midnightstar | (no subject)

Natsu's expression grew ashen the more he heard. The details matched only one person and while he couldn't stand Gray, hearing that he fell to his own power like that served to piss him off as well as disappoint him beyond words could even describe.

"That ice princess thinks he's a hot hot demon now does he? So he's your partner then?"

The drakes on the other hand were not moving an inch though the lightning one snapped RIGHT at Apricot's face the energy fangs just NARROWLY missing her smug face when she started teasing Luna.

"Don't listen to her, Luna." Lucy told the girl, who looked torn. She was most worried about her and Regine - at least the dragon Natsu was staying calm so far.

"EEP!" Apricot shrank back from the snap, and glared at Natsu, "Whaaaaaaat? I'm cooperating!" She glanced around, pressing a hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle. "Man just look at your faces." She glanced at Natsu, and shrugged, nodding a little. "Well sure. I mean, COME ON, you can't tell me you don't see the irony! F A I R Y T A I L. Just -having- the name of those disgusting, goody-good nobodies is nauseating. Why WOULDN'T I cooperate with someone to teach people like you a lesson. Fairies are not something to be respected or even liked. Now if you called it PIXIE tail I could understand. The fact that it was a person formally from a filthy place called Fairy Tail just makes it even more perfect!"

Lucy frowned, "So your entire problem with us is that we have a guild named after Fairies?"

Apricot shook her head. "Well that's not the ONLY reason. Mainly it's just F U N. Getting rid of the biggest threats here and making it into our personal playground? Most fun I've had in AGES."

She was just ..BARELY keeping from laughing at this point. "Well I'm just .. sayin it'd be funny, you know, them thinking they were going to a world you guys all talked up as amazing, and it's a total dump. And then the go out looking for you and ... them and instead run into that hungry demon and they're all, "Oh no help us save us, Naaatsu, Lucy..~!" and they get swallowed up instead because y o u w e r e n ' t t h e r e. Snip Snap Snicker Snack, that's the way little kids who don't know better go down o/~" In spite of herself, she starts giggling again, yeah she knows she's probably gonna get zapped for it, but it was WORTH it for her own sick amusement. "It's Funny! SO funny, when the self proclaimed heroes try to protect the weak and helpless, and the fact of the matter is Y O U F A I L E D." Now her laughter resumed in full, shrill, hysterical cackles. She's just.. completely lost it. "Don't you get the JOKE? Shall I explain it again? F-A-I-L-E-D~!" She took a breath, still giggling. "I w.. Wonder how many other times you've all failed to save someone! I can just bet there's lots, someone putting their faith in you and that faith being broken because you couldn't do A N Y T H I N G. Because people like you are DUMB."

And then she goes there. "Heey, now that I think about it.. You failed twice! You failed to protect those stupidl ittle humans, and *HE* Failed to protect his own woman! OH MAN! OH god that's HILARIOUS. AHAHA I can't breathe!"

No one else was laughing but least of all...the one holding the jar.

The drakes started snapping wildly as Natsu's emotions were starting to run wild at having so many of his buttons and wounds attacked so ruthlessly. But it didn't stop there. The lightning drake then split into two more and all four drakes bit onto a limb pulling the pixie in four separate directions as he gave the creature the most blood curling murderous look ever to the point that the glass of the Jar might as well not have even existed between her and Natsu.

"Then you're worthless to us." And then she would feel all the drakes sstart to tug. HARD.

No, it seemed everyone else had a mix of fury and disgust at the pixie's taunts, especially when she was laughing so hard and constant. Seeing the drakes snap wildly still made her giggle, but it was definitely hysteria more th an amusement that made her laugh. And then the drakes bit onto each of her limbs, and she let out a panicked little scream, trying to pull out of their jaws. And Natsu has to give her the fear of God with that look - even as the drakes start to pull, her screams start to reach a fevered pitch, along with her hysterical laughter, "Y.. You can kill me if you want but YOU STILL FAILED - Y O U ' L L A L W A Y S F A I L!"

And then they pull harder, and her laughter turns to a pained cry, which in turn turns into screams. Lucy cringes, "Natsu..!" She knows you're mad but this is BRUTAL. Dragon Natsu moves, though not to stop what's going on - instead his tail whips over to wrap around Luna, yanking her away from what's going to be a very grisly sight,putting a wing over her so she doesn't have to see. He's about to do the same for Lucy, but she gives him a sharp shake of her head, hands tensed. Regine needs no such encouragement, she's watching THE WHOLE TIME, teeth clenched in a glower and all but hissing "DIE DIE DIE" in her head.

There's a tearing sound and a final death scream that peters down into a gurgling noise, the interior of the jar sprayed with the color of the pixie's blood until total silence fills the jar.

Silence, and something else.

A smokey black mist starts to pour out of the holes her limbs were, and from the limbs that were ripped out themselves. Very quiet giggling starts to echo in the jar, one final whisper, " You'll fail." echoes in the jar, until its filled with that thin black mist that just feels wrong even looking at it.

Before the mist even has time to evaporate it is encased in bright blue flames and fierce lightning, erasing even that vile energy form existence reducing it to ash completely.

"No I won't. But you won't be there to see it anyway." Natsu said gravely.

Lucy let out a long sigh, some of the tension bleeding out of her, putting a hand to her forehead. Luna can later be heard making a muffled noise as she squirms and fights to get out of her father's grip, and the dragon loosens his tail, moving his wing so she can see again. "... well now what? That was our one lead."

"And Nev and Justine are...." Regine choked back a sob.

Lucy shook her head, "Don't think that way. She was obviously pushing our buttons for her own amusement. I'll bet they're fine .. somewhere." Only problem was now they had no way of getting back to Genessia or even their own home. And that was probably exactly what the pixie wanted. To leave them stranded.

"Even if that's the case, we still don't know what happened to Mom. And we don't know where Gray is.. Dad can't pick up his scent anywhere." Even if Human Natsu tried, there's no scent of Gray's to be found, let alone Nev or Justine's. Possibly because he wasn't "Gray" anymore.

Lucy looked thoughtful. "We're not at a total loss yet. You mentioned you felt a similar magic earlier, that Nev and Justine may have appeared in, right? We can start from there." Maybe they could pick up a trail. Lucy glanced at her Natsu a little uneasily, then reached over to slip her hand in his.

Natsu narrowed his eyes and looked to the sky for a moment. He wanted to know more too. But that pixie was clearly not going to tell them anything actually helpful. Natsu only came out of his reverie when he felt Lucy's hand around his own, grounding him.

"That sounds like a good idea. Regine should stay here with the guild though. Here we know she'll be safe. Don't worry we'll bring Justine and Nev back for sure when we find them. I swear it. On the emblem on my shoulder I swear we'll bring them back."

She gives the hand a gentle squeeze. That was kind of brutal, man. But at the same time, she worried because of how much the pixie taunted him on things he had probably felt before. Regine frowned slightly at the idea of staying behind, but Luna nodded in agreement. "He's right. No offense, but you don't have magic so if something were to happen..." She'd be targeted first. "Theres a barrier around the guild now that was put in place ages ago - after That Main turned traitor, Levy and Freed set it up. Unfortunately a lot of the townspeople think it's cursed too, because of what happened to dad, so they wouldn't come here when... when the attack happened." She nodded.

"... If you're sure..." Regine murmured uneasily. She clearly didn't want to stay, until Lucy added, "And Nev and Justine might find their way to the guild."

Luna got to her feet, "Dad can take us there faster than walki-"

"Hey! Natsu, cut it out!" Lucy suddenly sputtered, if only because the dragon was trying to get some reassurance too, nuzzling in close to get another whiff of that soothing scent.

Luna giggled a little, "Dad.. I don't think Mom will mind that much that you're getting...er.. her... scent, but I think you're going to knock her over."

The pixie had definitely gotten to him but with Lucy there he could stay on the right path. Which was also the reason why he didn't get upset with teh dragon version of him getting his dose of Lucy's scent. After all he had been without his dear guiding light for gods knows how long. Plus it was still a Natsu doing it so it was fine.

He turned to Luna.

"Is it always just you two going out there or are there others we can get in touch with?"

So Natsu will eventually hear Lucy giggling a, 'Come on, knock it off, that tickles!' followed by a noise that one can assume is dragon chuckling mid-purr. Nope, can't stop won't stop, He needs his dose of Vitamin Lucy.

Luna glanced at Natsu, thoughtful. "A lot of us got kind of scattered over the past few months - I think .. that might have been that pixie's doing too. I've gotten letters, though, but right now, the only one here is me and dad. At least of the surviving members."

Natsu frowned at the answer not liking it one bit.

"So she used the same tricks to spread us all out? Promises like wishes and saying that asshole was sighted?" Sounded like something she'd do alright.

Luna nodded, "That's what I was told anyway, in the letters. Some of them didn't actually -see- her though, they just got anonymous tips." She glanced over to Lucy and the dragon, who'd finally calmed down and was apparently locked in a staring contest with Lucy. "We should get going. Hey Dad, we need a lift." She called over.

Reluctantly, the dragon pulled his head up and reached out a claw so that his daughter could climb up onto his back. LUcy moved over to her Natsu for a quick note, "It's kind of funny that I was ever afraid of him, when he first showed up." She noted, "I'd have realized he didn't mean us any harm if I had given him a closer look.. He has your eyes." She gave him a soft smile, "Come on, let's join --er.. you and Luna."

Natsu followed after Luna, feeling quite happy to have Lucy 'back'. Just because he didn't mind his other self got some time with Lucy didn't mean he wasn't much happeir to have her attention again.

"Well he did fly by pretty fast. Plus with the whole red sky thing the mood of this place was a lot more dangerous so we'd be more careful." Natsu pointed out before climbing up with Lucy behind Luna.

"How did the sky end up like this anyway?" Had to have been something damn big.

Once this was all over, she and Natsu were going to need some R&R again. Although... the whole 'getting back' was going to be ..tricky. It was Magnolia but not THEIR Magnolia, plus this place already had a Natsu and Lucy - who were married. And had a daughter. That was mind blowing enough on its own. She leaned back once Natsu was settled behind her, and Luna shifted on her father's back as he carefully, oh so carefully, jumped into the air with a few beats of his wings.

"I'm not sure," Luna admitted, "But it happened five months ago too, a day after Mom disappeared." Maybe it was related? Still as she glanced up at the blood red sky, there was a loud rumbling coming from below, and with a snarl, Dragon Natsu suddenly circled around, following the noise. Hold on tight now, because those were some sharp turns. But curiously, as they passed over the ruined parts of the ground they crossed before, that black mist started floating up and out of the cracks and holes in the ground - out of the ruined buildings, as the formation started to shift, gradually seeming to..fix itself. Or reverse the damage done. There were smaller motes of white light popping in and out of the air all along the road, but by the time the mist had faded, so did the lights - and the buildings and streets were back to normal.

"What was that all about..?" Lucy murmured.

"That black misty stuff.. that was the same as what came out of the pixie, wasn't it?" Luna scanned the area, trying to see if she could spot anymore of that mist, or the lights.

They would definitely have earned that. But that was all for later. RIght now they had big problems to solve. Luna's words however were giving Natsu a very very bad feeling. The timing was too perfect for the two events to not have some kind of connection.

"...yeah I was thinking the same thing....If so that means that damn pest wasn't really unique or special."

"No, but seeing as she's not... an issue anymore, maybe that's why everything seems to have reverted - Luna, did the city look like this before?" Lucy asked curiously.

Luna nodded, "It looks like the way it was again. I mean...before Guildmaster fought with ...Him." She doesn't even want to acknowledge.

Lucy leaned over a little, "So maybe that black misty stuff is connected to her dying. If she did something to the area here.." Ugh, she doesn't know. It's just too many coincidences.

"Heading down!" Luna chirped suddenly, giving them barely any warning before the dragon moved into a steep dive. Lucy automatically reached back and grabbed hold of Natsu's arm, tensing up with an strangled panicked squeal. WHY MUST HE MOVE LIKE THAT. It felt like her stomach was trying to evacuate through her mouth, and when Natsu landed, it wasn't the most gentle as he could have been. He glanced over his shoulder to glance at his passengers almost apologetically, before his gaze went forward again.

"This is it, but.." Luna frowned. "Can you feel that?"

That almost pulsing energy, that taint that was spreading through the air, even the ground. Not just metaphorically, literally too - there was an inky blackness slowly creeping outwards like vines across the ground, even waving through the air, from a central point in the clearing, not seeming to form any particular pattern that one can notice...from the ground at least. The ground has that same 'wrongness' around it that sets ones teeth and hair on edge. There are a few shining white lumps on the ground, that resemble rocks, but they aren't quite... shaped like rocks.

"That would make sense. In which case there might be more than one wandering around and with each one snuffed out the more things go back to normal?" Natsu proposed before Luna suddenly directed down to the ground.

He felt it though the moment they touched down and seeing the unsettling growths only made that ominous feeling in his stomach grow. His eyes scanned the area before coming to bear on the white lumps. His eyes squinted and he hopped off before drawing close to one of them.

"That could be, yeah." Lucy agreed, and inwardly groaned, "Oh that's all we need, more obnoxious pixies." She sighed. At least until she looked rather uncomfortable at the sight. "What IS this.." She has to put a hand against the dragon's side to get her land legs back, but the dragon barely took notice, in full guard dragon mode.

Luna shuddered, "This place just feels wrong. Cold. It wasn't like this yesterday." She glanced over at the group, "It wasn't even like this the last time Dad and I were here." She held out her hand, a blue flame alighting above it, illuminating the area in that same light that the blackness almost seemed to shy away from with a rattling hiss.

As Natsu drew closer to the white lumps, he'd be able to see their shapes much better. They're statues of animals -- no, wait. Actual animals. Actual animals, that appear petrified and frozen. One says appear but their eyes are still moving, glancing frantically about - their little hearts are still beating, their breathing slow and laborious. And further down the path there are larger shapes.

"I don't like this," Luna murmured.

"Don't step on the.. whatever this is," Lucy put in after a second. I'm not sure if it's alive, per se, but it doesn't feel right.

Natsu's eye's shrunk with the realization that the white lumps were in fact animals. To make it even worse they were still alive. And if the small ones were this then...

"They're alive. Turned to something like stone or I don't know but they're alive!" Natsu announced before his eyes moved over to the bigger forms.

"Those....I think those are actual people."

They were definitely actual people. In fact there were two who were definitely recognizable. Laki and Freed. Laki had her arm up as if trying to ward or perhaps cast a spell, while Freed was standing in the process of turning towards Laki to shout a warning.

Luna, Lucy and the dragon moved forward careful to avoid the vines, wary, and there's a sudden gasp from Luna. "Oh no..!"

"Levy.." Lucy covered her mouth with her hand.

On the one hand, she was unsurprised that Levy was the closest to the source of the trouble, she was one of the smartest in the guild. But she had obviously been unprepared for what happened next - they all had.

Notably, not much further off -- well not much further off by Natsu's senses, there's barking, a sound that was somewhere between angry and scared.

"We need to get them out of-!!" Natsu suddeny stopped when he picked up on the barking.

"There's something up ahead! A dog's barking at it!" Natsu told the others before he started running off in that direction jumping over the creeping tendrils with ease.

"N-Natsu? Wait a second--!" Lucy called after him. Ergh, follow, stay, follow or stay - don't you know you don't split the party in adventures, Natsu! It's like, Adventuring 101. But he'll hear her running after him after that short hesitation, trusting in the Other Natsu to watch his daughter's back.

Luna was tempted to run after Lucy as well, but she stayed put, trying to examping the condition her friends were in. She did call out a, "Mo-- Lucy! Come back!" when the other headstrong girl dashed off though.

The barking dog isn't all that far, thankfully, and it might look VERY familiar when Natsu catches up. No, it'll definitely look familiar since the dog was in the company of two children just a few hours ago. Neither of the children are about, but more importantly, the thing the dog is barking at?

A large knotted mass of those inky black 'vines', like a bramble bush, rustling as if it were laughing. A few tendrils occasionally reach forward as if to grab the dog, sometimes yanking a paw or a tail, keeping the poor creature on an aggressive defense as he barked and bit at the vines when they got near.

The moment Natsu got closes enough to recognize the scent, Natsu's hands were already ignited with lightning and fire. Since that damn pixie had been made immune to fire that meant he couldn't just use his core magic. At least that was his preumption. However the moment he burst onto the scene the closest bush like creature was immediately assaulted by a blast of the two elemental magics as Natsu threw his fist forward.

It seemed the fairy they initially encountered was the only one immune to fire - but the bushlike thing was still pretty hardy. Even more weird, it seemed to .. Scream.. when the flames and lightning. Just this unholy godless shriek that seemed echoed around the area. The black wispy tendrils ignited from the flames, crackling from the lightning, and it immediately started to withdraw, more and more of the dark shadow covering the ground pulling back.

The dog, now that Natsu could see him, was definitely Herb, and when the black shadowy mass started to back off, he ran forward a little bit to bark angrily at the thing, fur all ruffled up.

"Herb! Come back!" Natsu snapped sternly before throwing another couple of magical blasts at the shrub to force it back even further than before if not outright destroy it. Now that they'd found one part of their new family, Natsu was not going to let anything happen to the dear dog.