Hot and Cold

The Cold Emperor

~*****~

I'll admit. Telling someone else about the weird quirk with the scratching wasn't a good idea in retrospect. I awoke to the sound of beautiful harp music some time later. I grumble lightly and crack my eyes open to see one of Lucy's Celestial Spirits playing the harp. I hum delicately and lean against my arms in relaxation. It was really good. I found myself thinking of Everest. About how her chilly scales always seemed to be warm just for me, or how she would always build the biggest fires just to keep me warm and cozy.

My thoughts disappeared when I heard someone sniffling. "Gray, what's wrong?" I hear Lucy ask softly.

"Nothing!" Gray snapped in a shaky tone. "I'm fine."

"You seem upset." Happy commented.

"Well, one of Lyra's talents is singing songs that relate to what her audience is feeling." Lucy says.

"Did her song make you cry?" Happy asks.

"I wasn't crying." Gray retorted irritably.

"Maybe you should sing something a little more upbeat." Lucy says.

"You should've just said that in the first place." Lyra retorts.

Gray sighs lightly. "I think we should skip the song." Gray mentions. "We need to stay quiet. We don't wanna be found out."

I glanced up at him before burrowing back into my jacket that I'd bundled up around me. "Fine with me..." I murmur lightly.

It feels only moments that I'd been asleep when I feel the earth shaking below me. "What's that noise?" Lucy murmurs in a sleepy tone.

"Is it night yet?!" Natsu chirps loudly.

I glance up as a purple light begins shining down onto Deliora's frozen body. "It's a beam of light!" Lucy shouted.

"Shining down from the ceiling!" Natsu adds.

"But why is it purple?" Gray asks.

"It must be moon light," I say. Happy flies into my arms.

"What's going on? I'm getting scared, Aria!" Happy said shakily.

I hum thoughtfully. "It's shining on Deliora." I comment.

"I don't think that's a coincidence," Natsu nods.

Gray clenches his teeth before snapping his head towards the exit. "Let's go!" He orders. "We have to find out where the lights coming from."

"Aye!" Happy chirps and leaps out of my arms. In the upper room of the temple, there's the same magic circle shining with purple light.

"Why would someone cast a magic circle inside this old temple?" Gray asks.

"Let's find out!" Natsu chirps.

On the roof of the old temple, there's a group of people standing in a circle with a beam of purple light shining down on the magic circle in the middle. "Zeram, Sen, Dioluna... Koo-nah, Koo-Rah-Kah..."

"What are they doing?" Natsu whispers as we edge closer.

They begin repeating the chant again, still tightly woven together. I glance upwards. "The moon..."

"It looks like those robbed freaks are chanting some spell to collect the moonlight," Natsu comments.

"And shine it on Deliora. But what for?" Lucy hums.

It clicks in my head finally. "It's a Belianese spell called the Moon Drip," I say lightly.

"What?" Lucy quirks her head at me.