"What?"

Lucy balked at the girl before her. She bit her tongue, thoughts slowing from the panicked spiral that had flared when the old group -coven, she guessed was the actual term- as she actually looked at Juvia. She had her head bowed, focused on her fidgeting hands.

"Juvia- Juvia recognized Miss. Lucy in the shop and realized that this was fate. Juvia made... many mistakes in her past, but her involvement with the pain Phantom Lord put Miss. Lucy through was one of the worst. She is truly,truly sorry."

Lucy took in Juvia, the girl no older than Lucy herself. She couldn't imagine what kind of circumstances would drive a girl who seemed as nice as Juvia to join a dark coven, but Lucy knew from experience what grudges could do to a person's heart.

"It's okay," Lucy smiled at her, grin brightening at Juvia's shocked expression. "It's in the past now, and there's nothing either of us can do but move on. It means a lot to me that you're apologizing though. Really Juvia, thank you."

Lucy's smile faltered when she saw tears well in Juvia's eyes. The blue haired girl launched at Lucy, hugging her tightly as she sobbed into her shoulder. "Ju-Juvia is s-so happy! Thank you M-Miss Lucy!"

Lucy patted her back awkwardly, sharing a confused look with Natsu. "Just Lucy is fine," Lucy said.

"Oi, get off her." Lucy looked incredulously at Gray at his low bark. He was standing beside her, arms crossed and eyes narrowed. Juvia stepped back, sniffing. Lucy thinned her lips, stepping between Gray and Juvia.

"Gray, she apologized." Lucy said firmly. Gray rolled his eyes and shucked his unbuttoned over shirt to reveal a tight crop top underneath, black colour stark against the pale skin of his adam's apple and ribs.

"And she's a fucking witch."

"I'm a witch," Lucy reminded. Gray balked slightly at her declaration, lips turned down in a deep frown. "She was a kid, like all of us, when she joined them. People make bad choices when trying to find a family." Gray's eyes broke away quickly, Lucy worrying her lip at the pain that had flashed across his face for a second. Lucy didn't know all of Gray's past, but she knew family was a sore subject for him.

"Oh, Phantom Lord was never Juvia's family." Juvia said quietly. She blinked her large eyes when Lucy looked over her shoulder at her in question. She flushed at the attention but continued on. "They were just the only people that told Juvia she could be of use. Gajie was her only friend, and she only visits him every few months now."

"Gajie?" Natsu barked, Lucy whipping at his shocked tone. "Like Gajeel Redfox?"

"Yes," Juvia said, cocking her head in question at Natsu, "do you know him?"

"That bastard," Natsu hissed, pacing on the pavement beside Lucy. He muttered a few curses under his breath, Lucy's brain processing the random information.

"Like your cousin Gajeel?"

"Oh, of course Strawberry's family is involved in your kidnapping," Gray spat. Lucy glared at him in warning, thankful that Natsu was too preoccupied to let Gray's words affect him.

"Juvia is sorry, but did Lucy say she is also a witch?" Juvia asked. Lucy smiled, lifting her key ring from it's place on her hip and holding out the mixture of gold and silver keys that housed the tethers for her sprites.

"Yep! These are all my sprites!" Juvia 'ooh'ed at her key ring, inspecting it without touching it.

"Lucy is a celestial witch! Those are very rare, no wonder Master Jose was so eager to disobey his orders." Juvia said, smiling tentatively at Lucy. Lucy took it as a compliment and smiled back. Gray huffed, clearly unhappy as he stripped off his top and threw it to the pavement, fingers twitching as they fell to the buckle on his pants, leather tight on his hips and shins but the crotch set low, just above his knees. "Um," Juvia squeaked, eyes large as she and Lucy watched Gray strip in public, "why is the handsome man doing that?"

"Oi, ain't I handsome too?" Natsu asked, finally drawn back into the conversation by his offence.

"The most handsome," Lucy assured.

"No," Gray said flatly.

Lucy left Gray and Natsu to bark insults at one another, turning back to Juvia with a weary smile. "It's just a thing he does," Lucy sighed. "He's harmless, I promise." Juvia nodded at Lucy's words, peeking over her shoulder to watch Gray for a few more seconds. Lucy fought a grin when blush rose on the pale girl's complexion the longer she stared at Gray's bare torso. "So Juvia, what kind of magic do you use?"

Juvia squeaked when Lucy spoke, startled from her thoughts and blushing even more fiercely than before. "Juvia is an elemental witch. Water is second nature to her."

Lucy watched in awe as Juvia held up her hand, the tips of her fingers turning transparent as water replaced the appendages. It was different from when Aquarius summoned water, the liquid actually becoming her hand rather than swirling around it. The liquid continued down to her wrist, swirling in the confines of the shape of her hand, fingers moving as if they weren't made from magical water.

"The fuck you said?" Natsu howled, and then suddenly Gray was being thrown into Lucy and Juvia. His hand settled on Juvia's hip as he steadied himself. Juvia's hand returned to normal as she placed her hand on his chest, squeaking loudly in surprise and flushing. As suddenly as Gray had been thrown into their conversation Juvia's body completely turned to water, including her clothes. Gray yelped, jerking away as his side became soaked at the contact. Juvia stumbled back, translucent face twisted in what Lucy thought might be fear.

"Juvia is so sorry! She didn't mean to get Mr. Gray wet, b-but her magic surged. She's very, very sorry." Juvia brought her hands together in front of her, body slow as the water retreated from her core outward. After a minute Juvia stood before them, normal again aside from light shaking and a concerned pinch of her eyebrows as she cast her eyes down.

"It's fine," Gray said, awkward as he reached out a hand and patted her head twice. "I bumped into you, when you were doing your weird magic shit. Uh," Gray trailed off, looking to Lucy for help with desperate eyes. Lucy giggled, both at Juvia's star struck expression at Gray patting her head and Gray's rather sad attempt to comfort her.

"You don't have to call him Mr. Gray," Lucy soothed, resting her hand on the side of Juvia's arm as Gray shoved his hands into his pants pocket, shuffling a step further away from the girls.

"Yo, do that again! It was super cool, how'd you get your whole body into water without a spell or tattoos?" Natsu asked, arms coming around Lucy's waist as he pressed to her back and leaned over her shoulder to look at Juvia. Juvia smiled at Natsu, a little shy and a little confused still from before.

"It is just Juvia's water body. She has had it for many years."

"What the fuck kind of witchcraft is that?" Gray asked, wary but also leaning forward in interest, inspecting Juvia's body. The girl blushed heavily at the attention, and Lucy smiled softly at how easily flustered the girl was.

"I have said earlier, Mr. Gray. Juvia is an elemental witch, so it would be water magic." Juvia smiled at him brightly as if he hadn't just insulted her. The talk of magic made the keys on Lucy's hip seem more prominent as well as the magic imbued jewelry Natsu had given her that she still wore, her necklace and ring on her middle finger sending warm pulses of security through her. She leaned into Natsu, smiling fondly at his confused blink and happy smile as he looked at her. He squeezed her back, attention returning to Gray and Juvia's conversation.

"Oi, drop the Mister, would ya? I ain't, like your superior or something," Gray grumbled, scratching the back of his head. And undoing the fly of his pants.

Lucy cleared her throat loudly, this time Gray matching Juvia's flushed expression and swearing as he did his pants back up. "Yes Sir!" Juvia squeaked. Gray groaned loudly, looking to Lucy for help again before trying to scavenge for the rest of his clothes.

"Please, just call him 'Gray' before you give him an aneurysm," Lucy smiled at Juvia, not bothering to hold back her laughter at Gray's embarrassment.

"Gray," Juvia sounded out. She flushed at the familiarity, giving Lucy another tentative smile. Lucy returned it eagerly.

Her phone buzzed, stealing Lucy's attention away from Juvia. She expected it to be Cana asking where they were or Erza demanding to meet up at a shop, instead surprised to see Loke's name in her notifications. She swiped it open with her thumb, nearly dropping her phone at the single word, newly appeared in their texts.

Goodbye.

Lucy ran in the direction of the market without a word to the three around her. Something was seriously wrong if that's all Loke had said, and while he was an ass at times he was never cruel. She should have known something was off sooner. And if Lucy found him in time to stop whatever dumb thing he was planning, she was going to beat Loke's ass so hard.

No one in the market knew where Loke had gone.

Lucy was starting to feel the panic grow and twist in her stomach the more minutes that ticked by without knowing where the asshole had run off too. Somehow Gray and Natsu had joined up to check out the witch bars, Erza interrogating shop owners, and Cana finding a quiet spot she could read her cards for a clue to where he had gone.

It had been hours.

Lucy whined to herself under her breath as she walked out of yet another store. They were still in the magic district area thing, Lucy able to sense the magic inside the people around her like Capricorn and Natsu had begun to teach her to do. She was getting tired, sometimes forgetting to be focused on it and so letting it slip away like a snowflake on her hand. And like snow Lucy's irritation was piling up quicker than expected.

"Who the hell just sends a text like that?" Lucy asked a bird that was pecking at a dropped package of fries. The bird ignored her, ruffling it's feathers happily at it's free and extremely unhealthy meal. "'Goodbye'," she scoffed. "That dramatic little dick."

Lucy sat down with a huff, looking around at where she had ended up. A little cafe with white iron chairs and tables, plush gold and pink seats and umbrellas on the patio. The door inside was a dark wood, a blue pegasus drawn on it. Lucy squinted, a tickle of a memory nagging at her the longer she stared at it. A beautiful waitress passed by her, winking to Lucy before placing a cup of coffee in a clear glass mug with generous whipped cream before a man that was a second away from drooling. "On the house, sir, we here at Blue Pegasus always want to make sure your first time is... special," the woman cooed, fluttering her lashes and flipping her long, red dreads over her shoulder.

Lucy blushed from the husky tone the woman's voice took on, turning her attention to the drink menu that stood on the grated table. A slight touch to her shoulder brought her attention away from the cheesy names of the drinks such as 'Fresh Kissed Mint Frappe', and other less innocent names like 'Never Go Back Dark Chocolate Cafe Mocha', and 'Happy Endings Iced Chai Tea'. How some of these names made it past Human Resources Lucy was frankly baffled by.

"Hey there, pretty girl, can I get you anything today?" the waitress asked. Lucy would have scoffed at the obvious ploy of leaning into the customer's space with her chest pushed out just so, if it weren't for the odd scent of jasmine and sweetgrass that was making her fuzzy, a giggle almost slipping past her lips from the woman's flirtation. She was pretty, so very pretty, with her tight braids framing her face, half in a topknot that Lucy was both envious of and awed by, the sharpest wing on her eyeliner that Lucy had ever seen making her eyes slanted in a hypnotizing way.

Lucy focused, both on the stunning smile the waitress was flashing her and her magic. Purple smoke rose around the woman, hazy and sparklingly as if glitter hung in the wafting cloud. It didn't look like an aura, more surrounding the witch than escaping from her. Like a perfume. Which meant...

"I'll just have a strawberry frappe please," Lucy squeaked, still blushing and flustered by the witch's attention, even if she knew it was spell.

"We don't normally have that on our menu," the woman said, voice lifting in a tease as amusement danced in her green eyes, like her and Lucy were sharing some sort of private secret, "but I think I can whip something up for someone as pretty as you." Lucy risked a quick look at her name tag, pinned far too close to the edge of her black blouse, one more button undone than needed to be.

"Thanks, Lila, but if it's too much trouble-" Lucy said, biting her tongue with a squeak when the waitress leaned into Lucy again, her finger soft and pressed to Lucy's lips.

"Hush, there's nothing we wouldn't do for our beloved customers here at Blue Pegasus. Bob would never forgive us if we were unsatisfactory." Lila sang, her tongue flicking out on the last word, obvious as she let her gaze slip over Lucy. Lucy flushed, looking pointedly at her hands. She couldn't tell if it was the charm or the girl herself, but Lucy felt like a 14-year-old again first facing her crush on her math tutor, Ms. Jessing. She nodded, fiddling with the menu and ignoring Lila's soft chuckle, her steps almost silent on the concrete as she walked into the cafe, save for the gentle sound of a bell ringing when the door opened.

Blinking a few times, Lucy felt the giddiness wash off her. She fiddled with the ring on her middle finger, the small dragon Natsu had made her all those months ago, it's warmth tickling her like when Happy purred against her palm or chin. She smiled softly to herself, feeling a twinge of regret of having shooed one of Natsu's ceramic dragons from her bag instead of letting them come with. She'd have never forgiven herself if they'd been shattered, though, and knowing Erza would insist on driving the chance was too high for Lucy to risk one of her little friends.

Her thoughts of friends turned back to Loke and Lucy's silly grin fell to a scowl. Why all her guy friends had to be so emotionally constipated was irritating at best, Natsu the most transparent and even then only opening up during a breakdown or immediately brushing off the moment and doing something ridiculous.

"Stupid boys," Lucy grumbled, scratching at a fleck of dirtied sticky tack on the bottom corner of the menu stand.

"That they are, darling," a man's voice said, sing-song and effeminate as a strawberry frappe in a tall glass was placed in front of her, wide brim tapering to a thin point, light pink drink topped with a generous swirl of whipped cream and fresh strawberry slices. "Penny for your troubles?"

Lucy looked up at his question, gaping at the man who had sat across from her at her small table. He was almost as pale as her, head bald and a slight double chin making his bright smile seem more jovial than simply friendly. He was wearing a bright shade of pink lip gloss, large black wings and silver eyeshadow tacky on anyone but him. His gaze twinkled in a way that made Lucy feel special to have his attention, as if she were in the presence of someone famous and an old friend at the same time. His baby-blue sparkly tank was tight on him, the fabric looking like part of a spandex costume. "I'm Bob, the owner of this little cafe and coven leader of Blue Pegasus. Nice to meet you."

"Uhm, I'm Lucy," she said, swirling her straw in her drink nervously. She felt warmth pulse from her ring and necklace this time, calming her. She touched the little heart sitting under the hollow of her collarbone, smiling as her gaze slipped to her drink.

"So Lucy, you were saying something about stupid boys," Bob prompted, smiling kindly at her soft squeak as she bashfully returned her attention to him, "but given the sheer adoration you're radiating just from touching that pretty little thing around your neck I'd wager it's not any sort of boyfriend problem. Or it could be a boy not getting the hint that you already have a girlfriend, but the fire magic imbued in your necklace is a distinctly masculine flavour, so I'll stick with my first guess."

Lucy gaped at him, impressed. She then berated herself for being so shocked, the man had introduced himself as the coven master already, both knowing she was a witch and not a threat without Lucy even being aware of his presence. "Yeah, you were right the first time." Lucy smiled at him. She sighed, twirling the thick straw between her fingers before taking a small sip. Her jaw fell slightly as she tasted the best frappe she had ever had.

"House blend," Bob cooed, chest puffed forward in pride. "A little fresh vanilla bean here, a little drop of luck potion there, all mixed with the freshest strawberries from our garden and ta da! A strawberry drink to die for." Lucy took another sip, grinning brightly at the strange man who led the coven. "So tell me about this dumb boy of yours, and let's see what little ol' me can do to help."

"He's run off with only a text, and were not in our city and I just don't know what's gotten into him. Loke's never done something like this before." Lucy huffed. She glared at her drink, her phone silent beside her hand. The air around them tensed, Lucy confused as she looked up and was suddenly faced with a much different man than before. The impish smile was gone, lips pushed in a tight line and his dark eyes clear as they pierced Lucy to her spot. Power radiated from him, controlled, but still enough to shake Lucy to her core.

"This Loke wouldn't happen to have orange hair and a way with the men and ladies, would he?" Bob asked. Lucy nodded, unable to speak as she was trapped in his heavy look. Bob sighed and the spell was broken, his shoulders slumping as his gaze fell to the table. Lucy took in a deep breath, unsure if it had been real magic or just his aura that had frozen her. "What has that poor boy done to himself now."

Lucy cocked her head at Bob's soft voice, the question not meant for her but bringing forward a wave of anxiety into her gut anyway. "How do you know Loke? Was he part of your coven before?" She asked, a memory from their hellish car ride surfacing, a brief hint that Loke hadn't been alright, a hint Lucy should have taken more seriously.

"Smart and pretty, what a lucky boy our Loke was to find a friend like you." Bob said, smile kind but not as bright as before, weary almost. "I suppose I should tell you his unfortunate little tale, seeing as he was never one to let people in." Lucy felt her heart sink at Bob's sigh, gripping her drink tightly.

"Loke isn't a witch. You probably would have figured it out with a few more weeks of training, learning to differentiate the magic people's souls give off. Loke was very good at masking his, but giving your specialty," Bob gestured with his pinky to Lucy's side where her key rang sat, silver and gold warm against her thigh. "You would have quickly found his magic to be a little too familiar.

"You see, Loke is Leo, the leader of the Celestial Zodiac."

Lucy nearly spit her sip of strawberry whipped milk out. She coughed, pounding her chest with her fist as spots danced across her vision and her esophagus felt like she had inhaled Natsu's crushed pepper dust for one of his spells. She shook her head, scowling at Bob's compassionate smile through watering eyes. "No," she rasped, "that's not possible. I've known him for years, sprites can't stay in our plane without a tether or summoner. Aquarius was very clear about that, that there needed to be a witch to sustain them."

"As leader, Loke does not need a summoner to visit our plane, though it is far too had on his soul to stay here for too long untether. But no, Loke had a witch. She was a member of Blue Pegasus, but Karen was... Karen was far less a compassionate witch than you are. She treated her sprites as though they were simply objects, and sometimes even less. Loke will be able to tell you more when you find him." Bob gave her a sad smile, pain from years ago still fresh in his suddenly aged gaze.

"How do you know I'm a good witch," Lucy asked. She squeezed her cup tightly between her hands, unsure how to process this, or even if she could trust what this man was saying. "What happened to Karen? Why didn't Loke just sever his contract? Why are you talking like Karen isn't here anymore, did she leave the guild?"

"No darling, Karen's dead."

Lucy froze, unable to speak under the weight of the relegation. "And I know you're a good witch because of the strength of your aura and the number of spirits that have bound themselves to you. It takes not only a strong witch to hold that many, but one with a strong and good soul to attract them in the first place."

Bob sighed, leaning back into his seat as he kept a careful eye on Lucy. The compliments went past her, the earlier words rolling through her head. Dead dead dead dead.

"How?" She asked. Bob gave her a painful smile, understanding her question without further words.

"That is a story that Loke will have to tell you himself, my dear."

"But how will I find him?" She pressed. Only a quarter of her drink was gone but Lucy found she no longer had an appetite, her stomach twisted in knots and revolting at the idea of eating anything right now, strawberry smoothie or otherwise.

Bob stood up and walked to her side, offering her both of his hands. Lucy took them, feeling his many rings thrum against her magic, large and hard against her actual hand. "You can find him in the church between river and the ruins. But you must hurry. I don't think he has much time left in him."

A/N: I am so sorry but here! Angst in a short chapter bcus I'm so sick of looking at this thing!