I awoke to the sun streaming through my windows and birds chirping very loudly. Groaning and irritated that I'd been woken up. As I sleepily made my way to my dresser I made note that
my apartment was empty. On a normal day under normal circumstances I would have been happy that I got my apartment to myself, but this isn't a normal day and I'm not happy that I'm alone.
This all started about six months and seven years ago after Team Natsu plus Gajeel, Wendy, and Carla saved Magnolia from an evil power hungry king in a place called Edolas, and the Tenrou Island incident with Acnologia and Zeref. On our return home from Edolas we discovered the supposedly dead youngest Strauss sibling, Lisanna was alive and had been transported to Edolas on a S class mission with her sister the She-Devil MiraJane and her brother Beast Arm Elfman. For a week straight the guild partied in celebration of her not being dead, and finally coming home.
About two months after her arrival I noticed that most of the guild stop talking to me but I shrugged it off thinking they were just excited for lisanna to be home. My team also stopped coming over so often to invade my privacy. At first it was just once every few days then it was once a week then once every few weeks until the 3rd month in which they stopped talking to me and stopped coming over completely. That bothered me and when we went on missions they would yell at me like I did something wrong. Then they just stopped taking me in favor of lisanna on missions instead. In which I guess was okay seeing as they haven't gone on a mission with her in years, and missed her so much. Then the S-Class Trials happened and we were all stuck on the island in a 7 year slumber that felt more like a week, and we didn't age. Now everything is the same it was before the S-Class Trials when lisanna came back. Everyone went back to ignoring me again.
I was kind and let them have their time with her, but seeing Natsu not talking to me anymore hurt a lot more than I would like to admit. Especially since he was my best friend, I had kind of fallen for him ever since Mira put the idea that he might like me in my head. I can't believe my nakama are ignoring me. They're my family and all I feel now is that pushed aside feeling I felt at home with my cruel father. The guild was home to me but now everything has changed. The only people who talk to me anymore are Levy, Gajeel, Wendy, the exceeds, Mira, Master, Cana, and Laxus and his team. To everyone else it's like I'm invisible and I've been trying to put on a brave face but how can I do that when I've lost my family AGAIN?
I mean I can't really blame lisanna for appearing in Earthland, this is where she belongs this was her home as well. I thought about taking another solo mission so I could start on earning money for next month's rent and for food. I've been getting a lot stronger lately, I've actually considered going to train for a few years. Since lisanna came back I've been going on solo missions hoping that my team would remember my existence and we could all go on a mission together. But everyday it's the same none of them even utter a single word to me.
As I'm getting up and getting ready to go to the guild I pull my suitcases out from my closet and call out virgo to help me pack. Today's the day I leave the guild at least for a few years after one last mission.
"Open Gate of the maiden, Virgo" I shout a Pink flash of light appears and then disappears as it leaves Virgo in its place.
"Is it punishment time yet, Hime?" she asks.
I sweatdrop and tell her no and ask her to help me pack up everything. Telling her that we won't be returning anytime soon, that I'm taking one last job before we leave FairyTail for a couple of years. After that's done I asked virgo to take my suitcases to the spirit world and I grabbed my keys and walked around my apartment one last time.
I stopped at the full length mirror on the inside of the closet door and took one last look at my outfit. I didn't feel like wearing a skirt today so I wore my favorite black jeans with a halter top instead of my brown boots I wear black combat boots with pockets on the sides. I have a single gold necklace in the shape of a heart and gold ear cuffs. With that last parting glance I shut the door and turned in the keys to my landlady, and started off to the guild. Calling Plue for comfort and someone to talk to, when I reached the guild it was still pretty early but there were some people here and there. I sent plue back to the celestial world before i walked through the doors for the last time.
"Good Morning Minna" I said with a forced smile on my face no one noticed except for the bartender Mira wit a smile on her face.
"Good Morning Lucy" she said. I made my way over to the bar and sat on my favorite stool.
"Mira can I have strawberry pancakes with eggs and a strawberry-banana smoothie please?" I said after looking around the guild for my team. Sadly they weren't there and I knew this they wouldn't be here until a little bit later from a mission with lisanna. The She-Devil smiled at me sadly and nodded when I turned to face her. I decided to listen to my sound pod and tune the rest of the world out while I lay my head down on the bar. A few minutes later Mira brought me my breakfast with another small smile. I know it must be killing her to see like this ever since my team and the rest of the guild ditched me I haven't been my upbeat happy self. I just felt sad and my friends know that.
Three days before Team Natsu and lisanna excluding me left on a mission I told myself that I would leave the guild when they came back. I didn't want to go but I was starting to have no choice I can't stay somewhere I'm not happy, that's the reason I ran away from my home the first time. With a sigh I started eating my food with my thoughts all over the place, since I had my music playing loudly in my ears I didn't realize the time that went by or how crowded the place got. I didn't even notice the fact that my team made a huge entrance and then saw me then started was walking over with lisanna in tow. I didn't know they were there until mira was in front of me staring at something behind me when she came to take my plate and the money to pay for the food.
I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned around expecting levy but came face to face with my team. Natsu started talking but I held up a hand stopping him then made a show of grabbing my sound pod out of my pocket, pausing my music and taking my earbuds out one by one.
Natsu was smiling, Erza looking worried, Gray wouldn't meet my gaze and lisanna was frowning not meeting my gaze either. So of course I was immediately curious of what was up I pulled myself together. "Hey guys what's up?" I asked warily and forced a smile
"Nothing much Luce. We just wanted to talk to you about something." He said pausing and looked as if he was choosing his words carefully then beginning again he said " We all wanted to put lisanna on the team, but we think 5 is too many so we decided she could take your spot" His grin becoming bigger as he said his next words "Luce this way you can train more so you're not so weak, plus you can go on solo missions so you don't have to complain all the time about your rent."
I couldn't believe his words, I mean I knew this was coming but it still hurt. I looked at Erza and Gray seeing them nodding but still not meeting my gaze. That's when I finally noticed that whole guild was looking at us. Some had looks of amusement in their eyes. That was the last straw I looked up at the fire mage incomplete and utter shock my best friend NO my EX- best friend and EX-crush was calling me weak forcing a smile and trying to make it look natural. I looked at them all and said
"It's fine if she takes my spot I was planning on more solo missions". I looked over at lisanna and saw her look at natsu in anger and sadness "Lisanna" calling her attention from my ass-hole of an ex-best friend and got up and hugged her and said "It's completely fine with me if you take my place on Team Natsu. Like Natsu said I can train some more so i'm not so "weak" and become stronger" She pulled away and said
"Lucy I didn't mean for this to happen they insisted. I was against the idea, I didn't want to hurt you. I've heard a lot about you and I was wondering if you wanted to be friends and get to know each other better. I hope we can still be friends again i'm really sorry about all of this I didn't want this to happen." I could see in her eyes that she was telling the truth.
I hugged her again and said it was okay with me once more. I looked at the rest of my family saying my final goodbyes in my mind. Letting no one in on what i was planning, my friends who stuck by me don't even know that i'm leaving. I looked at Erza and Gray once more who STILL didn't meet my gaze that annoyed me that they didn't even have enough decency to look me in the eye as they kicked me off the team. I stood up excused myself and walked to the request board to pick a job. I looked the over grabbing one walking over to mira to get her approval saying it should take a couple of days. It says that there were a group of bandits stealing from every store in clover town. Reward for catching them was 32,000 jewels, after mira approved it. I asked her if master was in his office and she said yes that he was filling out paperwork from team natsu's mission before last for all the destruction they caused. Typical Natsu always destroying something by rushing into battle without a plan.
Walking up the stairs I can feel the new team natsu's stares on my back, knocking on master's door i hear a muffled come in. Upon entering master's office which is sound proof I see him sitting on his desk sorting out paperwork. Gathering my courage i spoke
"Master I would like to leave the guild" I'm guessing startled by my statement he fell off his desk in shock. Shaking off the sudden shock he jumped back up on his desk looking at me with tears in his eyes.
"But why child why would want to leave your home?"
"Master I've been ignored, yelled at, and kicked off Team Natsu I wanted to go train for a few years. So when I come back home I'll be stronger than I am now. I want to do this for myself and prove to the guild, my team, all of Fiore, but mostly myself that I can be strong and that I can get better. I want to go on one last mission, but I'll contact you through the lacrima and tell you when the job is done. I just don't want to lose my guild mark yet until the job is done incase I have to prove that I'm a fairy tail mage. Do you think that is somehow possible Master?"
He looked as if he were about to cry when i told him all of this. He agreed and told me to hold out my hand he said that when I finish the job that the mark will be gone but will return when I step through the guild doors unless i want to have it in a different place in a different color. After a heart-warming goodbye and a few tears later I made sure that I did not look like I've been crying and walked out of master's office like nothing happened.
I gave Mira a big hug and said goodbye to my friends like I was returning to the guild after my mission like I always did before I leave out before going on a job. They thought nothing of it thinking they'll see me in a few days, boy were they wrong. Again I felt the stares of Team Natsu on me again as I walked out of the guild heading towards the train station for my last job for the next few years.
At the train station I got my ticket and I'm now waiting for my train that'll be here in the next 3 minutes.
As soon as the train pulls into the station I get on board find an empty compartment and sit down watching as Magnolia fades away. GoodBye Everyone I'll Miss You Dearly.