3

Nova and Lucy had found a small apartment, for 70,000 Jewel a month. Currently, Lucy was in the bath as Nova was looking out the window nostalgically. 'Ne, Layla are you proud of us?' She thought. 'Lucy and I miss you. She still writes those letters. I sing those lullabies.'

She was humming one of the lullabies she was taught when she was interrupted by a scream from Lucy and two bodies flying into the wall.

Lucy wore a towel, her blonde hair down as she crossed her arms angrily. Nova had her long red hair down from the ponytail and was wearing a short nightgown, green eyes narrowed at the intruders. "Why are you here?!" They chorused angrily.

"Cause Mira told me that you two got a new place." Natsu answered, rubbing his throbbing cheek as he looked at them as if they were dumb.

"She told you? So what!? Does that mean you can just come in like that!?" Lucy shouted, hands on her hips as she glared at Natsu and Happy.

"I could always take care of them." Nova commented nonchalantly, a ball of water in her fist, glaring at Natsu.

'S-scary…' Natsu thought in fear and pity. 'I pity the poor bastards who end up with Erza and Nova…'

Meanwhile in Location 1, aka Fairy Tail

Gray sneezed and shivered. "Who's talking 'bout me?" He wondered, before shrugging and thinking of the newest guild members.

In Location 2, aka where someone gets sense knocked into them

A blunette sneezed, rubbing his nose and thinking of a certain armoured redhead. "Erza…" He muttered.

Back to our normal program~

Nova and Happy watched Lucy rage at Natsu, who merely sweatdropped and countered her arguments with a measly, "Hey…that hurts my feelings…"

"Ya know if he said that when they actually got together, we'd have to leave the room…" Nova sweatdropped, Happy nodding vigorously.

"And when Gray makes you angry and everyone has to leave the room too!" Happy chanted.

"EH?!" She shouted, face like a flame as her eyes popped open. "You mangy cat! Get your furry ass back here!" She chased after Happy, throwing fireballs at him. "I'll turn you into a roasted cat!"

As Lucy was ranting, Nova was chasing Happy, Natsu picked up a stack of papers, curiously looking at it. "Hrm? What's this?" He asked, making Lucy and Nova and panic.

Lucy launched herself towards Natsu, grabbing the papers and hugging it to her chest tightly. "Noooooo!" She cried, cradling the papers tightly.

Noele eyed her own papers that were hidden in the draws thankfully, seeing as how she was a rather private person.

"Now you've got me worried. What is it?" Questioned Natsu sceptically.

"Who cares what it is?!" Cried Lucy, her left arm flailing around. "Why don't you just go home?!"

"No!" Retorted Natsu with a cheesy smile and pink cheeks. "We came to have fun!"

"Does your fun include annoying us with your presence?" Quirked Nova sarcastically with a dirty look.

"I can't believe how selfish you are!" Cried Lucy once more.

A little while later after Lucy had clothed herself, the foursome sat at their table, Lucy and Nova giving Natsu and Happy a hard stare. "We just moved in. We haven't even had the time to get furniture." Lucy huffed, her face leaning on her left hand.

"So you can clearly see that there is nothing fun here to do." Nova added, just as annoyed.

"So drink your tea and go home!" They both chorused.

"They just have no heart, huh?" Natsu asked Happy.

"Aye." Happy replied, staring at the duo.

"No heart, huh?" Nova muttered, a dark aura surrounding her before she vanished it quickly. Oh well, she'd just have to get her revenge on them later.

"Just because we drink and go home, we're heartless?" Lucy ground out.

"Oh!" Exclaimed Natsu cheerfully. "I've got it! Why don't you show us all of those key-guys that you have!"

"No way! It uses up a lot of my magic!" Lucy rejected immediately. "Besides, they're not key guys! They're celestial spirits!"

"How many celestial spirits do you have contracts with?" Happy questioned.

Taking a sip of her tea, Nova answered, "Six forms. You call celestial spirits 'forms'."

"The silver keys are sold at magic shops." Lucy added, showing her silver keys. "Horologium, the Time Piece constellation… Crux, the Southern constellation… and Lyra, the Harp constellation."

"These gold keys open the Gates called the Twelve Gates of the Zodiac. They're extremely rare keys." Nova joined. "There's the Golden Bull constellation, Taurus… the Water Bearer constellation, Aquarius… and the Great Crab constellation, Cancer."

That perked up Natsu and Happy quickly, both standing and looking at them in surprise. "The Great Crab constellation! You mean shellfish?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Shellfish!" Happy echoed.

"Oh my! They're going overboard on their reactions for no reason." Lucy mumbled, rubbing her forehead in exasperation.

"Oh!" Nova popped up, her fist hitting her open palm in remembrance. "Now that they mentioned it, didn't you buy a key in the port?" She asked.

"I did!" Lucy smiled. "But we don't have a contract yet. Now's a good time. I'll let you see just how a celestial wizard makes a contract with a celestial spirit."

"All right!" Natsu and Happy exclaimed.

Snickering at how excited they were, she couldn't help but feel happy that their excitement would surely vanish when they realised how the contracting actually went down.

"What happens if a contract goes into arrears?!" Happy shouted in shock.

"A contract in your rear? That's gotta hurt." Natsu sweatdropped naively.

"How did the conversation turn to rear ends?" Lucy muttered to Nova who sighed.

"It's best if we don't try to understand them, stupidity is contagious after all." Nova whispered quietly.

"Arrears don't happen." Lucy assured, holding the silver key tightly. "Just watch! I am one who creates paths to the celestial spirit world! You must answer and pass through your gate!"

As Lucy showcased the first call, Nova watched in amusement at their shocked faces, especially when a keyhole appeared before the key and widened.

"Open Gate of Canis Minor…Nikora!" She commanded loudly, a bright light exploding from the key and creating visible clouds that obscured their vision.

"Puuun!" The little snowman creature announced, causing the two newbies to drop their jaws in shock.

"Nikora?!" They shouted, staring at the little creature, Lucy smiling widely at his cute appearance and Nova snickering behind her hand.

"I-I'm sure you can do better next time." Natsu assured shakily.

"This isn't a mistake!" She bellowed, waving her fist in the air as she glared at Natsu.

Nova shook her head, crossing her arms as she quirked a brow. "We can assure you, Natsu and Happy, that is what Lucy was calling for. Most celestial spirits aren't what you would expect them to look like, some have a human form or an inhuman form, like Nikora." She explained patiently. "Silver keys are more likely to have a more animal form or object form like Horologium, even Gold keys can have an animal form or human form, like Taurus."

"Ellie is right!" Lucy chimed, bending down and hugging Nikora tightly, "Ah! You're so cute!"

"Puuun!"

"A-Are you sure?" Natsu continued unsurely, sweat dripping from his head.

She rolled her eyes, waving a hand and drying the sweat pouring from his face. "Once again, we're correct with our explanation. Seeing as Nikora's Gate is mainly viewed as a celestial spirit pet." She glared at him, eyes glinting like jade. "Don't sweat on our floor, it's a pain cleaning it, especially when it's from you."

"A-Aye, sir!" He squeaked loudly, saluting her instantly. 'S-Scary! She really is Erza 2.0!'

"Ellie is right. I don't have to use much magic to get through Nikora's Gate, and he's very popular as a celestial spirit pet!" Lucy finished excitedly.

She titled her head in agreeance. "Yes, you're right." She looked at Lucy with a fond grimace. "We still need to bring your stamina and power up, you're still weak compared to what you could be."

"Natsu… I see an example of human egotism." Happy muttered, staring at the talking duo.

"Uh-huh!" Natsu agreed

"Okay. We'll go over the contract, okay?" Lucy questioned quickly.

"Pu-puuun!" Nikora answered, raising his hand.

"I'll put the kettle on." Nova sighed, standing and walking to their kitchen, smiling warmly at the voices from their bedroom. 'Layla would be ecstatic at the family we've found, Lucy.'

"There! The contract's all finished!" Lucy cheered, smiling happily when she entered with a tray of mugs and pot.

"Pupuuun!" Nikora replied cheerily, jumping up and down with his ever-present shiver.

"Shouldn't it be more complicated?" Natsu wondered, taking the mug from Nova who handed one to them all.

"It may seem simple from the outside, but it's an important process." Lucy explained. "To a celestial wizard, the contract…in other words, the promise is one of the most important things. You can be sure that I will never, ever break a promise!"

Nova's nose twitched, her intuition sparking with a feeling that things just became more troublesome than she could have ever expected it to be.

"Really?" Natsu wondered.

"That's right! So now I have to give him a name!" Lucy replied.

"You mean it isn't Nikora?" Happy quired curiously.

"That's just a general name for his key." Nova explained to him, watching her friend brainstorm.

Lucy's smile widened, hitting her palm with her fist as a lightbulb above her head blinked. "Com here, Plue!" She knelt down, holding her arms out as Plue eagerly skipped over.

"Puuun!"

"Plue?" Natsu echoed with furrowed brows.

"I just think that the name feels cute! Right, Plue?!" Lucy answered happily.

"He is cute." Nova agreed, pinching his cheek. "Is our normal agreement entered?"

Lucy nodded happily. "Of course! All my spirits have one with you in it!"

"Since Plue is Canis Minor, the small dog, I'd have expected him to bark." Happy muttered. "It's odd."

"Puun!"

"Well, I don't hear you meowing, either." Lucy retorted.

What happened next, Nova will deny having any memory and will play dumb whenever it is mentioned.

"Plue! I have to agree with everything you said!" Natsu shouted unexpectedly, falling on to his knees as he stared at Plue.

"You understood him?!" Lucy shrieked dramatically.

"Celestial spirits, huh?!" Natsu questioned. "It's true that I was saved by your cow on that snowy mountain."

"That's right! You really have to show more respect for the celestials." Lucy agreed.

"I never thought you'd come along on that trip, Lucy, Nova." Natsu continued lowly. "But if you hadn't been there, things could have turned out a lot worse. If I really think about it, you're a weirdo, but you're both trustworthy and good people."

'The last thing I want is to be called a weirdo by him!' She snapped in her mind.

"Is that how he compliments someone he likes?" Nova wondered to Happy.

"Aye sir!" He nodded. "Natsu is pretty stupid when it comes to the opposite gender."

Nova shook her head, shrugging half-heartedly. "I'm not surprised."

"I see…" He muttered.

"Wh-What do you see?" Lucy queried hesitantly.

"I have a bad feeling about this…" Nova sighed, sipping on her tea.

"Natsu, what is it?" Happy questioned worriedly.

"Okay, it's decided!" Natsu shouted loudly. "I agree with what Plue suggested!" He smiled widely, cheeks flushing lightly. "Let's all form up as one team!"

Nova choked on her tea, thumping her chest erratically.

"Team?" Lucy echoed with a head tilt.

"That makes sense!" Happy shouted in joy. "Aye! Everyone in the guild is part of the same group. And people who get along especially well organised into smaller teams. A job that may be too difficult for one might be much easier for a team." He explained.

"Hey, that's a good idea!" Lucy cheered, looking to Nova whose face was red after her incident. "Sounds like fun, right Ellie?!"

"Y-Yeah." She choked out. "Just make sure to read the fine print too, Lu."

"Yessss! It's decided!" Natsu cheered loudly.

"We have a contract, huh?"

"Aye!"

"Puuuun!"

"Troublesome…."

'They may make fun of me, but they've accepted me as a valuable wizard, huh?' She thought with a warm smile.

"And right off the bat, we have a job!" Natsu exclaimed with glee. "See? It's all set!"

"Oh! You're so impatient!" Lucy teased happily, grasping the flyer. "In Shirotsume Town… I may have heard of it…maybe not."

"We came across the road for it a year ago." Nova piped dryly, massaging her throat.

"You're kidding!" She shouted, shoving the flyer to Nova with sparkling eyes. "If we get a book out of the mansion of this Duke Everlue, we get…"

"200,000 J?" Nova hummed with wide eyes.

"See? A juicy job, huh?" Natsu smirked at the silent duo.

"Warning, he's a famous womaniser, lecher and pervert. He is presently searching for a new blonde maid!" Nova snickered. "I'm impressed they managed to manipulate you to join them."

"And Lucy is blonde, huh?" Natsu teased.

"True! She can sneak into the mansion in a maid costume." Happy replied.

"You planned this from the start…" She threw the flyer at the sneaky duo. "And I fell for it!"

"And a celestial wizard keeps her promises." Natsu snickered. "How admirable."

"This is awful!" She glared at her snickering friend with watery eyes. "Why aren't you angry?"

She smiled innocently. "Why should I be angry? I'm not the one that was duped by two idiots."

"You're promises are as solid as mine!" Lucy retorted, smirking at her realisation.

She rounded on the two snickering duo, glaring at them. "You tricked us! That's so low!" She threw the tray at the duo and huffed as it landed on her targets.

"Well, shall we be off, Lucy, Nova?"

"I'm not going as a maid! You hear me?!"

"Just for practice, you understand. Just look at Happy and say 'Yes, master!'"

"Especially not for a cat!"

"Get back here! I'll turn you into a roasted cat with a side of salamander wannabe!"

Meanwhile

"Huh? That ad for 200,000 J for doing Duke Everlue's mansion… Somebody's taken it?" Levy questioned in disappointment, her blue eyes drooping.

"Yes." Mirajane answered cheerfully. "Natsu is off to invite Lucy and Nova along."

"Aww! I only hesitated for a few moments." She sighed sadly.

"Levy, you may be happy that you're not going." Makarov muttered.

"Ah! Master Makarov."

"That job may turn out to be more trouble than it's worth." He continued. "I just now received word from the sponsor."

"He wants to cancel?" Mirajane guessed.

"No." His lips curled into a wide smirk. "He's upped the reward to two million Jewels. That's what he said."

"Ten times the amount?!"

"Two million just for one book?!"

"Wh-Why would he do that all of a sudden?" She questioned shakily.

"That's the kind of reward they give for military action! What's going on with that?!"

"Tsk! We just passed up a great sounding job!"

"It looks like that job…has just gotten very interesting." Gray muttered, smoking amidst the chaos of the guild.

With our main cast

"How are you enjoying your ride in this horse-drawn carriage, master?" Lucy taunted smugly, her chin resting on her hands.

"I have maid my own hell…" Hu muttered depressingly.

Nova smirked, looking up from her book. "You deserve it." She teased bluntly.

"I am the only master here!" Happy shouted.

"Shut up, cat!" The two females chorused angrily.

As the group traversed with minimal arguments, Lucy hummed thoughtfully. "Now that I think of it, it's a very simple job."

Nova deadpanned.

"Really? You were against it a little while ago." Happy replied. "Now you're all for it?"

"Of course!" Lucy retorted cheerfully. "After all, it's my very first job! I want to do it right!"

"Look underneath the underneath." Nova advised her. "Not everything is as it seems when you first see it."

Lucy laughed girlishly. "Nothing could go wrong, Ellie! All we have to do it infiltrate the mansion and carry off the book, nothing too hard."

"Yes. Infiltrate the lecherous old man's mansion…" Happy instructed.

"Exactly! The lecherous old man!" Lucy echoed happily.

Staring at the trio, Nova wondered if she was cursed in her past life to be surrounded by naïve idiots. When could someone interesting join their team? Her shoulders sagged, if that ever happened, she would happily kiss them to balance out their team. Not that she would utter those words aloud, she knew each and every single one of them would hold her to her promise if they ever found out. Best to never think of it ever again.

"You many not know it to look at me, but I'm pretty sure of myself when it comes to sex appeal." Lucy purred suggestively, leaning forward so her chest popped. "Tee hee!"

"That isn't something a cat can judge very well." Happy deadpanned, before turning to look at Nova. "Is she always like this?"

"She tried to get a discount when she bought Plue." She whispered lowly so Lucy wouldn't hit her. "All it got her was a thousand J discount off the original price."

"Let's get one thing straight." Lucy began with lightly flushed cheeks. "You guys aren't contributing partners in this mission, so…we'll be splitting this 40%, 40%, 10%, 10%."

"Lucy! You'll be satisfied with just 10%?!" Happy shrieked.

"Mine is the 40% share!"Lucy bellowed.

"Where are the somewhat normal wizards when you need them?" Nova muttered unaware her words caused a currently smoking raven to sneeze and choke on the smoke.

"W-Wait…We do…have…something to…contribute…" Natsu piped up shakily, fighting the urges to vomit.

"Yeah? What's that?" Lucy taunted.

"We rescue you if you get caught." Natsu answered under his breathe.

"I won't make any mistakes." Lucy refused.

"Mistakes are guaranteed now." Nova chirped, placing the book in front of her face to block the glare from Lucy.

"There a lot of times when a fisherman loses the worm." Happy advised wisely.

"Who are you calling a worm?!" Lucy bellowed.

"You apparently." Nova muttered.

"Ellie!"

Shirotsume Town

"We're here!"Lucy cheered happily, blocking the bright sun from her eyes.

"I will never board a horse-drawn carriage again!" Natsu declared as sweat poured down his sweaty body.

"You always say that." Happy deadpanned.

"We can't walk everywhere." Nova deadpanned. "That would be completely stupid and make no sense whatsoever."

"Well, anyway, let's eat! I'm starving!" Natsu declared.

"How about a hotel. I want to drop off our baggage." Happy replied.

"We're not hungry in the slightest!" Lucy piped. "Why don't you eat a little of your own fire?"

"That's cannibalism, or a branch of it anyway." Nova retorted, looking at her weirdly.

"Don't say stupid things like that! Would you eat Plue or that cow of yours?" Natsu retorted with a sweatdrop.

"I'd never do something like that!" Lucy shrieked with bright cheeks.

"It's the same thing." Natsu declared.

"I-Is it really…?" Lucy questioned shakily. "So, what you're is you can't eat your own fire? What a pain." Looking at the annoyed Nova, a figurative lightbulb flickered on above her head. "I've got an idea! Ellie and I'll go take a look around town. You two go eat if you like."

"But, I'm hungry Lu." Nova whined as her best friend dragged her away, ignoring her hungry stomach that growled loudly.

"What's with her…? It's more fun to eat as a group!"

"Aye."

When a costume store has mysteriously been burnt

"I wonder if Lucy hates it?" Natsu wondered as immense amounts of food where being consumed by his unending stomach.

"She looks like she'd like greasy foods." Happy replied happily. "Nova, not so much."

"Well, this stuff is really good and greasy!" Natsu cheered.

"W-When did I ever say I like greasy foods…? Honestly." Lucy sighed, hands on her hips.

"Oh! Lu…" Natsu stopped dead, his thought process shutting down as the tiny dragons started roaring about his brain not working. "…cy…?"

"I guess I could wear just about anything and it'd look good on me, huh?" She narrated, looking at him cheekily.

Nova, who was still wearing her normal clothes, could only shake her head at her naivety. "Oh, Lu, sometimes I wonder about your common sense."

"Might you be taking a break from your lunch, Master?" Lucy wondered, ignoring Nova and oblivious to the shocked duo who could only stare in stunned disbelief. "If you're still hungry, please take your time and eat up! Tee hee!"

"What'll we do? We were only kidding about the maid plan. She took it seriously!" Happy hissed.

"Well, we can't admit that it was a joke now!" Natsu retorted. "We'll just have to go through with it."

"I can hear you!" Lucy bellowed. "You were kidding?!"

"I did tell you." Nova sighed, palming her face and shaking her head in exasperation. "But did you listen? Noooo, you went and bought a maid costume and even tried to buy me one before I burnt the store."

"You didn't have to burn the place!" Lucy shrieked hysterically.

"Pyromaniac tendencies have no wall to stop us." Nova rebutted, pointing to Natsu who nodded along with her words and then herself. "No respect for the pyromaniacs, shame on you."

"Aye sir!" Happy shouted.

Lucy deadpanned. "Dear spirits, what have you bestowed upon her? You've teamed two pyromaniacs together! Do you have something against me?!"

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Arriving at the mansion, Lucy whistled at the sight. "That's a pretty impressive mansion!" Lucy awed. "This is where Duke Everlue lives…?"

"This doesn't scream Everlue to me." Nova muttered, eyeing the mansion.

"No, this is where we meet the client." Happy answered easily.

"I see… If he's willing to pay 200,000 J for one book…he must be pretty rich." Lucy continued.

"Somethings fishy. Why waste all the money on one book?" Nova retorted to Lucy.

"Who might you be?" A voice questioned hesitantly.

"I'm from the Fairy Tail wizard guild –" Natsu began.

"Shh! Keep your voice down!" They interrupted loudly.

"So much for keeping voices down." She sighed, smiling innocently at Lucy's pointed stare.

"Forgive my rudeness, but could you enter via the back door?"

They all blinked in confusion before following their request. Doing as they were asked, the back door opened, revealing a grandeur entry. The pale cream wall complemented the light brown wood trailing the staircase, the chandelier glittering gently with small diamonds.

"Please forgive the inconvenience." Kaby Melon apologies sincerely. "I requested this mission. I'm Kaby Melon. And this is my wife."

"Your name sounds tasty!" Natsu laughed, leaning lazily against the couch.

"Melon!"

"Hey, that's rude!" Lucy scolded them with a glare. 'Melon… I've heard that name before. I felt the same way about the name of the town.'

Nova sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Please ignore them. Could you explain exactly what we need to do?"

"I never imagined a wizard from the famed Fairy Tail guild would take up my offer…" He trailed off.

"Really?" Natsu questioned with a wide grin. "I was surprised that such a good job was left on the board as long as it was."

'This job and pay don't match. There's got to be a catch somewhere.' Lucy thought, staring curiously at the Melon couple.

Nova's lips thinned in thought. There were plenty of possibilities as to why the request was on the board, why the couple were so adamant about destroying a book. 'Yet, why does it feel so much bigger than it really is?' Her eyes narrowed in thought. 'Are they hiding something? If so, what?'

"You're so young. No doubt you've become famous in your own right, but…"

"They call me Natsu the Salamander."

"Oh! That's a name that I've heard before." Kaby replied, delighted at knowing such a famous wizard accepted his request. "And you are…"

"I'm a Fairy Tail wizard, too!" Lucy cried, Nova shaking her head in dismay.

"So, your clothes are a hobby of yours?" He questioned curiously. "No need to answer. Never mind."

"I think I want to go home." She cried softly, leaning against her long-time friend.

"I told you not to wear it." She scolded, before smiling politely at the couple. "I'm a Fairy Tail wizard as well. Thank you for welcoming us so readily into your home."

"It's no trouble." He leant forward, his smile turning sharper. "Now, shall we talk about the job?"

"Yes!

"Aye!"

Lucy gulped, brows furrowing under the intensity of his words.

"What should we know?" Nova queried.

"I am only requesting one thing. To obtain a one-of-a-kind book that is in Duke Everlue's possession – Daybreak – and to burn or otherwise destroy it."

Natsu frowned. "You don't want it stolen for you?"

"I suppose, in reality, obtaining someone else's property without compensation and destroying it…is very much the same as stealing it, but…"

"I'm surprised." Lucy interrupted. "I thought for sure this would be a question of returning a book previously stolen from you."

Nova tilted her head, humming curiously. His words were both straightforward and ambiguous. Perhaps there was something much more important about that book than either were letting on.

"Burn it all, huh? Then all we have to do is burn the entire mansion down!"

"An easy score!" Happy added happily.

"Nooo!" Lucy shrieked. "That's a prison sentence for sure!"

She decided to interrupt for her sanity, and their clients – or whatever was left of theirs at least. "What kind of book is it? Are there specific conditions we need to look for?"

"Who cares what it is?!" Natsu bellowed at her, ignorant to the dark glare she sent him as she swiped spit from her cheek. "We're talking 200,000 J here!"

Kaby interjected. "No, we aren't. I will pay two million Jewels." He explained nonchalantly. "The compensation for the mission is two million Jewels."

"Wha–?!"

"Hya!"

"Guk?!"

"Hah?!" She finished, much quieter than her companions. A price for such a small request. Her eyes narrowed further. 'There is something wrong here. I don't care what it is, but this is not a normal job.'

"What the–?!"

"Oh, dear. You arrived not knowing the price had gone up." Kaby concluded in surprise.

"Two million?! Wait a second…Split four ways, that comes to…" He held his head in annoyance. "Aaaagh! I can't even calculate it!"

"It's simple. I get one million, you get one million, Lucy and Nova get the rest."

"You're so smart, Happy!"

"There is no 'rest' after that!" Lucy bellowed in shock.

"It would be 500,000 J for the four of us." Nova sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose in exasperation. "It seems I need to teach you both basic math."

"Come, come. Everyone calm down." Kaby tried, sweating profusely.

"Wh-Wh-Why did it suddenly go up to two million…?" Lucy questioned nervously, suddenly finding this job wasn't as normal as she expected.

"Because that is exactly how much I want that book destroyed." He explained deeply, hanging his head. "I cannot allow that book to stay in existence."

Before the girls could interrogate their mysterious client, Natsu grabbed onto their wrists tightly. "Come on, Lucy, Nova! I'm on fire here!"

"W-Wait a second…!" Lucy cried, stumbling over her feet due to his speed.

"Natsu! You fire-breathing idiot! Slow down!" Nova screamed furiously.

'Can't allow that book to stay in existence…!' She shared a knowing look with her long-time friend. 'What does that mean?!'

As the group thundered out of the mansion, the couple sighed to themselves.

"Dear…do you really think it's all right to send those children to do this job?" Mrs Melon questioned worriedly, folding her arms. "We've already had a team from a different guild fail the mission once. Even if it was just an attempt, from Duke Everlue's perspective thieves broke into his mansion. It's only natural that he'd increase his guard. So now it'll be even harder to get into his mansion."

"I know all that…" Kaby wallowed. "I know…but still… That book is the one thing…that I must erase from this world!"

The residence of Duke Everlue

She snickered with the two wizards at her friend's attempts at entering the mansion. Lucy was a pretty girl, don't disbelieve her, but there were some people that weren't attracted to her. Which, in essence, was all she met so far. She'd meet someone who'd look past her failed attempts, but she wouldn't hold her breath.

But, looking at the woman under his governance, she couldn't help the laughter escaping her! If she was met with the same sight, she'd keel over laughing before they could finish the mission.

"You're no use." Natsu deadpanned, staring down at the sobbing blonde in disbelief.

"That isn't it! That jerk Everlue has this weird, abnormal idea of beauty!" Lucy cried in shock. "Back me up, Ellie!"

Nova, who was leaning against the trunk in front of her, slumped over as hiccupping laughter shook from her. "I-I'm s-s-sor-sorry!" She replied, body shaking despite her best efforts of stopping. "It-It's ju-just too funny!"

"Is that your excuse?" Happy comment slyly, high-fiving the laughing Elementalist.

"Aarrgh! This is so frustrating!"

Hoisting herself up using the trunk, her friends energetically stood up.

"If that's the case, it's time to change to Plan C!" Natsu declared, cracking his knuckles.

"C for charge!" Happy echoed furiously.

"That old man did something unforgivable!" Lucy finished angrily, tears streaming down her face.

Nova titled her head, curly hair falling around her face. "Can this really be considered a plan?" She wondered.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

"It looks like the wizards haven't learnt their lesson, and more have come. And by the mark on her arm…this time they're from Fairy Tail." The short fat man regaled snootily, twisting and twirling his greasy moustache regally. "It was idiocy not to hide her mark. But if they were going to use a girl, they should have brought me a pretty one!"

Two shadows emerged from behind, the Duke holding a burning cigar to his mouth, his beady eyes narrowed in annoyance. More pests had arrived to retrieve that book that was his.

"Now… The thing we need to consider is just how we're going to kill the wizards this time." He smirked evilly, a maniac twinkle in his eyes that only shone brighter as different methods rumbled through his mind. "Bo yo yo yo yo yo!"

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Leaning over the railing, Nova helped Lucy settle onto the roof as Happy hovered above them She had offered to take them, but Lucy insisted to save her strength. "Thank you Happy." She smiled, reaching over to softly scratch between his ears. "I hope Lucy wasn't too heavy."

"Ellie!" Lucy shrieked quietly, waving a fist in the air at her words. "I'm not fat!"

She blinked before smiling innocently. "I never said you were fat." She replied. "All I meant was how you're heavy to carry."

"That's the same thing!" She argued, waving her arms.

"I don't get why we have to sneak in like this!" Natsu muttered as he stared at the glass door shielding their way in.

"Why else? This may be a paid mission, but we're pretty much acting like thieves." Lucy contended logically.

"Hm, I concur." Nova hummed, smiling innocently at her best friends pointed glare as she hid her flaming fist behind her back. She may normally be the logical one of them all, but that didn't mean she never had the urge to give into the warm, crackling feeling of the fire rushing through her veins.

"The 'C' from Plan C was for charge! We're supposed to storm the gate and blast anybody who tries to get in our way!" Natsu declared.

"No!"

"Then…burn the book."

"Like I said, we're not doing it that way!" Lucy denied.

Nova nodded along with her. There was something fishy with their mission, and while her pyromaniac tendencies wanted her to burn the place and everything in sight, she knew there was something their clients were withholding extremely important information.

"We don't know what kind of opponents we're going to face, nor do we know how many there are. Neither do we know their capabilities, their strengths, weaknesses or where exactly the book is. It is best to be cautious and wary until we are discovered." Nova advised sagely. "Now, move aside flame brain."

He'd normally pick a fight, but the remaining fear of her being Erza 2.0 weighed heavily in his mind that he soundlessly moved away and decided to fight Ice Princess when given the chance.

Better the devil you know than the devil you don't.

Placing a hand on the glass, she relaxed, letting the comforting heat exude from her body, ultimately melting the glass to give way to easy entry. Shimming her hand around, her fingers brushed the lock and she clicked it open, revealing their easy entry.

"Easy." She smiled, climbing through the window and looking around with curiosity.

"So, this is a storage room? I wonder what all this is?" Lucy hummed, eying the strange collectables braced against the walls.

"Natsu, look!" Happy spoke happily, a skull decorating his face as he showed his friend.

"Ooh! That looks great on you, Happy!" He complimented with a wide grin.

"We could probably get through the door." Nova muttered to Lucy thoughtfully.

"Let's go. Carefully, okay?" Lucy added, eyeing Happy and Natsu pointedly.

"Hey, Lucy! Look!" Happy smiled.

"Shut up, cat!" Lucy retorted sharply.

None noticed the gleaming crystal on the shelf, showing their figures to two unnoticeable figures.

Opening the door quietly, Nova peered around before motioning for them to follow her, moving silently. "No one's here." She whispered to them, brow twitching at their loud footsteps.

So much for that plan.

"Take that thing off! It's creepy!" Lucy berated, standing above Happy with narrowed honey eyes.

"Say, Lucy, Nova. You don't plan on searching one room at a time through the whole mansion like this, do you?" Natsu questioned with confusion.

"Naturally!"

"Unfortunately."

"Wouldn't it be faster to just grab somebody and find out where the book is from them?" Natsu continued.

"Aye!"

"We're trying to accomplish the mission without being seen. You know, like ninjas. Cool huh?" Lucy replied.

"N-Ninjas…?"

Nova stopped, halting them all the moment she heard faint noises, eyes narrowing further when it stopped suddenly. The wind surrounding them picked up in preparation, tickling the sweat running down their faces when the horrendous maids from before jumped through the wooden flooring.

"We've found the intruders!" The leader of the pack announced loudly, beady eyes glaring at them.

"Oooooooohh!" Natsu and Happy shrieked, the skull jumping from his face at the sheer suddenness.

"They've found us!" Lucy shouted in worry, only for them to be blown away by the combined attack of fire and wind.

"Good reflexes." Nova praised to Natsu, his scarf covering his entire face save for his eyes that brightened at her words.

"We ninja must never be seen! Nin, nin!" He replied.

"Nin, nin!" Happy echoed.

"You guys make the same amount of noise as ninjas as you always do. Geez!" Lucy complained, looking at them like they were stupid. "Anyway, we'd better move! They're going to send somebody else next!"

"Look for a room!" Nova ordered, holding Happy as she jogged past the duo.

"Let 'em come! Just let me at 'em!"

"I swear to every spirit, I will knock you unconscious if you don't shut up." Nova hissed at him, eyes glowing in anger. "Now, in."

He gulped at the deadly look, snatched Happy and booked it into the room without a second's hesitation, leaving the girls to look at each other before shutting the door quietly.

"Good thinking, Ellie." Lucy praised breathlessly, leaning against the bookcase.

"Thank you." She replied nonchalantly, ignoring Natsu's exclamation. "The doors were labelled and I noticed the library, so why not kill two birds with one stone. Hide and investigate."

Lucy deadpanned, shaking her head. "Why didn't you work for the council?"

"They're all a bunch of idiots that don't like listening to logic when the situation needs it most, infiltrated too much for my liking and none of them are as amusing as our guild." She answered simply.

"Ohhh! I found a golden book!" Natsu shouted joyfully, his dragon purring at the sight of such a treasure.

"Uppaah!"

"You boys have the most unbelievable luck…" Nova sighed with a half-smile.

"Will you guys please get serious about this search?!" She screeched before realising what book it was.

A moment of silence passed before they cheered.

"Daybreak!"

"We found it!" Happy cheered.

"It hardly seems fair to find it so quickly without really looking…"

"Now for the burning!" Natsu declared childishly, his pyromaniac tendencies bristling in excitement. A job he was more than qualified for.

Nova snatched the book, crossing her arms with a determined glint in her eyes. "Hold that thought boys. Let me ask you something." She held the book, showcasing the author as Lucy let out an excited screech. "Duke Everlue doesn't seem like the type to keep such a book – especially by this author – for no reason."

"What're you getting at?" Natsu questioned with confused eyes, scratching his nape.

"I heard rumours that Kemu Zaleon was locked up at someone's mansion and forced to write an unpublished book that was only meant for them." She answered steadily, flipping through the content lazily. "Now, if you were forced to write something, what would you put in it for some fun?"

Their faces lit up in understanding. "You think he wrote something important?" Lucy guessed, the detective thrumming inside her mind, working in overdrive at the multiple possibilities.

"Exactly. We already know the client was sketchy, even you Natsu." He nodded thoughtfully.

"I guess…" He trailed off. "So, you want us to investigate before telling him?"

"He's connected, but we don't know how or why. We know he wants the book destroyed, so let's find out." She finished. "Are we in agreeance?"

Lucy nodded, but the boys shared a look before nodding.

"We want to burn something else than." Natsu bartered Happy nodding sagely next to him.

"Deal. You can burn a few rooms if you want." She replied, handing the book to Lucy. "You're the best at doing this, so it's your job."

"Yes, ma'am!" She saluted.

They were going to leave when they Natsu noticed cracks forming beneath Nova's feet, webbing out further. "Watch out!" He shouted, pushing her out of the way as the two rolled across the floor.

"I see. I see. Bo yo yo yo yo…" Duke Everlue jumped from the floor, debris falling around the group as Lucy help Natsu and Nova onto their feet, all staring wearily at him. "So, it's Daybreak that you were after?! I was right to let you run free for a while! Oh, how smart am I? Bo yo yo yo yo!"

"He sounds like a failed villain." Nova commented nonchalantly. "You'd think we'd get bigger and diabolical ones."

"We're too early." Natsu nodded sagely.

"They don't like pyromaniacs." Lucy rebutted with a shrug. "They can't get anything done with you two around."

"Aye sir!"

"Are you ignoring me?!" He screeched, insulted by the sheer audacity the group were showing him. How dare they?! He even greeted them in person! You couldn't even get respect for being a villain anymore! "Err! Now you've made me angry! For daring to ignore the great Duke Everlue! Come out, Vanish Brothers!"

They turned, eyes weary when the shelves parted, revealing two figures showered in mist.

"So, it's finally time for business?"

"Mama would scold us for receiving money without working for it."

"Good afternoon."

"These kids are supposed to be Fairy Tail wizards? Mama would be shocked."

"At least we aren't obsessed with our mothers." Nova shot back; lip curled at the insult.

"That symbol! That's the mark of the Southern Wolf bodyguard guild!" Happy gasped, pointing at them with his paw.

"So, you hired these guys?" Natsu demanded flippantly, staring them down with narrowed eyes.

"Bo yo yo yo! The Southern Wolf is hungry! Prepare to die!"

"But I haven't prepared my coffin, my eulogy, who's going to read it and the best flowers that would suit me." Nova jeered, standing in front of Lucy when their jaws dropped.

The sheer audacity of reading through a tension-filled battle!

The girls shrugged. They weren't looking to battle anyone anytime soon.

"These people are pathetic!"

"So, these are Fairy Tail wizards."

"We're much more destructive than we usually are." She taunted.

"Vanish brothers, I want that book back!" The Duke ordered hysterically. "Kill them and get it back!"

She noticed before her friend could breathe anything. "Sorry boys, we'll need to raincheck that. Natsu is more than enough to deal with you two." She winked cheekily, waving her hand as columns of fire sprouted before her, covering them as she dragged Lucy away to somewhere inconspicuous.

"Change of mission! I will find those girls myself! You Vanish Brothers will make sure that brat boy vanishes!" He ordered, digging down and disappearing.

"I hate it when the client change plans on a whim!" Vanish Brother one sighed.

"You said it!" Vanish Brother two added.

"This looks like it's going to be a huge pain!" Natsu grumbled. "Happy, you stay outta there reach until I need you."

"Aye sir!" He saluted, his wings appearing as he launched himself above them, prepared to join at a moment's notice.

"I can handle them alone."

Huh?! You jerk!" Brother two shouted. "I'm telling Mama!"

"Calm down! And cool off."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Lucy sighed, placing her Gale-Force-Reading Glasses away, sharing a look with her friend. "It's a good thing we looked. This book is much more important than was let on and should be returned to the intended owner."

"As long as Natsu burns this place down, none of us will have complaints." Her eyes sharpened, as she grabbed her arm and pulled her away, hand resting on the wall. "Boom."

The wall exploded, leaving the burned Duke to fall out and groan.

"If you have revenge you want to deal out, now's the time before we hand him over to the proper authorities." Nova pointed out.

She watched as Lucy whipped him with the leather whip she had been given by her spirits, spouting how he was a disgrace to the literature world, how he was cruel.

They barely noticed when he latched onto her ankle.

"And in the end, the upstart did write it!" Everlue exclaimed cruelly. "But naturally his previous refusal annoyed me. So, I had him write it from solitary confinement in my dungeon! Bo yo yo yo yo yo! I'll take any lowlife who calls himself an accomplished writer and talks back to me with a pride too high for his station, and I'll break him!"

"What were you thinking, putting a human being thought that for your own vanity?!" Lucy shouted harshly, stomping her foot onto his overlay large face harshly. "Do you know what he was doing during those three years in solitary confinement?!"

"Three years…?!" Happy echoed in shock, unaware of the dark look on the redhead's face at those words.

"Meditating upon my greatness!" He declared foolishly.

"No! He was battling his own pride! If he didn't write it, his entire family would be in danger! But to make an absolute fool like into a hero… His integrity as an author wouldn't allow him to do it!"

"That's enough, Lucy." Nova ordered quietly, aware that her eyes were frigid as the coldest ice. "It's my turn now."

She acknowledged, moving away to watch as her long-time friend knelt down to the fatty.

"He put a spell on the book, using the last of his energy, to protect the real secret of this book. You have no right to keep this in your possession any longer, it's time for the intended owner to reunite with it." She grabbed his face harshly, before throwing him over her shoulder and cracking his arm. "Boom."

The area around them exploded, debris falling everywhere it touched, leaving Nova standing as the unconscious Duke twitched.

"Time to settle this once and for all."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

She watched her friends walk into the mansion, the book under their protection. She smiled. It was nice working with others that she normally wouldn't, fun even.

And yet, to hear that someone had sacrificed so much to protect his family, shared confinement she was familiar with, made her sympathise with the Zealon family. She knew that people went through the most horrid of situations, and to write such a book for his son, spell it hidden for thirty-one years, she innately knew that while he wasn't a powerful wizard, it was the love for his son that preserved it for such a long time.

'I hope you're proud of us. Of me.' She thought distantly, smile widening at her friend's long face.

She understood Kemu Zealon and would preserve that love to protect her friends and family.

What's this?! I've finally updated!? Huzzah! Anyway, apologies for the extremely late update, but procrastination is a very terrible attribute I have and I was intimated at the fact the series I watched when it began, watched the characters grow into themselves, finally finished and I didn't know how to continue forward. Thankfully, I finally finished this chapter for you all! I did leave a clue or two about Nova that is definitely important for her character arc and for one specific arc I have in mind. I just need to twist everything to my liking and we're good to go.

Ciao!