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The previous night left Zachary unable to sleep-- not until deep in the night and eventually passed out from his mind running too much. The fall of the meteorite that left a massive crater in the East Forest was still on his mind, and what was left was the odd crystal that now sat on his table. That and the mysterious woman known as Samira Nassar.

Where did he hear that name before? It was too late for him to really look it up, or even get Professor Nyx involved. For a nocturnal night owl, the spirit was often picky when to be disturbed. For now, he tried to sleep, but every so often the crystal that he now gotten from that fateful meteor shower glowed. Something pulsed within... something not of this world.

Sadly Zachary had fallen asleep, unable to sense it.

....

The next morning Zachary made his way right to the guild hall of Fairy Tail. Unlike most guils, Fairy Tail's guild hall was much more open and avalable to the public than Zachary knew. He didn't mind as he was able to study in relative quiet-- until the guild's mercs began to get rough and start a full guild brawl.

For the time being, he kept to the far side of the room in one of the tables. On it was the crystal he got from that night. The older members, mostly a bunch of rough housing or the other members kept to their own business, going in and out to do various requests. It was not the Fairy Tail Zachary grew up knowing, but it was beginning to grow on him. Out on the table he had a few astrological reference books and magical artifact books to help him find out what this mystery rock was. Beside him was an order of scramble eggs now semi-cold and a tall mug of orange juice.

With him was none other than his little Ruby Carbuncle. THe small transparant spirit would occasionally run across the table, sniff Zachary's eggs-- despite her inability to actually eat it-- and inspect the odd stone on the table. She seemed drawn to it, like cat to catnip as she would paw at the stone. It wouldn't budge from its size and weight.

After about an hour searching for rocks, meteorites, crystals and even lacryma, Zachary let out a defeated grown and burried his face flat into the book. "Oh you gotta be kidding me..." he sighed, "I can't find a single reference to what this thing is. Its not a lacryma, not a known one anyway. Not an artifact or even of any material known. "

He sighed as he tried to figure out what to do next. Ruby took a moment and looked at him, nudging him softly to help him in his slump.

A few of the older, rugged mercs of Fairy Tail gave a laugh at him, seeing him studying so hard. "Hey, Z-- lighten up already. You probably do more work here than most," a rough looking guy said with a tight shirt, muscles and a scar near his left eye. "Come here and a man's drink-- hic."

Zachary leered at him, bothered by the lesser impressive member of his guild. "I'm under-aged, moron... besides I rather not kill brain cells thank you... Who drinks at 10 AM in the morning?"

A few of the other guys laughed, as Zachary pushed himself up as he tried to think of a good idea how to find out what this mysterious meteorite crystal was. It was the only thing recoverable from the site. It had to be something significant.

WC: 610

Unlike the young Fairy Tail mage, Samira slept soundly. Nothing kept her mind running longer than it should have. Her job in the desert was complete, the meteorite situation was resolved, and she basically had already forgotten about the space rock and Zachary. It was a meeting by chance and she didn't expect it to happen again unless she wrote a letter later down the road to ask for specifics about the portion of the meteorite that was radiating a magic energy. She was prepared to move on in life and whatever came the next morning. It would be a while before she went on to the next phase of her personal mission so she had planned to take it easy.

When the next morning approached Samira was already up and already had a plan for the day. A spontaneous one that popped up randomly. She would be a mail girl for the day! Yes! That was the plan! Delivering mail in a glorious timely fashion! It had been so long since she had done something so relaxing! Well, not really. The last time she was in Magnolia she kind of broke an experimental mail system and had to go out of her to fix the situation she had caused. Technically she still owed the boss mailman for damages caused to the magic technology. She could have paid him back then. She wasn't broke by any means, but what fun was that? She would just wor off the debt like a normal citizen would. That and it was very likely the Saint really did enjoy delivering mail. No one had ever really asked before.

After changing into her mail delivery girl uniform, complete with cap and mailbag, and getting the letters she was meant to deliver that day, Samira set out into the bustling town to complete her mission. It was a simple enough job. The only troubling thing was the groaning of her spirits before they took off to enjoy their freeday doing something other than... watch Samira hand over letters... why was she a Wizard Saint again? Was being in some sort of trading or delivery service a hidden secret requirement to be a God of Ishgar? They really didn't want to know the answer. It was humiliating. Even worse when the uniform and cap somehow hid who she really was and made her out to look like a girl that just looked like Samira Nassar. Each and every spirit died a little inside from this knowledge.

There came a point in her delivery runs where she needed to visit Fairy Tail itself. Some people preferred having their mail delivered there. Whether it was because they lived there or because they just wanted it that way she didn't know. It wasn't important. All she needed to do was leave the mail with whoever was in charge with that sort of thing. Surely there was someone that took all of it and distributed it themselves. Surely. And there was. But, there also came a point when there was just too much mail to be left.

"Excuse me, I have a mail delivery for various members," Samira simply stated the moment she entered and walked up to some woman that may or may not know what she was supposed to do with it. The young lady had been looking down at her iLac, but upon being interacted with looked up and looked as if she was going to have some heart attack while gasping. "Oh my god! You're-" Then the uniform was noticed. "Oh, nevermind." The obviously mistaken identity made her quickly lose interest and her gaze went back to the small device. "Just hand it over. I'll see that it gets to whoever."

Samira didn't react much to that. Just a few blinks and a hint of a wondering thought of what the other woman was going to say. Oh well. She shrugged her shoulders and let it slide, deciding it best not to ask. The outstretched hand was also a curious thing. Did she really think there were only a couple of letters for an entire guild? Oh no. Not even close. The Saint pulled out a small device from the mailbag, similar looking to an iLac but for a different purpose entirely. With a few button presses a portal opened up and out came bag upon bag of mail. "MAIL FOR FAIRY TAIL!" The mail delivery experiment now had a new phase. A more mobile version that was a bit less chaotic than the original. Larger mail quantities delivered at the press of a button! No more mail trucks required! It worked wonders for Samira and the other mailmen and ladies. It brought horror to the young woman who had just got done saying that she would take care of it herself. "What the hell?!" Shouted the now wide eyed woman that found the ground around her littered with mail bag after mail bag.

"It is the mail."

"Obviously! Why is there so much of it?! Actually, hold up." The woman dug through one of the bags, possibly one that had her name written on the tag. "Is this... is this all junk mail?!"

"It is a few months behind. There was an incident at the post office that delayed it. The important mail was recovered and delivered as a priority, but the 'junk', as you call it, took time to recover or duplicate. All mail must be delivered."

"No one wants this stuff. Can't you just take it outside and burn it?" Now the woman was beginning to sound desperate. She had only wanted to help out for a few minutes, not spend her entire day lugging all of those bags to the proper recipients!

Samira started at the woman, creating an awkward silence before finally answering with a nonchalant "No." Then she turned away to take her leave and head to the next destination on the route. What happened right after was the woman stopping Samira and practically begging that she not leave all of that with her to take care of, or at least help out with it. The answer was almost a no. The Saint valued timely delivered mail, and staying too long there might put a delay on her route. It was a tough decision, but she had her cheating ways to make up for the time. All she had to do was just ask some of her spirits for help. No one could measure the amount of joy they had when they were asked. It was surely impossible. Nevertheless, some agreed to lend a hand anyway because why not? And so the work and letters were spread to each one before they took off to complete the route. Now Samira had the time to help out the woman take the bags of mail to member to member. The bags were all categorized by name and Samira was told where to go to find that certain member or at least where they hung out. Those that were not around simply had the mail left with her.

"Zachary Sirius?" The next name that was labeled on several bags was read aloud. It was a familiar one, well the first name anyway. Samira couldn't really remember if the boy she ran into during the meteorite crash had given his last name or not. It was very unlikely it was the same Zachary, however. It was a common name.

"Oh, right. I think I saw him go get some breakfast earlier. He's probably still there. Seemed to be getting into a weird studying mood." Samira was given the directions on how to navigate to that area and it wasn't long after that, that she soon took notice of the blue haired teenager sitting at a table doing just as the woman had said. Everyone else in the room was ignored as she walked towards the table. There was only one thought and priority in that green covered head of hers and that was the importance of seeing the mail properly delivered. It was super significant... to her. "Zachary Sirius?" Samira asked as he pushed himself from his seat. She seemed to have caught him just in time. Although, her saying the name was more to confirm that he was the correct Zachary than a surprise that he was there or any sense of familiarity. Once he either implied or established that, that was who he was, Samira would pull out the same device from before and look down at it while pressing a few buttons, ignoring anything else he might have been saying or doing.

"MAIL FOR ZACHARY SIRIUS!" That same random almost robotic voice yelled from out of nowhere as a portal opened up above and several bags of mail dropped from it. If he didn't move out of the way then the chances of the poor boy being covered by them all was high. Not that Samira really cared for that part. The important mission of importance was completed and she could move on. "Your mail."

(Word Count: 1513)

For the time being, Zachary mulled over the stone. He would stare into it, as if lost in thought and for a moment, he thought he saw something. THe feint glow of magic inside it. As he tried to look inside, he could of sworn he saw some kind of shape. What could it be...?

"Zachary Scryer!"

He flinched at the sound of his name, the little Ruby Carbuncle beside him also having her ears perk up at the mention of his name.

Zachary looked up from the large stone on the table to find a woman with long light blue hair. He blinked-- confused, as he recognized her. The thing out of place was her chosen attire, looking like a mail-woman? He paused and blinked, unsure if he knew what happened in that moment. IT took him a second but soon his eyes widened. "It-It's you!" Zachary said in surprise.

Recognizing the Celestial Wizard immediately, Ruby scampered off the table. Joyed to find the mythic wizard and drawn to her magic, Ruby didn't hesitate to rush up her leg and scamper up to her shoulder. A purr-like sound escaped her as she reached to her shoulder and nuzzled into her cheek.

That settled it. It was the same person. "It is you. Ms. Samira. What are you doing here?" Zachary asked, trying not to be too offended that Ruby all but rushed to be with her. It almost made him a bit jealous of how drawn his spirits were to her. Clearly Ruby wasn't about to let her go so soon.

Before he could ask what she was doing here-- she delivered the bags of mail that came for him. A shocked look came across his face at the sight of so much mail. "The hell... I know my mother couldn't have written all of those. "

The man at the bar just laughed as he saw it. "Looks like the junk-mail demon has struck again. Sucks to be you. If you don't send those chain letters out, you 'll get cursed."

Zachary just glanced irritatedly at the fellow guild member. "Seriously...?" he said with rejection, not that superstitious. Hell, he would gladly approach a black cat regardless of rumors of bad luck.

However--- the man who had been drinking at the bar decided to test his luck and approached Samira, finding her attractive in that mail-delivery suit. "Hey, how about you come hang out with us for a bit? I'm sure you been on your feet all day lugging that mail around. How about I buy you a drink, hmm?"

Ruby on her shoulder gave a cat-like hiss. As a female herself, Ruby wasn't about to let the guy take advantage of her.

Still, Zachary had a sincere feeling that if he tried anything-- Samira was more than capable of defending herself. Even though the full scope of who she was escaped him.

WC: 486

The deliver the junk mail to the one known as Zachary Sirius objective was complete. Using the small device she held, Samira pressed a few more buttons on the screen and checked off his name from the mail system before putting it away. Done. Now she was free to move onto the next one that was surely wondering where all their junk mail has been for the last few months. They must have been supremely agitated by now with the wait. Why the woman thought people would actually care about or even rejoice when they got the infamous junk mail not even the spirit deities connected with her mind knew. It was a ridiculous mystery that was best left unsolved. Just one of many.

Playfully and gently, Samira poked Ruby's small nose. "Hello there," Samira greeted the spirit critter that had taken a spot on her shoulder and nuzzled her as if it were happy to see her. Now that she was no longer totally focused on the job she could take the time to notice that she had become a piece of living furniture. Not that she minded in that particular instance. The critter known as Ruby was adorably sweet, and it was a shame she belonged to another. Samira didn't really have animal type spirits that were small or cute. Bastet could turn into a smaller cat to blend in with normal society but that was about all. "Have a good day." The last sentence spoken was to Zachary himself or at least implied. The woman didn't really bother to look at him as she turned around, so distracted was she by the small spirit that had placed herself so close to petting range. Obviously the thought of removing Ruby didn't really come to mind. Samira had every intention of letting Ruby remain there for as long as she wanted, even if that meant walking right out of the building with her. Trying to steal her was not the intent, however. That wasn't really how things worked. She knew well enough Ruby would remove herself if she got too far, and if she didn't it was likely she would be forced back if she got too far from the one that was connected with her. The only thing Samira intended to do was take the opportunity to play with the carbuncle as she walked out. But it was not to be.

As Samira took a few steps from the table and towards the exit, she was stopped by a man who had approached while she had been distracted with Ruby. Maybe he wanted his junk mail now instead of when she finally got around to him? Oh dear, what if he had no mail? That would be quite the problem. She would be wrong with that theory. He had instead mentioned something about hanging out and drinks. Well that was confusing. It was still very early, wasn't it? Surely he wasn't trying to gain her attention with that sort of line. Not only did she not ever drink, but she actually very much disliked when people approached her in such a way. Perhaps she was wrong and had only jumped to conclusions, yet the small hiss from the carbuncle perched on her shoulder was a reassurance that perhaps she was not wrong in her assumptions. The guiding spirits also had their doubts of the approach being totally innocent. In actuality, quite a few of them were furious. It was a logical reaction when many were either over protective, jealous, possessive, twisted, and just downright not very friendly to begin with. Samira would have been very angry as well, as it was a reminder to the past events that made her detest any and all flirtations and attention of that sort. However, she was willing to put that aside for now. There had to be a different meaning to his words, and that was what she would believe for now. Perhaps he was just trying to get her to try the juice that was so well known. Yes, that had to be it. He was an advertiser that was trying to give Fairy Tail's juices the fame and popularity he thought it deserved.

The scowl that appeared on her face the moment the man spoke his words disappeared very quickly as her new thought process took over. "I do not need to rest at this time. It is still early in the day, and much of my work has been split with others. However, I will take you up on your offer." At first the man seemed disappointed when she started to speak her reply, but when she agreed his face lit up in delight. Then it came crashing down with her next sentence. "I would like forty juice boxes of every flavor."

"Uh... what?" The man could only look at her, puzzled about how it went from him making an obvious pick up line to getting juice boxes. And so many! Maybe she just wasn't a drinker of that caliber. But still, he had to smile sheepishly and rub the back of his head as he tried to come up with some logical reason as to why she needed forty of every flavor. He couldn't come up with one in that quick moment that he had. "I mean, if that's what you want to drink that's fine, I guess. Isn't that a little much though?" Also pricey as hell, and he didn't exactly plan to sit around all day waiting for her to drink it all.

"Is it?" Samira looked up in thought. Maybe it was a lot, but she had a reason for it. "My spirits do not know what flavor they want. I cannot just give them all the same one." The focus of her gaze came back down to settle on the man once more. "What flavor do you recommend?" Her voice was a lot more excited and eager now. Surely he would know the best flavor! He was, after all, a juice promoter, right?

"...Flavor?..."
"Yes, of course. What flavor of juice is the best for otherworldly spirits? You are a juice salesman, correct?"
There was an awkward silence from the man. He stared at her, dumbfounded and thoroughly confused. He might have even lost a bit of self esteem as well. To be confused as some sort of salesman when he was just trying to pick up a woman for a good time. Was he really that bad at it or was the woman just really... dumb? She didn't really look the part on the outside but something clearly went wrong somewhere in the conversation. "I'm actually not-"

"Not a salesman and promoter for the juice I have heard so much about? If that is not the case then I will be disappointed." The innocent smile faded and was replaced by a deep frown and icy glare. "There is only one other way I could see where you were going with your choice of words, and I forewarn you that there are consequences if you choose that route." The poor man would indeed be in trouble if he ended up confirming that chosen route. A heavy and dark energy began to radiate from her slightly, not her own really. Hers was very different and controlled. The spirits that were connected with her and could pop between realms anytime they chose? Not so much. The more gentle and controlled spirits couldn't always keep them in check, and Samira wasn't even trying to at that moment. Their threatening presence would surely get him to change his mind and confirm that he was actually the juice salesman she thought him to be, and not someone that was trying to take advantage of her. It was one of the very few things that could make her angry near instantly.

The man began to stutter as he tried to somehow fix that mess. He was looking to pick up a harmless mailgirl. Not deal... with whatever the hell that energy was. He was pretty sure at this point the woman was crazy and his radar for easy pick ups was way off. It ended up just being easier to say that he was this weird Fairy Tail juice box seller. Immediately the energy vanished, the angry spirits having accepted those words for now. They would be provided with juice for all of that inconvenience! It was so hard being protective eyes over a sometimes hopeless summoner, after all. "Fantastic!" Samira said with a returned smile and excitement, happy that she had been so wrong with her first conclusions. "I will wait here." She took it upon herself to sit down at the same book-filled table Zachary had originally been sitting at and began to wait. The man took the opportunity to make a very quick exit while she was not looking. He... probably wasn't coming back with those juice orders. Not that Samira noticed or would care at that moment. It was highly possible that she would assume the order was too great and that she would have to track him down to aid him in bringing it. That would indeed make the most sense. For now though, Samira set the mailbag on the floor and slid one of the books on the table towards herself and flipped it around to start reading it. An astronomy book. Huh, interesting topic.

(Word Count: 1573
Total So Far: 3086)

Zachary had his confusion as to why this seemingly powerful witch was lugging mail around. Half of the mail now dumped on him was literally useless and he planned to shred it when he got the chance. He was, however, wanting to talk to her about last night and the meteorite that was now on the table with him. Ruby clearly had taken an unusual shine to her-- almost making him worry if Ruby wanted to be with her rather than Zachary. But jealousy aside, Zachary soon saw the idiot from before try to make a move on her.

It was those guys that gave Fairy Tail a bad rep now and Zachary didn't care to see her be hit on like that. Even though he was significantly younger, he just couldn't ignore it and was about to get up and defend her...

.. but in the most funny and spectacular way ever, she turned the tables on her. She took him up asking for multiple flavors of juice as if she was as thirsty as some kind of animal. When the guy tried to correct it--- implying his more obvious interest, her aura went dark with a scary, unreal power that just was felt through out the entire guild hall.

Zachary stopped short of getting up and sat back down, sensing the danger. Even Ruby, who was smittin with her sensed it and got a scare to run off her shoulder and back to Zachary. Seeing that she too was nervous, Zachary petted the scared little carbuncle on the head and back to ease her fear. Even though he felt as if they were in no true danger, she hid a menacing aura... like the legends of Mirajane or Erza Scarlet! She was in a league above normal mages and her sheer magic put the fear of god into the guy that he desperately started searching for juice.

As the man went to gather juice-- and probably change his pants from the fright he got, the woman returned to a more elegant calm demeanor. Zachary watched as she calmly sat herself down at her table. She seemed casual now, even poking interest to one of Zachary's books. It took Zachary a moment to work up the air to finally raise a single question. "Who exactly... are you? " he said, in both respect and awe to her. "You gotta be some majorly impressive sorceress to command an aura like that."

Ruby slowly recovered and crawled over to Samira-- sniffing her hand lightly as she held one of the books.

Zachary swallowed what fear he had left and kindly addressed her. "I-I really wanted to talk to you again about last night. What happened was amazing and I would really like your opinion on what this object is? It really isn't of our world so I have no idea how to examine this."

While they talked-- Zachary suddenly sat up with inspiration. "Wait-- Why didn't I ask her before now?" he said aloud to himself as he dug into his pocket. He soon took out his gate keys-- one in paticular with an odd owl-like symbol on the end of the silver key. One not commonly known to the major celestial constellations. He raised the key out to the side of the table. "Open, Gate of the Wise Owl! Noctura!!" he called out and flicked the key before him.

Bright light illuminated the guild hall briefly, followed by a low coo sound and the flap of wings. Soon, perched at the end of the table was a beautiful snowy white owl with brown speckles along her feathers. She looked like a regular owl, however adorned with blue ribbon, a silver crown against her head, and a silver adornment around her. In her talon she clenched a rolled up scroll.

"Good morning, Zachary, " the owl said sweetly, but with an air of superiority to her tone.

Zachary turned to Samira, (presuming after introductions)  and smiled to her, hoping he impressed her after having a contract with such a spirit. "Her formal name is Noctura, but we agreed to call her Professor. Nyx. She isn't a fighter, but she is a treasure trove of celestial and magical information. She is kind of like my magic tutor when I need extra help. Kind of think of her similar to the known spirit of the southern cross."

As Zachary introduced the owl, the man who Samira had scared came over with his arms full of juice mugs-- and still more to come. He saw Zachary's owl and couldn't help but laugh. "Ha! Who let the old bird in?"

The owl's feathers perked up-- and her head made a 180 degree turn to face the rude guild mage. Annoyed, she quickly took flight and stopped just short of the man's face, talons shown as she left her scroll on the table beside Zachary.

"Be wise who you call an old bird, simpleton!" she said with a resolved tone, "I might not be a combat-oriented spirit, but that doesn't mean I won't peck your eyes out. Understood, little boy?"

THe man now shvered, almost dropping one of his juices. "Y-yes ma'am!" Laughs soon filled the guild hall as the one member got owned by a cute-seeming owl. Zachary just smiled. He realized like Samira here, Nyx was an owl of similar demeanor to scare any foolish man straight to give proper respect.

As Prof. Nyx landed back on the table beside Zachary, she cleared her through. "Now, how can I help you, my dear," she said kindly as she regripped her scroll.

Zachary soon reached over and softly moved the meteorite crystal to her. "We both found this last night from a fallen meteorite. We were hoping you might have some insight to what this is exactly? Its not a lacryma, i checked. It has some form of magic, but I can't tell what exactly it is or what we should be doing with it. Can you offer any insight to this? Maybe you seen one before? "

The owl let out a soft coo as she approached the stone and began to look it over. She also unrolled her scroll-- as she did, glyph and symbols, even diagrams began to appear and move along the paper, as if it was alive.

WC: 1058

Samira had already zoned out and disappeared from reality as she read the book, metaphorically of course. The world tuned out and it wasn't until Zachary spoke that her mind came crashing back down. Her gaze lifted to stare at the young boy with a neutral expression. Then a brow raised quizzically with the question. Who was she? She had thought that she had given him her name the last time they met. Oh, dear. Was he another one that had a sudden case of amnesia? She recalled a certain bunny girl shaped elemental that had experienced something similar, although surely he had not run into something so extreme in less than a day. Then he elaborated. Now she understood, but the quizzical expression still remained. A major impressive sorceress? Hardly. There were many others that fit that category just fine, many of them in Fairy Tail even. To put that label on herself though she would have to disagree. Powerful? Perhaps. She would be in denial if she ignored the fact that her adventures, experiences, and that of her spirits gave her access to raw power. Impressive though, not so. Not even commanding. It was actually very difficult to control at full strength. The aura he had felt was just a small reaction that happened from her own anger, and its power originating from a certain spirit that did not take too kindly to that man's advances.

"Perhaps," she replied after a silent moment. The book in front of her she closed and slid it back to his side of the table. "But a bit of an exaggeration. Having a strong magical signature does not automatically make someone 'impressive.' I suggest that you do learn the difference as there are many other mages that have powers just as strong, or close to it, and not all of them the sort that you should label with complimentary words. If you must compliment someone with a label as fine as 'impressive' then you should look to the leaders of your guild. They are worthy enough of that label last I checked." Yes, the guild of Fairy Tail did have a habit of having many stars both past and present among its ranks. Many of them currently Wizard Saints even, with Sorano being among the Gods of Ishgar. And it was not even just those with such titles. Many of its normal members were quite strong. An example of that Samira had witnessed herself while she was on the judge panel for one of their tournaments. It was because of that, that it somewhat confused Samira as to why it seemed the boy had not seen that sort of power before. He was practically surrounded by it just by being in the guild! Maybe it was possible that he had just not been able to meet any of them yet. Samira herself had not met every member of Lamia Scale when she was among its ranks, and even less so while representing Sabertooth.

Zachary had brought up the chunk of meteorite that was laying on the table, an obvious choice of topic given the events of the night prior and the book themes that covered the table. The woman wasn't particularly interested in the topic, or at least she didn't seem like she was. Her attention was on Ruby, who had come back within petting range. "It is a type of meteorite that has a magical signature attached. It is very unlikely that such a thing has ever been studied beyond those that have magic types that works in similar theme. Or I suppose someone that knows all secrets of the universe." Samira had been busy poking and playing with Ruby if the small animal spirit let her as she spoke, her gaze and attention seeming to barely even be on Zachary. However, she paused her actions and looked up at him with a blink. "In other words, I have not the faintest clue. I may have spirits from another realm, and even a Zodiac key, but that hardly makes me an expert on objects from outer space. I am generally more interested in things that are ancient and of this world." Although maybe now she should start to consider traveling back to the planets connected to the Wakusei Portals and seeing what sort of things she could find there. It had been such a long time since she last visited any of them. Maybe there would be other rocks similar to the one that came crashing down the night before. "Have you sent word to anyone from Silver Wolf? They may be able to help in this matter. At least, I presume so. Whether their magical expertise goes into the category of space objects I do not know."

The boy suddenly shouted as if a sudden lightbulb lit up and shattered above his head in explosive inspiration. Samira blinked, wide eyed at first, but then settled down as she sat back in her chair and placed her hands on her lap. She watched as he brought out a key and summoned a spirit. So that was what he meant by asking. He was one of the summoners that had not yet reached a point where he could communicate with his spirits mentally, if he ever could at all. It wasn't always something someone could do no matter how advanced they were. Or maybe that particular spirit just preferred being summoned to communicate. It could have gone either way. Whatever the case, the summoned spirit took the form of a beautiful owl. Just how many pretty and cute critters did he have contracts with? It was almost enough to make even her jealous. Zachary turned his attention back on her, beaming with pride as he introduced the spirit. That was a good thing as far as Samira was concerned. He was the type of summoner that was kind and respected his spirits, and took pride for what they were. Others had a habit of treating them as nothing more than tools or slaves. A disapproving type in her view to say the least. Samira smiled and gave an acknowledging nod towards the owl. As she opened her mouth to speak the man she had sent to fetch all that juice had actually come back. With the juice! It was a moment of celebration!

She turned her head to glance up at the man and reach for one of the mugs of juice. Her intention after was to thank him but he had said something that the owl spirit took offense to. She flew over, angry and threatening, and almost caused the precious juice to slip and fall to the floor. The horror! But thankfully the man seemed to be able to refrain from actually dropping it despite his newfound terror of birds. He didn't even have to place them on the table really. Before he had the chance Samira flicked her wrist and they all vanished in colorful sparkly particles, having been sent to the other world for the spirits to enjoy until the next batch came. One remained for herself, which she took from the wide eyed man who did not expect them all to vanish in an instant. "Thank you. Perhaps you should bring the rest on a sort of cart or something, though. Carrying them all seems inefficient."

"A cart?" The man blinked. He didn't have a damn cart! Was he really supposed to just roll a juice cart through the entire place? But then the reminder of the terrorizing bird hit him. And then the woman's magical strength. It was just not his day. "Fiiinnneee." Walking away slowly, he could only look to the ceiling and inquire to some invisible yet all powerful being up above. "Why me?" What a day.

With her juice now in hand, she set the mug on the table and opened a mini celestial portal that was big enough for her to reach her arm through. Out came a straw as she pulled her arm back. She was listening in on Zachary talking with his owl spirit, Professor Nyx, even while she seemed distracted. Multi tasking wasn't exactly anything new for her by that point. She remained silent through the whole thing, only making enough noise to raise the cup and sip through the straw. Sip. Sip. Siiiiippppp. Well it seemed while the owl was looking through her magical scroll, as well as the mysterious stone, Samira had reached the bottom of the cup, thus making the annoying sipping noise that naturally occurred. "Well?" Samira broke the sipping sound and lowered the cup slightly. "Did you find out anything?"

(Word Count: 1446
Total So Far: 4532)

Zachary felt a bit embarassed after his compliment that made him sink in his seat a bit while Prof. Nyx worked on looking over the meteorite and her notes that flew across her scroll's surface. "Well, you see..." he said, seeming timid at his age was no surprise, "The truth is I only just joined Fairy Tail. I been here for about a couple weeks . While true I met Arcadia, who is an amazing Dragon Slayer, I haven't met others just yet. So I really do feel I am out of touch with things. As you can imagine here, Fairy Tail wasn't the brilliant star it used to be... " Zachary said, reminded by the crass member Samira had to deal with and the other hayseeds around. He did, however, shake off his gloom and smiled. "But I am proud to be a member of Fairy Tail. I wanted to be a part of this guild since I was a kid, so I am glad to be here. I still just have a lot to learn, is all," he said to her.

"Hmm, very interesting..." Nyx said, giving a soft hoot as she looked up from her notes and the meteorite.

Zachary turned to the owl, excited. "Prof. Nyx, did you learn anything good about it?" he asked with excitement. Ruby perked up too, sitting erect like a cat would and swished her ruby-tipped tail.

The owl stretched her wings for a moment and looked to them all. "This is a very curious object, indeed. After much research, I have come to a conclusion and..." she paused for a moment, in thought.

Zachary leaned closer, on the edge of his seat to hear what the wise owl had to say. "... And? " he asked.


"... I haven't the foggiest," the owl said flatly with a flick of her feathers.

THUD!!

Ruby jumped like a startled mouse and looked over to find Zachary had fallen off his seat, now face down on the ground from the disappointing news. Slowly, Zachary crawled back up and got up to the bench, looking over as both Ruby and Prof. Nyx looked down at their wizard. "Are you kidding me...? " Zachary groaned, now wanting some juice himself to drown his disappointment. "With all the knowledge you seen and have access to, you really have no clue about this?"

The snowy owl turned her head side to side and looked to the Meteorite. "The stone itself is a highly magical and physical resilient shell-- impenetrable by any known power. ANd because of that, analysis magic is impossible to tell what is contained inside. Furthermore," the owl said, "my knowledge only goes as far as what is beyond our own celestial sphere... so naturally this is beyond the origins of the cosmos that I have access to. I'm very sorry..." the owl said.

"There are some things i can hypothesis," she said, "One, the shell is generally weaker on the inside from its shape-- almost like an egg. If it is meant to be open, it will do so. Further, the magic energy seems to pulse... suggesting it may very well be 'alive'."

While she let those ideas sink in, The owl turned to Samira, and tilted her head. "What of you, lady Nassar? Clearly someone of your repute must have come to a similar hypothesis?" the owl asked. "Someone of your famous skill must of sensed that much."

Zachary stopped for a moment as he sat back up. "Famous? Wait... Nyx what are you talking about?" he asked.

THe owl shook her head. "Oh, you mean you don't recognize her. Zachary... " the owl said , looking disappointed how Zachary was so focused on his problem that he didn't realize who this woman was. Though the costumes, in his defense, tore away from the images on Sorcerer Weekly. "This young lady, is in fact Ms. Samira Nassar, often referred to as 'the queen of the Spirits'. She is one of the 10 wizard saints-- and among them, one of the four gods of Ishgar. " the owl said matter-of-factly, and probably flattering Samira a bit.

Needless to say, those who heard this paused and looked at her-- as if the mailmaid turned out to be something totally explosively different. Zachary among them was in awe as it came back to him. The beautiful blue-haired lady with the tattoos and well known for her celestial wizardy skills.

"No way... I knew I recognized you from somewhere!" Zachary said and sat down in disbelief. "I don't believe it... It's an honor to meet you, Ms. Samira," Zachary said and bowed his head deeply to her, clearly among a far superior wizard than he was.

Meanwhile, Ruby just looked on obliviously to such things-- the little carbuncle let out a purr as she exchanged looks between Zachary and Samira.

WC: 814

Samira had just continued sipping at the juice as Zachary explained he had not really met all that many members of his guild. He was still pretty new apparently. That made sense. Comments about the guild in its past and in its current state were also contained. She had none to give. It wasn't any of her business on how the guild was doing in that regard, nor did she know its inner workings. Her opinion was simply that every guild had its bad apples. Surely the good ones made up for that. At the very least he was still proud to be a part of his guild regardless. After he finished and after her finishing her juice and asking the owl of her progress, the avian spirit spoke up. A very vague comment, however. Only that what she did acknowledge was interesting.

The Saint waited patiently. A bit less eager than the younger summoner who was on the edge of his seat... and then fell quite literally in disappointment. Blink. Blink. Well that was awkward. "A bit of an over reaction there, Mr. Sirius." She wanted to laugh but she forced her calm demeanor to remain even as she watched him crawl back up to his seat. He already had to deal with the disappointment that his wisest spirit knew nothing of the meteorite so there was no sense in adding in being laughed at for his rather expressive ways of handling news.

Her empty mug of juice disappeared and was replaced by a new one that appeared in sparkly celestial particles. Apparently that flavor of juice a particular spirit didn't like and so sent it to her so it was not wasted. A twisty straw had been added to that one. Not really her choice as the traditional type would do and was less childish but well, she'd take the gift without complaint. And so she sipped her way quietly through that juice as well while listening in on Professor Nyx's explanation. The sipping came to a stop when she heard her name. She blinked, having not really expected to be asked about it again. Yes, someone currently sipping juice through a brightly colored twisty straw like a child was clearly someone to go to for such advanced knowledge.

Her eyes shifted to look at the owl and then Zachary a few times over as the two discussed who she was. Apparently Leo had not actually went into detail about that after she made her departure the night before. It wasn't exactly important, but it would have prevented this same awkward scenario from happening again. Although she did end up choking on her juice after hearing the "Queen of Spirits" title. That was a new one and something she wouldn't exactly say was common. It had been the first time she had ever heard it! Maybe it was a spirit world title or something. Certainly not a Fiore one as far as she knew. But to declare she was a queen of anything was most certainly silly and so far from the truth.

Her choking had led to a coughing fit that took a few seconds to pass. The juice mug was slammed on the table, and she quickly turned in her seat to face away from the table as she tried to recover and recompose herself. That choking and coughing fit was anything but graceful or controlled, but it was a sudden and unexpected shock to her mind. "Lets not over-exaggerate," she said after turning back to face them and clearing her throat. Her lips had formed into a rather embarrassed and awkward smile, and her complexion had turned a couple of shades redder. "I do not know where that queen title came from, but it is entirely false. Please do not use it. Or the others really. Just Samira is fine." It was odd really. She recalled in the past that she often wished that she wasn't overshadowed by the friends that had such titles and power. Now that she had one herself she didn't really feel comfortable with it. Now she understood how some of the ones she knew felt on a common basis back when they had titles such as Wizard Saint. It had its interesting moments. After all, it was generally a symbol of power to most and with that came benefits of recognition and trust for important and difficult missions. However, some took it a bit too seriously and put it on a pedestal of fame as if it were a celebrity status worth worshipping. That part she didn't particularly care for like some others would. At least Zachary didn't do something silly such as ask for an autograph. He just... bowed his head instead. That was actually on the same level of silly.

Samira cringed inside when she saw the head bow. "Please do not do that." The smile became even more awkward and her request followed by a nervous laugh. She wanted to die, especially when she took notice of the others in the room that had paused and looked over the moment they overheard the owl. Did... those people really not recognize her earlier just because she wore a mailgirl outfit and cap? Was she really the only Wizard Saint that still did the simple mail delivery jobs from time to time just to help out? Oh, dear. Well that was embarrassing. Clearing her throat again, she tried to force a change in subject, specifically the meteorite. "As I said before, I do not know what it is. I can theorize all day, but it is only that; theories. I suppose I can ask my own spirits if you like. It does not seem to be a topic of interest to them or they would have made comments by now, but there is a chance they may know something. I only need to ask. Or we can wait to see if it does anything on its own while it is sent elsewhere for study. I am afraid that you will very unlikely find anything yourself in these books if Professor Nyx could not find concrete information about the existence of such an object."

(Word Count: 1034
Total So Far: 5566)

Zachary paused at her request-- realizing revealing her idenity and making a big deal about her was only making her embarrassed. Nyx fluffed her feathers, hearing Samira's request. "I beg your pardon. Just a little title those who know of your reputation with summoning called," the owl said.

Zachary too regarded her words and sheepishly nodded. "Sorry, Ms. Nassar. I didn't mean to embarrass you," he said politely.

After which, many returned to their own business-- but no doubt that man ferrying all the juice to her knew well why she was so scary and powerful. To treat her poorly or to anger her might of been equivalent to having a bomb in the guild hall-- able to wipe it away in an instant. As things calmed down, Zachary smiled as he got the chance to talk to her fully aware of who she was.

"I gotta say, It's really nice to meet you formally. It was rare for me to meet other summoners, let alone another Celestial Wizard outside of my mother," Zachary said , expressing how much he respected her professionally. He wasn't the 'fan' type clearly but respected. "It's truly an honor."

But their attention slowly drifted back to the mysterious meteorite, sitting there with the strange crystals in its shell-- slowly glowing softly. "I guess you're right... it sounds almost like an egg. if that is the case, we just need to wait and be patient..." Zachary felt the urge to bite his cheek-- hating to wait and being a touch impatient.

Nyx stayed around and decided to help herself to some of Zachary's uneaten breakfast-- while Ruby kept a distance as she did almost resemble a type of squirrel or mouse that owls liked to eat. Zachary took the chance to ask Samira a question-- one he was curious about. "So what kind of Celestial Spirits are you contracted with? I mean you know I have Leo, and a few other spirits-- some odder than others," he chuckled a bit. "I'd love to hear what kinds you have."

Nyx turned her head to Zachary. "That odd comment better not be referring to me, mister," she warned, but Zachary waved it away, denying it and offering Nyx a soft pat on her fluffy head.

While they were talking-- one of the nearby guild members had a thought. "Hey, Zach! What if it is an alien!" he asked.

Zachary froze at the thought-- his imagination starting to picture it even when he didn't want to. "An... alien?" Zachary squeaked.

The man, another of the rougher looking guildmates just grinned as he took a little joy in hazing the newbies-- in this case Zachary. "Yeah. I hear those things are no joke. They come down from the sky on meteorites or 'space ships' or something like that... and they aren't like spirits. They are beasts. Monsters... some that come down as eggs. When they hatch, they search for humans to--- "

WHAP! He slammed his hands on the table to startle Zachary. "They latch on to your face! Some eat your brain-- if your lucky. Or they shove eggs down your throat and before you know it-- their offspring burst through your chest to feed off your flesh. Hahaha!!"

Unfortunately for Zachary, one blessed with a great creativity and imagination, the mental image he constructed from his words alone started to form as he could actually see it in his mind. The thought of aliens busting out of his chest made his stomach ache, and his face pale. He scooted over away from the meteorite for a moment, dreading if that was true.

"Oh for stars' sake," Prof. Nyx cooed and turned her head now to face the other guildmember. "Quit tormenting the child with your ill-conceived science fiction squabble. The odds of such creatures happening upon this planet-- let alone existing in our known universe is slim to none."

Recovering his courage, Zachary reached over and held the meteorite, looking deep into the light. As the guildmate and Nyx squabbled, Zachary looked into it-- soon seeing something resembling a spiral galaxy. The thought of something actually living inside it-- was it possible?

It was then with that very thought and lost in the events around the guild-- the meteorite glowed again.

This time-- much brighter. It pulsed now, but in truth with so many spirits and with Samira's own magic nearby, it was like a catalyst that woke up the magic inside the meteorite. It began to pulse, shining and caused everyone's attention to turn to it.

"What the hell?!" the other guild mate said as he saw the stone. This time the first one dropped his juice as he saw the stone glow.

"Noo!!!" Zachary cried out, "Please, don't eat my brain!!"

It was at that moment, the meteorite began to actually levitate softly off the ground and glowed brighter. A soft voice could be heard to those nearby, like a vocal call-- but the emotion was not hostile, hungry or vicious. But calm-- almost innocent.

Fear was replaced by awe as Zachary looked up, wondering what was inside. The meteorite began to glow as pure light-- then seeming to unravel as ribbons of magic energy peeled off it. Something soon dropped from it-- clattering to the table below where Samira and Zachary sat.

A strange key, made of a black, starry material that moved on its own. A small wonder compared to the events happening above their heads.

WC: 914

Much relief came to the Saint when it seemed as if both Nyx and Zachary realized that she did not like the usage of titles or even the extra attention. She sighed, expressing that relief and calming herself down as everyone in the room returned to their business. Still though, it was a wonder just how many green haired women that fit her description there were if no one actually noticed who she was to begin with even in the mail uniform and cap. Were her features just that common? She hadn't thought so before, and admittedly it was a strike to whatever cosmetic vanity she may have had. Oh well. That wasn't entirely important and as far as she was concerned she supposed the blending in thing was beneficial in most cases.

"I suppose it is a bit more of a rarer type than others," Samira stated when Zachary brought up that he had not met many other summoners, let alone celestial. Her eyes stared up at the ceiling as she tapped her cheek in thought. "If I recall I think I have only met two others with the celestial type. Both owners of a Zodiac. Adding you would make three. If I counted myself, four." That was about it as far as Celestial magic went. One had been a friend of hers and the owner of Aquarius. She hadn't heard any news of someone else having that particular key so whether her friend still had it, someone else claimed it, or if the key was lost and still waiting to be found was uncertain. The other was that of Leila Vergious, the owner of the Libra Zodiac key. As she had mentioned, Zachary was the third as the owner of Leo. Herself the owner of Sagittarius. 'Perhaps I should start making a checklist at this point,' she thought, realizing that every celestial mage she met had been a Zodiac owner. Maybe she'd meet all twelve one day, but with how many times the keys likely changed hands that may have been an impossible, or at the very least difficult, endeavor. However, that also made her realize that she had not met, or even heard of, a celestial mage that did not have a Zodiac. It was strange for them to be that rare. "I have only met a couple of the non-celestial type of summoner, but I believe they are generally more common." One of those was Leona Jarnefeldt with her harpy-type summons. There were other big names with summoning magic as well. She was pretty sure she had heard rumors of one of Sabertooth's Aces having a sort of summoning magic, but whether that was true or not was not something she herself could confirm without straight up asking the woman quite randomly. "I suppose when put into perspective it is a small community when it comes to those that use such magic. Who can say as to why?"

The boy had agreed that being patient was the best plan thus far. A plan he seemed to not enjoy very well. Samira sat back in her chair and crossed her legs, staring at him silently as if studying him. He did not seem to be the patient sort in general. Just from being acquainted with him in such a short amount of time, she saw that he already disliked waiting and was wanting quick answers. The particular scenario was hardly a good example of something that would get quick or easy answers. More than likely he'd run into that sort of thing more often than not. He was going to have to learn to slow down a bit. Sure he seemed to agree with her at that moment, but those around his age were quick to change their minds once the adult left the room. No doubt he'd lose his ability to wait very quickly. That was her prediction anyway.

During her silence he had asked what sort of spirits she had. An odd yet interesting question. Interesting because well, that was something most would likely ask. It was a topic they shared. Odd because... well she had just mentioned that she had a Zodiac key but he failed to ask which one she even had in her possession or seemed interested in it at the time. His focus was a bit all over the place. Whether he was always like that or because he was too enthralled by the meteorite topic she could not assume accurately. "They all have their own unique qualities, I suppose," Samira intentionally left her explanation vague. It was difficult to explain, and she really did not want others to take it as if she were bragging. Moreover, very few actually knew the secrets of her spirits, and she wasn't about to just blurt it all out to a child she had just met. "You already saw two of them last night, so the rest are similar in the type of power they are and their creation. It is mainly their appearances and their personalities that set them apart from each other. Aside from ability, of course. You could probably explain your own magic in this same way as you grow in power and gain access to more. It gets difficult without it becoming an essay or speech that can make others fall asleep in the middle of it. Or maybe I am just terrible at making the explanation very short."

During the discussion a random man interrupted by bringing on the almost ridiculous but entirely plausible idea that what was inside the meteorite was a hostile alien that would either eat all of their brains or use humans as vessels for its young. Samira remained quiet, even as the man slammed down on the table for added emphasis to his spooky story. A story that seemed to work quite effectively on the youth. Nyx scolded the man for putting ideas into Zachary's head, something Samira partially agreed with since the way he had done it was more of a joke rather than a warning, however, Samira also disagreed with it. "Pardon me, but it is actually quite possible that, that is what is inside the space rock. Zachary should be cautious and prepared to take action if it is something hostile. I am sure that you are aware of the Wakusei Portals, Professor Nyx. These connect to other planets that have many dangerous and unknown creatures living upon them. It is not much a stretch that this came from such a planet. Whether it be one connected by the portals or an entirely different one in this universe. The odds may be slim, but they are present." Honestly in her monster hunting guild days she gained enough experience to know that it was quite possible that such a monster living on their planet also existed somewhere. It didn't exactly need to fall from the sky to be a possible fact.

While she was discussing that matter with Nyx and the other man, the glowing meteorite had gone unnoticed at first. But then it became brighter to the point that it was impossible to ignore without being completely dense. It got everyone's attention, and Samira could only sigh hopelessly as the first thing out of Zachary's mouth was for it to not eat his brain. Not the bravest of mages, was he? No matter. She disregarded him and instead focused on the floating unknown space rock. There was a voice, calm and innocent. Samira had felt such a thing before but that did not mean she was foolish enough to trust it entirely. Samira's own magic energy sparked and pulsed as she activated a spell that spread and ported everyone out of the room aside from Zachary and his spirits, and herself. She wasn't about to let anyone get hurt in case the thing inside actually did turn out to be hostile. And since this was Zachary's business she felt it fair to keep him there. It was certainly easier to protect one child than it was an entire room. Aside from that, Samira sat there calmly and in an emotionless state. She waited. Something clattered onto the table that caught her attention. A key. One that was black and had a look of stars upon it. She reached for it to examine it, and assuming she could even pick it up, she did so. Otherwise it would be left on the table and she'd not bother going for it again. "I highly doubt this is a type of monstrous alien. If it is, it can be controlled." Clearly she was getting at the fact that if it had a key then it was a being or spirit of some sort that was similar to celestial magic spirits. "I suggest you act quickly and make it yours just in case it turns out to be something other than it seems to be. Do not always trust magic or beings that seem calm and innocent." If she had the key she would gently hand it over to Zachary, otherwise she would motion to it for him to take it. Samira had no interest in claiming whatever it was for herself. She had, after all, let him have the meteorite as his reward for his aid the night before. Whatever came from it was therefore also his.

(Word Count: 1563
Total So Far: 7129)

"Very true, Lady Nassar, Nyx commented in the midsts of the glowing meteor-- continuing the intellectual debate, "I can confirm the existence of liquid-like creatures called symbiotes that are parasitic entities that seek human hosts to survive and usually turn them into monstrous creatures in exchange."

"YOU GUYS AREN'T HELPING!!" Zachary shouted, freaking out in an immature reaction to the fright of the meteorite overhead.

He was ignorant of the strange key for the moment. His attention was at the glowing meteorite now unraveling magic before them. Despite the radiant energy and feel of non-threatening magic, it was an awe-inspiring site. Finally, the unfurling of the energy lessened, causing a small shape to be made out from the light. It shimmered as it hung there, being a small size no bigger than a ball. Big or small, Zachary was nervous to wonder what or who was inside the meteorite. Even his spirits were in awe, wondering what it was.

The fact they were alone at the moment didn't register in his mind-- but he saw Samira hand over a key that he didn't see. She was quick to make note that the key might be related to the THING above their heads. He didn't have time to process it, but he quickly took it when offered, his attention right back to the meteorite now undergoing metamorphosis

Finally, the light faded in a climactic moment, revealing an odd-shaped creature... asleep. What was expected to be some sort of fearsome, intimidating and possibly grotesque alien appeared to be a small, almost cherubic creature with a star-shaped head and ribbons attached to the points of them. Its face appeared to be peaceful, seemingly asleep.  Its 'body' was a small round ball, almost swaddled by the air as it hovered there.

Fear slipped away from Zachary at the sight of the seemingly small and adorable little creature that hovered in the air-- the overwhelming light now gone and things calming down.As it did-- the little 'ball' of its body seemed to unravel too-- revealing ribbons that were used as if to keep its white body warm.

"Wow..." Zachary could only breathe as he saw it, clearly witnessing something more amazing than a fallen meteorite. He wasn't sure if it was an egg or something else, but this creature was clearly adorable.

As it lowered itself from the air-- it neared the table. Instinctively, Zachary moved in to catch it. He quickly extended his arms and soon had the little creature swaddled as if it was a baby. His breathing was hard, nervous as he held it, the excitement clearly testing his limits.

Zachary felt every soft breath the little creature made, his senses super aware to it. Curious, Ruby crawled up Zachary's shoulder to get a better view of the creature. It slept there for a few minutes, Zachary speechless-- till it suddenly stirred, its eyes tightening for a moment.

His breath caught in his chest as he saw its little eyes slowly open, revealing watery black eyes that appeared as large as opals. From its perspective, the world was bright-- till his eyes focused, and soon saw the sight of Zachary as its first sight since it awakened from the rock.

It didn't struggle or make any sudden movement as he laid in Zachary's arm, clearly comfortable where he was. It was then-- a soft chime radiated through the room. A 'voice' that seemed to echo into the minds of those in the guild hall.

Ooooh... oooh? Umm....aahhh... soft cooes and chimes like music, but all echoing into their minds of all those in the room.

Nyx fluttered beside Samira and Zachary. "Oooh! I see. It's telepathic. Quite curious," she mused.

Once more, it cocked its head to Zachary, now more awake and looked up to him with big eyes. A gulp finally freed itself from Zachary's throat as the young mage finally worked up the courage to speak. "Um... hello, " he said , working up a soft smile.

He...loo? the voice repeated-- a soft, chirpy, sound that came into their heads in response. As it did, it soon stretched its little arms and its mouth opened wide silently-- releasing what Zachary could only assume was a yawn.

While the creature was clearly not hostile in any seeming way, the hatching of it came with more questions than answers, and surely Samira would have her own opinions and thoughts on such an amazing creature.

But one thing was sure. Earthland had never seen such a creature before.

WC: 756

Well the boy's over the top frightened state vanished quite suddenly, as if the fact he was mesmerized by the glowing took over any of his more logical senses. It reminded Samira of the type of person that would instantly forget about everything once their eyes caught sight of something shiny. No matter. As long as she kept her own senses in check things would be fine. She wasn't the type to suddenly forget about everything. The fact that the creature was some cute thing mattered little. Weren't most babies of even the most terrifying of monsters small and adorable? "Jing," the woman said nonchalantly out of nowhere. To most it was just a random word, but in actuality she was calling on one of her spirits. A spirit that wasted no time in answering the call, although very annoyed about it because she was in the middle of her own work that didn't involve babysitting a grown woman.

The spirit incarnation of Jing Wei appeared in a swirl of colored particles, along with various rolled up scrolls that were in her hands and then fell to the floor once she became fully solid. She had dropped them. The beautiful scrolls that she had just finished organizing perfectly and was in the midst of delivering them. She scowled as she looked at the mess on the floor. "Aw, come on! I was almost! Now I am going to get scolded for not meeting the deadline!" She ignored the floating glowing whateverthehell was happening because it wasn't her problem. Her problem was the green haired summoner that interrupted her! Hands on hips, the spirit sent that fierce annoyed glare at the one that pressed the dial button and called. "What do you want anyway? It better be good and I am so giving you something to sign so I don't get in trouble for this again. I swear it's like working two jobs except one gives me a crap schedule and overlaps the other one!"

Samira ignored the tone of Jing and merely nodded in the direction of Zachary and the uh... whatever it was. "Do you know anything about that creature?"

"Eh?" Jing turned to look at the boy and the yellow star-shaped blob with an arch brow. "Why? Are you afraid it's going to eat your brain or something?" The spirit waved her hand as if brushing the thought aside. "Just kill it before it gets too big like all of those other monsters. Jeez, do I have to do your job for you too?"

"Jing..."

"Fine. Fine. I don't know why you couldn't just call those that pretend they know everything about everything." Jing muttered as a scroll appeared in her hands. She unrolled it and began to read, quite rapidly actually. In a matter of seconds the paper of the scroll had unraveled with its length extending on the floor and all the way to the room's exit. "Yeah, I don't see anything here talking about," she paused for a second to look at the creature again and then going back to the scroll, "...that." To her it looked like some form of living plushie doll or even a wind chime due to the way it mentally spoke, but it was obviously not either of those. She guessed. The scroll's paper began to withdraw back into being a rolled up scroll once more. "But I don't exactly have unlimited access to the directory. You'd have to ask the higher ups. Ra could probably get you in if he didn't know anything himself, but you'd probably be better off just letting that monster eat your brain before bothering him about it."

A hopeless sigh escaped Samira. Yes, the world might as well explode and be remade before anyone tried that endeavor and hoped anything actually came from it. "No need. Just document it. Use my iLac to take pictures too."

"More work? Jeez, I'm not exactly sitting here with nothing to do, you know! Argh!" Nevertheless, the spirit summoned up a new scroll and started writing on its page to document the creature and what was known about it thus far, which wasn't very much but eh, gotta start somewhere. Maybe it could be used to compare to some of the more super secret files in their part of the other world. There was always a chance she could use her own connections to get through, or maybe the others would know something. If they even cared. They were still keeping to themselves, most likely playing board games or something because mail day was a boring day.

As for Samira, there was only one thing to do at that very moment. Taking a stand, she walked around the table to Zachary's side so she could get a better look at the thing. Then she reached out and poked it with her finger. Right on its cheek. Then another poke on its star-shaped head. Then another between the eyes. Poke. Poke. Poke. The poke test has commenced! There was an odd shaped line on its belly that she noticed, almost like the lid to an eye. Strange.

(Word Count: 858
Total So Far: 7987)

In the midsts of the discovery, Samira called out a single word. As it turned out, it was a name-- as the command called a summon. One Zachary never had seen regarding Celestial Spirits. THis was in the form of a woman with brown hair tied into twin tails. It reminded him of Arcadia-- if she was a brunette. She was older and carried a series of scrolls. All of which went into a clatter on the ground and table as she was appeared.

The peace of the little mysterious creature was shattered by her ranting about how she was called away from her work. Zachary said nothing, his mouth sealed shut in fear he might offend the other knowledge spirit. Nyx, as well puffed out her feathers, as if a bit jealous or threatened by the presence of another knowledge spirit. At least one who looked as ... beautiful as she did. NOt that Nyx wasn't beautiful in her own way as an owl. As she ranted about being late and that it was important, Zachary held the little star-critter close. However, the star just stared at her blankly, as if dumbfounded by all the noise.

The mention to kill it made Zachary worry a bit. Though he was sure there was some truth to trust blindly by appearances... Zachary just looked at the little creature in his arms. He was like a baby. Just looking at his big eyes wide with curious wonder just made his heart melt. "H-hey! Let's not be so hasty here! He... seems harmless..." he said, even more so from the calming and benevolent magic power they had sensed prior... or whatever it was. Either way, IT was the source.

When she brought up the eating their brains, Zachary furrowed a brow at Jing. "You ... are a mean, lady. " Zachary said matter-of-factly, accompanied by Nyx who gave a soft hoo as she looked upon the star-critter.

After Samira took pictures of it with her Ilac phone, she reached out to gently poke the creature. Nothing harmful by the look of it, but after each touch, the little creature would fidget. Ooh... hee... he cooed in his telepathic voice. He was soft to the touch, and warm. Each time he was poked however, he began to fidget his eyes closed and begin to let out a sound that clearly told the little guy was ticklish. Ahaheehee... Heeoooh! Tick... Tickle. Tickle... Ahh!.

Zachary felt his heart melt at the cheerful sounds in his head from the creature. Whatever it was, it seemed sweet and innocent-- clearly not the blood-thirsty alien monster they feared, but still a mystery. Despite that, the weight on Zachary's heart remained as he had absolutely no clue what they had before them. "Well at least we know its ticklish? "

"And telepathic," Nyx chimed in as she looked upon the creature. "If I had to wager a guess, I think it uses telepathy as a natural adaption mechanism. It can read minds to some degree-- enough for it to sense ill intent or threats against them. But there is no record of creatures who have it naturally. Further, the magic power it has is ... unusually large. There is clearly more to this creature than meets the eye." Nyx said.

By this time, the other members who were teleported out of the guild hall returned. Some were confused by the removal-- others annoyed or concerned by what happened by the glowing light, but were soon greeted by the sight of the creature in Zachary's arms.

"That stone was THAT little thing?" someone asked, interested.

At that moment, the star-critter suddenly felt light in Zachary's arms-- and soon he saw it drift upward. The little creature seemed to levitate up in the air, as if it was a wayward baloon. Its eyes still sleepy, he floated up a few meters near one of the support beams...

BONK!

The star-critter bumped his little head softly on the top of it, and lazily made his way back down. Oooooh... he said softly as he floated, and this time he floated towards Samira, her able to catch him if she wished.

The others in Fairy Tail gathered around, now cheerful and excited to see the new creature that seemed to be born in their guildhall. Happiness seemed to fill the air as they began asking questions what it was, or where it came from.

"Sorry guys... he is just as mysterious as the rock was before... but what do you think we should call it?" he asked, more directed to Samira. "We can't just keep calling it , well... 'IT'. "

WC: 779
Personal TWC: 5379

Zachary's comments mostly went unheard by the spirit that had been dubbed as a "mean lady." With a roll of her eyes and a wave of her hand to rid her personal bubble of those ridiculous statements, Jing focused on her actual work while everyone else acted like the star-shaped pillow was anything special. Maybe it was though. She didn't know. Information about it wasn't in any of the directories that she had access to. While she did not really sense or suspect any sort of jealousy from the owl spirit, she would have been very confused about it if she ever did find out. A knowledge spirit was a bit of an exaggeration. She was a pretty low ranking spirit really that worked in an office. Being classified as one of all knowledge would have been a promotion! Hence why she didn't have access to everything that her type of spirits had access to. Or even all the knowledge of the celestial world. She jotted down the things being said, her own theories, and other facts such as being ticklish and being able to levitate. Not once did she even look up from the scroll, however, to even see it all happening. "The moment you give 'IT' a name that means you're going to get attached. I really wouldn't recommend doing that just yet. It's not some stray puppy that you found around the corner. Give it some research scientific codename or something. That's what everyone else does." The volume of her voice lowered a bit as she made an outward comment to herself. "Before the unknown lifeform eats everyone's faces off anyway." It's possible she had seen too many of those lacrima movies or read way too many monster books.

"I am terrible with names," was all Samira said as her input for name suggestions. There was little interest in her with naming the star creature. It wasn't hers and she was still a bit suspicious about its origins and what it really was. At the moment, it was harmless. In the future? Who knew? For now she held the creature to her chest as if she were holding onto a pillow, its face facing the others so it could see everyone else and everything that was going on instead of having a very close up view of her shirt. "Jing also has a point, but the repeated usage of 'IT' might be a bit rude, I suppose. Do you have any names in mind? I can at least give you an opinion of your ideas. That should not be difficult."

A few telepathic messages reached her mind as she got messages from the spirits that were helping her deliver mail elsewhere reported in. She really should be getting going soon in order to complete her task, but she supposed that she still had some time left for at least helping with a name. Thankfully the rest of the spirit circus were still busying themselves with other things to even bother giving their ridiculous name suggestions. They would not have been helpful whatsoever. Then there was also the issue with the key that fell from the rock as the star-creature "hatched." Samira had felt power from it as well, and had assumed it was connected with the creature, but thus far the two didn't seem to be related in the way that she thought. She probably should have stuck around to figure that out too, but she didn't have much time for that either. There were quite a few mysteries that needed solving. The name was the easy part.

'Jing, see what you can find out about that black key as well,' Samira instructed the spirit, keeping the request in telepathic form so as not to bring the topic up while Zachary focused on names. Might as well let the kid have whatever fun he was having instead of bursting all of his bubbles.

'Yeah, yeah. Why don't you just make me a complete list next time instead of adding on more work with every second? Jeez! Check on black starry key. Got it. If I end up with a mountain of paperwork because I'm wasting time doing this I am not going to be happy. At all!' Her reply was also done via telepathy, having got the hint. Jing snapped her fingers and all the scrolls disappeared in puffs of smoke while herself disappeared as a swirl of particles. She didn't even say goodbye. Rude!

(Word Count: 748
My Total So Far: 8735)
Thread Total: 14,114

New WC: 114

(Post in Closing)

It was clear that Samira was a pro and focused on the facts, as was her spirit. Zachary , being a bit more inexperienced and younger, was too engrossed in the wonder having seen a new-born creature, or something similar appear. Everyone soon was surrounding them in interest as Samira held it in her arms. She clearly could remain neutral while holding it. Zachary probably wouldn't as he already felt the sheer adorable appearance pull at his heart strings.

The mention of a name threw Zachary, as naming anything properly was a challenge. They didn't even know who it was, let alone WHAT it was. "A name, huh?" Zachary said, pretty much only regarding the sassy knowledge spirit a little bit since she was a bit rude. Leaning over, Zachary turned to the star critter and it turned to him. "What's your name little guy? Do you have a name?"

Name...? What's a ... name? it said, surprising more and more Fairy Tail Members with its natural telepathy.

Zachary blinked and looked at Samira. "Well, my name is Zachary. Zaaachaaary..." he said slowly, pronouncing it. "and this is Samira..." he said with the same slowness.

Zach...a...wy... Sam...i...wa... he said, replacing the Rs for Ws.

Clearly this was no smarter than a child, but adorable nonetheless. Its slurring of its words only made it more adorable, even if telepathic.

Zachary realized he had to give it something. "Well, until we know what to call him, why don't we settle for Star Critter for now. That sound good?" he asked.

Nyx nodded and gave a soft hoot, while the others agreed to the name of it. An appropriate name for a creature that shaped.

Samira no doubt wouldn't want to keep holding on to it forever, but still this creature was the mark of a brand new chapter in Fairy Tail, as it was now home to an alien species of magical creature. For better or worse... things were becoming interesting.

***

Elsewhere...

In the darkness, a single crystal ball glowed. No matter how bright the sphere got, the darkness wouldn't illuminate. However, a pair of hands reached out grazing the sphere and gazed at the brilliant light that glowed upon it-- showing many things.

... the meteorite that crashed.

... the woman and boy who found it.

... the Fairy Tail Guild hall.

... and finally, the image of the boy cradling the newly emerged Star-Critter.

"I knew it...," A voice hissed in the dark, one of desire and excitement, "After over a hundred years, a star has fallen. "

Amber-yellow eyes pierced the darkness as she gazed at the creature. The sound of licked lips came from her as she knew what she had to do. "Looks like I will be paying Magnolia a little visit. Soon, its eternal light will be mine. "

End for Now.