Wheels of Fire

Identical Insecurities

It took two days to paint the lacrima-fuel prototype car and put on the final touches. While Edo-Natsu hammered out the last few problems with the interior, Lucy went to the magic store to buy some liquid lacrima.

"What! It's how much?" she cried out to the shop owner.

He shrugged apologetically. "I'm sorry, honored customer, but you're asking to buy forty liters of liquid lacrima. I've never seen anyone need so much. I charge a gratuity fee on anything over ten liters."

She showed him the pink mark on the back of her hand. "I'm a member of Fairy Tail. Don't I get a discount?"

"Miss, that is with your guild member discount. The gratuity fee is specifically because of wizards like you. Regular citizens would never need more than a liter."

Lucy stroked her chin and considered it. Edo-Natsu said that for a proper test drive, the car should have no less than forty liters of fuel. Still, the 25% fee on the other thirty liters was ridiculous.

"Okay, give me ten liters," she sighed in defeat.

She paid, looking dejected the whole time. As soon as she was outside, her face changed to stubborn determination. She returned home and dropped the fuel off in her backyard. Edo-Natsu, shirtless with a tan beginning to form on his skin, leaned up out of the engine compartment and eyed the barrel.

"Um ... sorry, but that's a ten-liter barrel. I need four of those."

"Yep," she said with a smile, "and you're going to buy another ten." She pulled her Spirit Keys out. "Open the Gate of the Lion! Leo! Open the Gate of the Maiden! Virgo!"

The two poofed in front of her.

"Lucy, my love!" Loke cried out joyfully.

"I await punishment," Virgo said with a stiff bow.

Lucy handed each of them the money for the fuel. "Both of you will buy ten liters of liquid lacrima. Not at the same time! Loke, you can use your guild discount. Fireball..."

Loke glared possessively. "Why is that imposture still around?"

Lucy ignored him and told the pink-haired boy, "...I want you to try your hardest to pretend to be Natsu Dragneel: loud, rambunctious, demanding, that way the shop owner will give you the discount without asking to see your guild stamp. Virgo..."

Somehow, Virgo already had a tattoo gun out, gritting her teeth in preparation for the pain of giving herself a tattoo of the Fairy Tail symbol.

"Stop it!" Lucy cried out, yanking the tattoo gun out of her hand. "That wouldn't work, anyway. The stamp is magical. I calculated, and even without a guild discount, it's still cheaper than that lousy gratuity charge crap."

"Forgive me, Princess," Virgo said, "but if it's a guild member you need, Gemini would be better."

Lucy thought about it. "Oh, you're right! I'm used to Gemini only mimicking me, but they can copy someone like Gray, too. Okay, sorry Virgo. I'm not thinking well."

Virgo held up the tattoo gun. "I can give myself a bad tattoo as punishment."

Lucy sighed in frustration. "Please don't. I don't want people thinking you're a yakuza." She closed that gate and opened Gemini's. After explaining the situation to the Twins, they took on the shape of Erza.

"We can't do her magic perfectly, but she's scary. That shop owner would never question her," Gemini reasoned.

Lucy absolutely agreed with them. "Okay, Fireball, you're up first. Put on a long-sleeved shirt so they don't see the missing guild mark. Remember, act like Salamander. Yell, demand, pretend like you're about to break something."