Chapter 1 - Free from the Gilded Cage
Looking out across the open valley the Heartfilia estate sat upon, I couldn't help but feel immense relief. Glancing to the side at my heart's sister, Lucy Heartfilia, I could see that she felt the same way just beneath the sorrow.
"I can't believe we're actually doing this." I heard Lucy mummer, as she gave the place she was born and raised one last lingering look of sadness. "I know that my dad only wanted the best for us, but to go as far as forcing us to marry two people we barely even know just to expand the family business is just way too much."
Reaching over, I placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"I know what you mean. I'll forever be grateful to Jude for taking me in and making me your sister, but I can't just sit back and watch him practically sell us to the highest bidder." I agreed, as I faced the Heartfilia estate once more. "Besides, didn't you tell me that your mom wanted you to be happy and to follow your own path?" I asked her, as I drew my hand back to my side.
"Yeah, she did." Lucy answered, as she turned to face the road that would take us to the train station. "Which is why I need to do this. The air in that house became toxic a long time ago. If I don't leave now, I'll end up just like him. But you don't have to come along with me if you don't want to, Icelynn. With your magic, you could make a whole new life for yourself as a wizard."
Scoffing at the very idea of leaving the one person who didn't abandon me to the darkness that had infected my heart four years ago, I turned to face the same direction as Lucy.
"And let you get into all sorts of trouble without me? No chance even if hell froze over. Sure, being a dragon slayer, I'd be able to make a fortune of my own slaying other monsters and such, but I don't want to leave my adorable little sister behind." I told her, giving her a tiny smirk, trying to lighten the mood a bit. "Speaking of which, I know it'll be a while before we do, but have you decided what guild you want to join yet? Last we spoke about it; you were torn between Phantom Lord and Fairy Tail."
"I'm still thinking about it. Phantom Lord is a pretty strong guild, but then again so is Fairy Tail." Lucy said, as she took the first step into her new life.
"Well, I'm sure we'll hear something to help us decide along the way." I agreed, as I took my own first step yet into another new life.
It was with the stars watching over us that we put the forced life of high society behind us. For you see, this world lives and breathes magic, and we were but two simple wizards who wanted to learn all we could about this world of ours. A world we are now free to see, now that we've finally flown our gilded cage…
Xxx
One Year Later… Outside Hargeon…
'Dear Storm,
It's been a whole year since Lucy, and I fled the Heartfilia estate. So far, neither of us have had a reason to regret our decision to put that place, and Jude's overbearing behavior behind us. For the first few weeks, things had been tense with how we moved about the day, and where we slept at night. However, no matter how many days or weeks passed, we still saw nor heard any sign of Jude trying to drag us back home.
Although she didn't show it, I know that Lucy was bothered by this fact. Not that I can really blame her for feeling this way. It's kind of how I felt after I awoke one day to find you gone. Still, I'm sure that Lucy will make her peace with it in time, just like I learned to do a couple of years ago. Don't get me wrong though, soon as I get to see your scaly hide, I'm going to have a few words with you; but I'll just mostly be happy to see you again, and that you're safe and well when I do.
As for the present, Lucy and I are currently on our way to Hargeon. We are still doing freelance work until we can figure out what guild we're going to join. Seeing as Jude has yet to try and look for us, Lucy and I have agreed that there is no reason why we can't go ahead and join a guild of our choosing. And from the way Lucy's been gushing over the sorcerer Weekly magazines, I think I have a pretty good feeling as to which one we'll be looking to sign up with.
And there is the blasted train whistle…
I'll write to you again soon, Storm. Who knows, maybe we'll have managed to sign up with that guild we want.
With love,
Icelynn.'
Popping my pen back into my bag, I then quickly folded up the letter, and slid it between two books that I was also carrying in my bag before tying it shut. Once it was secure, I then stood up to shake the sleeping blonde who sat across from me.
Mumbling a few incoherent words, I eventually got Lucy to sit up with a stretch and a yawn.
"Are we there yet?" she asked, as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes.
"Almost. Should be stopping in the next few minutes now." I answered her, as I began getting the rest of my things together. Lucy doing the same now that she was awake. Sure enough, just as we finished getting our bags ready, I could feel the train beginning to lose its momentum.
To be honest, this felt both strange and familiar to me. Familiar because this was how Lucy and I used to travel all the time back when Jude would take us with him to events and parties being held by his business associates. Yet, strange because after the night Lucy and I initially ran off, we began avoiding the trains in fear of Jude finding out about it. We only started actively using the train a few months ago when we learned that Jude had yet to do anything to bring us home.
Still, I try my best to remain alert when we are using the trains. Having lived on the Heartfilia's estate for the last four years, I know the scent of every guard and servant. If, and when Jude ever decides to bring us back for a change, I'll be one of the first to know about it.
Once the train had fully stopped, Lucy and I made sure to keep our heads down as we hurried off the train. As we moved, Lucy remained silent while I kept my ears open. Thankfully, it only took us a few minutes to get off the train and out of the train station without incident. Once we were free, Lucy let out a deep breath.
"Oh man, I hate being in tense situations like that!" Lucy complained, as she stretched once more.
"Tell me about it, but it's necessary. Your dad hasn't really done anything to find us, but that doesn't mean he won't try his best to spy on us. If we relax our guard fully and become too careless, then the next time we ride the train, we'll be on our way back to the estate." I agreed, as we made our way down the main street of the harbor city.
Looking about, I couldn't help but admire the structure of the town itself. It was all beautifully crafted, and let's not forget the spectacular view they had of the sea. I had to remind myself not to get too attached to the scenery though. Lucy and I had come to this town to find some form of work. As it was, we only had a good few thousand jewels left before the two of us became flat broke.
Thankfully, the town hall of just about every town has a community board where traveling mages who haven't joined a guild yet can get work. They don't pay as well as a job from a legal guild would, but it was something for us to support ourselves with for now at least.
As Lucy and I continued to walk through the streets of Hargeon, I kept an eye out for the town hall, while Lucy kept her eyes peeled for any magic shops. It was our standard arrangement for whenever we were out and about in whatever town we were staying. With Lucy being a celestial wizard, she's always on the look out for more keys she can get ahold of. Back before we left the Heartfilia estate, Lucy had only been contracted to two gold celestial gate keys: Aquarius the water bearer, and Cancer the crab. Lucy had inherited them from her mother, and practically had to steal them from Jude's study in order to begin training as a wizard.
After we left the estate, we then found up to another five keys in our travels. One of which was another gold key: Taurus the golden bull.
These three were a part of the legendary twelve Zodiac keys. Some of the most powerful to exist. Other than those, Lucy had at least four silver keys that I know of. Horologium the clock, Pyxis the compass, Lyra the harp, and Crux the southern cross.
"Ha! I found one!" I heard Lucy shout excitedly as I was brought back from my wandering thoughts. Glancing over, I spied the shop that had caught my sister's eye. The Green something or another magic shop from the looks of it.
Not really taking an interest in the run-down shop itself, I looked over at Lucy who looked eager to go in and see what they had. Shaking my head at her antics, I couldn't help but smile a little at her enthusiasm.
"I'll tell you what, you go and see what sort of gate keys they have, and I'll keep looking for city hall and a decent inn for us to sleep tonight." I offered, as Lucy threw a concerned look my way.
"Okay, I guess. Seeing as this place doubles as a small grocery store, I'll try and pick up a few things. We only have enough food for tonight and tomorrow at least." Lucy agreed, as I nodded my head once.
"Sounds good. I'll find us a room first, then I'll meet you at city hall." I said, as Lucy nodded her head once at me in return. With our new plan set into motion, we waved at each other as we went our separate ways.
Once I was alone, I kept my ears and nose trained to my surroundings as I looked for what would look like a suitable inn. It took me about fifteen minutes, but I was finally able to rent us a room at an inn overlooking the harbor at a decent price. With the room key tucked safely into my right ass pocket, I then began making my way to city hall. As I walked, I couldn't help but wonder if Lucy had managed to find any new keys at that magic shop she found earlier, or from another one perhaps.
It took me about another twenty minutes before I spotted the yellow brick building that made up the city hall. Unfortunately, I didn't have such luck with finding the door. Then again, there's what appears to be a huge group of fangirls blocking it from view.
"SALAMANDER!"
"SALAMANDER!"
'What the fuck is going on here?' I couldn't help but wonder, as I began to make my way around the group of girls to see if I would be able to slip inside the city hall. As stated before, I didn't have such luck, although this time it's because the crowd is right up against the doors to the building itself and all that lies within.
At this point, I began to feel rather irritated. Honestly, don't these idiots have something better to do than standing in front of a government building screaming a guy's name?
'Who the hell is this salamander guy anyway?' I thought, as I looked through the crowd of annoying girls hyped up on hormones for the guy they were swarming around. 'Bastard is probably a fire wizard from one of the more popular guilds. It's the only reason this shit would be happening in the first pla-' I thought, as a different smell reached my senses.
It was musky, and thick in the air. Like someone dumped a lot of pheromones in a bathtub and bathed in it. The smell alone made me want to sneeze and gag as it continued to invade my senses. At that thought, I felt myself freeze up as the sense of someone looking at me reached my mind. Looking up, I found myself locking gazes with the guy the girls were crowded around.
Tanned skin, purple hair, brown eyes, and an x mark over his right eyebrow. Not to mention the arrogant smirk he was trying so poorly to pull off as he looked at me expectantly. Seeing that look, I felt my whole body tense up as that musky smell became worse. The moment it did though, I knew what this jack ass's game was. The smell was an effect from one of the two rings this Salamander guy wore on his right hand. An illegal love charm spell.
Believing my tensing up to be his charm taking effect, he turned around to look at someone else. Feeling a low growl building in my chest, I made up my mind to put an end to this guy's games, but before I could so much as take a step, I couldn't help but notice how blonde the girl Salamander had turned from me to look at was. Once I did though, it was too late for me to call out her name in warning, seeing as she was already making her way over to the creep with a love-sick expression on her face.
'Lucy!? Oh, hell no! You are NOT getting your filthy paws anywhere near my baby sister!' I thought angrily, as I changed directions to try and intercept Lucy before she could reach him. However, with how close she was to the guy when he hit her with his charm spell, I was going to arrive too late.
Just as I was about to consider barreling my way through the rest of the girls already deeply under the effects of the charm, I spotted another guy with salmon pink hair gently push his way into the inner circle of the group of fangirls.
"Igneel, it's me!" I heard him shout as he came into view, with a blue cat walking on its hind legs of all things trailing behind him. Soon as the guy got a good look at Salamander though, the happy expression he had on his face vanished completely. "Who the heck are you?" the guy then asked in a deadpanned voice, causing the other girls to begin growling at him like a pack of rabid dogs.
At this, Salamander paled with shock at the rude question. Ignoring the indigent squawking coming from the purpled haired creeper, I quickly turned to glance over at my sister. Soon as I did, I couldn't help but sigh in relief. Apparently, the salmon haired kid had managed to pop up at the right time to keep Salamander's charm spell from taking full effect on my sister.
Feeling my gaze on her, Lucy turned her now irritated gaze towards me. Giving her a silent, understanding shrug, I then nodded towards the back of the crowd of fan girls. Nodding her head once, we both began making our way out of the death trap the new kid was making for himself. I know that these girls are under a love charm, but you still don't do anything to piss off a mob of fan girls.
Once we were free of them, Lucy let out her second huge sigh of the day.
"Damn, that was too close." She muttered, as she looked over at me. "Did that pervert catch you in that spell too?" Lucy asked me, as I shook my head no.
"I smelled it before he could really cast it on me. Though, I'm glad that pink haired boy came along." I answered her, as I turned to place my back against the wall of a house that sat near the square city hall sits in. Doing the same, Lucy and I watched as the scene before us unfolded. "I would have probably caused a big scene had you reached that bastard."
"Yeah, I have no doubt." Lucy agreed, as we watched the pink haired boy show no interest in who Salamander was, only to end up being dog piled by some of the fan girls for his troubles.
After a few moments of them trying to twist the poor guy in painful angles, Salamander eventually talked the girls into letting him go. With his arrogant attitude blaring full force, he signed his autograph onto a piece of carboard paper thing and tried to hand it over to the pink haired kid. Refusing it, the guy was once again set upon by the rabid group of girls. When they were finally done with him, they simply threw him into some garbage that rested a few feet away from where Lucy and I now stood.
Giving the pink haired boy a look that spoke of how pathetic Salamander thought he was, the arrogant prick then turned back to address the girls.
"Well now… I fear I must be going now, ladies. I have some very important business to attend to for tonight." Salamander said, as the girls all gave shouts of disappointment.
"YOUR LEAVING ALREADY!?" a bunch of them shouted in unison.
Giving the crowd a wink, Salamander held up two fingers.
"Time for the red carpet." I heard him mutter, as he snapped his fingers, and created a tendril of fire that lifted him up off the ground.
'Okay, this guy is clearly a creeper, and an idiot. That's hot pink not red.' I thought irately, as Salamander remained floating up above his fan club.
"I'm having a soiree on my yacht tonight, and you are all invited to it!" the guy yelled down at us, before using his hot pink fire to zoom across the sky and out of sight.
At his departure, all the girls squealed loud enough for me to want to claw my ears off, then scrambled about trying to figure out where they all wanted to go to buy dresses for the party Salamander was planning on throwing. Rolling my eyes at the craziness of the day, I turned to check on the pink haired kid.
"Who the hell was that guy? He certainly wasn't Igneel." I heard him say, as the blue cat walked over to his fallen friend.
"Aye. He sure wasn't." the blue cat said, as I blinked in confusion. I just shrugged it off though. After all, a blue talking cat isn't the most bizarre thing I've seen or heard of before. Then again, being originally raised in the frozen wilderness by a dragon can do that to a girl…
As for Lucy on the other hand, I had to nudge her with my arm.
"You're going to catch flies if you keep your jaw on the ground." I teased her, earning a glare from her. Chuckling at the rise I got out of my sister, I moved to where the pink haired guy and the blue cat were still sitting.
They may not have known it, but they did help Lucy when she got caught in that charm spell, so it was only proper for us to go and thank them.
"I don't know who he is either, but he definitely wasn't up to any good." I said, announcing my and Lucy's presence.
In doing so, I ended up transferring the guy's and cat's confusion from the direction Salamander had gone in, to us.
"He's also a good for nothing creep too. Speaking of which, I want to thank you guys for your help." Lucy said, making the two seem even more confused.
"Okay, and who are you two?" the pink haired guy asked.
"Oh, my name is Lucy, and this is my sister Icelynn. We were here to get into city hall when we got caught up in that mess." Lucy explained, as she pointed towards me. Waving at the two in greeting as she did so.
"Oh. Well, hi. I'm Natsu, and this is my little buddy, Happy." The pink haired boy said, introducing himself and the blue cat as well.
"Hello!" the little blue cat said, waving at us as he was introduced.
Now that our introductions were out of the way, I moved forward and held my hand out to the kid we now knew as Natsu. Taking my hand, I then helped him up. As I did though, I caught a whiff of what smelled like a mix of ash and something that seemed familiar to me, almost like some sort of magic. It puzzled me so much for a moment that I nearly missed the small thanks Natsu said to me, as we stepped back from each other.
'That undertone smell, I feel like I should know what it is, but I can't quite put my finger on it.' I silently pondered, as I observed Natsu and the blue cat Happy.
Oblivious to my inner ramblings, Natsu set about dusting himself off. Happy swatting at his pants, while he took care of what the cat couldn't reach. Once he was done, Natsu gave us one last smile.
"Alright. Well, it was nice to meet you guys, but Happy and I need to get going." Natsu said, as he turned to walk away, Happy on his tail once again. However, before the two could make it more than a few feet, a distinctive rumbling began coming from Natsu's stomach as he collapsed back to his knees.
Seeing this, I couldn't help but look over at Lucy. Which turned out to be a big mistake, seeing as she gave me what I dubbed the look. Out of everyone the two of us have ever known, only Lucy could get away with making the puppy dog eyes at me. Sighing lightly, I gave her a small shrug. I had already booked us a room for the night, so we could easily wait until tomorrow to pick up a job from the city hall. Besides, it'll make the both of us feel better if we could repay these two in some way. If that way happens to be feeding them, then so be it.
Giving me a quick one-armed hug, Lucy then went over to Natsu and asked him if he and Happy would be interesting in going to have some lunch with us. The question barely left Lucy's lips before Natsu was back on his fee with stars in his eyes. Chuckling at the display, I shook my head as the two began heading down the street Natsu had been trying to go down.
Following them, we eventually found ourselves in a surf and turf type of restaurant. Before we got there, Lucy told Natsu and Happy to order whatever they wanted.
Which turned out to be another mistake on our part considering that we had barely even got seated before Natsu practically ordered just about everything on the menu. If that didn't shock us, then his eating habits certainly did. At the rate Natsu was shoveling everything down, bits of food were flying all over the place.
Hell, even though he was a cat, Happy at least took the time to chew his food properly!
"Okay… So, your names are Natsu and Happy, right?" Lucy asked, trying to strike up some conversation.
Humming in confirmation, Natsu didn't even slow down in filling his mouth full of food, moving on to the next plate or bowl once the one before him was completely empty.
"You do realize your food can't get up and walk away, right?" I asked him, only to be ignored in favor of some noodles. Raising an eyebrow, I simply turned to glance back at Lucy, silently asking her how this guy hadn't choked to death already.
Sadly, I was ignored by my sister as well, as she tried her best to dodge the flying food herself.
"Anyway, I just wanted to thank you guys again for helping us out back there. That creep was using an illegal love charm to get those ladies to fawn all over him." Lucy began, as her expression turned sour at the mere thought of the guy. "They were banned years ago, so I have no idea where he could have gotten it from."
"Probably from the black market." I said, as Lucy gave me a slightly creeped-out look. Seeing it, I shrugged my shoulders. "What? Just because the magic counsel bans something doesn't mean all mages will stop doing or selling whatever the ban was about." I said darkly, as images flashed through my mind from the two years of hellish existence I had to endure before I was saved, and later brought to the Heartfilia estate.
Pushing those thoughts away, I tried to make myself focus on the present. After all, I wasn't there in that dark cell anymore, I was here with my sister.
Shaking off the discomfort of thinking of such a place, Lucy turned back to our new acquaintances.
"Either way, I'm just glad that I'm not under that creep's spell anymore. Oh, and I really can't thank you guys enough." Lucy continued, as Natsu mumbled out what sounded like a no problem between bites of the fresh tomatoes he had turned to after the noodles. "I know that we may not look like it, but Icelynn and I are wizards too!" Lucy said enthusiastically.
"Is that so?" Natsu replied, not stopping in his mission to eat everything on our table; although a bit slower, thankfully.
"Yeah, although we haven't joined a guild yet. We're definitely thinking about it though." I said, as Lucy nodded in agreement.
"We sure are. Oh, but I guess I should probably explain." Lucy began, as she then went into detail about what a guild was and what they do. I got the feeling that this wasn't exactly necessary to do, but I wasn't sure why that was. While she gushed about guilds, and the one she really wanted to try and join up, I found myself wandering back to the scent I caught off Natsu when we first met barely an hour ago.
As I did, I once again felt like I should know why part of it smelled familiar to me somehow. The ashy smell was easy to explain, seeing as it was a usual smell for fire wizards to have from using their magic; yet the undertone part made me believe I was only half right in that department…
I didn't get to stay in my musings for very long though, due to the very distracting hearts I could all but see dancing around Lucy as she gushed about her and everyone's most favored guild.
"If I could just convince them to let us join that guild, I think I might just die!" Lucy said, as I cast a wary glance at my sister. Once she got started, there was almost no stopping her.
Almost as if she sensed our bored expression, Lucy tried her best to snap out of her fan girl episode.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I guess all of this wizards and guild talk sounds like gibberish to you." Lucy said, waving her craziness off for the moment. "But I'm going to do my best to join that guild someday! I'll go on many different adventures and make a ton of money…"
At the end of her speech, Natsu could only give my sister a huh look, while Happy began to look at her warily as well.
"You sure do talk a lot." He said, as I scoffed in amusement.
"You can definitely say that again. Once she gets started talking about Fairy Tail, she never shuts up." I said, as I became a bit sheepish. "Although, I don't really have much more room to talk, considering how I want to at least check the guild out before we try to sign up with them."
Hearing my words through her gushing, Lucy turned a pout my way.
"Oh, come on Icelynn! Really, against your cute little sister!?" she pouted, as I sent a small smirk her way. Huffing at me when she saw it, Lucy simply crossed her arms before addressing Natsu and Happy again, changing topics.
"Well, enough about us." Lucy began, as she looked up at them. "Didn't you two come to this town looking for someone?" she asked curiously, as I too, felt the same.
"Yeah, we did. His name is Igneel." The little blue cat said, as Natsu took a bite of some pizza he had moved on to.
"We heard a rumor about a salamander passing through Hargeon, but it turned out to be someone else." Natsu said, as he went back to eating the rest of the pizza. While he did that, my brain was trying to restart itself.
'No, they can't mean that one!' I thought, as I remembered the stories that I was raised hearing. Not only that, but the undertone to Natsu's natural scent finally made sense. I almost wanted to smack my head against the top of the table for forgetting any sort of detail I'd learned from the one who originally spoke of Igneel to me. Shit, now that I think back on it, I should have realized this sooner considering Igneel was the first thing Natsu had said when he tried getting through the mob of girls.
"Yeah. That clown didn't even look like how you described Igneel to me." Happy said, as Natsu nodded in agreement.
"Tch, I bet that poser can't even breathe fire like a real dragon." Natsu commented, as Lucy became confused.
"Wait, do you guys mean that your friend Igneel looks like a dragon?" she asked, as I finally found my voice.
"You're a dragon slayer, aren't you?" I asked, not really giving Natsu a chance to answer my sister's question. At hearing it, Natsu froze in shock at how I was able to tell that. Not that I could blame him, he hasn't used magic in front of us, nor has he just out and said his magic type like Lucy had.
Turning from Natsu, I looked at Lucy who now looked between him and I with even more confusion.
"Lucy, they mean that Igneel is a real dragon." I told her, as her eyes widened in shock as well.
"No way! He's like you then." She muttered, looking at Natsu. Soon as those words left Lucy's mouth though, Natsu snapped out of his shocked state as he slapped his hands down on the table that sat between us, making it rattle around rather worrisome.
"Wait a minute, does that mean you're a dragon slayer too! Then you were taught by a dragon like I was! Right!? If so, then do you know where I can find Igneel!?" he demanded; eyes full of wonder now.
Shrinking back from Natsu's enthusiasm and sudden closeness, I looked to the side sheepishly.
"Y-yeah… I was raised by Storm the Ice Dragon, but he disappeared seven years ago, and I haven't seen him or any other dragon for that matter since." I answered him, as Natsu sat back down in his seat, an air of disappointment on his features now.
After a few minutes, Natsu simply shrugged it off, leaving Lucy and I a little speechless.
"Oh well. Anyhow, if you do manage to find storm, could you ask him about Igneel for me? I've been looking for him for a really long time." Natsu asked. "I'll just have to keep looking. If he's not in this town, then maybe he moved on to the next one or something." Natsu reasoned, as Happy gave an 'Aye' in response
I had to give him credit for his optimism, but there was one thing wrong with this plan he was cooking up.
"Uh sure, if I ever see them, I'll do my best to find a way for you to know but; Natsu, you do realize that a dragon of Storm or Igneel's caliber wouldn't be able to fit in a town like this, right?" I asked him, as shock once again returned to my fellow slayer's face.
"Icelynn's right on that one. I don't think a dragon would fit in any sort of town unless it was a hatchling." Lucy agreed, as she placed enough jewels down on the table to pay for the meal the four of us had eaten. "With that said, I think it's about time for Icelynn and us to get going. We do need to find work first thing tomorrow if we want to hit the road again." She said, as she grabbed her bag and stood up from the booth. "Well, you both enjoy your lunch, and maybe we'll see you two around."
Following suit, I waved bye at Natsu and Happy before following my sister out of the restaurant. We barely even made it to the door though before I felt the urge to look over my shoulder. When I did though, I spotted Natsu and Happy both on their knees, bowing their heads at us in thanks, causing a pretty good spectacle for the other patrons. Sensing that I wasn't following her anymore, Lucy turned around to see the shocked and slightly embarrassed look on my face.
"Ice, what's the matter?" Lucy asked, as she looked around me to see what had my attention, the moment she did though, she began sharing my expression.
"THANK YOU FOR THE FOOD!!" Natsu and Happy said at the same time, while still in their bowing positions.
At this, I couldn't help but snort in amusement at the two, while Lucy began freaking out at them. By the end of the exchange, let's just say that Natsu tried to pawn the salamander autograph on to Lucy in payment for the food we bought him. Apparently, the thank you over lunch ideal was lost on the poor guy. Still, we managed to get away from the two, even though we left with the autograph anyway.
Not that it was a burden for very long, seeing as the first park trash can I came to, I promptly tore it into quarters and tossed them in.
After that, the two of us sat on a park bench to take a load off for a while. Seeing as we couldn't get a job for today, we'll just have to relax and go tomorrow. Soon as she was seated, Lucy pulled the newest edition of Sorcerer Weekly out of her bag and opened it to the first page to see what was new in the guilds of Fiore.
As for myself, I pulled out one of the two books I kept in my own bag. One of them was on the lost art of the slayer magics, and the one I currently held cracked open over my lap was on dragon slaying magic. Seven years ago, not long before he disappeared, Storm gave me this one on dragon slayers. When I first received this, I thought that it was Storm's way of making sure I'd have the information on how hitting puberty could affect a dragon slayer without either of us becoming uncomfortable. However, the day Storm left, I knew that this wasn't exactly the reason.
The real reason behind him giving me this book was to finish teaching me my magic while he flew off who knows where in the big blue yonder.
It had everything there was to know about being a dragon slayer in it. How to concentrate your magic to certain parts of your body for certain spells and attacks, the elements dragon slayers can control and how to consume them, how the five senses are affected, and even how dragon slayers have mates, and how to go about the mating process.
After a while had passed, a sudden giggle from Lucy had me looking up from my book.
"Okay, so what did Fairy Tail do this time?" I asked her, knowing that's what Lucy was giggling about. It was our favorite guild to read about after all.
"According to Sorcerer Weekly, they took out a demon clan a few days ago, but ended up destroying seven homes in the process." She answered, a snicker leaving her, as she turned the page.
"Well, they are known to go over board on occasion." I said, as Lucy awed at one of the pictures. Giving her a curious glance, I then leaned over far enough to place my head on Lucy's shoulder as I peeked at what she was looking at this time.
It just so happened to be the centerfold of Fairy Tail's Mirajane Strauss in a bikini shoot.
"The centerfold is of Mirajane! She's so pretty!" Lucy gushed, as I hummed in agreement. She was nice to look at, even from a girl's perspective. Pushing that thought aside though, I couldn't help but wonder about something.
"Hey Lucy, does your magazine tell people how to apply for a guild?" I asked her, as she shook her head no.
"No, not that I've seen. My only guess is to go to the guild and apply or interview with them." Lucy answered, as she closed the magazine, an excited look on her face. "But hey, Magnolia is only a train ride away from here! I say we go and find out first hand." She suggested.
It was on the tip of my tongue to agree; however, I clamped my mouth shut as an unpleasantly familiar scent reached my nose. Watching as I went from relaxed to tense, Lucy tensed up too, her hand drifting down to rest at the handle of her whip.
"What was that? Did you ladies want to join Fairy Tail?" I heard an equally creepy familiar voice ask, as Salamander poked his head from the bushes that sat next to the park bench Lucy and I occupied.
Not expecting it to be the creepy bastard from earlier, Lucy all but fell over from shock. Rolling my eyes at the situation, I felt a low growl of annoyance slip past my lips. Turning my attention back to my book, I spoke to the idiot who should have just gone to his yacht and stayed put.
"I don't care whatever it is you came here to say or do, but we're not interested." I told him simply, as Salamander gave me a hurt look that didn't quite reach his eyes.
"Oh, come now… I have been looking all over for the two of you lovely ladies. I only wanted to personally ask you if you would so kindly join me for the party on my yacht tonight." Salamander said, holding up his charm rings again, causing the pheromone scent from earlier to invade my senses again. Too bad for him, the situation with my nose helped me to prevent it again. I also didn't have to worry about Lucy either, seeing as she is now aware of the creep's little trick.
"That charm spell you have won't work on either of us! Its weakness is awareness." Lucy told him, as I scoffed at the idiot's inability to take no for an answer.
"And while we are on the subject, try using it on me or my sister again, and I'll rip off the hand that wears them." I warned, giving the idiot before Lucy and I a side glance.
"Oh my." Salamander began, seemingly ignoring the warning I had given him. "Looks like I was right. I had guessed that the two of you were wizards the moment I laid eyes on you. Not that it matters, my invitation still stands." He said, as Lucy crossed her arms and turned away from him.
"Well you can just forget it. There's no way I'd be caught dead at a party hosted by a creep like you. Only a creepy pervert would use a spell like that to make yourself popular." Lucy huffed at him, as I nodded my head in agreement with my sister.
At Lucy's comment, the mock look of hurt returned to Salamander's eyes.
"Well, that's not a very nice thing to say. After all, I'm only using it in good fun. What's wrong with being popular at your own party?" he said, as he tried to give Lucy and I a wink.
"Now that just goes to show that even famous wizards can be big idiots." Lucy retorted, as I rolled my eyes once more.
Feeling completely done with the situation, I focused on my book once more. However, I kept Lucy in my peripherals though, and an ear on the antics of Salamander. I highly doubted that this idiot would try to do anything in public, but you could never be too careful. A gut instinct I ended up being right on when Salamander gave Lucy a thoughtful look, then busted out a question that had her freezing up, and me going on high alert.
"You ladies wanted to join Fairy Tail from what I overheard when I walked over here." He began, as I looked up to give him a warning glare. Lucy on the other hand, looked like she didn't know whether to be excited or horrified. "If you do, then I'm sure you've heard of Salamander. One of Fairy Tail's wizards..." Salamander trailed off, as my inner bullshit detector began going off.
"Hold on, you're THAT salamander?" Lucy asked, as the creepy guy before us simply nodded his head. At this point, I knew that this guy was faking it. He was probably looking for a bunch of girls to try and hook up with or something. Why else would he bring up what he had eavesdropped on us in order to try and sweet talk us into going to his stupid little party.
Well, that shit won't work on me. As for Lucy on the other hand.
Hook…
Line…
And she's already sunk…
"If you two were to come to my party, learn a little more about me and the guild, I could put in a good word for you." Salamander said, as Lucy's excitement went up.
"WE WOULD LOVE TO GO TO YOUR PARTY TONIGHT!" Lucy declared, hearts now dancing in her eyes. At this, I couldn't help but give Lucy a dry stare. It's been a while, but it looks like I'll have to sit her down and play the big sister card once the creeper leaves us alone. "So, you really think that you can get us into Fairy Tail? No kidding?" Lucy asked, as Salamander nodded his head once.
"I don't see why not." Salamander said, as he then held up one finger. "But you can't say anything about the charm spell, is that clear." He demanded, as Lucy gave him a small salute.
"You got it; we won't say a word!" Lucy said, as Salamander turned away from us with a satisfied smirk.
"Good. Then I'll see you tonight." He said, as he cast the same spell he used earlier to get away from the mob of fan girls.
"Yes, Salamander sir!" Lucy shouted after him, as she placed her hand over her mouth to cover the impish giggle that came over her. "Oh, I'll keep my mouth shut alright. I'll even be nice until he gets us in, then I'll pay him back for being such a sleaze bag!" Lucy declared, as she then turned to face me. Finally noticing the dry look, I now had fixed on her.
Seeing it, Lucy shrank back a bit.
"I'm not going, an neither should you." I simply told her, as Lucy gave me a sad look.
"But Icelynn, if we go, he's gonna help us get into Fairy Tail. How could we not go?" Lucy asked me, as I closed my book and placed it back in my bag.
"Well, one, he was lying about being Salamander of Fairy Tail. Besides, even if that poser was a member of Fairy Tail, he sure wouldn't be close enough to the top to get us into the guild." I answered, before giving her a serious look. "And I'll tell you another thing. I'll work my way into a guild and prove my own worth before I let some creep using illegal charm magic introduce me into it."
"Still, how are we going to know if this is so if we don't go? It's the guild we've been dreaming of for a long time now, Icelynn. Even if he can't get us into the guild, maybe we can get more information about Fairy Tail from him." Lucy said, as I crossed my arms over my chest.
"Yeah, but what if he's not the genuine mage he claims to be? And being on a ship owned by the guy, you'd have no way to get off. Not unless you called out the Sea-Witch, and even then, the chance of making it out alive is fifty-fifty." I retorted. "Besides, Fairy Tail's based out of Magnolia, and it's only one train ride from here. If you really want to join it that badly, then we have enough jewels to ride the train in the morning. All without having to dip into the savings we put aside to find us a place to live I might add." I said, as Lucy gave me a disappointed look.
"Will it be safe for us to do that? What if my father figures it out?" Lucy asked, as I scoffed at the very idea.
"If Jude wanted us back, we would have heard from him a long time ago. Besides, even if he does figure it out, we'll be full fledged wizards in a legal guild by the time he does. He wouldn't be able to touch us then." I told her.
"Yeah, you're probably right." Lucy agreed, as I stood up from the bench, and threw my bag over my shoulder. Following suit, Lucy grabbed her own bag and the magazine she had been reading before the creep showed up.
"Although, I think you just don't want to go because it's on a boat." Lucy muttered, as I narrowed my eyes in her direction.
"That was part of the reason, yes." I said, sending a proper smirk her way. "Says Fairy Tail's number one fan girl." I replied, a teasing note in my voice as I turned to begin heading towards the Inn Lucy and I would be staying at tonight. Before I started walking though, I looked over my shoulder at Lucy in all seriousness.
"Lucy, just promise me that you will consider my words, and not go to that guy's party?" I asked her, as she looked to the side. I know that it's a low blow for me to ask her this, considering her magic is all about promises, but my gut was telling me that something bad would happen should I let her go to that Salamander or whoever's party.
"I promise I'll consider your words." She said, as I nodded my head in thanks.
With that, Lucy and I continued to our inn for the night. Little did I know though; I had given Lucy a loophole.
XXX
Later that night…
I could feel cold, heavy metal circling my wrists. Wrists that were sore, bruised, and bleeding slightly from the struggling I'd done earlier in the day. I could clearly hear the chains that held me to the wall rattling around as I tried to break free of them, or break them from the wall; that is, if there wasn't agonized screaming coming from down the hall from another one of his victims. The only thing I could see around me, were the cold stone and iron bars that held me prisoner here in this hell that I've come to know.
All I knew in this moment, was that I needed to get out. To escape before the man who had imprisoned me here came back to use me in his twisted little experiments again. Or worse, force me to fight for my life again in order to test my capabilities as a dragon slayer.
Or even worse, finally conclude that I was no longer of any use and decide that it was time to dispose of me.
That was when I heard it. Footsteps coming towards my cell. At hearing them, I began my struggling anew. I couldn't let him get to me before I could get away, and I didn't have much time to make that happen. Closer, and closer the steps came to me, only for me to end up struggling harder, and harder to no avail. Upon hearing the door to my cell creak open, I felt pure fear engulf me, as I saw a dark figure standing in the doorway.
In the back of my mind, I knew that this was it. I was going to die…
Sitting bolt upright in one of the two beds that Lucy and I had rented for the night, I felt myself breathing heavily as I quickly glanced around me for the chains, the cell, and the mad man who had taken me prisoner all those years ago; only to find none of the things I had apparently been dreaming about.
Taking a calming, deep breath, I closed my eyes and focused my sense of smell to the things that I was surrounded with. The cleaning agents that the inn staff used to tidy up the rooms. The smell of the dinner Lucy and I had picked up on our way out of the park earlier today. The hours old scent of Lucy that clung to her empty bed. The scent of fear that still slightly clung to me.
'Calm down, Ice. It was only a dream, and you are not that weak little girl anymore. That bastard wouldn't be able to touch you ever again even if he tried.' I told myself, as I opened my eyes to check the time on the lacrima clock that sat on the end table that rested between my bed and Lucy's empty one.
'Holy shit, it's only midnight?' I silently asked myself, as I looked over at Lucy's bed, wondering how my sister was fairing in the land of dreams, only to finally realize that Lucy was not where she had been when we went to bed a mere two hours ago!
What's worse, I had noticed it the moment I had woken up too. The only reason it didn't register panic up until now is because I had been focused on calming myself after waking up from my nightmares. Just as I was about to jump up and begin getting dressed to go out and find her, I spotted a piece of paper that sat behind the lacrima clock. It was folded, and on the top in Lucy's handwriting was my name.
Feeling my stomach drop as I reached for the note, I unfolded it and began to read.
'Icelynn,
If you're reading this, please don't worry about me. I know that you didn't want me to go to Salamander's party, and I considered your words like I had promised you. However, I did not promise that I wouldn't go, and I think asking him about Fairy Tail is too good an opportunity to pass up. Please don't be mad, and please don't wait up for me. I'll be back in the morning in time to make one of the earlier trains to magnolia.
I'll see you soon,
Lucy.'
Crumbling up the piece of paper in my worry and anger, I felt as the page froze over as my magic began to leak out. By the time I had realized what had happened, not only was Lucy's note frozen solid, but a light frost now clung to the carpet floor I stood on. Cursing under my breath, I dropped the frozen note, not even registering the thud as it hit the floor as I rushed about getting dressed.
By the time I was out the door, I was just finishing pulling on my other boot before I shot down the hallway, making my way to the door to the inn. Once I was outside, I ran down the street at full speed in the direction of the harbor. When I reached one of the upper balcony's leading down to the pier, I spotted a huge yacht just sailing out.
Seeing it, I let out another curse.
Lucy just had to go and ignore my warning! Not only that, but she's on the one mode of transportation I can't touch without becoming about as helpless as a newborn baby. Still, that won't stop me from finding a way to get out there and saving her ass. The only problem now is finding someone who will not only believe me, but is willing to take me out there to it…
Just as I was about to find my way further down to the docks, I heard a couple of familiar voices.
"Wow, that was some grub, wasn't it Happy?" I heard the voice of the only other dragon slayer I've ever met: Natsu.
"Aye, it sure was." His little cat friend, Happy agreed, as I turned to look in their direction. The two of them were only a few feet away from me. Natsu was leaning up against the railing, while Happy sat on top of it, looking out into the harbor. "Do you think that's the boat that that Salamander-guy is having his party on?" Happy asked, as Natsu took one look at it, and began looking more seasick than I've ever been in my entire life.
Looking back at the boat myself, I contemplated asking them for their help. I don't know if that guy really was a member of Fairy Tail or not, but the opposite of that was way worse, so I couldn't really leave it to chance. Making up my mind, I turned to make my presence known, only to hold up as three girls I had seen earlier that day began talking amongst themselves about Salamander and his boat party.
"Isn't that the yacht Salamander was talking about earlier?" One of them asked.
"Yeah, I wish I could have gotten to go." Another answered, as the third one gave the other two a curious look.
"Didn't he say that he was a member of Fairy Tail?" she asked, as I saw Natsu stiffen at this.
"Fairy Tail?" I heard Natsu echo, a serious look overcoming his expression as I moved closer to him and Happy. Upon seeing it, I began getting a good feeling as to why Natsu felt that way. There was only one way to confirm this though.
"You two are Fairy Tail wizards, aren't you?" I asked them, gaining their attention.
"Oh, it's you. Icelynn, right?" I heard Natsu ask, as I nodded my head once. "What the heck are you doing all the way out here?" he asked, as I crossed my arms over my chest, ignoring his question for the time being. Lucy disappearing was a more pressing matter after all.
"I'm right aren't I? By your scent, I can tell that you're the Fire Dragon Slayer. You're the real Salamander of Fairy Tail, aren't you?" I asked him again.
"Yeah, I sure am. Happy here is a Fairy Tail wizard too, aren't ya, little buddy?" Natsu asked, as Happy gave us both an aye, sir.
"I thought so." I said, as I turned my now very worried gaze towards the yacht leaving the port.
"Wait a minute, where's the girl that was with you earlier? Wasn't her name Lucy or something like that?" Happy asked me, as I bit my lip in thought.
"She's the reason why I'm out here. The faker those girls were talking about found Lucy and I after we had left the two of you at that restaurant and invited us to that party everyone's talking about. He told us that he'd be able to get us into Fairy Tail if we went to it." I explained, as the serious expression on Natsu's face became a bit more intense. It's quite different from the happy go lucky expression he had the entire time Lucy and I were with him and Happy earlier. "After he left, I tried to convince Lucy that it wasn't in our best interest to go to his party, but she apparently decided not to listen to me. I woke up just a little while ago to find her gone, and a note in her place." I said, as Natsu turned to look at Happy.
After the two of them had what appeared to be a silent conversation, Natsu gave Happy a small grin.
"Happy, do you think you could fly out to the boat while carrying Icelynn and me at the same time?" he asked his little friend, as I looked at them with a surprised expression.
"Wait, you two are going to go with me? And did you say that Happy can fly?" I asked them, as Natsu turned his grin towards me.
"Yeah. Happy here uses aera magic, so he can fly." Natsu answered me, as he turned back towards Happy. "So how about it, little buddy?"
"I can usually only carry one person at a time, but I think I can manage it so long as the boat doesn't go to far." Happy answered, as Natsu gave him a pat on the head.
"Wait, so you two are really going to help me get out there?" I asked them, as Natsu gave me a droll stare.
"We just said that we would, didn't we? Besides, from what you told us, it sounds like Luigi might be in some serious trouble. Not to mention that you guys were really nice to us earlier, so it's the least we can do, right Happy?" Natsu asked, as Happy hopped up to his feet.
"Aye, Sir!" Happy declared, as a pair of angelic wings suddenly sprouted from his back "I'm ready when you are." He told us, as I sighed heavily.
Thinking it over, I was going to ask them for their help originally, but them offering it instead makes my job of convincing them to go much easier.
"Alright, if you guys are sure. I don't know if Lucy really is in trouble or not; but if she really is, then we'll be outnumbered by a whole ship full of people. Not to mention other hostages." I relented, as I gave Natsu and Happy a nod. I was ready to get this shit over with anyway, and I still have to give Lucy an earful for sneaking out like she did…
Turning to face the sailing yacht once more, I prayed to whomever was listening that we would make it there before it was too late to save my sister…
'Lucy, just hang on, I'll be there soon…'
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