Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!

Originally, I was going to post something different (and much, much angstier) on this day, but I feel like it's time I started working on this story that's been in my mind for well over a year, now.

At the moment, there is no pairing planned. It's mostly going to focus on friendship and healing. If a relationship is to happen, it will happen organically, as the story unfolds and the characters grow.

I hope you enjoy it.

Grunts of frustration filled the entranceway of the building, as Lucy struggled in vain with her mailbox. The padlock had been removed, but now the metal hasp refused to budge, no matter how she jiggled it. The latch jamming on the locking hook, it remained steadfast in its denial. This was the last thing Lucy needed today. She'd spent the entire day on her feet, first in helping to clean up the debris from the destroyed guildhall during the morning, and then she'd gone job hunting in the afternoon. Now all she wanted was to get her mail, climb into her bathtub, and soak her worries away.

She was a powerful mage. A simple mailbox lock shouldn't be giving her so much trouble!

"What is all that racket?" grouched a voice behind her.

Lucy let out a squeak, and spun around to face the short, stout woman behind her. "Landlady!" she greeted with a nervous smile. The woman was still more than a little bit intimidating, especially when she was scowling. "The hasp is stuck on my mailbox, so I'm having a little bit of trouble opening it."

Nearly pushing the blonde teenager aside, the building owner approached the mailbox. Then she slammed the middle of it with her fist, and the hasp obediently popped open. "Just need to remind it who's boss," the woman informed her.

"Thank you so much," Lucy told her, relieved that she could finally go upstairs now.

Her landlady, already heading back to her own apartment on the first floor, gave her a short wave. "Don't forget about the rent in two weeks."

Just like that, Lucy's relief turned to despair. "Yeah… I won't forget," she promised. Opening up the box, she removed her mail, and then shut and reattached the small padlock to it once more. Lucy walked up the stairs, the muscles in her legs and back protesting mightily from the extra exertion. Once she was inside of her apartment, she tossed the mail on her table without bothering to look through it, and made a beeline for the bathroom door. Shower first, bills later.

As she sank into the blessedly hot water, Lucy let out a sigh, the warmth seeping into her aching muscles. Doing hard labor in the mornings for the past week had taken its toll on her. But it had done a rather decent job of keeping her mind off of other things. At least… until nightfall hit, and the distractions were gone.

Fairy Tail… was no more.

It wasn't just that the guildhall was gone, though that hurt immensely all by itself. Lucy had helped her friends rebuild it in the wake of Phantom Lord's attack years ago, had placed timbers and painted the doors. It hurt, picking up those same, broken stones and beams, seeing the shattered remains of a place she'd called home.

But what hurt the worst… was the absence of her friends.

Most of her guildmates had packed up and left town quickly, after Makarov disbanded them. Some moved on to join other guilds, and others… well, who even knew, really. Only the few that lived in Magnolia itself remained for longer. Macao and Wakaba had families and homes, and so had stayed. She saw them sometimes, and Romeo as well, while clearing up the guildhall's lifeless corpse – although she'd made a point of not staying for long in their company. It just… hurt too much.

Then there were those that had left even before the guild had disbanded.

Aquarius.

Natsu.

Lucy's first spirit, and her first human friend.

She shivered despite the warmth of the water, curling her knees to her chest and pressing her forehead into them. It wasn't fair. It just wasn't fair. Lucy had done all she could to hold onto her friends, the family she'd chosen. And yet she'd lost them all, anyway.

Facing her spirits was too painful. How could she look at them, when she had sacrificed one of them to save herself? How was she supposed to talk to them, now? How could she promise to never abuse them, when she'd done something utterly unforgivable? Lucy had no idea of where to even begin.

Then there was the letter that Natsu had left behind in her apartment. The letter that had broken something inside of her. It wasn't fair of him, to tell her look after everyone. There was no way she could keep that promise, fulfill his expectation of her. She'd already broken every belief she held when Aquarius's key was shattered. When she'd sacrificed someone she'd care about deeply, the only connection she'd had left to her mother.

It wasn't lost on her either how hypocritical Natsu was in leaving that letter. Wasn't it he who had lectured her once, on the same thing? This wasn't what friends were supposed to do. Yet he'd gone and done the exact thing he'd told her wasn't okay. And there was nothing she could do about it, because she had no idea where he was.

She was all alone, once again.

The eternal adventure had finally ended, and mundane reality was all that Lucy had left.

When the water had cooled, Lucy carefully pushed herself up and stepped out of the bath. She dried off and exited the bathroom, still toweling off her hair. It didn't matter if she was naked or not in her own apartment. There was no one to burst in on her unannounced anymore.

God, Lucy had never once thought that she would miss that. But the truth was that she would give anything for one of her friends to come waltzing in as if they paid the rent themselves. She'd put up with their shenanigans, and their too-loud voices, just to have them in her life once more.

She shook her head furiously and dropped her towel in the laundry basket along with her clothes. Dwelling on the hurt wouldn't help her deal with the here and now, as she knew from experience. There were bills to pay, and a job hunt to conduct so that she could pay them.

Pulling out an outfit from her closet, she dressed quickly in something light to ward off the sweltering night. Summer was in full force, and it took no prisoners. Hopefully she could pick up a job that would enable her to buy a halfway decent fan.

Lucy knew that most of her money problems would be solved if she would just… join another guild. It wasn't as if she didn't have friends in Lamia Scale and Blue Pegasus. She was sure she'd be welcomed with open arms, even in Sabertooth or Mermaid Heel. But she would have to remove her Fairy Tail emblem for that, and the thought of doing that hurt in a way that she couldn't articulate. It felt like another betrayal, and she just couldn't stomach it. Not so soon.

With a heavy sigh, she plopped into a chair and reached for the pile of mail. Avoiding it for a couple of days had left her with a decent amount of spam mail to filter through, and she tossed aside more than half of the pile to dispose of later. The newest issue of Sorcerer Weekly magazine she set aside to read later, although the large front cover splash of the ruins of her guild promised that it would be a hard one.

Then she came upon a curious letter, her name and address handwritten across the envelope with a postmark from Acalypha. Opening the envelope carefully, Lucy removed the letter and unfolded it.

The first thing that caught her eye was the logo, for Love And Lucky. The guild her father had been a part of, where her parents had met.

Curiosity piqued further, she began to read.

.

Dear Ms. Heartfilia,

Please accept our sincerest condolences for the passing of Mr. Jude Heartfilia, and the lateness of these greetings. He was a much valued member of our guild, and his passing is felt keenly by all of us who knew him.

We are contacting you because, as the legal heir to Mr. Heartfilia's estate, you are entitled to the property he secured at our guild prior to his passing. We hope you will understand the odd circumstances regarding your status as a missing person that delayed the timely implementation of this process.

We will hold Mr. Heartfilia's effects for thirty days after the date of this letter. You may stop by the Love And Lucky main branch in Acalypha at any time during this period to collect Mr. Heartfilia's effects as well as to process the paperwork regarding their release into your custody. Please note that this process will take a couple hours of your time.

We wish you the best in this trying time.

Sincerely,

Ortez Vrillic
Guild Master
Love And Lucky Merchant Guild

.

Lucy stared, dumbfounded, at the letter. Now, of all times? This was only just now arriving? There was late, but this… this was beyond late. She'd been back from Tenrou for several months, and had visited the Love And Lucky guild almost immediately upon her return.

Remembering that visit didn't do her any favors, as it only drew forth her memories of Natsu and Happy when they went with her, and when they jointly discovered the treasure trove of gifts her father had left for her over the past seven years.

Should she go? It might be a painful trip. And given that her father had sent over seven years' worth of rent in one go, he might not have much of value left to his name. But then again… it might be important, or sentimental. The letter stated that he had 'secured' his things there, meaning a vault or some other sort of strongroom or safe.

Double-checking the date, Lucy thought over when would be the best time to go. She didn't feel right leaving the city before the guild debris was all cleared out, but it shouldn't take too much longer to accomplish that. Most of it was already taken care of, and what remained would be repairs to the lot. There was also talk of a monument. Maybe a week left of work, tops.

That settled it, then. She would go early in the day, a week from now.

And she would see just what her father had left behind.