After their unfortunate mishap in the mine, the two heroes marched their way back to the large city of Melromarc for a much needed gear upgrade. After suffering horrible injuries at the fault of their own flaws, they both decided that it was due time they bought into more decent gear. If they were thwarted so easily by a hellhound, they had no chance against the upcoming wave. Naofumi said something about visiting Erhard, who Lucy was not at all familiar with, but assumed it was a friend he made along the way at some point when she wasn't present. When they did reach Erhard's at last, the celestial mage came to know him as a hard-working, friendly, and down to earth blacksmith who owned a very popular shop among the kingdom. The same shop they had snuck into a few nights ago, but neither of them would mention that to him. Her partner, Naofumi, and the man seemed quite fond of each other, and she found it relieving to see him in a good moon around anyone else but herself. Not that he was a rude person necessarily, but he lacked tact and sympathy for almost anyone else regardless of their status. It was as if his shield had also guarded his heart.
"You know, I can make a custom order. If you give me the materials, I can have it done for you by tomorrow." Erhard grinned, and almost immediately, Naofumi started haggling with him for a discount despite Lucy's constant reminding that their budget was four hundred silvers— more than enough— and rendered a discount useless. That didn't seem to stop either of the men from bickering about the price, though. Along with that, Erhard had suggested a few swords for Lucy to keep, and she informed him that she'd have one that suited her capabilities soon enough but thanked him for his candor anyway. The shield hero looked at her bemused as she repeated that same thing once more, and wondered how hard it could possibly be to get a sword, but decided not to question her or her spirit's. Apparently it was the pink haired maid that had given Lucy her whip— that Naofumi winced at thinking how much it would hurt just to touch— so surely she was also looking for another hell of a weapon for her master. He also had confidence that somehow, Lucy could make just about anything work. He's grown to appreciate her versatility and intellect. He had picked the right partner, of that he was sure. Likewise, she had come to love his protective nature, and even if at times it he was grumpy or stoic, she had come to find him as a true friend and his own person. He wasn't a fallback or someone to replace her lost friends of Fairy Tail— he was Naofumi. Her hard-headed, kind, and thoughtful friend, though he'd never truly show her just how much he felt unless it became unbearable. She was his shoulder to lean on, and he was her escape. They found in each other everything they had lost.
After their stop to the blacksmith, they went for a quick bite to eat and then off to the large church of Castle Town. Erhard had informed them that apparently, all four of the cardinal heroes were supposed to have a sort of countdown that only they could see to know how quickly the time of a wave was approaching. When they questioned why Lucy didn't have it, they all concluded it must be because she wasn't technically a legend hero and merely assumed the role, unlike the other four heroes. Thus, they both headed over so that he could receive it and know exactly when they were meant to expect to be summoned off to fight at each revolution.
Upon stepping into the church, a nun escorted them through the long, intricately gated halls and to the dragon hourglass. It was just as remarkable as Lucy had remembered and a marvelous sight for Naofumi. It looked grand, meticulous, and magical. The name certainly fit it. The cardinal hero stepped up the extendable marble stairs, and his partner followed closely behind, both watching as the sand fell through the small crevice. His shield began to glow, and a beam shot from the centerpiece gem and unanimously the dragon hourglass wrapped in an aura of his signature green magic power. Lucy found it very suiting that his magic aura complimented the hue of his eyes. They both watched in awe, and the countdown began to tick down in the upper intermediate level of his vision. Their first wave, which was actually the second, was set to begin just the next day. They'd need to get a good night's rest. The spectacle soon died down, and almost on que, an aggravating voice broke both of their trance and they turned to the source. Motoyasu, Itsuki, Ren, and Myne were all standing behind the two with either snarky or peeved faces, as if they weren't too happy to run into them either.
"Well, if it isn't Naofumi," the spear hero announced, voice rich in ego, "don't tell me you're still using that flimsy equipment?" Sensing his precipitated discomfort, Lucy made hurried steps to stay closely behind him as he began to storm off. His was clenching his teeth in anger, ignoring Myne's scoldings about him also ignoring Motoyasu and past the disapproving gazes of Itsuki and Ren. Lucy looked at Myne as she spoke and irked. With her incredible dishonesty and the sound of her demanding voice ringing in her ears, she felt most uncomfortable, too. It was strange how the red head harbored such strong hate for Naofumi for no apparent reason, and seeing her now solidified the celestial mage's hate for her. Not only did she falsely accuse her friend of a disgusting crime, but she was relentless and still continued to harass or demean him. She tenaciously decided that on her own free time, she would figure out just why this was so.
Far too concentrated in her own resolve, Lucy wasn't aware of the spear hero's nearing presence until he practically ripped her away from the tight knit formation she had with Naofumi by the wrist and dragged her towards him. She squealed in surprise that was soon overtaken by anger, and she fought back against the strong grasp he had on her. Naofumi stopped in his tracks and turned to face Motoyasu, features lost animosity. A protective instinct overtook him, and shockingly, even Itsuki and Ren were taken aback by the decision and voiced their dislike.
"Motoyasu, let her go." Ren warned, and Itsuki nodded in agreement next to him. Myne pouted, feeling neglected and jealous that her beloved hero was holding another. The male blonde sneered and held tightly onto her.
"Lucy is far too pretty to be fighting with him. She should be with us so we can actually protect her." He argued. She squirmed violently. The thought of using her magic against him was heavy in her mind, but she didn't want to start anything physical, knowing it could damage Naofumi's reputation further.
"Let me go, Motoyasu! I don't need you guys!" She spat. Across from them, the shield hero face was almost darkened in hate, breathing heavily as he mustered all of his strength trying not to start a fight that could end up hurting Lucy in any way. It was difficult and excruciating. The desire to safeguard her and keep her by his side was blazing in his chest. Ren and Itsuki shared a similar feeling— not nearly as intense or personal, but she was a girl and allowing such treatment of her to happen seemed wrong for all the right reasons. The shield hero, however, had already tread over and met face to face with the smug smirk. The urge to spit in that pretty face of his was strong, but the want to just take Lucy and go was stronger. He grabbed her with one hand and shoved Motoyasu away with the other, much to her happiness. As soon as she was free, she hid behind him, glaring daggers at the fellow blonde and his snarky party member. Without another word, they both left the church as fast as they could, leaving behind far too proud Motoyasu and Myne, and conflicted Itsuki and Ren.
Later that night, Lucy and Naofumi had returned to their inn. The shield hero has busied himself with his shield's stats in pursuit to soothe the lasting feelings of the day's earlier events. Behind him, Lucy sat on the bed with her legs hanging off the edge as Virgo reported her success to her master and showcased a celestial sword. Apparently. The "sword" itself was just a hilt, a beautiful hilt, but still a hilt. Its pommel was a convoluted winged like piece with a sapphire jewel at its center. It stretched down to a crossed stich grip of a high quality leather. The cross-guard was similar to the pommel, except its sharpest edges pointed upwards rather than down. The entire hilt was stunning on its own. The attention to detail and care to quality were evident.
"It's beautiful, but where's the rest of it?" Lucy sweatdropped, taking the hilt from her spirit's offering hands and taking a closer look at it. Almost immediately, the object began to glow in a shine of the cosmos, and the rest of the sword materialized before their eyes. As if complete, the sword— hilt included— held an ambient hue of the same glow from before. It was like it absorbed a galaxy to wield in battle and it provided it with a colorful touch. This caught Noafumi's attention, who matched Lucy's awed expression.
"It's forged of celestial steel. Because of its properties, it can pierce both mundane and aetherical beings. When you wish it to be, it will appear as the sword before you. Otherwise, it shall be the simple hilt you witnessed before. We call this sword Sirius." Virgo informed. Lucy squealed, dropping the sword to land on the cushions of the bed and hugged her maid spirit in excitement. Ignoring Virgo's usual question for punishment, she let go of her a few seconds after and did a pose.
"This is awesome! Thank you so much, Virgo!" The blonde exclaimed, making the sword return to its primal form and went straight to begging Naofumi to either make or buy her something that would allow her to carry it on her belt. Naofumi thought she already had plenty dangling from the poor thing and wondered how it hadn't broken yet. She had a whip and a pouch of keys constantly dragging it down. And now a sword hilt? It was an extraordinary sword, and he could never deny her, so with a heavy sigh, he agreed and she squealed again. Behind them, Virgo let a small smile lace her lips. Her master was truly happy again. She had no doubt it was because she had a friend besides her spirits now. Lucy needed to have friends; it was a necessity that rivaled her need for anything else. After much more thanks, Virgo gave Lucy a final gift before parting back into the celestial world. It was a silver key. The key's rough diamond shaped bow had what seemed to be the head and gaze of a bird, with its biting being two outstretched wings. The eyes of the bird were two black, beady gems. The design was very detailed, as all celestial keys were. Judging by it alone, it was some type of semblance of a bird spirit. Genius assessment. The blonde felt like she was dreaming. A sword and a new spirit? Her happiness and excitement were tenfold. Mentally thanking Virgo, she turned to Naofumi with a confident grin.
"You wanna see how a celestial contract is made?" She questioned. Seeing how thrilled she was, he smiled and nodded. His duo made quick work of doing her usual summoning stance.
"I am connected with the path to the Celestial Spirit World; heed my call! Pass through the gate! Open, gate of The Crow! Corvus!" Interestingly, the spirit didn't appear out of the bright, gold light either of them were used to. This one materialized out of a murder of crows that flew across the room and disappeared into nothing. Both humans visibly sweat dropped. Once the murder dispersed, a man stood agitated. He was pale and tall— Lucy guessed somewhere close to six feet, but not quite reaching it— and had a slim, healthy build as far as she could tell. He had wine colored eyes and long, black, messy hair that swept down in front of his eyes. He wore a hooded, long-sleeved black masculine pelisse cloak with a feathered collar and shoulders. A skin-tight sleeveless compression shirt gave detail to his toned chest. He had black baggy pants, along with knee-high black boots. Black feathers grew out of the back of his hands, his forearms, and sparsely on his cheeks. The celestial mage thought they looked similar to dragon force scales. She had no doubt he had feathers growing in other places she didn't want to see. His eyes looked tired and annoyed at both of them, but understandingly more at his summoner.
"You don't look special. You couldn't even summon a zodiac by the looks of it." He scoffed. Her mouth dropped. Naofumi's stood up and he growled, placing himself to stand firmly next to Lucy as support. He'd never seen any of the spirits she's summoned disrespect her, let alone not love her wholeheartedly. Sure, it was naive to expect him to be fond of her at first meet, but insulting her fresh out of the gate was unnecessary. The stellar wizard before them was more than capable to handle him— the shield wielder would bet she was the strongest of her kind. Seeing how protective the other male had become, a light smirk marked Corvus' lips.
"For your information, I have nine Zodiac keys! Ten if you're being sympathetic. You're so rude!" She stepped forward to poke him in the chest, her eyes darting up to meet his. He tched and grabbed her hand gently, voiding the contact. The green eyed boy next to her snatched the same hand away, not wanting his friend to touch him either.
"Don't touch me without asking, Melons." Lucy blushed mad, hugging her chest and Naofumi took a step back. He saw the fire in her eyes and knew what was about to come.
"Pervert! Lucy kick!" She screamed. The brute force of her foot meeting his face sent him flying across the room and into the wall. Not even the tough guy act could save him. The other black haired boy chuckled. He felt a little bad and walked over to offer Corvus his hand. The Crow spirit didn't take it, instead getting back onto his feet by himself and glaring daggers at him. The tension was heavy. Sensing this, the spirit summoner rushed over in worry like she didn't kick the daylights out of him a mere second ago. "Sorry about that. It's instinct." She explained sheepishly. Corvus looked her over and evaluated her figure. Sure, she was eye candy, but her physical fortune wasn't what he was interested in. Her body language was confident and certain, like she wasn't afraid of anything and anyone, but in her eyes lingered something more than that. Not fear. It was something the crow spirit was sure he'd never understand. Already she seemed rather annoying, but there was a strange desire to explore her character and know her story. All of his previous masters long ago were demented, selfish people, but the girl before him didn't have an inch of her woven with malice. She was pure light. He figured he'd give her a shot. Not liking his intense stare, the very girl he was thinking of cleared her throat awkwardly to recapture his attention.
"If you don't want to make a contract, I understand." She said, lifting up his key to force close his gate. He shook his head.
"I'll be your spirit, Melons." He responded. Naofumi's eye twitched. Another spirit he'd have to learn all about, and an ill mannered one at that. Quite frankly, he preferred they didn't make a contract, but he was in no position to tell Lucy what to do with her magic. He was sure that though hope was bleak, maybe bird man could come to be a useful asset to them. The more the merrier. The green eyed boy sat back down and watched as the two made their contract official. Lucy asked several questions; such as what days he was available, his magic, and any other special conditions she should be aware of. His abilities were useful. He could willingly switch between human and crow, as well as grant near invisibility in shadows. His redactable claws granted him a boost in melee and in dire situations, could sprout wings from his back in his human form. He was more of a stealth spirit than a combat one, which Lucy didn't mind at all. She actually found it very convenient, as she could borrow his magic to go spy on the king and princess of Melromarc a little. If she could find out why they were so persistent in making her partner's life a living hell, she could put both herself and him at ease and work some sort of solution. When the contract was completed, he went back to his world without much fuss, but Naofumi couldn't stand his nickname for his fellow hero. Melons? How more degenerative could he get? He pushed it aside to ponder about some other time. He was exhausted and by the looks of it, so was the blonde. She yawned and tucked herself into the sheets. A sigh of relief and ecstacy escaped her lips.
"So comfortable. You should head to bed, too, Naofumi." She encouraged. He got up and waved his hand, heading for the door.
"Already on it. Goodnight, Lucy. Scream if you need me." He closed the door gently behind him. He smiled at her before he left, trying to give her reassurance for the coming day. But he was worried. He hoped the wave wouldn't be a battle they couldn't win. If he saw her get hurt again, he'll never forgive himself. He had a soft spot for her; it was obvious, but he'd still never admit it. Even though he had her by his side, he still couldn't help but feel like it was just him against the world. And that made him feel guilty. He hoped that one day he could come to trust her entirely without being cautious of betrayal. He didn't want to let the way she made him feel go.
A/N: Sorry for a two week late chapter. The fanfiction author curse is REAL. After my last upload I almost became homeless and suffered from food insecurity, and it really took the motivation from me LOL. Hopefully now that things are better I'll be able to update normally again.
Thank you so much to everyone for the supportive reviews, except the one nerd who got their pants in a wad because I don't support pedophilia. Other than that, I'm glad you guys find my writing decent. I really hope I can write longer/more detailed chapters as I keep it up. Much love to everyone who genuinely supports me, I love you all.