," Elaina said, giggling a bit.

Following the destruction of the Everlue Mansion, the trio went back to the residence of the client.

"When I read 'Daybreak,' I couldn't believe it was written by Kemu Zaleon," Elaina said. "It's impossible that he could've written something that bad."

"Yeah, so?" Natsu asked.

"So that's how I knew that there must've been a spell on it," she lied. Then she held out the book to Kaby.

"But I requested this book be destroyed," he said. "Why on earth are you handing it back to me completely unscathed?"

"If you really want it destroyed, then you should really do it yourself."

"I most certainly will burn this trash. I never wanted to see it again."

"I understand how you feel about this book, Kaby. You want to protect your father's legacy because you're actually Zaleon's son, am I right?"

"Huh?" Natsu and Happy said.

"Yes, that's true," Kaby said.

"Have you actually read it?" Elaina asked.

"No, I—I could never bring myself to do it. My father told me it was garbage."

"You were just gonna burn it?" Natsu asked.

"I was."

"Without even bothering to see what's inside?" Natsu had a hold on Kaby's collar. "It's the last book that your dad wrote, right? Some of us would kill for that kind of memory." Elaina got in between the two.

"Just let him explain himself, Natsu," she said, looking at the pink haired boy.

"Please, that book caused my family great heartache and shame," Kaby said. Then he went on to explain what happened after his father's return after those three years. "Not long after that, my father passed away. However, the anger and betrayal I felt towards him lived on. But as the years passed by me, that anger slowly turned into remorse. And now...it's too late for me to ask for his forgiveness. So I decided to make amends by destroying the final work that had caused him so much unhappiness. This is the only way. The only way I can preserve his legacy." He lit a match. "I'm sure that this is what he'd want."

"You're wrong," Elaina said. They all looked at her as the match blew out. Natsu and Happy gasped. "Look."

"What's happening?" he asked, covering his eyes as the book glowed in his hand. A magic circle appeared before the title levitated above the cover. The book now hovering above the floor on its own.

"A spell's been casted on this book. It's the work of the wizard Kemu Zaleon, or really Zekua Melon."

"A spell?" 'Daybreak' rearranged itself to read 'Dear Kaby' before settling itself on the cover. "'Dear Kaby.'"

"This book is his letter to you. Your father disguised it with a spell that rearranged all of the words so no one else could read it." The streams of letters and words burst from the book.

"Wow," Natsu said.

"Pretty," Happy commented.

"He didn't stop writing because he was ashamed," Elaina continued in her soft voice. "He stopped because he finished his masterpiece, a novel holding everything he had ever wanted to say to his son, who he loved dearly. And when you read it the way he had intended, it's most definitely his greatest work." By now, the words and letters retreated to the book, which was now closed in Kaby's hands. "And now that the spell's broken, you can read it for yourself."

"Thank you, Father," Kaby said as he was on his knees. "I swear that I will never let any harm come to this book."

"Well, I guess we won't be collecting that reward," Natsu said.

"Aye," Happy agreed.

"Huh?" Elaina said, not comprehending what he was saying. "What'd you mean?"

"We were supposed to destroy it," Natsu explained. "We didn't finish the job."

"Even so, let me do something," Kaby said.

"Nah," Elaina said, making everyone look at her. She gave a smile. "The best reward is this: giving you the last memento your father left you." Her finger lightly traced the pendant around her neck. "Seeing you cherish what your father left for you makes me happy." Natsu smiled as he started walking towards the door.

"There you have it," he said. "Thanks for offering, but we don't want it." Elaina started walking towards him as he stopped in front of the door. "I think it's time we all go home." Natsu turned his head to look over his shoulder. "That means you too, Mr. Melon. Go back home."

"Looks like I'm gonna have to find another job to pay for my rent," Elaina said as the three made their way home.

"If we had taken the money, it wouldn't have looked good," Natsu said. "You gotta think about Fairy Tail's reputation."

"Aye," Happy agreed.

"I know," Elaina said. "I meant what I said too. Even though we didn't take the reward money, the reward was just making him happy knowing how much his father really loved him."

Wasn't long after that did the three stop for the night.

"So how'd you know that the house wasn't really theirs?" Elaina asked as they sat around the fire. Natsu and Happy were eating fish.

"Hmm?" Natsu said. "Oh, that was easy. 'Cause they smelled like some other house. Seemed pretty obvious."

"Aye," Happy said.

"Guess that makes sense," Elaina said.

"You know, I've got you figured out," Natsu said. "All those papers I found on the desk at your place. You're writing a novel, aren't you?"

"Oh, so that's why she's such a bookworm," Happy said.

"My parents were writers," Elaina said, catching the boy and cat's attention. "My mom was a well-known novelist, and my dad was a journalist. I guess you could say writing is in my blood." She looked into the fire with this solemn look on her face. "I just wanna be able to carry on their legacy."

"I'm sure you can do it," Natsu said. "I bet your mom and dad would even be proud of you." Elaina looked at him in awe as tears welled up in her eyes. Then she gave him a smile.

"Thanks, Natsu."

The next day had the trio going through a swamp.

"Are you guys sure this is the right way?" Elaina asked as they trekked through.

"Happy says this is the way home, so this is the way we're going," Natsu replied.

"Have some faith," Happy said. "I'm a cat. I have a great sense of smell. My nose will lead us home."

"I'm sure you do have a great sense of smell, Happy," Elaina said. "But doesn't that trick usually work with dogs?" Eventually, they were out of the swamp and in a forest. As they walked, a rustling bush caught their attention.

"Who's there?" Natsu said as he jumped forward, ready for action, while throwing off his backpack and Happy from his head. Then Natsu started to fight behind the bushes with whoever it was. At that moment, Elaina remembered that this is the moment where they would encounter Gray.

"You can take him, Natsu," Happy said. Then both Natsu and Gray came out from behind the bushes. "It's Gray!"

"And in his underwear," Elaina said, turning her head slightly with a blush of embarrassment on her face.

"I was trying to find a bathroom," Gray said.

"Why would you strip down before you found one?" Natsu asked. "And who the heck ever heard of a bathroom in the middle of the forest?"

"I wanted some privacy. I didn't expect an idiot to barge in."

"I didn't barge in." And that's how that went before Elaina managed to break them apart and they all sat down while Happy fished in the river before them.

"So I take it you're on your way back from a job, huh?" Elaina asked.

"Yeah, there's a shortcut through these woods that'll get you back to town in no time," Gray said.

"See?" Happy said. "I told you so."

"All right, I'm sorry for doubting you, Happy," Elaina said. "Though, if you have such a great sense of smell, then how come you didn't know Gray was in front of us?"

"There are some things you don't want to smell."

"What'd you say?" Gray asked with a tick mark.

"I agree," Natsu said. "So go on home and we'll smell you later."

"Fine, I will." Gray started to get up. "And unless you want trouble, you should too."

"What makes you say that?" Elaina asked.

"'Cause Erza is due back any time now." Natsu gasped.

"Erza? Wow." Elaina was curious. Was Erza really as scary as she was made out to be in the series?

"Yep, she's the most powerful woman in all of Fairy Tail," Happy said with his mouth full of fish.

"Then I can't wait to meet her." Elaina smiled. She really did want to meet Erza since Erza was one of Elaina's favorite Fairy Tail characters. "What's she like?"

"Scary," the three boys said.

"Wild animal?" Gray asked.

"A vile beast," Natsu said.

"More like a full-on monster!" Happy put in. They imagined a huge monster like woman terrorizing a village. "She's not that big, you guys."

"Well, she's big enough for me," Natsu said.

"One thing we can all agree on is she is definitely that scary," Gray said. "Well, maybe a little scarier."

"Yeah, she's about this scary." Natsu pictured the same monster like woman kicking over a mountain.

"What? I guarantee you Erza could take down at least three mountains with a single kick."

"You don't need to exaggerate like that, Gray," Happy said. "It's more like two."

"Yeah, that's kinda scary," Elaina said, biting her lip.

"Crap, let's get moving!" Natsu said, getting up. Then there was an explosion, covering Natsu, Gray, and Elaina with dust and rock.

"What now?"

"Happy?" Dust was coming out of Natsu's mouth. Only Happy was gone.

"Hold it right there!" Natsu said to the assailants who were about to cook Happy. He, Elaina, and Gray stood high on top of a very large boulder.

"Happy!" Elaina said.

"Thank goodness," Happy said in relief. "Now I'm not gonna taste weird."

"Pipe down," one of the guys said.

"That's our friend you're trying to roast, buddy," Natsu said, cracking his knuckles. "Sorry, but you guys are gonna have to make other plans for dinner."

"You're all wizards, aren't you?" Gray asked. "What guild are you with?" If Elaina remembered the details correctly, those guys were with Eisenwald.

"I'm not telling," the troll like guy said. "Get 'em!"

"Gray, let's do this," Natsu said.

"All right, but don't go telling me what to do," Gray said. While those two dealt with those wizards, Elaina started to rush over to where Happy was.

"Natsu!" Elaina said, seeing the pink haired Dragon Slayer get caught in a sand attack.

"He's fine," Gray assured her. "Go and help Happy."

"Right." Elaina ran over to Happy. She started to untie him.

"Oh Elaina," the blue cat said.

"It's nothing, Happy." The girl smiled at him. Then her eyes widened as a large wizard, that look kinda like chicken, appeared at her side, not looking all that happy.

"Meat!" he said, raising his staff in the air. The end of it was on fire. Elaina gasped. Luckily for her and Happy, Gray kicked him back before going to fight the next guy, who then told him he'd have trouble with water and woman. And boy did Elaina know that.

"Uh, Gray, could you please put some clothes on?" Elaina asked, seeing that the dark haired wizard had stripped once again.

"Crap," Gray said. Elaina looked behind her and saw that Natsu was finishing off the troll guy.

As soon as that was done, they tied the bad guys to a tree.

"Don't you think you might have gone overboard, Natsu?" Gray asked.

"So what if I did?" Natsu retorted. "I got the job done."

"Grow up already. You're an embarrassment to the guild."

"What? Shut up!"

"No, you shut up."

"Lulla," the troll guy said. Elaina was crouched in front of him.

"Lulla?" she said. Then her eyes opened, remembering that this was the transition into the Lullaby arc.

"Lullaby is..." This caused Natsu and Gray to stop fighting.

"Huh?" Natsu said.

"Lullaby?" Gray questioned.

Then Happy came barreling towards them, knocking the three guild wizards out of the way, shouting, "Incoming!" Elaina watched as a shadowy hand appeared under the tree and dragged the tied-up wizards down into the ground before disappearing.

"Wha..." she said shakily. Seeing the action in person spooked her.

"Who was that?" Natsu asked.

"Well, whoever it was, they're fast," Gray said. "I can't even sense their presence anymore."

"But what could this mean?"

"Lullaby..." Elaina muttered. This definitely wasn't sitting right with her.

And there you have it. Chapter 4. I hope you guys enjoyed!