Yeah, I don't own Fairy Tail. We good?
All was normal in the majestic building near the southern coast of Magnolia. The sun rained down on the white stone walls as wind whipped up the proud orange flag, ruffling the fairy insignia on the front. It was a peaceful sight, the mighty building watching over the town, promising to protect it against any and all challengers. That peace was completely shattered by the livid yelling that burst through the windows and doors.
The guild was doing what it did best, namely beating each other to a bloody pulp. It had started with Natsu yelling, somehow a fist had been thrown either by or at him, and now everyone was worked up.
Lucy jumped out of the way as Elfman hurdled into the table she had been sitting at, his massive body breaking right through the surface. She let out a heavy, annoyed breath,quickly turning to skipping through the chaos as carefully as she could. It would be easy to say she hated days like this, all the pointless fighting and yelling. Easy, but also a lie. Fairy Tail was her family, and there was no other guild like them. Rowdy and rough, ready to show off their magical abilities at the drop of a hat.
She made sure to watch her feet, moving just fast enough to dodge flying fists, and avoid the magic circles springing up everywhere. She wanted to put as much distance between her and the fighting as possible.
She did not, however, have enough time to react properly when Gajeel fell right under her step. She had a rapid thought of what would happen to her if her foot met his face, seeing herself thrown into the battle by the angry iron dragon slayer who would not show her mercy.
In a snap decision she threw her foot further, making herself stumble in her next step. Her body swayed, making her do a funny little dance across the room to try and catch herself. It did little to help. She lost her footing, balancing on the side of her foot. Rushing to correct herself she stumbled backwards, making her wobble and fall backwards. She braced herself for the long fall and hard smack of the stone floor, but instead felt herself hit something much softer, standing upright.. She gripped whatever it was with all of her might, realizing it couldn't be a wall or furniture by the way it gave a little at her quick movements.
"Sorry!" She yelled almost instantly, realizing it must be a person. She scrambled to her feet frantically, pulling what felt like clothes as she tried to steady herself.
Once confident in her footing she turned around to apologize properly but her voice got caught in her throat, only a surprised squeak escaping.
"LAXUS!" The thought was a yell trapped inside of her head.
He was glaring down at her like she had just lost her mind, a deep frown carved into his face.
"I-I-I'm really sor-"
"Why don't you watch where the hell you are going?" He barked instantly, not having time for her, or for what he saw as pathetic apologies.
He stomped off, up the stairs, no doubt headed for the regular table everyone recognized as, essentially, his property.
She watched him leave, an angry scowl aimed at his back. His dismissive and rude attitude made her want to follow him and give him a piece of her mind. She had tried to be nice, and it's not like she hurt him. HE WAS LIKE A MOUNTAIN! You can't hurt a mountain!
Maybe she would have called after him and told him off, if it was not for her annoying and deep rooted fear of the lightning mage. She had tried to push it out of her mind, and after he had come home she had done well to see him as just another guild member, but after the Grand Magic Games it all came back. Laxus was powerful to the point of being down right terrifying. All of his friends were.
No one else seemed to share this problem, leaving Lucy to suffer alone. She had once asked Levy for help, wondering if it was just her who saw them differently. Of course Levy was one of the most understanding women of their time. She had explained that she was once intimidated by Laxus but not nearly to Lucy's extent, and had gotten over it once she became closer to Freed. She tried to explain that they were just like any other member of the guild.
Lucy found that hard to believe. She had little context of them, and most of it came from their attack on the guild. After confessing to Levy she had decided it was best to keep her fear to herself, finding it embarrassing to tell even one person.
She sat down at the bar, far enough away from the brawl (for now). Mira noticed her and gave her one of her cheery smiles.
"Don't take it to personally. He's like that with everyone." She soothed in her singsong voice.
"Hua? Really." Lucy asked flatly. "Then I'm surprised he's got any friends at all."
Mira laughed a little and nodded understandingly.
"He's really not that bad. Under all of it, he's just a big teddy bear."
Lucy got the image of a very angry and fluffy yellow bear raining down lightning onto all of Magnolia.
"Sorry if I can't really believe that." She rejected quickly.
Again Mira laughed.
"Maybe this will change your mind." She reached behind the counter and dug out an old photo album. She flipped through the pages, scanning each one quickly before landing on one she liked. She turned the book around and pointed to a square snap shot in the lower right corner.
It was a picture of a blond boy with wide eyes, accented by prominent eyelashes, and a wider smile. He was next to a slightly younger looking Makarov.
"Is...that Laxus?" She laughed. "I can't imagine him being that small." She pulled the book closer, getting a better look.
After getting her fill of the picture she flipped the page, seeing another of him as a teenager, though this one was less shocking. She had seen something like it before. With it was a picture of Mira in her younger years.
"Does this have everyone in the guild?" She asked, looking at the next page seeing separate pictures of Natsu, Grey and Erza.
Mira nodded. "All of their younger pictures. We started collecting them a few months ago. We thought it would be a nice way to remember everyone as the years go by." She sounded quite proud.
Lucy nodded. "This is awesome! It's hard to imagine them being so young." She gushed as she kept flipping.
Mira allowed her to keep the book as she went back to tending the counter.
"You know, we are missing a certain celestial mage's baby pictures." Mira hummed.
"Me? But...I didn't grow up here at the guild." She reminded, the slightest hint of sorrow in her voice.
"Yes, but I'm sure everyone would want to see what a little baby Lucy would look like."
Lucy blushed, thinking no one would be that interested in her.
"I don't know...maybe." She mumbled, her attention falling back on the pages of the album.
"If you change your mind then come tell me. I will be happy to add your pictures to the book as well." Mira assured, gliding off to take care of some customers at the end of the bar.
Lucy flipped though, pausing on a picture of Natsu, his large teeth visible through his goofy grin. Happy was resting on his head, his wings so tiny at his age. It made her heart warm to see them like that. They were so important to her. It was nice to see them so innocent was sweet.
She was about to turn the page when her eyes caught a bit of green.
There was a picture of Bickslow, Evergreen, Freed, and Laxus. Evergreen had on some silly costume wings, Bickslow had shaggy blue and black hair all falling in his face. Freed had large blue, hope-filled eyes, his hair hardly long enough to reach his shoulders. The picture made her laugh; happy, grinning faces all piled around Laxus, who looked to be ignoring the camera as hard as he possibly could. She turned to up at the balcony that was the second floor.
She saw Laxus, sitting with his group. They were all talking calmly and looked much more dignified. It was hard to imagine them as these same silly kids. It was hard to forget how hard her friends had to fight each other if they had any chance of returning things to normal. It was hard to forget all they had done.
She continued onto the next page, shaking the thought of the Thunder Legion, skimming through the happy faces of her younger guild friends. When she finished she closed it softly and left it on the counter, unsure of where to put it and knowing Mira would not mind her leaving it there.
She carefully slipped through the ongoing battle, making her way to the library. Once inside she barricaded the door behind her. She intended to wait the rest of this brawl out in peace.
She sighed happily, only hearing the muffled yells, taunts and barks, all of it sounding so far away through the heavy door behind her. Her eyes ran over the spines of the books, looking or something to catch her eye. She eased forward, as she searched.
"Lucy?" The voice made her nearly jump out of her skin, her hands shooting to her keys quickly, as she whirled around to identify the call.
She was met with a smiling Levy, who was snuggled up in a fluffy arm chair, a stack of books around her.
Lucy relaxed instantly, letting out a breath of air.
"It's just you." She eased.
Levy nodded, with an amused laugh.
"Who were you expecting?" She asked, nodding to an empty chair not far from her.
Lucy moved forward to take it.
"No one. That's the point." She admitted flatly.
"It sounds pretty wild out there, as always." Levy looked down at the book in her hands, going back to her story.
"Don't ask me whats got them worked up today. I didn't stick around to ask." Lucy picked up a book from one of Levi's stacks, and started to read with her.
The two enjoyed their stories even after the uproar outside ended. It wasn't until dinner time Lucy stretched and marked her place in her book and dared to go find something to eat.
Other than the loud proclamations coming from Natsu (naturally aimed at Gray) the guild was calm, only quiet conversations being passed around the tables. Lucy went over to the bar to order something to eat, silently making a game plan for calming her pink haired friend down. She considered sitting somewhere else to avoid any conflict.
Instead she sat at her team's table carefully, trying not to disturb anything. Maybe if she kept her head down she could stay out of things completely? He would yell until he was out of breath and then sit down once he was exhausted.
She focused on eating, blocking out the yells of the two polar opposites locked in their screaming match of 'I'm better than you's.
"How can you say that flame brain? You couldn't take me down even if my hands were tied behind my back!" Gray barked, standing up so quickly his chair was shoved back.
"What are you talking about? It would be easy!" Natsu laughed, looking confident and unwavering, leaning closer to the ice wizard with a cocky smirk. "Wanna put your ice where your mouth is and fight me?"
Their yells were loud, but nothing compared to the ear splitting crack and thundering voice.
"Will you two shut up?!" Laxus ordered, scowling down at them, his arms crossed over his chest. "I know it's hard for you idiots to process ANYTHING in those shriveled brains of yours, but look around. Everyone is trying to have a nice night. Most of them have been working all day, unlike you slackers. So why don't you shut your fucking mouths, and stop repeating the same conversation you have, every damn day?"
His voice boomed, and Lucy doubted it was even raised. It made her sit still in her chair, hold her breath, eyes locked on her plate. She didn't know how Grey and Natsu could muster up the courage to talk back to him, but they did, almost at once. The regular 'mind your own business!' and 'come make me then!'s that anyone would receive at correcting these two right now would get.
Natsu bumped into Lucy as he was grabbed up by the scarf, lifted to be nearly nose to nose with the faux dragon slayer.
"Listen here kid." The blond spat. "You are going to shut the hell up, and it's going to start now, otherwise I will break your teeth."
Natsu opened his mouth to respond but was silenced quickly, blocky abstract letters covering his mouth, only mumbles slipping through.
"Set him down Laxus. He won't bother you any longer." Freed stepped up to be by his side.
Lucy looked up, much more at ease now that he was here. He didn't have 'control' over Laxus, but he had a way of calming him down no one else could even attempt.
Laxus growled and his eyes flashed to Freed before he tossed Natsu onto the ground, not making any attempt to be gentle.
Natsu pulled and scratched at the script covering his mouth, only becoming frustrated. He looked up at Freed with sharp eyes. His next series of frantic mumbling was undoubtedly him commanding the greenette to remove the spell and what would happen if he didn't right that minute.
Freed did not seem to bothered by it, and only raised an eyebrow at the mage on the ground.
"Once you calm down the script will remove itself. Not a moment before." he explained in his precise voice before looking up to Laxus. "You really should just call me for little things like this. They aren't worth your time."
He only earned a grunt in response. Freed's attention switched to Lucy, who gulped when those ice blue eyes hit her.
"I'm sorry for the commotion." His smooth calm voice and polite words caught her off guard. "His bark is really worse than his bite."His eyes flicked back to Laxus.
"Fuck you." The blond snapped back, a ripple of lightning through the tuft of his coat. The green haired man simply smiled.
"Most of the time anyway." he added with an amused chuckle.
"N-no problem." Lucy swallowed thickly, trying to appear less rigid and uncomfortable.
She let out a breath when they turned to leave together, heading for the staircase. She didn't take her eyes off of them, wondering if she would ever be at ease around them. It took a few deep breaths to get her heart rate back down, and did nothing for the jitters. Natsu picked himself off the ground still trying to talk the barrier off of his face. Grey seemed pretty pleased while watching him struggle.
"Someone needs to knock him down a peg." he hung his arm over the back of the chair, as he took a drink from his stein.
"Who? Laxus?" Lucy asked, furrowing her brow at him.
"Yeah. He need's to stop going around and bullying everyone." Grey nodded.
Lucy frowned, feeling conflicted with his statement.
"Yeah...I guess." She nodded, dropping the subject.
She went back to eating. Grey eventually wandered off to find someone else to talk to. Natsu's anger eventually sizzled down and the purple letters vanished. Lucy wished it had taken his newly formed grumpy attitude with it.
"Those jerks. I'll have to get 'em back for that." he sounded excited, as he always did when it came to starting fights.
Lucy stayed quiet, but felt the urge to implore him not to. Freed was a tactical fighter, and could easily outsmart Natsu. And Laxus was freaking Laxus. Natsu was strong, and an amazing force, but the facts were facts. They had both been fighting longer and arguably harder, both honing their skills to near perfection.
She stayed quiet, knowing he wouldn't listen. It was not worth her breath to try and talk him out of this. It would be easier to doctor his wounds later.
The sun had been gone a while when Lucy decided to start her walk home. She took her normal path, along the low wall on the edge of the river. She felt exhausted and was unsure why. Today left her pining for a hot shower and her warm bed.
Once inside she collapsed on her bed. Hitting the pillows she rejected the thought of a shower, not even bothering to change clothes. She only shimmying out of her skirt, tucking herself under the covers. With one last glimpse around her room, her eyes fell on a tucked away photo album.
"I can look through them tomorrow." She yawned to herself, rolling over.
It didn't take her long to drift off to sleep, not knowing what the next day would bring.
Alrighty. I went back and forth about posting this, because I'm not sure if it's ready. I have a lot of hope for this story and I have been working on it for a few months.
In short it is the first multi-chapter story that I am really serious about on this account.
(Yeah, 'Loving Lightning' is really just for shits-and-giggles)
Review if ya like, and feel free to be blatantly honest. I love feedback.