Chapter 28 - Just Business

Fairy Tail: Paths of the Soul

"Hello?" Raven waved his hand in front of Amber's face, as the latter had been stunned into silence for a good moment. "Anyone alive in there?"

She shook her head to get over the shock, but her head was still spinning. "What are you doing here?"

He stared at her blankly for a second. "Do I know you, lady?"

Amber huffed at Raven's response, but there was something about the way he had said it that made her realise he wasn't trying to be an asshole. Maybe it was the blank look on his face. "I, uh..."

"Companion Amber!" A voice echoed from behind her, giving Amber just enough warning to turn around before someone lifted her off the ground in a chest crushing hug. "So you decided to join us after all?"

Amber gasped from the impact, and glanced down to a familiar head of pink hair belonging to the exuberant Terra. "Join... what?" She gasped, slowly changing her priorities. "Need... Air... Down... Please..."

Terra dropped her instantly, and Amber caught her knees in surprise just as Waylind rounded the corner to join them. "Thought you said you were goin' to be more careful with that monstrous strength a' yours?" He said, yanking on the back of Terra's collar. "You almost broke the new girl 'n half."

"You are right. I'm sorry." Terra bowed apologetically, but the unending smile made Amber question how sincere she actually was.

"You two know her?”"Raven asked, failing to understand how much of a sting his words carried.

"She joined the guild a few weeks ago. You've met her before." Waylind explained. The dull look in Raven's face persisted, and Waylind rubbed his chin as he thought. "She had some run-in with Payla, she joined up with Rift's team, Jaina likes her..." Raven shrugged, and Amber began to suspect he was just playing dumb. "She's the one Clair's been bitchin' about." Waylind huffed.

Raven's eyes lit up. "Oh yeah. You were the one hanging out with the boss's kid when she had her bag stolen, right?"

Amber nodded slightly. "Y-yeah..." Of all things, that's how he remembered her? She shook the thought off, then returned to her first question. "What are you all doing here?"

"We are working." Terra announced, admiring the back of Amber's security jacket. "The same as you, by the looks of it."

"Yeah, one of the LIT Company's CEOs paid big bucks to have the whole team watch his back." Waylind chuckled to himself, glancing over the banister to the crowd below. "Speakin' of, boss; Mace and Clair are on shift now. Clair looks right at home, Mace looks like he's about to kill somethin'."

Amber glanced down to the floor below, spotting two familiar faces in a crowd of strangers. The first one she saw was Mace, recognisable by the large ponytail of dreadlocks and a fairly obvious grimace on his face. Clair was standing next to him, though she look somewhat different than Amber remembered. She was smiling, polite, almost happy looking. Given how her last encounter with her had gone, Amber honestly found it kind of creepy.

She suddenly tuned into something Waylind had said, which drew her attention away from the guests. "Wait, whole team? Boss?" Amber glanced around at the three of them, when Terra gestured to Raven. "You mean him?"

"Well he sure as hell doesn't mean you." He said with a grin. Amber huffed in annoyance, but the albino slid his hands into his pockets and began walking away before she could voice a complaint. "Anyways, I'm goin' to find something to eat. Shout if something happens, and..." He stopped a moment to glance at the man standing between Clair and Mace. "Keep an eye on our esteemed employer."

"Yes, Master Raven." Terra gave him a quick solute, then dove to Waylind's arm the moment he was gone.

Amber glanced down at the guests again, but couldn't help but ask what was on her mind now. "So... You two are part of Raven's team?"

Waylind began to laugh. "You sound almost surprised."

"I kind of am..." She admitted. "You're a lot nicer than he is." She glanced down at Mace and Clair on the floor below, then added. "Or, they are."

Terra smiled gently, which made Amber think they were just messing with her, until she said. "It is not about nice, companion Amber. Master Raven is powerful. And each one of us respect him for that, in our own way."

"I feel it worth notin' though, Clair's the only one who wants to get in his pants." Waylind added with a grin.

Amber did a double take, and Terra flicked down the rim of his hat. "Oh, shush you."

Waylind readjusted his hat with a chuckle, but quickly returned to the still blushing Amber. "So what about you? Which one of these bigwigs paid you guys to come up here?"

Amber shook her head again, more thankful for a change of subject than either of them could have known. "Kat invited us. We're security for the Omnison's." Both Terra and Waylind widened their eyes, and Amber quickly added. "And... you guys aren't really allowed up here."

"Seriously?" Waylind swung his hands up to his hips. "They're so paranoid someone's goin' to steal their stuff that they-."

"Oh, come now. We do not want her to get in trouble." Terra interrupted, looping her arm around Waylind's. "We are sorry. We shall stay on the main floor from now on."

They spun to leave immediately, being out of sight in under a second. "Thanks." Amber called after them, not expecting things to have gone as smoothly as they had. She took one last look at the guests and, not wanting Ramosa to catch her loafing around again, headed towards the ballroom herself.

Being amongst the guests was no different than wondering around on her own, other than the fact that someone would occasionally bump into her. But other than that, she was still just as bored as she'd been all day. Amber hadn't seen a clock since she got out of bed that morning, but assumed from the growl in her stomach that it had to be well into the afternoon by now.

She'd made maybe half a dozen laps around the buffet by then, wondering if it was alright for her to get something to eat, when she spotted Shelly standing in the corner. Shelly noticed her too, quickly waving and disappearing into the nearest door. Amber follower her into a mostly empty hallway, where Shelly gave a tired sigh. "How's it going?"

"Kind'a boring." Amber shrugged, noticing Shelly had gotten rid of the ponytail Kat had given her, and had the ribbon she'd used tied around her wrist. "You look different."

"Yeah. That ribbon kept pulling my hair, so I took it out." She said, brushing her bangs over her ear. "I think Kat did it wrong."

"Greetings, Ms. Omnison." Shelly and Amber turned to see one of the butlers bow as Sinann approached from down the hall. She was wearing the same thing she'd had on the day before, but with her hair done into a high ponytail.

She brushed past many of the others, at most she smiled at a couple who greater her, and made her way straight up to the girls. "You two having fun?" She said, sounding like she'd just gotten out of the worst lecture she’d ever received.

"Well... Not really." Shelly moaned, exchanging glances with Amber. "I have no idea what to say to anybody. But they all want to know who I am and what I do."

Sinann smiled despite her glum tone. "You just described my entire life..." Shelly giggled quietly, composing herself as another couple walked past. "How about you... Um, Amber right? Ramosa hasn't been too hard on you, has he?"

"Kind of..." Amber nodded, finding it strange how casually she was able to talk with the host of this lavish party. She shook the thought away, rolling her shoulder to try and work some of the stiffness out. "These jackets are really heavy though." Sinnan quickly bowed. "Yeah, I'm really sorry. When I told Ramosa that Kat would bring some friends as bodyguards, I guess he assume you'd all be bodybuilders or something when he ordered them."

Shelly grinned devilishly. "Well, with Geno and Rift I guess he was half right."

They all laughed at that, which attracter a few odd glances from some of the other guests. Sinann quickly stopped herself however, always trying to keep up appearances. "If it bugs you that much, just find a place upstairs and rest for a while. Nobody else should be up there, so take a nap if you want."

"Really?" Amber blurted in disbelief. "Aren't we supposed to be security?"

"Have you taken a look around? My house looks like an army base." It sounded like she was making a joke, but Sinann still came off like she was annoyed by the ordeal. "It'll be fine. With two of your guild's S-class mages here, my house is probably the safest place in the city right now. Ramosa's just being paranoid because of..." She cut herself off, quickly looking around to make sure nobody was standing close enough to overhear. "That secret I told you about."

"You really don't mind?" Shelly asked earnestly.

"Take all the time you need." She assured, quickly turning to leave when one of the guests called to her. "Oh, but could you two find Lir for me first?" She added quickly. "She's not in her room, and I haven't seen her all day."

Shelly slumped her shoulders, apparently that wasn't very high in her priority list. "Sure, we'll keep an eye out."

Sinann smiled again, fully aware of how much she was asking. "Thanks a bunch. See ya later."

Finding a staircase proved to be a little more challenging than either of the girls could have assumed. Many of them where either blocked off in some way, or had an attendant standing watch. No doubt thanks to a combination of Raven's wandering and Ramosa's micromanaging, Amber assumed. But finally they came across one a little farther out of the way with nobody in sight, and the two quickly moved upstairs.

Shelly sat down at the first bench in sight, smoothing out her dress, kicking off her sandals, and curling her legs up beside her. "Ugh... My feet are freezing."

Amber meanwhile, wasted no time in getting her security jacket off, which fell to the ground with a dull thud. She felt so light now that it took a second to get used to, feeling a throbbing sensation in her knees. "I never want to wear that again..." She complained, dropping down next to Shelly.

"Just leave it here then." Shelly shrugged, cupping her toes in her hands. "If someone asks, I'll just say you're my bodyguard."

Hearing that made Amber giggle slightly, imagining herself wearing one of the black suits and dark shades she'd seen some of the other bodyguards wearing. Thinking about it made her remember another point though, something she felt it a good idea to share. "Speaking of bodyguards, Raven is here too."

"Yeah, I figured..." Shelly sighed, sounding more tired than bugged by the news. "I saw Clair and Mace with one of the guests a little while ago. She never goes anywhere without Raven, and if Mace is here too than I guess their whole team got hired."

Amber huffed; they were there to watch over the party, and this one person had Raven's whole team all to themselves. "Who would pay to have a whole team with them for something like this?"

"The guy they're with is a CEO of the Lacrima Incorporated Technologies Company. They make all sorts of electronics and stuff using Lacrima as batteries." She explained. "They're also one of the biggest competitors for the Omnison family, so I guess he's just trying to show off a little."

"I see..." Amber couldn't really think of a meaningful response. Politics had never been a fancy of hers, and she wasn't about to waste time trying to understand any of it now. "Do you think we should look for Lir? Or did you want to wait a bit?"

Shelly slumped down a little, apparently in no hurry to go anywhere right now. Despite this though, she grabbed her sandals, hopped to her feet, and nodded. "Yeah, I guess we did tell Sinann we'd look for her."

The two of them set off almost instantly, but Amber still felt the need to ask a few questions. "Why does she bug you so much? She's just a kid, isn't she?"

"Lir isn't a kid, she's only a little younger then Carra." Shelly sighed, trying not to sound harsh. "Last year she hid from everyone for so long that we thought something happened to her. Sinann almost cancelled the event just so more people could join the search. And when I found her she turned me into a hamster and ran away again." She paused a moment to pat her cheeks, getting rid of the scowl on her face. "She thinks everything’s a game, and... She's just immature."

Amber thought back, finding that description somewhat familiar. "Kat's kind of like that too, isn't she?"

Shelly skipped a step; apparently realising that she had a point. "Yeah... She is too. But Kat's only a goofball some of the time. Lir's..." She suddenly stopped in her tracks, staring farther down the hall.

Amber stopped too, squinting her eyes to try and figure out what Shelly was looking at. "What?"

"I think..." She took another step forward, pausing again to listen for something. "Lir? Is that you?" The only sound they heard was the distant drone of the party below, and the scowl returned to Shelly's face. "I'm not playing, if you're there then come out."

Again, there was no response. Shelly ran down the hall with Amber following not far behind, and the two stopped at the corner to peak around. It looked the same as the last, numerous doors on either side, the occasional potted plant or stature along the wall, typical rich people stuff. At the end of the hall though, the two of them spotted the ends of a small red dress disappearing around the corner with a telltale flow of hair coming out of the waist.

"Lir!" Shelly jumped out from the corner, a regretful look growing on her face. "Oh-no... I think she heard me."

Amber took a look around. Shelly had always spoken her mind about things, but this is the first time she could remember her sounding regretful about... Well, anything. "Is that bad?"

"I wasn't trying to..." She stopped herself, realising they had more important things to deal with now. "C'mon, Sinann asked us to find her and I... Just c'mon." Shelly suddenly broke into a sprint, and Amber again followed after her.

They made it to another intersecting hallway, and Shelly turned another direction with barely a glance. Amber followed just close enough to see Lir's tail vanish around another corner, then another, then another as they wormed their way through the upper level. "Wow, she can run." Amber muttered under her breath.

This only seemed to dishearten Shelly further. "Lir! Stop running!"

The two of them skidded around another corner, this time into a long hallway. They could see Lir almost half way down its length, and realised that they were slowly catching up with her. "Go away!" She yelled suddenly. "Don't follow me!"

"Lir, I'm sorry." Shelly called, giving chase again. "Please stop running..." It was apparent that she was running out of breath, and she began to slow down. Undaunted, Amber began to speed up, hoping to bring the chase to an end. If Lir thought this was a game, all she had to do was win, right?

Just as Lir reached the end of the hallway however, a rugged looking man stepped out from around the corner in front of her. "Hey kid, did you get the-?" He stopped abruptly when he noticed the girls chasing after her, and his eyes under the shadow of his brown knit cap. "Ah, you brought you're friends I see..."

Lir instantly shook her head. "No, they-."

"Well, time to move." The man waved her down another hall. "Listen to uncle Thain now." Lir took off running again, and the girls could both sense that something was off. This man didn't look like one of the guests, and with the way he dressed there was no way he was one of the staff.

Having pulled ahead of Shelly, Amber grabbed at her belt and went on the attack. "Armeria, turn-." She was cut off when something grabbed her foot, causing her to fall to the ground. She paused a moment to collect herself, the reached out and called. "Sirin!" Her belt transformed into a sword and flew down the hallway, which the stranger sidestepped with only a hair's margin.

He chuckled as the sword imbedded itself in the wall. "Got to do better than that to catch me!" He said in a mocking tone, just before he headed after Lir.

"C'mon, get up!" Shelly yelled as she ran past. Amber tried to follow, but something was still latched onto her leg. She looked back to find a small mannequin wrapped around her ankle, strangely able to keep her in place despite its size.

She kicked the thing away without so much as a thought, deciding that her curiosity could wait for later. She got to her feet just as Shelly rounded the corner, and sprinted to catch up. She touched the end of her sword on the way passed, still sticking out of the wall, which transformed into a belt again and jumped around her midriff.

She spotted Shelly half way down the next hall, as well as a door swinging open farther away. "Lir, what's going on?" She called, sounding more concerned now. She skidded into the room after her, when a sudden bright green flash emanated from the doorway. "Aaaahh!"

"Shelly!?" Amber cried, having just reached the door when the light faded. The inside was a bedroom, chairs in either corner with a bed in the center and books lining the walls. There was nobody in sight, but a half open door on the other end of the room leading to another hallway gave a fairly good indication as to where the others had gone.

Amber vaulted over the bed in one step, determined to find out what had just happened, when she heard Shelly's voice behind her. "Amber, wait!"

She caught herself on the doorframe, spinning around to look in the room again. It was still empty though; Shelly was nowhere in sight. "Shelly? Where are you?"

"I'm here." She could hear Shelly's voice, but she was still nowhere to be seen. What was more, she sounded a little different somehow. "Walk forwards."

Though still confused, Amber stepped back into the bedroom. Quietly, so she'd be able to hear her if Shelly said anything again. "Are you ok?" She asked again.

"Wait, wait, stop!" Amber froze in place, just as her foot was about to hit the ground, and glanced at the foot of the bed where she heard Shelly's voice. She didn't see it at first, but huddled beside one of the bedposts was a small rodent. What made it stand out however, was that its fur was a familiar shade of purple, and Amber quickly figured out what had happened. "Don't laugh..." It squeaked.

"Shelly?" Amber scooped up the tiny animal in her hands, staring at it in disbelief. "You're a..."

"I know..." She sighed, puffing out her furry cheeks in annoyance. "See? I knew coming here was a bad idea."

Next Chapter – Hamster Girl