The Knight Returns...

Chapter 8 - The Knight Returns...

{Magnolia: Natsu's Home}

"Does the word Lullaby mean anything to you?" Ichigo inquired, hoping that perhaps the dragon slayer would be able to shed some light.

"Hmm… I think it's one of those things you sing to a kid to get him to sleep, right?" Natsu replied.

From his hammock on the opposite side of the room Ichigo resisted the urge to slap the palm of his hand over his face. Perhaps he should have clarified, and that was his mistake, but even so it was still surprising that the pink-haired teen gave that particular answer.

"Besides the obvious answer…" Ichigo clarified.

"Anything that isn't obvious is not in Natsu's department." Happy commented, eliciting a chuckle from the substitute but clearly annoying his closest friend.

"Whose side are you on anyway?!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Whoever gives me more fish, and since Ichigo owes me two, I'm on his side." Happy proclaimed.

That may have sounded rather greedy but the dragon slayer perfectly understood the desire to have food. In fact in some cases food took priority over everything else, and fish to happy was the same as meat to Natsu. So he supposed it was a fair response.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that… we can stop at the market or something tomorrow." Ichigo stated.

"Fish, fish, fish, fish, fish, fish, fish…" Happy chanted, causing the orange-haired teen to sweatdrop.

"Yeah… I'm gonna go to sleep now. Goodnight you two." Ichigo said.

"Night Ichigo." Natsu replied.

"Fish!" Happy exclaimed, causing both Ichigo and Natsu to chuckle.

Magnolia: Streets Leading Up to Fairy Tail, The Next Morning…

Both Ichigo and Natsu currently walked towards the guildhall with two very different expressions plastered on their faces. Natsu was his usual self, as was his closest friend who currently sat atop his left shoulder.

Ichigo, on the other hand, looked extremely tired for some reason or another. It had been bad enough that he had promised to leave for the guild early the previous night, which was in hindsight a stupid decision, but he had also not slept well whatsoever.

However, one positive about getting up as early as Natsu had requested, or rather demanded given that yet again the pink-haired mage had woken him up this morning, was the fact that he had a chance to stop by a store and pick up some different clothes. Thus, Ichigo currently wore a collared short-sleeved black shirt with long white pants that mirrored clothing similar to that of his world.

Sadly new clothing didn't really alleviate the substitute of his tiredness, which was very unfortunate given that he wanted nothing more than to feel awake. He released a tired yawn, stifling it with his free left hand but consequently drawing the attention of his dragon slayer companion.

"You alright? You look pretty tired…" Natsu commented with a touch of concern making its way into his voice.

"Aye." Happy said, nodding his head in agreement.

"I'm fine… I just didn't sleep very well last night. At some point I'm pretty sure I fell out of the hammock and ended up on the floor for the rest of the night, so that's probably why." Ichigo replied, yawning yet again.

"How would you know if you fell out and ended up on the floor?" Natsu asked.

The orange-haired teen turned to look at his friend with a deadpanned expression, not entirely understanding why the question was being asked. In fact, Natsu should have actually known the answer given that he was there when they both woke up earlier that very morning.

"…because I woke up on the floor… which you saw this morning…" Ichigo replied, though he didn't think he needed to.

"Oh, so that's why you were on the floor this morning…" Natsu said as if a realization dawned on him.

"He just said that Natsu." Happy stated.

"I knew that already!" Natsu barked.

"It's not a big deal. I'll be fine in about half an hour, I just need some time to wake myself up." Ichigo replied.

The dragon slayer nodded in response, but he chose not to continue the conversation given that they were just about to come up to the entrance of the guildhall. When they were directly in front of the door, he brought back his foot as if to illustrate his intent, but stopped upon hearing the distinct sound of someone clearing their throat.

"What?" Natsu asked confusedly, looking back at the proclaimed Substitute Soul Reaper and noticing the slight glare he was directing at him.

"You're seriously going to just go and kick down the door… again?" Ichigo questioned tiredly.

"I guess not anymore…" Natsu grumbled, placing his foot back on the ground.

A moment later the dragon slayer, although begrudgingly, did open the door in a normal manner, allowing Happy to be the first to enter the guild before he and Ichigo then walked inside in unison.

"See, it isn't as fun this way." Natsu stated matter-of-factly.

"I don't really see a difference." Ichigo replied.

"Hey guys!" Lucy greeted, waving at the trio from the side of the bar across the room.

"Hey Lucy, what's up?" Ichigo replied, though he sounded less enthused than he traditionally did.

"Good morning, I wanna say… Lucy…" Natsu said warily as he and the remainder of his technical team walked up towards the main bar.

"Wow, you actually got it right this time." Lucy said, sounding surprised.

Mentally she actually found it hard to believe that she could ever be impressed or surprised that someone got her name right. It was very easy to remember, after all. Nevertheless she greeted her two friends, and to a lesser degree a certain annoying cat, with a bright smile.

"You look tired…" Lucy commented confusedly, starting at Ichigo as he sat down at the bar.

"I kinda fell out of my hammock and slept on the floor at some point during the night…" Ichigo replied, obviously unhappy that he didn't notice this was the case until after waking up.

"Oh, sorry to hear that. Anyway, what are the both of you planning to do today?" Lucy asked with a raised brow.

"Well I wanted to go on another job, so you up for it Lucy?" Natsu offered cheerfully.

"I don't know, is it because you actually want to go on a job or because I happen to have blonde hair?" Lucy questioned, scowling at the recollection of why the dragon slayer wanted to team up with her in the first place.

"Aw come on, don't be like that! We made a good team." Natsu countered.

"Aye, and we're running out of food money so we need to do a job and quick!" Happy exclaimed.

"I told you this morning I was fine with buying food since you're letting me stay at your place." Ichigo groaned, rubbing his eyes in a light attempt to shake off his tiredness. It, incidentally, did not work.

"Nah, we can't ask you to do that unless we really end up needing it! Besides, it'll be good to go on a job, just the four of us, right?" Natsu countered.

"Well… I can't forget that rent will be due next week." Lucy reasoned.

"So is that a yes?" Happy questioned.

The blonde released a tired sigh as she looked back at the goofy grin the dragon slayer was giving her. She was still a bit upset about how he previously manipulated her and essentially just asked for her help due to the color of her hair, but all in all she supposed they did get the job done.

"…fine, I'm up for it." Lucy replied, still frowning slightly despite her answer.

"Great, we can go pick out a job while Ichigo… well, does whatever he can to stop being tired, I guess." Natsu mused.

Lucy nodded in agreement before the two and their feline companion headed towards the request board, leaving the orange-haired teen to sit in silence with his eyes closed and his head resting in the palm of his hand.

{By the Request Board…}

"Wow, I had no idea wizard jobs were so varied." Lucy thought aloud, glancing at each of the many different types of jobs they could take.

Though she did keep in mind the fact that enough money was a prerequisite, this didn't change the fact that she was able to get a good look at all the jobs almost all at once. Some were delivery, some were protection detail, some were simply cleaning jobs, and the list went on and on.

"Yeah, but remember we need to pick one with enough money. You need to cover your rent, right?" Natsu reasoned, though his words caused the blonde to release a tired sigh.

"You remember that but it took you days to get my name right?" Lucy wondered aloud.

"Why bring that up now?" Natsu countered.

They both shook it off a second later, after which they began to look up the various jobs once again. Natsu paid particular attention to one job that seemed like it would be perfect, having a sizeable reward and also being one that multiple people would likely be needed for. However, before he could grab it he was rudely greeted by the one person he just adored seeing so much.

"Mornin' flame brain." Gray greeted as he walked up to the request board.

"Stripper." Natsu responded in kind.

"So are you lookin' for a new job to mess up?" Gray asked.

The tick mark that appeared on the pink-haired teen's forehead was all the incentive the ice mage needed to anger him, and even he was helpless to stop the small smirk that came onto his own lips as a result.

"For your information I am picking out a job for Ichigo, myself, and Lucy. I also found the perfect one." Natsu sneered.

"You mean the perfect one to mess up, right?" Gray corrected.

As a result of the ice make user's repeated comments, Natsu was just around two seconds away from starting one of his guild's famous rumbles in traditional fashion. However, in the corner of his eyes he could see that Ichigo appeared to be asleep over by the bar, or at the very least nearly asleep. With that in mind, the dragon slayer thought back to what had happened to him the previous morning and gained a mischievous smirk.

"Hehe, yeah Gray, you're probably right. Anyway, since I found the job, could you go wake Ichigo up for me? He's just over by the bar and I need to tell Lucy about the job." Natsu requested.

His words somewhat surprised the black-haired teen mostly because Gray had thought that the dragon slayer's response would be some kind of remark about how he always seemed to lose his clothes, or at the very least an insult to his inelegance or magical abilities. The fact that he was so taken aback made him so out of it, in fact, that he actually considered complying with the request.

"Did your fire finally melt your brain?" Gray chided.

"Heh, not at all. I just want ya to go wake up Ichigo so we can get goin' is all." Natsu replied.

"Alright…" Gray replied, sounding highly confused.

"But Natsu, he…" Happy began, only to be silenced at the sight of Natsu's mischievous look. The blue-haired Exceed seemed to grasp the concept almost instantly thereafter.

'Hehehehe… this is gonna be a riot.' Natsu thought, smirking devilishly at the thought of what would undoubtedly happen next.

The ice mage walked towards the main bar with his thoughts still in disarray. A part of him couldn't actually believe that the fire dragon slayer had actually agreed to his attempted insult. It just didn't make any sense. However, he quickly shook loose of such thoughts upon coming up to the sleeping form of the orange-haired teen.

"Yo, Ichigo, Natsu wants to talk to you about a job or somethin' like that." Gray stated.

His words elicited no response from the sleeping form of Fairy Tail's latest member, but even so that was to be expected with how dead asleep he appeared. Sighing to himself, the ice mage brought his hand forward and prepared to ever so slightly tap his shoulder in order to wake him up.

"Ichigo, Natsu said he wan…" Gray began, only to stop midsentence in light of what happened next.

Before another word left his mouth, Ichigo's eyes shot open, he grabbed Gray's arm, and subsequently threw him across the guild into one of the tables on the far side of the room. The wood of the table instantly shattered and Gray seemed to just groan slightly from within the wreckage. That turn of events definitely got the attention of the guild, however the only ones making any noise were Happy and Natsu, who were both laughing hysterically at what had just occurred.

"Crap…" Ichigo muttered, knowing full well what he had just done. Even now the ice mage still hadn't gotten out of the collision-induced debris.

"Hello Ichigo, how are… what happened?!" Mira exclaimed, having just walked out from the back room with several jugs in her hands. She placed them on the surface of the bar, after which she just stared strangely at the scene before her.

"Sorry about that Gray…" Ichigo called out sheepishly.

His words surprised Mirajane given that the orange-haired teen didn't really seem to be the type to just go and throw someone across the room, let alone someone like Gray. At this, however, Elfman began to chuckle from his table, finding the recent turn of events rather amusing.

"Now that's how a real man wakes up!" Elfman exclaimed cheerfully.

"I repeat, what just happened?" Mira asked confusedly, looking towards the proclaimed Substitute Soul Reaper for an answer.

"It's nothing, just an accident… again, sorry. I'll pay for the table and everything, if that's alight." Ichigo offered solemnly. He did assume he had more than enough money at the moment.

"It's not really a big deal. Tables and furnishing break here all the time, so we have several spears in the basement." Mira replied cheerfully.

'This happens so much that they have spares?' Ichigo wondered, sweatdropping slightly.

"Okay… still, sorry about the table." Ichigo apologized once more.

The white-haired barmaid waved a single hand with her eyes closed and a smile etched on her face as if to say it wasn't necessarily a big deal. She did, however, need to go get a new table, and thus she entered the back room and made to get the replacement. Just as this was happening, however, a certain ice make user got up from the remnants of the table and made his way over to the bar.

"What's the big idea throwing me across the room?!" Gray exclaimed angrily, a tick mark appearing on his forehead and having a fist raised directly at the substitute's face.

"Yeah, again sorry about that… my dad had a habit of waking me up by attacking me, and while I guess that was useful for some purposes the reflexes don't make it easy to wake me up. I did the same thing to Natsu accidently the other day." Ichigo explained.

The ice mage instantly noticed a specific part of the other worldly teen's sentence, and that was the portion that involved a certain pink-hired dragon slayer. However, it turned out that it wasn't directly Ichigo's fault, so he supposed it didn't matter.

"Alright…" Gray trailed off.

He then walked over to Natsu, a calm expression still present on his face for a short period of time. However, upon coming into close proximity of the destructive mage a tick mark popped out of his head.

"What's the big idea you flame-brained moron?!" Gray shouted, butting heads with the dragon slayer.

"You wanna fight me popsicle?!" Natsu countered.

"What kind of a stupid question is that?!" Gray exclaimed.

The two then began to punch and kick after one another across the guildhall, which subsequently caused Ichigo to sigh due to the fact that he just knew this had something to do with him. From what he could gather, the black-haired mage was likely sent over to him by Natsu since said dragon slayer knew perfectly well what would happen.

'Though I didn't think he could come up with something like that… oh well.' Ichigo thought.

On any normal day he would've stopped the two from punching the living daylights out of one another but he did promise the pink-haired wizard that he'd let him fight Gray while he still had the chance. Plus he was still too tired to care.

"Oh, so now they're going at it again?" Mira mused, walking back to the bar.

Ichigo looked at the barmaid with a surprised expression, after which he looked back to the previously destroyed table only to see that the debris was cleared up and a fresh one took its place.

"When did you… how did you…" Ichigo mumbled, looking back and forth between the table and the bubbly teenage woman in front of him.

"I did tell you this happens all the time." Mira stated, giggling amusedly at the orange-haired teen's expression.

"But still that was pretty amazing." Ichigo said with a slight sense of awe, prompting the barmaid to blush, albeit barely, at his comment.

"It's not really all that impressive… anyway, how're you today? You look a bit tired." Mira commented.

The substitute made to answer but no sooner than he opened his mouth did he release a tired yawn. He did cover it up with his hand as he traditionally did, but nevertheless the barmaid giggled in response.

"Yeah, I didn't sleep very well last night." Ichigo replied, smiling slightly at the sound of the white-haired woman's laughter.

"Oh? That's too bad… any particular reason why?" Mira asked, a touch of concern in her voice.

"I kinda fell out of the hammock and ended up on the floor at some point during the night and I didn't really realize what happened until I woke up this morning. I don't understand how Natsu sleeps in those things…" Ichigo replied, rubbing the back of his neck given that even now it still felt stiff as a result of his sleeping habits.

"Well if you every need a comfy bed to sleep in I could help you out." Mira offered with a warm smile.

Her words immediately got the effect of causing Ichigo's eyes to shoot wide open and for his face to light up a brilliant shade of red. Mirajane saw this a moment later, and it was only then that she grasped the implication of her words.

"I-I didn't m-mean it like that!" Mira stated with a heavy blush on her face, waving her hands frantically.

"I was only saying that if you ever needed to shop for a mattress I could help you out." Mira clarified, the pitch of her voice dying down a good bit.

"I-it's okay. Thanks for the offer." Ichigo said, his cheeks still red.

"This place is so weird…" Lucy commented from the sidelines as she watched Natsu and Ichigo's respective interactions.

"Well love can make anything bearable…" A smooth-sounding voice called from behind her.

The blonde turned with a surprised look on her face, only to see the man she knew as one of the most eligible bachelors in all of Fairy Tail. She, however, didn't have a very high opinion of him at the moment despite this being the case.

"Why don't you join the team of love with me, Lucy?" Loke offered.

"Uh what?" Lucy bashfully asked.

"You're just so stunningly beautiful that I have to keep my sunglasses on or I'll be blinded by your dazzling beauty." Loke stated charmingly.

"Girls really fall for this?" Lucy scoffed.

An instant later the orange-haired mage caught a glimpse of the celestial spirit keys that were currently attached to the belt strap on the blonde's left hip. His skin almost instantly paled and sweat began to drop from his brow.

"You're not a celestial wizard are you?!" Loke exclaimed as he backed away from what he had previously described as a beautiful girl.

"Huh?" Lucy uttered confusedly.

"Yup, she's got fish and crabs and stuff." Happy commented.

"Cruel fate why must you toy with me so?!" Loke shouted in despair.

'What the hell?' Ichigo wondered, seeing the overzealous reaction, alongside Mira, that occurred directly next to the main bar.

"I'm sorry but you and I can't be together my dear." Loke stated as he ran off.

"What got into him…" Lucy wondered aloud, sweatdropping at the previously smooth-talking mage's actions.

"Loke has a bad history with celestial wizards. Rumor has it he dated one and it didn't end very well." Mira explained.

"Anyway, did you and Natsu at least find a job before he started to fight with Gray?" Ichigo questioned, simply ignoring the ongoing fight between the two said wizards.

"I think Natsu did, but he never really told me what it was…" Lucy replied, releasing slight chuckle shortly thereafter.

"Well if you do go on a job, let me know. The master's away at conference so I'm covering for him." Mira stated.

"I was wondering where the old man was. Anyway, what kind of conference is he at?" Ichigo questioned curiously.

"It's a conference for guild masters. Every once and a while they come together so they can talk about the state of things. It's like the magic council, but not." Mira explained.

"The magic council, what's that supposed to be?" Ichigo asked confusedly.

"Oh, that's right, you really wouldn't know about them…" Mira reasoned.

Mira tapped her chin in thought as if considering something, after which she seemed to realize the perfect way to answer the orange-haired teen's question. Abruptly the barmaid turned towards a nearby table, glancing at a man with a large torso wearing a white shirt and an odd-looking hat.

"Excuse me Reedus, may I borrow a light pen?" Mira requested.

"Oui." Reedus replied.

The white-haired former wizard began to draw a diagram in thin air with the object that could only be described as a magical pen. Once the diagram was complete, it was revealed to be something similar to a hierarchy of the magical organizations in the kingdom. With the drawing finished, she turned to face both Ichigo and Lucy once more.

"The council, Era, is the most powerful organization in the magical world. It has ten members and it's their job to uphold all magical rules and regulations. And if a wizard breaks any magical laws they would be tried by the council." Mira began.

Ichigo picked up, specifically, on the portion in which the barmaid described the laws and regulations function of the council. These people definitely seemed like the type he didn't want to piss off during his stay, especially with his current situation given that it would only service to make matters all the more complicated.

"Then there's the different guild masters league which are local groups that work together… then the individual masters, and it's their job to pass on the decrees of the council. They also communicate with other guild masters on a regular basis. They are basically the glue that holds us all together… it's a pretty stressful job." Mira continued.

"I never knew all the guilds were so interconnected." Lucy muttered.

"The system really is intricate, but also well balanced. The only real problem is the Dark Guilds, which exist outside the system itself. They're the bad apples of the magical world and are mostly involved with magical crime." Mira added.

"Tch, figured there'd be people like that…" Ichigo scoffed.

"They sound kinda scary." Lucy commented.

"Aye." Happy said in agreement.

"What'd you call me?!" Natsu exclaimed, breaking up the conversations across the guild and alerting every one of his fight's escalation.

"You heard me ya spineless wimp!" Gray shouted.

"Let's get serious!" Natsu stated, summoning fire to cover his fists in the manner he preferred to do whenever he was fighting in hand to hand combat.

"There they go again…" Mira commented, sounding amused but appearing as if she were nervous. The master wasn't here to stop them, after all.

"I guess I should stop them." Ichigo mused.

The substitute had only just gotten out of his chair before the door opened up in what sounded like an urgent manner. Everyone turned quickly, seeing Loke once again, though if his expression was anything to go by it seemed the world was about to end.

"I've got bad news… its Erza, she's on her way here." Loke stated.

The entirety of the guild froze completely at the words of the man who appeared as if he were Ichigo's doppelganger. Even Natsu and Gray, or rather especially, stopped their fighting and paled.

"Wow, just mention her name and everyone freezes up." Lucy thought aloud.

"Well she is the strongest female wizard we've got in Fairy Tail and more than a bit intimidating." Mira commented.

"I still don't see how she can possibly be this scary…" Ichigo thought aloud.

Previously he had suspected that Natsu and Gray were just being childish or possibly just over exaggerating how strong or scary this female mage was. However, if the reaction of the guild was anything to go by you'd think that she was as strong as Yamamoto and as charming as Grimmjow.

But a moment later the audible sound of approaching footsteps filled the air, though no one said a thing given that they all know who the owner of the footsteps was. Shortly thereafter, the expected happened.

A relatively tall woman with a slender figure, scarlet-colored hair, deep brown eyes, and a serious disposition entered through the opened doors of the guildhall. She wore a silver set of Heart Kreuz armor with the emblem of the guild tattooed in red directly over where her left breast was presumably located. Beneath that she wore a simple blue skirt and a pair of black boots that covered her lower legs and reached to just below her kneecaps. The oddest thing about her, however, was the fact that across her shoulders she carried a large horn-like object decorated with jewels and gold, though for unknown reasons.

"I have returned, where is Master Makarov?" Erza questioned sternly, placing the large object down on the floor and standing it upright.

"Wow, she's pretty." Lucy commented.

"Welcome back Erza, the master's at a conference right now." Mira stated.

"I see." Erza replied with a nod of understanding.

'Huh… she isn't exactly what I pictured her to be. Hell, if I believed half of what Natsu said she'd be a about as good looking as a hollow.' Ichigo thought ironically.

The mental image that Natsu had given him was a large monster capable of destroying mountains without any significant effort. To him, the mountain thing was believable given that he had personal experience with destroying them so easily in the past, but being a literal monster was going a bit too far. This woman seemed nowhere near as scary as she was made out to be, but that was in line with his suspicions. In fact, the only strange thing about her was the object she had carried in.

"So, umm… what's that humongous thing you've got there?" One of the guild members asked curiously.

"It's the horn of a monster that I defeated. The locals were so thankful that they decorated it and gave it to me as a gift… do you have a problem with it?" Erza asked aggressively.

"Not at all!" The man immediately replied.

"She's not anything like I imagined…" Lucy thought aloud.

"Now listen up." Erza commanded.

Everyone in the guild practically stiffened at this, clearly out of fear. Ichigo, for his part, was starting to understand that this girl, while she didn't appear scary whatsoever, was more than capable of proving her strength. The members of the guild could act scared and childish all they wanted, but if they didn't respect her they wouldn't listen to her, plain and simple, which meant she had clearly done a good bit to earn it.

'That said… she's definitely a little rough around the edges.' Ichigo thought, mentally noting that the redheaded teen was, or at least appeared to be, incredibly bossy. Still he could count off people more insufferable than this that he got along with, mainly Byakuya, Toshiro, Soifon, and he supposed Yamamoto, in a way.

"While I was on the road I heard a few things. Word is Fairy Tail is causing nothing but trouble as of late. Master Makarov doesn't seem to care, but I most certainly do. Cana, you need to control your drinking habits…" Erza began, glancing at the brown-haired mag who currently sat at one of the tables with a barrel of alcohol in hand.

The scarlet-haired teen then began to give various commands to several of the guilds members, ranging on scolding them for smoking to scolding them for dancing indoors.

'She really, really is bossy…' Ichigo thought as he listened to the commands. They weren't necessarily unreasonable, but even so it was hard to make an order seem 'un-bossy'.

"She's really tearing into everyone… it's like she's completely taking over." Lucy whispered to both Ichigo and Mira.

"That's Erza for ya." Happy stated.

"Even if she is pretty bossy… she still seems like the sanest person here. I don't get why people are so scared of her." Lucy stated.

"Ditto." Ichigo commented.

"Are Natsu and Gray here?" Erza abruptly asked.

When this was asked, Erza turned to face the iconic fire and ice magic users of Fairy Tail, as did Ichigo and the others who were intently listening to the woman's words due to the fact they didn't have any idea what she was like prior to her entrance. However, for a brief moment they dropped their curiosity about Erza in favor of confusion.

Before their very eyes, Natsu and Gray stood, shaking in light fear, holding one another's hand in a friendly manner. It was incidentally so unnatural that Lucy almost shouted at the top of her lungs due to her own confusion.

"Aye." Natsu said.

"Oh hey there Erza, we're just hangin' out like good friends tend to do." Gray said, clearly being nervous.

"Aye." Natsu added.

"Why is Natsu talking like Happy?!" Lucy exclaimed worriedly.

"That's great, I am quite pleased to see the two of you getting along so well. However, it's only natural for even the best of friends to lock horns every now and then." Erza stated.

"I don't know if we're the best of friends…" Gray trailed off.

"Aye…" Natsu stated.

"This is really, really weird…" Ichigo commented in a clearly confused tone, eliciting a giggle from the white-haired barmaid.

"Well it's only natural, Natsu's terrified of Erza. A few years ago he challenged her to a fight and she beat him up pretty bad. Then she found Gray without any clothes on and decided to beat him up as well." Mira explained, sounding cheerful despite the oddity of her words.

"…actually I can understand that last one." Ichigo stated.

In all honesty he was surprised the ice mage had gone so long without losing his clothing. It was probably the longest period of time the substitute had ever seen him with all of his clothes still on his body.

"She also beat up Loke for trying to hit on her." Mira added.

"And I can understand that." Lucy said.

"Natsu, Gray, I need you to do me a favor." Erza abruptly stated.

The mood of the guild changed from a calm terrified to one of deadly seriousness at the words of the redheaded knight. It, very clearly, wasn't every day that she asked anyone for favors.

"While I was on my travels I heard something that has me troubled. Normally I would consult the master but he isn't here and this is a matter of utmost urgency. The two of you are the strongest wizards here and I could really use your help." Erza continued solemnly.

"Did that just happen?" Someone whispered.

"Erza, if you need help with a mission I can suggest a few people!" Mirajane offered cheerfully, drawing the attention of the scarlet-haired woman.

"I could use all the extra help I can get. If you believe they are strong enough to aid me than I will not decline your offer." Erza replied with a small smile.

"Our two newest members will be more than strong enough to help you! Lucy defeated a mercenary gorilla using only her pinky finger, and Ichigo saved my life during my photo-shoot by beating over thirty bandits with his bare hands and without using any magic." Mira stated.

Lucy sweatdropped at the words the barmaid had said, mainly because they weren't all that true. They weren't necessarily untrue, but still they made her sound a bit more impressive than in reality. Erza, however, just stared confusedly at the bubbly woman as if she didn't understand or found something beyond her ability to believe.

"We have a strawberry in our guild that is capable of combat?" Erza asked in a surprised voice, though since the redhead was currently in the guild not a soul laughed out of fear of incurring her wrath.

"That's not what it means dammit!" Ichigo exclaimed, a tick mark coming onto his features.

The scarlet-haired requip user turned to face the source of the outburst with a confused expression, not recalling the particular voice at any previous instance. She just assumed that it belonged to a new member.

"My apologies, but I don't recognize you. Are you new to Fairy Tail?" Erza inquired calmly.

"Yup, he sure is, and so is she…" Mirajane stated, dragging Lucy into the redheaded knights line of sight.

"Oh? What are your names?" Erza asked with a raised brow.

"Hello Mrs. Erza, ma'am, I'm Lucy Heartfilia, nice to meet you." Lucy greeted nervously, desperately wanting to make a good first impression.

"And you are?" Erza asked, turning towards the orange-haired teen.

Inwardly the blonde let loose a sigh of pure relief, taking the scarlet-haired woman's silence as a sign that she didn't mess up. She didn't get any words of praise, but not messing up was just as good at the moment.

"My name's Ichigo Kursosaki. Also it doesn't mean strawberry, it means he who protects." Ichigo stated.

"My misunderstanding, it will not happen again, I assure you." Erza said stiffly.

"Right…" Ichigo replied, sweatdropping at the robotic manner the woman was currently speaking.

It was almost as bad as Ulquiorra, though not quite due to the fact that her tone was fine. Mainly, it was the words and serious demeanor that made her out to be mechanical.

"Anyway, if you need the extra help you should take them! They both seem capable, and I got to see Ichigo fight firsthand. I'm sure they can help you out." Mira said confidently.

"Mira said that you took down over thirty thugs with your bare hands and without the use of magic… is this true?" Erza questioned, genuinely wishing to know if this was the case.

The one positive thing she had heard during his recent travels had been that a Fairy Tail wizard had foiled a human trafficking syndicate that desired to capture a series of Sorcerer's Weekly models, one of which was Mira. If this turned out to be the very person behind that praise, then perhaps he would prove to be useful on her coming mission.

"He also helped to save Macao's sorry ass." Someone else commented, though said blue-haired mage stayed quiet given that he didn't want to anger Fairy Tail's Titania even more than he already had.

"Yeah, it's true." Ichigo simply replied.

"Then I need only to know one thing… can you hold two hold your own on this mission?" Erza asked in an ominous but deadly serious tone.

"Yes." Ichigo immediately answered.

Truth be told he didn't even need to know what he was up against. That never mattered to him in the past and it didn't matter to him now. Plus, if someone who was as strong as this Erza person was said to be, then it stood to reason that this wasn't exactly a go at your own pace job request, which would mean that his help was likely necessary.

"Y-yes, I think so." Lucy said, though she sounded nowhere near as confident as Ichigo did.

"Very well, welcome aboard. We will meet at the train station tomorrow morning. Please be prompt." Erza said.

'Well, guess I'm not going on a job with the others after all…' Ichigo thought.

{Magnolia Train Station, The Next Day…}

The party of warriors gathered just outside the train as pre the request of Erza. Currently Happy, Ichigo, and Lucy sat on a bench that was directly opposite to the tracks. If one were to ask them they were just acting as casual observers to the rather interesting spectacle that was unfolding directly in front of them, and said spectacle was none other than Natsu and Gray's patented version of dysfunctional teamwork.

"What was Erza thinkin', inviting you when me and Ichigo are really the only held she'd need." Natsu scoffed, butting heads with his fellow guild mate and practical rival.

"That's my line, and a weakling like you would just get in the way!" Gray barked, glaring daggers at the dragon slayer.

"Shouldn't you do something?" Lucy asked, turning to the orange-haired substitute for some kind of action to be taken.

"I thought Mira was the one who asked you to keep them from fighting." Happy stated from his position on the bench he and the others outside of the bitter rivals currently sat.

"She did…" Lucy trailed off, not entirely sure what else to say.

"Well then you aren't doing a very good job…" Happy pointed out.

"Not true, I asked Ichigo to stop them." Lucy defended.

"No, I'm not going to bother. I'll only stop them if they start to actually fight. I don't really see a problem with them angrily glaring at each other and throwing a few insults." Ichigo replied.

"But there are other people around…" Lucy stated.

"…and for all they know we've never met them before in our lives." Ichigo replied.

"I guess that makes sense." Lucy mused before looking back at the two bickering mages.

"Sorry I'm late. I hope you weren't waiting too long." Erza stated.

"No, not at all." Lucy answered cheerfully.

Everyone turned to face the scarlet-haired mage upon noticing her arrival, and upon doing so several things almost immediately happened. Happy, naturally, didn't do anything different. Natsu and Gray began to act as if they were the greatest friends in the entire universe for obvious reasons, and as for Lucy and Ichigo, they simply stared with wide eyes at the massive amount of luggage Fairy Tail's strongest female wizard had brought with her.

"Damn that's a lot of luggage." Ichigo exclaimed, staring with wide eyes at the literal cart that seemed to be half as wide as the train they were supposed to board.

"Aye." Happy chirped.

"Are you all ready to depart?" Erza questioned in a friendly manner.

"I'm good whenever everyone else is." Ichigo stated.

"Same here." Lucy and Gray said simultaneously.

"Hey Erza, I'll go with you, but only under one condition." Natsu stated, surprising several in the group.

"Shut up!" Gray quietly exclaimed.

"Oh? Well then lets here it." Erza said evenly.

"I want a rematch when we get back to Fairy Tail." Natsu stated, only adding to the shock of most everyone else.

"You got a death wish or something?" Gray asked, light concern in his voice given that he knew perfectly well what their mutual friend and guild mate was capable of.

"I'm a not stronger than I was last time, and this time's gonna be different cuz' I'm gonna beat you." Natsu proclaimed, grinning heavily at the prospect of fighting with one of Fairy Tail's strongest mages.

'Huh, and here I thought he was terrified of her…' Ichigo thought, not exactly understanding the logic, if any existed, that the dragon slayer was using.

"Yes… I can tell you've improved. As to whether or not you can beat me… I suppose we'll have to see. I accept your challenge." Erza replied, smirking slightly.

"All right! Now I'm all fired up!" Natsu exclaimed.

{Aboard the Train, Some Time Later…}

The train itself ran smoothly along the tracks as it was meant to. Within a specific section, each member of the group sat in silence, or in one particular instance quite a bit of pain. On the left side of the seats were Gray, Ichigo, and Natsu, while the lovely Fairy Tail ladies alongside Happy sat across from them.

'I really don't get how he can have it this bad…' Ichigo thought before frowning slightly as he looked down at the motion sick-stricken Natsu.

The dragon slayer had been so energetic just moments before they boarded the train, and yet now it was very clear that he was anything but. Just a second after it had started moving, he was down for the count in a matter of speaking.

"I swear you're totally pathetic Natsu. One minute you're pickin' a fight and the next you're like this." Gray stated as he looked out the window off to his side.

Ichigo half-expected a comeback from the pink-haired teen, but when it didn't come he only felt a bit more sympathy for his condition. If he had ever been in a similar situation with Uryu in that he wouldn't be able to talk back, he'd probably have pulled his hair out by now.

"It's gotta be tough on him getting from place to place." Lucy reasoned.

"Don't worry, he'll be fine. Why don't you come over and sit with me?" Erza offered.

'I guess she wants me to move over…' Lucy thought, sweatdropping at the lack of request courtesy of Fairy Tail's queen.

"Aye…" Natsu groaned.

A moment later the fire dragon slayer moved across to the other side of the seating arrangements and placed himself to the immediate right of the scarlet-haired mage. An instant after that, said mage punched him in the gut and knocked him out cold.

"That should make the trip a little easier on him." Erza reasoned.

"You just knocked him out, you realize that right…" Ichigo trailed off confusedly, though the redheaded woman didn't seem to hear him.

'Maybe she isn't as sane as I thought she was…' Lucy thought.

"Anyway, I think it's time you started filling us in. I mean what kind of mission are we going on here?" Gray questioned.

"Of course…" Erza began, paying no mind that they were technically short one pair of ears.

'He's knocked out… how can she not realize that?' Ichigo thought.

The orange-haired teen had considered raising that point up again, but he actually wanted to know what was going on as well. Also it wasn't as if he couldn't tell Natsu about the mission later given that he would, eventually, wake up, or at least he hoped he would.

"I have reason to believe that the dark guild Eisenwald is planning something big. I'm not sure what exactly but it has to do with a magical item called Lullaby." Erza continued, though her words instantly struck everyone else with a sense of realization.

"Wait, Lullaby?" Ichigo asked, the name having disturbed him directly after he had heard it just two days ago.

"That thing from before?" Lucy wondered aloud, looking to both Ichigo and Gray for clarification.

"You've heard of it before?" Erza asked in a surprised tone.

"We ran into a group of wizards on our way back to Fairy Tail the other day. We were in the forest and they took Happy and tried to eat him. That didn't sit well with us, so we… well, really Ichigo was the one who fought them. Beat 'em pretty easily too, but when we tied them up they said something about Lullaby, and then that was it. Someone took them out of the picture a second alter." Gray explained.

"I see… so you've run into Eisenwald before." Erza mused.

"I'm not positive that they were a part of the guild, but they did mention Lullaby." Gray replied.

"The timing was too convenient. If they really were members of that dark guild then someone from Eisenwald clearly didn't want them talking to us." Ichigo stated.

"It sounds as if they were members of the guild that dropped out and went into hiding. Perhaps they wanted no part in what was coming." Erza guessed.

"So this thing's so bad it even scares dark wizards?" Gray reasoned.

"I am only hypothesizing. But whoever dragged off Happy's kidnappers the other day clearly didn't want their plans getting out." Erza stated.

"Still, we can't rule out that whatever is coming could be that bad. Ever since we've heard the name Lullaby I've just had a bad feeling." Ichigo said.

"I will explain starting at the beginning… I had stopped in Oniba at a local pub that was considered a gathering spot for local wizards. I overheard a conversation, and…" Erza began.

In the following minutes the scarlet-haired woman explained word for word what the nearby table of wizards had said, and the ominous feeling that she had when she had been listening. The name of Lullaby and a seal had come up multiple times, and even in one instance the name of a very wanted criminal in the magical world.

"Wait, so they were trying to unseal it?" Lucy reasoned.

"Yes, but the fact that it was sealed away means that it has to be extremely powerful magic." Erza replied.

"Wait, so are you positive that the guys you saw at the pub were actually with this dark guild we're going up against?" Ichigo asked with a quirked brow, instantly dampening the mood of the redheaded mage.

"Yes… I can't believe I was such a fool that day. I recognized the name they said… Erigor… the ace of Eisenwald. He only accepts assassination requests and that has earned him the title Erigor the Reaper." Erza replied.

"He kills for money?" Lucy asked fearfully.

"When the council outlawed assassination requests, Eisenwald decided that money was more important. They broke away and have been active ever since." Erza said.

"Okay, I should be heading back home now…" Lucy said fearfully, faux-tears streaming from her eyes.

"Lucy's slimy all of a sudden." Happy stated.

"It's sweat." Lucy growled.

"How could I have been so foolish? If I had recognized Erigor's name sooner I could have done something. Now we're in this situation and it is all my faulty." Erza stated, slamming her armored fist directly into the side of Natsu's head.

"Easy… you do realize his head isn't made of titanium? As for the Eisewald guild… if they really are as bad as you say, then we'll just have to take them down harder, right?" Ichigo reasoned, smirking slightly.

"Yes, I suppose you are." Erza said, smiling slightly given that this was exactly what she felt they needed to do.

"Still, all we know is that something big is probably going down." Gray stated.

"But at the same time we need to stop them because we don't have a choice. These Eisenwald people don't seem like the type that would care about innocent lives, so whatever it is that they have planned we can't assume they've got the people's best interests at heart." Ichigo said.

"Exactly, which is why we must stop them before they can do any harm." Erza added.

"Anyway, if we're done with this topic… what kind of magic do you use, Erza?" Lucy asked, curiosity currently winning out over her fear of the dark guild at the moment.

"That's a good question." Erza replied.

"Erza's magic is really pretty. She makes her enemies bleed… a lot." Happy said in an upbeat manner.

"I don't know if I'd call that pretty." Lucy replied.

"I don't know about that… personally I think Gray's magic is much more beautiful." Erza stated.

"What, like this?" Gray asked.

The black-haired teen extended his hands, one of his palms open and the other hand forming a fist atop the first. An instant later an icy mist surrounded his hands before he opened his fist shortly thereafter, revealing a perfectly formed ice-copy of the Fairy Tail guild mark.

"Oh wow!" Lucy exclaimed.

"I use ice magic." Gray stated.

"Now I get why you and Natsu don't get along. He's fire and your ice, not exactly the perfect mix." Lucy reasoned.

"I never thought about it like that." Erza said amusedly.

"Nah, I just hate his guts…" Gray stated.

"I'm gonna get up for a second. Someone make sure Natsu wakes up soon, alright?" Ichigo requested before getting up, likely heading towards a restroom or something along those lines.

Shortly after the orange-haired teen was out of ear reach a food cart came by their booth, at which point several purchases were made. Erza, in typical fashion, purchased a slice of strawberry cheese cake while Lucy purchased a few sandwiches and Happy just chose to munch on a fish.

"So when did you and Ichigo join the guild, Lucy?" Erza questioned, deciding to kill the short bit of time that remained until they reached their destination.

"We joined a few days ago, actually." Lucy answered.

"Oh, and what…" Erza began, only to stop as a message sounded from the conductor.

"Attention all passengers, we have arrived at Oniba Station. Please exit calmly and efficiently." The conductor requested.

"Alright, let's get going." Erza stated, immediately getting up and heading towards the doors of the railway-oriented vehicle.

"Wait, don't we…" Lucy began, only to stop given that everyone else had already left the booth, or so she thought.

The group made their way to the exit, immediately before which they ran into Ichigo as he himself was making his way back to their booth.

"Oh, perfect timing, let's go." Erza stated.

At this, the orange-haired teen raised a curious brow. He looked behind his guild mates to see if they were, indeed, short a member. Upon seeing that this was the case, he instantly brought up the subject, or at least he tried.

"But what about…" Ichigo began, only to be cut off.

"If you have questions, please ask them when we exit the train. We haven't a moment to lose." Erza stated.

"But I…" Ichigo said, only to stop upon the redheaded mage forcefully guiding him by extending her arms and very much so encouraging a speedy exit.

{Outside the Train, A Minute Later…}

The group exited the train despite the fact that Ichigo desperately wanted to say something. When this had finally happened, Erza smiled contentedly and took in a deep breath of fresh air.

"Finally, now we can start on our mission." Erza stated happily.

The scarlet-haired knight was now under the impression that they could immediately get to work and erase her previous error in judgment. However, she had overlooked something rather obvious.

"Wait, where's Natsu?" Gray wondered aloud.

The train's horn sounded off a second later upon its route resuming, which drew the glance of everyone in the group. In that instant they each realized, or rather everyone save for Ichigo realized, that they had made great error.

"Uh-oh, there he goes." Happy muttered, waving goodbye towards the train as it zipped away.

"I was so busy talking I forgot about him. I am such a fool, Natsu hates all forms of transportation." Erza said, mentally berating herself for such an obvious error.

"This is what I was trying to say dammit! I even told you before I left to wake him up!" Ichigo exclaimed.

"You are correct and I am truly sorry. You may strike me down if you wish." Erza offered, bowing her head slightly towards the orange-haired teen.

The redheaded mage closed her eyes a moment later, evidently bracing for the hit that she expected to come. However, Ichigo had absolutely no intention of doing so. In fact if she didn't appear so serious he would have thought it was a complete joke.

"Yeah, I'm not gonna hit you. I do have to go get Natsu though… Lucy, could you…" Ichigo began.

"Yup, I know the drill." Lucy answered with an amused giggle, eliciting a nod of understanding from the substitute.

Erza's eyes widened slightly at this, mostly because she didn't understand two things. One, how the orange-haired man was going to catch up to a train, and two what Lucy had to do with it.

She assumed that, perhaps, his magic was speed related, and even that would also explain how he continuously took down multiple foes with ease, but she was proven incorrect shortly after such thoughts passed through her head.

Before Erza's very eyes, the brown-eyed teen grabbed a trinket that looked similar to a wooden skull, after which she thought, briefly, that she had double vision. One Ichigo appeared to split into two. However, the one that she had been familiar with fell back into the arms of the blonde celestial mage. The other version prepared to move out, black-clad in a shihakusho and a large cleaver-like sword strapped on its back covered with white cloth.

'What on Earthland is this?' Erza wondered curiously.

The orange-haired teen began to make tremendous leaps forward, heading towards the train without any delay. His strides went beyond pure speed as it appeared he continuously accelerated by using his feet and timing his leaps so as to cover a great deal of ground with each stride. What was more interesting was that every time his feet would come into contact with the ground a force would be applied that was large enough to noticeably crack the rocks beneath his feet.

"What kind of magic is that?" Erza exclaimed in a surprised fashion, having never seen anything like it.

"Ichigo doesn't use magic, he's not even from this world!" Happy exclaimed.

"Are you mocking me Happy?" Erza questioned with a slight glare, a dark aura surrounding her as she stared down at the cat.

"Actually, no, he isn't." Gray stated, coming to the defense of his companion.

Erza turned to look at her raven-haired comrade with an equally angered look, but upon seeing that he actually was being deadly serious she calmed herself and became quite confused.

"Explain yourself please." Erza requested.

"Well, you see, Ichigo is…" Lucy began.

{Aboard the Train, With Natsu…}

"Gah… I… BLEH! I hate my… life…" Natsu groaned from the floor of the train.

He had tried desperately to make it out of the booth, but unfortunately he didn't have a follow-up plan. Fate just seemed to be a cruel mistress to the friendly dragon slayer at the moment.

"Well what do we have here?" An arrogant-sounding voice asked to seemingly no one in particular.

'Who's that?' Natsu wondered confusedly.

Although he didn't know who exactly this man was, he suddenly no longer required that information upon the man's foot coming into contact with his face. He was positive that at the very least this guy was no friend of his.

"You little Fairy's are nothing more than ants to us, blindly following the Magic Council like little insects." He sneered.

In a fit of both rage and determination the dragon slayer pushed the man's foot off of his face, in essence creating a bit of space for himself and simultaneously getting a good look at the person who had so rudely insulted him and his guild.

The man who stood across from him had spikey black hair wrapped in a band, black eyes, and a cocky disposition. He wore a pure white overcoat overtop dark-red t-shirt, teal-colored pants, and standard-looking black shoes.

"Listen buddy, don't go talkin' smack about my guild unless ya wanna get hurt." Natsu warned, his fists lighting up with fire as he spoke.

An instant later the transport shifted slightly and even that slight movement caused the dragon slayer to stumble and nearly lose the contents of his stomach. His threatening demeanor disappeared just as quickly as his flaming fists in the wake of his crippling motion sickness.

"Hit a nerve did I?" The man questioned in an amused voice.

"Shut up!" Natsu barked.

"Hehehe… let me show you how it's done." The man sneered.

Beneath his feet three shadowy tendrils made their way through the wooded floor and popped back up only when they were close enough to land a clean hit directly on the pink-haired dragon slayer.

Natsu was helpless at the moment and as a result couldn't do anything but allow the attack to hit him, subsequently after which he landed on his side flat on the wooden floor of the train.

"Not so tough now, are ya?" He scoffed, the shadow-manifested arms twirling around his being.

In the next instant, before the dark wizard could mount another successfully attack, the train came to a complete stop, thereby causing him to fall flat on his face. Out of his pocket, a small wooden flute like object with a skull dominantly showing on its end fell, landing on the floor half-way between the two.

"What the hell was that?" The raven-haired man wondered aloud.

{Back at Oniba Station…}

"Ma'am, you can't just pull the emergency lever without permission." A station worker stated.

"It's for our comrades, please understand." Erza replied.

"Are you kidding me?!" The man exclaimed.

{Back on the Train…}

"What the heck is that thing?" Natsu wondered aloud, seeing the odd-looking flute that had flown out of the white-clad man's pocket.

"Damn, he saw it." The man stated in an annoyed tone.

He instantly ran over to the flute and grabbed it, quickly putting it back into his pocket before he opted to face the Fairy Tail wizard once again. It was very clear that he would have to eliminate him, otherwise this could very well get out of hand.

Abruptly, however, the roof of the train was smashed into by an unknown arrival. The wood sporadically flying around the nearby area caused the black-haired man to bring up his forearm to protect his eyes, after which he got a glimpse of an orange-haired teen standing just below the fresh hole in the ceiling with his back facing him.

'What's with that getup?' He wondered confusedly.

"Hey, Natsu, are you alright? I sensed something weird here, so I…" Ichigo began, only to stop upon seeing the dragon slayer point directly behind him.

He turned to see the white-clad man and immediately after this he scowled heavily. The presence of this particular wizard was something he was familiar with, or at the very least he knew he had sensed it before. It was the very same as the one he felt the other day when those dark wizards were taken away before they could say anything more about Lullaby.

"Just who the hell are you?" The man sneered.

"Ichigo Kurosaki, who the hell are you?" Ichigo replied.

"Name's Kageyama, and that's all you Fairy Tail flies are gettin' out of me." Kage stated matter-of-factly.

"I've sensed you before… you were the one from…" Ichigo began.

The train began to move once again, cutting off Ichigo's speech and also giving a certain dragon slayer a desperate need to leave the vehicle as soon as was physically possible.

"We don't have time for this Ichigo! We need to get outa here and meet up with Erza." Natsu stated.

"Wait Natsu, we…" Ichigo began, only to be cut off yet again by the form of a dimwitted action.

Without any warning the dragon slayer grabbed Ichigo's arm and jumped out the closest window of the now moving train. It appeared that he had actually been unconscious, otherwise he would've likely known or at least taken a hint that the black-haired wizard had been with Eisenwald.

"Aaaaaaaa!" Natsu yelled as he continued to fly through the air, the train zipping past them as they did so.

'Wait, what the hell is that thing?' Ichigo wondered.

Something very similar to a car was currently flying towards them at impressive speeds. He could tell that Erza was currently the driver, but despite this she didn't seem have any intent of stopping upon seeing them fly towards the vehicle. In fact, it was going so fast that it appeared it was going to collide with them in a few seconds.

"Crap!" Ichigo exclaimed.

When the car-like vehicle did, in fact, collide with him and Natsu, he had actually been the fortunate one. The dragon slayer had, in a fashion typical of him, collided with Gray on the roof of the odd-looking form of transportation. Ichigo, on the other hand, had been lucky enough to stabilize himself and grab onto the side of the car, thus preventing him from landing in any horrible manner.

"Erza, stop the magic mobile!" Lucy exclaimed from within the vehicle, obviously knowing full well that Gray was no longer on the roof.

The car came to an abrupt stop on its side a moment later, which caused Ichigo to fly forwards given that he didn't have a good grip on the magic mobile to begin with. Fortunately he only landed on his side, and he had dealt with a lot worse in terms of landings before. Natsu and Gray, on the other hand, had not been so lucky. Both appeared as if they saw stars if their dazed expressions were anything to go by.

"Natsu, are you okay?" Ichigo called out, getting himself off of the ground and dusting himself off.

"Aye…" Natsu groaned.

{Some Time Later…}

"That hurt you idiot!" Gray exclaimed once the group had gathered outside the magic mobile.

"What the hell was I supposed to do? It's your fault for being on the roof in the first place." Natsu countered.

"Aye." Happy said in agreement.

"In any case, I'm just glad you're alright." Erza stated.

"Wait, you guys remembered to bring my body into that… magic mobile thing, right?" Ichigo asked, knowing full well that this group in particular already had a trend of forgetting things.

"Of course, we would never leave behind a comrade." Erza stated, though her words drew a deadpanned expression from both Natsu and Ichigo.

"Right… anyway… WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING NATSU?!" Ichigo exclaimed, much to the surprise of everyone present.

"W-what?" Natsu stuttered.

"Do you have any idea what you just did?!" Ichigo shouted, clearly annoyed at the pink-haired dragon slayer.

"All I did was jump out a train, what's the big deal? Everyone's alright, and we have a job to do so we couldn't afford to waste time." Natsu said defensively, though his answer caused a tick mark to appear on the substitute's forehead.

"That guy back there on the train was the same one from the forest that got away." Ichigo stated in an annoyed tone.

"What?!" Everyone else shouted in unison.

"You mean the random guy that attacked me? But all he did was insult our guild so I thought he was just pickin' a fight. But there was this weird flute thing with a skull on it that he dropped at one point…" Natsu said, tapping his chin in thought.

"Natsu, you just allowed one of our enemies to escape due to your own stupidity. Have you anything to say for yourself?" Erza said, clearly agitated.

"Wait, who are we even fighting?!" Natsu shouted confusedly.

"Don't you ever listen?! I swear you have the world worst memory!" Erza exclaimed, smacking the dragon slayer upside the head as she spoke.

"It's your fault in the first place he didn't hear you, remember, you knocked him out!" Ichigo shouted, not understanding how the scarlet-haired mage didn't realize that.

Erza turned with a somewhat surprised expression that suggested she realized her mistake. Immediately thereafter she bowed her head to the orange-haired teen and shut her eyes before next she spoke.

"I apologize for my insolence. You may strike me down for my penance." Erza said in a serious voice.

"No, I'm not going to hit you Erza… why don't you just fill Natsu in on what's going on while I go get into my body, then we should probably go after that train. I could tell that guy was the same one from the forest, and if that's the case then he is probably in Eisenwald, or at the very least he knows about whatever they have planned." Ichigo suggested.

"That seems as if it is the best course of action." Erza conceded, nodding in agreement.

The scarlet-haired woman picked up on the fact that Ichigo implied he was going to reenter his human body, which actually made her a bit more curious than she already had been. Previously, Lucy had explained the teen's situation among a few other things, and she had quite a few questions about him given that everything about the blonde's transfer of information was almost unbelievable.

{Flashback…}

"I see… and does the master believe he was speaking the truth?" Erza asked in a serious tone, keeping her confusion and surprise very well hidden for the moment.

"Yeah, and to be honest I'm coming around myself. Even if it does sound idiotic, and even though Natsu believes it, I really am starting to think it's true." Gray stated, growling slightly at the mention of the dragon slayer's name.

"When we first met him he appeared directly out of the sky, and I've seen him do things that no magic I've seen is capable of." Lucy added.

Erza hummed in thought for a moment, a serious look on her features. It was true that even she, in the short time she had known the orange-haired teen, had seen something that isn't any form of magic in existence. The ability to shed a body was in the way he seemed capable of was completely unreal, but also incredibly fascinating at the same time.

Moreover, when he took on his black-clad form, she felt a certain aura emanating off of him. It was very clear that it was some form of energy, but at the same time she hadn't the slightest idea of what that energy was. In truth it was similar to magic energy, but at the same time it wasn't.

"I understand. For now we must try to stop that train in order to allow Ichigo to grab Natsu." Erza stated.

"You're taking all this really well…" Lucy commented, noticing the calm demeanor of the female mage had yet to change.

"While I may not know a single thing about the 'Soul Society' or what a 'Substitute Soul Reaper' is, I will not allow my curiosity or personal confusion get in the way of our current objectives. Any questions I have for him can wait until after the task at hand is complete." Erza answered.

It was after this that she had caught sight of an emergency stop switch over on the far side of the room. In actuality it was incredibly devoid of guards and very clearly labeled. However, that did allow her an easy opportunity to stop the train. Thus, her conversation ended and she walked off.

{Current Time…}

"Alright Natsu, pay attention this time…" Erza began.

On his way back to the car, Ichigo's eyebrow twitched at the words of Fairy Tail's strongest female wizard. Even now she still didn't seem to register that it had been her fault the dragon slayer didn't hear her the first time, which was all the more shocking because she had just asked to be hit in order for penance.

'She really is insane…' Ichigo thought.

{Some Time Later…}

"This ride is…" Ichigo began.

The magic mobile, with the next instant, swerved off to the side and jumped a good three feet off the ground, rattling those within it and causing Natsu to release an elongated groan given that his stomach was definitely not in the best of shapes.

"…a little bumpy." Ichigo finished, hanging on to the railing as he spoke.

"At least you're not on the roof." Gray commented from atop the vehicle.

"How you holding up Gray?" Ichigo asked, looking up at the ceiling of the vehicle. He couldn't see the ice mage, but all the same it was the thought that counted.

"Just peachy." Gray replied sarcastically.

"What about you Nats…" Ichigo began, only to stop upon actually looking down at the dragon slayer.

Natsu was currently on the floor of the vehicle with his eyes practically rolled into the back of his head and his face turning a light shade of green. His current condition was actually worse now than it was on the train, but that was to be expected given that they were going even faster now than they had been on the railway-oriented vehicle.

"You alright Lucy?" Ichigo asked, noticing the blonde's pensive look.

"It's just that the name Lullaby… and the look of the flute you guys told us about… I know it from somewhere." Lucy stated.

"Then you should tell us at once! If you have any helpful information at all then we will need it to be victorious." Erza stated as she drove the care.

"What she said." Gray added.

"I don't know exactly how it works… but I think I remember Lullaby, the cursed song. It's a type of Death Magic." Lucy explained, sounding worried.

"Wait, so that means that Erigor…" Ichigo began.

"Is planning to use it to kill innocent people!" Erza exclaimed, cutting off her comrade.

If it was at all possible, the vehicle began to move faster, likely reaching its maximum speed, or so it seemed. Natsu's face, with the increase in the vehicles speed, predictably, turned even greener than it already had in the wake of their even quicker traveling speed.

"I'm… ugg… in hell…" Natsu groaned out.

The vehicle hit yet another bump and flew into the air once again for a brief period of time, bouncing a few times upon coming back into contact with the ground. This was, naturally, accompanied by another moan from Natsu, who really couldn't catch a break today.

"Slow down Erza! You're using too much magic energy!" Gray exclaimed worriedly from atop the roof.

"If I do end up wasting too much then I will just have to rely on the rest of you to complete the mission." Erza replied.

The words of both the ice mage and the redheaded knight caused something to click in Ichigo's head. If magic energy was somehow used in powering the vehicle, that would also mean that Erza was somehow filtering her power into the vehicle.

'And if that's the case… then I might be able to test something.' Ichigo thought.

In his mind an opportunity presented itself to see just how similar magical energy was to spiritual energy. The worst case scenario, in his mind, was that his spirit energy didn't power the vehicle and they come to a momentary stop, but even then he still got to confirm or disprove his own little theory.

"Lucy, make sure my body doesn't fall around too much." Ichigo requested.

"Huh?" Lucy exclaimed.

Before she could even ask a coherent question Ichigo had already grabbed his Combat Pass and separated his two forms. Without another word of warning he opened the door and climbed up onto the roof, leaving the blonde speechless and confused.

"What the hell?" Gray wondered aloud upon seeing the orange-haired teen exit the vehicle.

"Sorry Gray, but you mind moving over? I wanted to ask Erza something." Ichigo stated.

"Umm… alright." Gray replied.

The ice mage was actually quite confused as to why Ichigo had dawned his Soul Reaper form without a word of warning only to randomly walk onto the roof of the magic mobile. However, he assumed that it was something of importance since he didn't really seem like the type to just do things like that. Of course there was always the possibility that Natsu's stupidity had started to rub off of the orange-haired teen, but that was the more distant of the two possibilities.

"What is it that you wanted to ask of me?" Erza questioned, glancing back as opposed to keeping her eyes on the road.

"I wanted to ask you how this thing works. You said something about magical energy, so do you filter it into the magic mobile somehow?" Ichigo questioned.

"Yes, that is correct. I attach this pump onto my forearm and it drains my magical energy to power the vehicle." Erza answered evenly.

At this the substitute began to hum in thought. The location of the pump seemed to be in line with his thoughts given that he knew that it was located near the exact point where one of the spiritual outlets of Soul Reapers was located. He recalled such things from Urahara's encounter with Aizen, and the secret weapon that the shopkeeper had opted to use.

"I see… do you mind if I try powering it for a while? I want to test something that's been bugging me a bit." Ichigo requested.

"Hmm… very well, I would appreciate it if I was given a small break. I will continue to steer, however." Erza replied.

An instant later Ichigo followed the redhead's instructions as to how he would remove to pump from her arm and shortly thereafter he hooked it onto his own. During this time the pump itself had been shut down, though the car still moved due to the amount of magical energy Erza had previously been putting into it.

"Are you ready?" Erza questioned, looking back towards the substitute for confirmation.

"Yeah, go for it." Ichigo replied.

The scarlet-haired mage then turned the pump back on, believing that nothing abnormal would happen. At worst nothing would happen, and at that point they could just switch places once again, meaning who would use the pump to power the vehicle. However, something unexpected did, indeed, happen.

Shortly after the pump was turned on, the car began to shoot off into the distance at speeds twice as fast as it had been previously moving.

Erza could feel the force of the wind hitting her like a ton of bricks while Ichigo and Gray were forced to hang on to the railings to avoid flying backwards and landing on some random spot of dirt, though only one of them had faux-tears in his eye as a result of the sudden increase in speed.

Within the car, however, only banging noises could be heard, likely due to the fact that its inhabitants were being thrown around like pinballs in a machine. Luckily there were not sounds of a certain dragon slayer vomiting, so that was a positive.

"What the hell?!" Gray exclaimed as the car continued to zoom off at unbelievable speeds.

"EEEEEEEEEEP!" Lucy squealed from within the magic mobile.

"Erza shut the pump off!" Ichigo exclaimed, obviously not wanting to continue the trend of making the vehicle a death trap.

"No! Whatever you're doing, keep it up. We're moving too quickly to pass up this opportunity! I will continue to steer, you just continue linking yourself to the magic mobile." Erza stated.

In a brief period of time, though it felt like an eternity to Natsu, the group had started to come up to a nearby cliff that overlooked a city. Given the speed of the magical vehicle, it was nearly impossible to turn, therefore leaving them with only one option.

"Erza, we won't be able to turn, just shut off the pump!" Gray exclaimed.

A second later the scarlet-haired mage released a grunt of annoyance at the fact that they were about to stop, but nevertheless she knew what had to be done. The second after she shut off the pump she slammed her foot on the breaks, effectively destroying a good portion of their chosen roadway as she did so.

As a result of this, Erza recoiled in the driver's seat, Lucy, Natsu, and presumably Ichigo's body hit the far wall of the vehicle's interior with a loud bang, and Ichigo and Gray flung forward at high speeds due to the fact that, while the care had lost its momentum, they hadn't lost theirs.

Ichigo was fortunate enough to have the capability of using his spiritual pressure to stabilize himself and momentarily glide in the air before flipping his body and gracefully landing on the ground. Gray, however, was not so lucky, as evident by the fact that he slammed into a nearby rock formation. At the same time that was preferable to being thrown down the cliff, but it still wasn't something he wanted to do in the first place.

"Alright… is everyone okay?" Erza asked, being the first to speak.

"I'm still alive… I think…" Gray replied in a dazed voice.

"Same here." Lucy called from within the magic mobile.

An instant later one of the vehicle's doors flew open, after which a certain pink-haired dragon slayer flew out and landed face first on the rocky and dust covered terrain. It was all too likely that he didn't even feel the impact of his fall given that he looked to be out cold. However momentary groans escaped his lips every so often.

"Uggggg…" Natsu moaned out.

"I think Natsu's broken!" Happy exclaimed worriedly, looking down at his best friend from inside the magic mobile.

"If he's still breathing then he's fine… but I think we could all use a few minutes of rest for the time being." Erza stated before slumping back into her driver's seat, taking a deep breath as she did so.

"Lucy, is my body still in one piece?" Ichigo asked as he walked over to help Gray out of the rock formation. The impact had ironically caused the ice mage to become embedded into the stone like a geological imprint.

"I think so…" Lucy replied.

"Aye!" Happy chirped.

Ichigo then removed Gray from within the side of the large rock, after which he threw the black-haired wizard over his shoulder and began to walk back to the car, feeling that he should at least do that for his comrade given his current condition was inadvertently his own fault.

"By the way, Ichigo, what was that just now? No matter how much magical energy the pump absorbs it should only be able to go a certain speed." Erza stated, opening her eyes and staring curiously at the orange-haired substitute.

It was at this point that Ichigo realized he had never actually informed the scarlet-haired woman about what had happened to him and why he was now a member of Fairy Tail. Despite the fact that he desperately didn't want to have a long conversation about that fact due to his belief it would lead her to believe he was crazy, one way or another it had to happen if they were working together.

"To explain that, I guess I should first tell you that… I'm uh… I don't think I ever actually told you about my situation. I'm…" He continued, only to interrupted.

"I was informed back at the train station by Lucy and Gray. While I am both confused and curious, I trust the master's judgment and believe our current task is more important than any discussions about your background." Erza stated maturely.

That actually surprised the substitute a great deal given that he could tell that her words were true. In a way he was impressed by her composure, and she may very well have reacted the most ideally out of anyone he had told outside of Natsu. It did bring into question her sanity in that she so readily believed his 'story', but that was another matter entirely.

"Um… anyway, what I did was a terrible idea and I won't do it again. As for why that happened, I think it had something to do with the fact that magic energy and the type of power that I have are different from one another." Ichigo replied.

"I see… I will not inquire about this further, but we do need to get going now. If you don't mind, please put Gray and Natsu in the car and take Gray's previous spot on the roof. I doubt he is in a condition to retake that position." Erza said.

Ichigo nodded his head in understanding, after which he walked back to the car with the raven-haired ice make user still thrown over his shoulder. Shortly thereafter he put Gray, carefully, into the car and then did the same for Natsu, all the while his thoughts being elsewhere.

'Well… at least this confirms what I had suspected.' Ichigo thought.

His little experiment had, in essence, shown him that magical energy and spiritual energy were remotely similar. The only downside to the experiment had been that he in no way expected the magic mobile to react that way to spirit energy. He had only hoped for it to move at the same rate Erza desired it to, but it went far and beyond that.

It appeared that though the two energies were similar, spiritual energy packed a bit more of a punch. He just wished he had thought of that possibility beforehand because if that were the case he wouldn't have picked here and now as the time to test it.

'Still, it's really strange to think about. I wonder what Kisuke would make of this… damn, now I know I've lost it when I start to try and get into that lunatic's head.' Ichigo thought.

{Kunugi Station, Some Time Later…}

A hoard of dark wizard began to order passengers off of the recently stopped train like slave drivers. They threw everything off of it, following the orders of their most infamous member to the letter.

Watching the entire course of events take place was none other than Erigor the Reaper. He was a fairy tall man with silver hair, black eyes, and a melancholy look about him. He wore only a black scarf on his upper body and what appeared to be torn rags of black, tan, and light purple colors.

He also sported a great deal of ink on his skin, mainly the series of tattoos covering his upper body in spiraling flame-like patterns and what seemed to be a chain-link tattoo running up his abdomen. Standard sandals covered his feet, and he sported a rather lengthy scythe that he carelessly hung across his shoulders as he continued to observe the passengers forceful removal with a scowl.

"Get everything off of the train. Luggage, people, conductors, I want it all gone. If anyone tries to defy us, kill them all." Erigor ordered commandingly.

His subordinates obeyed without delay, speeding up the process just by the simple sound of the reaper's voice. No one dared to ignore the order, and simply doing nothing after he spoke was a sure fire way to end up dead and quickly.

"Well looks whose here." Kage said as he got out from one of the train's sections, specifically the highly damaged one. Currently there was a hole in the ceiling and in the wall of that particular cart, which annoyed the reaper to no end.

"Kageyama, I heard you were coming back aboard this train. There's quite a bit of wreckage, care to explain why?" Erigor asked, growling slightly as he got a good look at the cart's condition.

"Come on, aren't you interested to see what I brought back with me?" Kage asked in a cocky manner.

The raven-haired dark wizard reached into his overcoat's pocket, after which he pulled out a flute that caused Erigor's previously aggravated demeanor to fade in the wake of a sickening smirk.

"I finally managed to break the seal." Kage added before handing off the wooden death flute to his superior.

"Excellent, simply excellent." Erigor stated with evil pleasure.

"Is that it?" One of the members nearby asked.

"Yes, this is it men, the forbidden Lullaby. Originally it was a tool to capture simply death spells, making it limited. That is until the great dark wizard Zeref turned it into a demon flute. Now it's song will kill hundreds, thousands, all at once, and now it's all mine." Erigor stated before he began to laugh evilly.