[Video]

[celestial_wizard]

[ Lucy's been in better spirits since Kagura arrived, thusly adding another to their ranks --e ven though she wasn't a member of Fairy Tail, she was an ally. Which also meant that she and Natsu have managed to actually get some downtime for a change. So while Kagura and Erza were guarding the guild, she and Natsu had spent a few hours playing with the kids and fishing - on the premises of course.

And then she saw the newspaper. The entry that follows is mostly accidental and sounds like Lucy's in the middle of a ranting tirade with someone. ]

... --THINK I'm going to be SICK! Bunch of filthy cowards - this is unforgiveable..! From what the mages we rescued told us, I knew it was bad, but I didn't think...

[ No, that's not quite accurate. She already knew one group who tried something like that before, and it rankled deeply when she remembered what she and her partner lost in the battle that followed. Those were scars that weren't going to go away. Her silence is followed by a noise that sounds oddly like, 'Puupuupuuupuun' and a little white paw waves at a corner of the screen as if to say hey, this is recorded! ]

Oh...! T-thanks Plue..! [ She nabs the device, looking apologetic. ]

Uh... if you heard all that, sorry about that!~ I'm usually more careful with this thing. This mess with the Hands of Decay is really incredibly frustrating, that's all.

[ Putting it mildly. Bad enough these bastards tried murdering innocent mages but to take away their magic..? That was far too sensitive a subject, and whens he's about to stop the feed, something occurs to her. After a moment she opens a private channel. It was something she discussed with Erza and Natsu already, now she could at least reach out to him. ]

[ Private Video to David Haller ]

Mr. Haller, we haven't really spoken much before but I wonder if you have some time to talk with Natsu and I about a number of things. In person, preferably?

Comments

Private

[rulerofme]

Just David. And sure. Where would you like to meet?

Private

[celestial_wizard]

All right, David then!

Would it be too much trouble if you came to Fairy Haven, in Fayren? We came come to you if you prefer, I just ..would rather not be too far from the guild at a time like this.

Private

[rulerofme]

I have no problem coming to you guys. [Genessia City is lucky enough not to have a group of crazies bent on destroying a certain set of people.]

I'll be there shortly.

Private to Action

[celestial_wizard]

[ She flashes a warm smile. ]

Thank you, David. I'll let Natsu know, I know he'll want to be present too.

[ And she'll be waiting in the guild for him to arrive! ]

[action]

[explodewiththerage]

[He almost felt compelled to cover Nev and Justyne's ears when Lucy started ranting. But sadly he only had one set of hands so he wouldn't have been able to anyway.]

You okay Lucy?

[action]

[celestial_wizard]

[ At least she didn't say any profanity! Though her rage had certainly been intimidating enough that the kids were almost huddling behind Natsu, watching her worriedly. As worriedly as Plue was, actually. When the little spirit had distracted her from her rant and she realized, she felt ashamed for being so upset. ]

... yeah. Sorry, I...

[ Without another word, she abruptly shoved the paper at Natsu so he could see for himself what had her so enraged, and then she drops to her knees to pull both children into her arms for tight hugs. Sorry, she didn't mean to scare you! ]

[action]

[explodewiththerage]

[No but she was definitely thinking it. Either way Natsu gives the two a little nudge to go to Lucy when she passes him the paper. He reads it and skips over the rest of the articles until he sees the interview. Immediately his hands start burning.]

private video;

[skilledwithwords]

[Levy is currently at her shop. She's been double checking security since most of her employee's are mages and she doesn't feel right leaving them here unprotected. Hearing that some have had their powers taken away leaves a sour taste in her mouth and a knot of worry in her stomach.

When she hears Lucy's tirade on the devices she immediately calls her friend.]

Lu-chan! [She's seen Lucy more often lately but she hasn't spoken to her friend since she's read the paper and she can't help but worry.]

I'm glad to hear from you. I was planning to stop by the guild when I finish up here. Are you and Natsu okay? I'm... I'm getting more and more worried about this. There has to be something more we can do to stop this.

[It is not okay.]

private video;

[celestial_wizard]

[ The entire situation had left a bad taste in her mouth since it started, and it made her sick that the Guardian and Deputy barely treated it as seriously as it was. When she hears Levy's voice, she calms down a bit, but it's obvious she's quite upset. The situation was ... way too similar to FACE for her liking. ]

Levy-chan ... I'm glad you're all right. If you do come by the guild, don't come alone - you should have someone with you.

[ Levy might not be a powerhouse like Natsu and Erza, but she could take care of herself well enough, certainly. That wasn't the point though - it was reckless going somewhere alone. ]

... we're all right. [ At least as all right as they can be. ] Erza's here, and Kagura from Mermaid Heel showed up as well. We're getting more support from outside the Gates. There is no way .. no way this is going to go on. It's bad enough they want to kill mages, but ... those mages that lost their magic... I can't even fathom.. I feel sick to my stomach.

private video;

[skilledwithwords]

[Levy is used to walking around along but she'll try her best to fulfill Lucy's request. At the very least having someone else around might stop her from doing something incredibly stupid, again.]

Kagura? I haven't seem them around. [Though that might be due to poor timing which is coming in a place as big as Fayren.]

Is there nothing we can do for them?

[Levy can't imagine life without her magic. It's part of her and it's a defining part of her.]

[Audio] Locked

[frostheartedrose]

[So much half asleep still and not even bothering to hide it.]

Mmmmmph... What'd they do now? Should I just weed through all the minds in Fayren and give any cultists a fatal blood clot?

[Several moments after that, she'll roll over onto the phone and disconnect.]

[Audio] Locked

[celestial_wizard]

[ Lucy stares at the response for a second. Did she just disconnect? Yeesh. Well she'll leave a message for her anyway. ]

You might want to look at the newspaper when you're up. The answer's in there.

Re: [Audio] Locked

[frostheartedrose]

[She totally did, but about two minutes later she'll call back and be far more awake.]

Well, that's embarrassing... My apologies.

[ audio ]

[deathsought]

Don't apologize. I read it as well.

{ And yet, he seems oddly unperturbed. As if the part of the article he focused on was something else entirely different than what she read, disturbing and vile as it was. }

You know this area better than I, Lucy. How many schools are in Fayren?

[ audio ]

[celestial_wizard]

[ She doesn't sound surprised YOU COLD AND UNFEELING JERK ]

... what?

[ That's a really random question. ]

Less than five, I think - why?

[ audio ]

[deathsought]

{ You don't want him to care too much, Lucy. He already took a big risk last time, this is for their own good. }

It's just a hunch I have. It could very well be nothing. Are any of those schools for mages?

video;

[firefandance]

It's awful what they are planning.

[She had read the paper when looking for something to do. Trying to be more useful. But she wanted to help with this, even if she wasn't hat confident.]

It just makes me want to help as much as possible.

video;

[celestial_wizard]

It is..and a lot of people lost faith in the Guardian and the Deputy because of their failure to protect them. [ Lost faith and outright hate them. ]

video;

[firefandance]

That's understandable, but yet one shouldn't be able to expect people to be perfect either. I at least know that much now.

video;

[charmingdeception]

[This whole Hands of Decay thing has her wonder a few things. It would be the perfect time for her to do something. However she is going to keep that to herself. Her plan is slowly forming.]

Are the meanies still up to no good? Do you think from what the newspapers said that I should move though?

video;

[celestial_wizard]

[ Lucy gave the screen an odd look at 'meanies'. What a weird thing to say. ]

Well, whether or not you're a mage, that's really up to you. If you don't feel safe, then it's probably best for you to go to Genessia until the matter's resolved.

video;

[charmingdeception]

[She had many an other name to call them, but given who she was pretending to be, meanies seemed like the better option.]

Even if I was, I wouldn't be all that useful. So better to be safe than sorry they say.

[Video]

[azaleafae]

[Azalea hears the outburst and definitely can't blame Lucy, especially being one of the people who found the kidnapped mages in the first place.]

I couldn't agree more. They're all despicable...

[Video]

[celestial_wizard]

[ Oh. She remembers that one. She never did figure out if she was some kind of dinosaur, like a raptor or something, or a lizard, but there were more important things to worry about. ]

At least they're getting proper treatment at the Hospital in Genessia. They'll recover... physically at least.

[ Though they wouldn't have needed it if they had gone to Fairy Haven, instead of trusting in people who couldn't keep their word. ]

[Video]

[azaleafae]

[If Azalea knew that, she'd wonder what Fairy Haven would have done differently...]

I was hoping they'd be able to tell us more about the Hands of Decay themselves so that we could stop them.