Hello babes! As some of you know, this is a rewrite just like some other stories that will be posted up. To the ones who just came here or only know about this account, I have another that use to be my main account a loooong time ago. It's called SugoiLucy and I plan to delete it a while after I post these rewrites. Without further a-do, please enjoy another GaLu fanfic, but in an AU.

I do not own Fairy Tail.

Friends? Friends.

Light bounced off of golden locks that peeked out of the wrinkled blankets and covers. Tangled from a whole night of shifting through her sleep, it fell over the girl's face. As she inhaled and exhaled, the strands of hair that were draped in front of her mouth went with the movement of her breathing. Anyone can say that she was sleeping like a baby if they saw her at this moment. Her expression was peaceful, a small smile dancing on her face due to whatever she was dreaming.

However, this did not last long. A continuous ringing blared throughout the room and in her sleep, the blonde girl's face scrunched up into a scowl. She reluctantly opened her eyes as she groggily pushed herself up so that she now sat on her bed. The blankets that she was curled in fell onto her lap, revealing a silky white nightgown. Brushing away the hair that was in her face, she yawned before turning off the alarm on her phone.

She swung her feet over to the edge of the king-sized bed and stumbled into her bathroom. Through her disorientation she managed to turn the lights on and turn the water on for a hot shower. Her hands lifted her nightgown off of her body in one smooth motion and into the laundry bin with her undergarments.

It wasn't until she began combing out the tangles from her wet hair once she had dried herself off did her self-autopilot finally shut off. Now one question revolved through her mind. What was happening today again?

After brushing her teeth, she finally left the bathroom. Her bare shoulders shuddered from the cool air of her room hitting them. She waved off the steam that followed behind her as she walked over to her newly made bed. Laying on top of it was the answer to that one question pulsing through her brain. It was her school uniform. That's right! Today is the first day of school. How could I forget?

She dropped the towel that wrapped around her to quickly put on her undergarments before sliding on a dark grey skirt that reached her mid-thigh. Next came a short-sleeved, white collared shirt with a soft yellow sweater vest over it. Instead of wearing the white and blue striped tie, she wore a bow that was a dark pink with thin stripes of the same yellow of her vest.

To finish everything off, she pulled on knee-high socks and black flats. She skipped over to her mirror and her face lit up with a bright smile. She was happy, excited even to go to school. Admittedly, she was a little scared to go back, but she couldn't wait to learn and be like a normal teenager. She even hoped to be seen as one as well.

Quickly brushing her hair out one last time, she used a matching dark pink ribbon to tie a little side ponytail up. She nodded once in approval at her reflection before grabbing her black school bag. As she made her way to her door, she grabbed her cell phone from her night stand. The blonde looked once more around the room, smiling at how bare it was since the last time she looked at it like this. Ready to go, she left her room.

The girl forced a smile and greeted back the maids and butlers that passed by, bustling about. As she's getting closer and closer to the dining room, the more she's getting worried about how her school will treat her. Two years ago, she had been a freshman in Fairy Tail High and she thought everything would be great. She thought that she would make new friends and get a chance to hang out with them and maybe even have sleepovers together.

But... What she had gotten was the complete opposite.

The first couple of weeks were okay. Her classes were fine and easy to understand, some people glanced and whispered about her every now and then as well. The glancing and whispering she can understand since her father is the owner of one of the richest companies in Fiore. Though after those couple of weeks, all of her efforts to try to make at least one friend were sent down the toilet.

Rumors broke out about her. Horrible things that she has never done. Everyone that looked at her looked at her with eyes full of disgust. Anger. A select few even looked at her in pity. It hurt, it really did, but she tried her best to ignore it. She blocked out all of the negativity directed to her in favor of smiling. Smiling as if nothing was wrong. As if she didn't feel like she was dying inside. As if she wasn't wailing in pain and loneliness.

"Lucy."

She stiffened at the low voice of her father. She didn't even realize she had entered the dining room until he had spoke her name. His eyes bored into her from above the newspaper in his hands, eyes that she can never read through his stern expression. She hated those eyes and that expression... The same eyes that used to hold a joyful gleam, the same expression that used to hold the subtle hints of a smile.

"Yes, father?" The blonde responded in her own monotonous voice.

His eyes shifted back to the words on his newspaper, flipping a page, "The chauffeur is waiting for you. Eat and leave." The man rumbled out in an uncaring manner.

"Yes, father." She eyed the half-eaten omelette in front of her father. She shook her head to herself before making her way to the kitchen. She wasn't that hungry, so she'll just grab something small that she can eat on her way to school.

The moment she entered the kitchen, one of the chefs approached her with a bright smile. He was tall and scrawny with brown hair peaking out from beneath his chef's hat. It also seemed as if age is catching up to him by the looks of the few strands of grey hair and the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes. "Good morning, Miss Lucy. Is there anything you would like for breakfast?"

Lucy let out a giggle and allowed the first genuine smile for that day to crawl up to her face. "Toru, please just call me Lucy. I just came to get an apple, I don't feel all too hungry." She replied. Toru was a new chef of the Heartfilia Manor, and was a good one at that. He was hired after one had quit in favor of opening up his own restaurant in order to continue following his personal goals. Lucy herself was the one to convince him to do it, and if her father ever found out he would be even more furious than he had been after the news.

Ever since Toru was hired, he had been the most carefree around her out of all of the maids and butlers once he had realized that she was nothing like her father. He made jokes, always smiled, and at times when her father is too busy to join her for meals he would make goofy faces with her food. The other chefs of the manor disapprove of his behavior, but seeing the girl that they worked for for almost all her life happy was the only reason why they didn't voice out their complaints to Toru, or go as far as to report it to her father.

Toru nodded and went over to a counter to grab an apple. He came back after rinsing it off and handed it to her. His smile softened as she took a bite out of the apple, a drop of the juice rolling down to her chin that was quickly wiped away with the back of her hand. "Nervous?"

Big, brown eyes met with hazel. "Hm?"

"Y'know, going to school. Usually, you want to eat strawberry pancakes or waffles for breakfast. It's a mystery how you can fit all of that food in you." He chuckled.

She swallowed the mouthful of fruit and pouts, "Maybe a little..." She admitted albeit reluctantly.

"Ah, don't sweat it, kid! Knowing you, you'll get tons of friends!" Toru gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze, "Even I couldn't resist that smile of your's."

Lucy shrugged, "Maybe. Who knows?" If only he knew...

"Well, I shouldn't hold you off any longer. Oh, and make sure to tell me if there's any cute teachers there!"

The blonde giggled, shaking her head at his loud whispering. "Of course. See ya!" She left the kitchen and slipped back to the expression she had worn before she had left the dining room. She took another bite from her apple and didn't once acknowledge her father's presence as she walked by.

"Seeing you everyday is always in eyesore." Her father stated as if he was talking about the weather. Of course, this statement just had to be said when she was just about to leave the room, once again, to go outside. "At least I won't have to deal with your presence in my home anymore."

Lucy stayed still for a few more moments. She had heard comments like these all the time ever since her mother died. But this time she realized the pure hatred that was heard in his voice, and all of that hatred was directed at her. Swallowing down her tears, she bids her farewell, "Good bye, father." She really wanted to say something in response to his comments, something that matched his hatred. But she will never allow herself to become like him.

She rushed out and down the hallway, sniffling here and there with a quivering bottom lip. She may hate the changes he made to himself, but she will never stop loving him. Somewhere up in the stars her mother was doing the same thing, even if she hated the way he was treating Lucy. And she knew that somewhere up there, she was cheering her on. After all her secret working environment was passed down to her.

Lucy's mother. Layla Heartfilia. Anyone that has seen the both of them would say that they looked almost identical to each other. At the age of ten, she had witnessed her mother passing away peacefully in the manor. The days that followed were full of tears and sorrow for the Heartfilia Manor, a part of her life that she will never forget. It's been six years now and yet she still teared up at the thought of her deceased mother, naturally so. Lucy always looked up to her for guidance and advice at a young age, and would still do so if she were to still be alive.

Finishing up her apple, she had a passing by maid throw it out for her. She would have done it herself, but she didn't want to be late for school and have the chauffeur wait any longer for her. All the while doing so, she thought back to what her father said and felt stupid for almost forgetting that a small house by the school was bought for her, considering that she was the one who asked her father if she could live in one.

She had seen it herself and it was something that she was very comfortable living in for the school year. The town was quiet and peaceful, so it was the perfect atmosphere for her.

Lucy finally exited the mansion and jogged up to the awaiting chauffeur by the limbo, "Hey, instead of taking me directly to school, can you drop me off somewhere?"

The blonde was exceptionally lucky that no one in town had seen her get out of a limbo. She didn't want her first impression to be a rich girl trying to fit in. That can come later.

It took a lot of convincing with the chauffeur to drop her off by her new home that was only about half a mile away from school. Since the very beginning, she wanted to walk to school and now she gets that chance. She was rarely able to get out of the mansion just to go out and walk on a cool, sunny day. Lucy never really liked the cold, but the sun shining down on her and the lovely sight of the leaves on trees slowly changing into the fall colors make up for it.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket to signal that she had received a text message. As she continued walking, she pulled out her cellphone and flipped it open. She grinned when she realized who it's from. No matter how many messages or calls she got from him, it always made her feel giddy and beam uncontrollably.

'Where are you? -G'

With a quick thumb, she pressed on the buttons to send her reply. 'I'm going to school, why? -L'

'Just wondering... -G'

She pouted at the message. Even through text she can tell that her best friend was up to something. You heard correctly, she has a best friend. Honestly, he was her only friend that was... well... human.

They've known each other for so long, that her mother was still alive when they had first met...

"P-Please don't hurt me! I-I don't want to hurt you!..." A young girl with short blonde hair yelled desperately as she took a step back, only to trap herself in a corner with three boys around her age trapping her with feral grins. Her bottom lip quivered as she looked down, "I-I don't want to h-hurt you..." She repeated weakly with fists that were clenched so tightly that her knuckles became white.

"Pfft- Do you guys hear that? She doesn't want to hurt us!" One of the boys told the other two, snickering. Being a head taller than her, he leaned down so they were face-to-face, "Come on, hit me. Punch, kick, whatever you want!" He taunted with a smirk.

She shook her head, "B-But-"

"But what?" One of the others snapped, "'Cause your weak? You're just a girl, Heartfilia! You can't do anything!"

"Guys, let's just beat her up already, this is getting boring!" The third one shouted as he took a step forward, "She has so much money, I bet she can bandage herself with it once we're finished." He sneered.

The girl whimpered and sank down onto the ground. She brought her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, burying her face into them. Why does everyone hate me so much? She thought with tears threatening to escape. All around her there are people who didn't like her or just hated her guts. She doesn't understand why they don't like her and tries everything she can to make a friend. Was it because that her mama and papa had lots of money? Was it because she's annoying? Or... Or was it because she existed? Did they not want her to exist anymore?

"Hey, what the hell are ya doin'?!" A voice shouted not too far off.

The blonde peeked up from where her face was buried into her pale arms. The boys in front of her turned around to look at the one that had interrupted them with matching scowls. All she managed to see was a glimpse of stunning, ruby red eyes. Putting up a tough front, the third one that had spoken before said, "None of your business! You got a problem?"

The mysterious newcomer took a step forward, "Yeah I got a problem. Why are you gonna hurt her? She did nothing!" He growled.

"She's annoying," He gave a cruel smile, "Always wanting to show off how rich she is. Coming to school in a limbo, having fancy foods for lunch, and always acting like a pretty little princess!"

"It's not her fault that she's so damn rich." The one that held those beautiful red eyes said. The girl stiffened at this statement in surprise, "Do ya think she asked to be born rich? Do ya think she can help acting like a 'princess'? She has rich parents 'n fancy crap, who cares? Just leave her alone, she doesn't deserve this shit!" He growled fiercely.

The third boy burst out laughing at his speech while the other two looked unsettled by the glare that was being directed at all of them. "You two deal with him, I'll go deal with Heartfilia myself." He chuckled as he turned back to the blonde.

The two looked at each other before looking back at the newcomer and charging at him.

Brown eyes tried to see what's happening at the sound of hits being landed followed by grunts of pain, but legs blocked her view. Her head slowly lifts up so that she can see what type of expression was on her tormentor's face. She cringed at the sadistic grin on his face and felt more tears wanting to create a waterfall on her cheeks again.

What was she doing? Why was she just sitting there with a tail between her legs when there was someone trying to save her? He wasn't scared of hurting them, so why should she?

Before she could even make a final decision, she forced her body to roll away from the leg aimed to kick her and stood back up on her feet. He cursed under his breath and made the mistake of attempting to punch her. The blonde ducked down before shooting her leg up and blurting out, "LUCY KICK!"

He froze as stiff as a statue. His hands reached down to cup his nether regions with his mouth open in a silent scream. All the blood drained from his face as his whole frame tilted until he fell onto the concrete with a high-pitched squeak.

The blonde jumped back in surprise before looking over to the others. One had a cheek that was beginning to bruise and looked as if he was asleep, sprawled out on the ground, while the last one out of the three that was standing sported quite a few cuts and bruises. He paled at the sight of both of his friends out of commission before running away from the scene in order to not end up like them.

She sighed in relief and turned to thank the mysterious person that had saved her, but gasped at the sight of him sitting against the wall with more bruises and cuts out of all of them. She ran over to him and dropped onto her knees next to him, "Are you okay? You're hurt!"

He glanced over at me and waved the question off, "Don't worry about me, I'm fine."

His eyes are prettier up close, She noted. She took in the sight of his long, unkempt black hair and the clothes he wore. All they were was a black tank top, camouflage cargo shorts, and a pair of sneakers. On his evenly tan skin were a few small scars, and band-aids on both his arms and face. He looked like he was a couple of years older than her, "No you're not, you have boo-boos." She pointed at his face that sported a couple of bruises and a cut.

He snickered, "'Boo-boos'? What are ya, six?"

"I'm seven." She pouted, crossing her arms. "I need to pay you back for what you did, so let me help you!"

"If it'll get ya to shut up, then fine." He shrugged.

Ignoring the first part, she dug her hand into her pocket and pulled out a pink band-aid. She carefully pulled the wrapping off before reaching up to place it over the cut on his cheek with her eyebrows furrowed in concentration. Once she had placed it on there to add onto the collection of band-aids, she grinned, "There! Good thing Mama always made sure I had band-aids with me."

"Er... yeah." He lifted himself up to his feet somewhat shakily, "Anyway, I'll see ya around-"

"Wait! Please don't leave!" The blonde shouted, startling him. She looked down the moment he looked at her again and began to fiddle with her fingers. "T-Thank you for saving me... And for what you said. Y-You're the only one who has ever said that and understands... Everyone thinks I try to show off, but I always try my best to be normal. I always try to make friends..." Droplets of tears splatter onto the concrete as if they were the first drops of water of an upcoming storm, "I-I've never really had a friend... N-Never ever a-and-"

A hand grabbed her wrist and pulled her up to her feet. She squeaked at the sudden action and was soon dragged out of the small alleyway by the school. "Hey, let go of me-"

"I don't have friends either." He effectively cut her off again, his grip on her wrist tightening slightly but not enough to actually hurt her. "Everyone's scared of me..." He looked slightly over his shoulder at her, "Everyone other than you."

The blonde looked at him in confusion, "Why would they be scared of you? You have pretty eyes and hair."

This comment, for some odd reason, caused him to stop abruptly in his tracks. She nearly tripped over her feet and looked up at him in even more puzzlement, "Is there something wrong?"

She couldn't tell what he was thinking at that moment. His continuous stare was making her just a little bit uncomfortable too. It took a while before he finally shook his head, "No... Nothin's wrong." Almost tripping again, he dragged her to wherever they were going. "Name's Gajeel by the way. Gajeel Redfox."

"My name's Lucy Heartfilia. It's a pleasure to meet you." She said politely, "Where are we going, Gajeel?"

"My place." He responded bluntly and glanced at her, "I'm gonna call you Bunny instead. You're just like one."

"What?! No I'm not!"

"Yeah, you are."

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"AM NOT!"

"ARE TOO!"

"HMPH!" They looked away from each other with puffed out cheeks. During their little banter, Gajeel had slowed them down into a normal walking pace so that she walked beside him. Every now and then through their silence, they stole glances of each other to see if the other was still mad.

Lucy was the first out of the pair to gather the courage to speak up again after looking up at him, "Are we friends now?"

He looked back down at her and shrugged, "I guess."

Then everything went into place and to this day they still have stupid arguments, but not face-to-face sadly. When she was finished grade school, Gajeel had reluctantly told her that he and his father was moving for a long time. His father, Metallicana, had to be transferred to a different area so that he can continue working, which meant that Gajeel had to go with him.

It broke her heart and she cried for a whole entire night. He was her only friend and being separated from him for so long? The thought always sent a pang of pain throughout her entire being and she wished every night to the stars dancing in the night sky to see him again. Hearing his voice and sending messages was just not enough, and she knew it was the same for her best friend.

Looking at a picture of him through a phone screen isn't the same as seeing him in front of her. She wanted to see those blood red eyes that she could never stop staring at. She wanted to run her fingers through his ridiculously soft raven hair. She wanted to embrace him and feel his arms wrap around her to return it.

Lucy sighed at these thoughts that always manage to sneak up on her. But there was one other thought that always lingered with the others.

Where was he now?