A Kid At Heart: Part One, Chapter One
We gain strength, and courage, and confidence by each experience in which we really stop to look fear in the face... we must do that which we think we cannot.
Eleanor Roosevelt
It was strange.
Everything was silent and calm as soft, fluffy clouds fell from the sky. The sky itself was a blanket of whiteness, a mirror of the land below it.
Only a small dot of gold blemished the white world.
The little girl, barely older than seven and dressed in a torn, tattered, long shirt, trembled as the merciless wind chomped at her exposed skin. "Momma, I'm cold... Momma..."
She was a half-frozen zombie, frostbites dotting her bare skin, stumbling through the deserted streets.
Finally collapsing in the knee-high snow, she sank in the snowdrift and succumbed to exhaustion. From the heavens, pairs of eyes watched her sink down with arrogant smirks on their faces.
"Ur, there's a kid over there!" Lyon shouted over the roaring wind. Gray, the other ice mage in training, was a dark blur in the lump of snow, struggling to uncover something or someone.
Ur ran to her two students and caught a glimpse of golden hair before a person was uncovered.
The little girl's lips were gray and cold, but the continuous little puffs of warm breaths that froze in the frigid air showed that she was still alive.
With a gasp, Ur saw the thin threadbare clothes she wore and reached to pull her out of the drift.
She stopped as electricity spiked through her mind and continued poking and priding at her thoughts relentlessly until she moved away.
"Are you okay, Ur?" Lyon asked with concern. Ur shouted a warning as Gray advanced forward and touched the girl.
"Gray, NO!" A second passed and when nothing happened, both boys relaxed. Ur was wary when a moment later, the malicious presence returned at full force.
With no warning, the snow exploded.
It was warm when she woke up. She was lying in a small cot with a fluffy pillow beneath her head and a warm wool blanket draped over her body.
A crackling fire raged in the medium sized stone hearth in the little room, and opposite the cot, a small door that probably led to other rooms was shut. Every now and then, the fire would splutter and flicker as a gust of frigid wind made its way past the splintery wooden walls.
Despite the obviously homey and comfortable atmosphere, the shack seemed silent. She sat up slowly in the cot and reached behind to get the pillow. As she propped the pillow against the head of the cot and leaned back, the door slammed open, and she looked up, her eyes wide and her heart racing.
The boy in the doorway had messy dark hair and he glanced at her, and then he yelled into the previous room, "Ur! The girl's awake!"
A woman with short black hair appeared in the doorway next to the boy. She clomped him over the head.
"Gray! Don't I always tell you to have manners?"
"Yes Ur..." He grumbled and then muttered, "crazy old hag."
"What was that?" The woman called Ur shot Gray a deathly glare. "Are you asking for another three hours of survival training?"
"No ma'am!" He yelped. The two seemed to forget that she was sitting there as they bickered. A sudden cough racked her body and she curled up, hugging her knees to her chest, her throat seemingly caving in on itself.
Ur's footsteps were lost beneath her coughs as the older woman walked over and began to rub circles on the younger girl's back. Gray quietly made his escape out of the room as Ur was occupied.
Humming softly, Ur mumbled, "Shhh. It's okay. Take deep breaths. You'll stop coughing soon." The blonde's hacking coughs soon evened out and she was breathing normally.
Wordlessly, the dark haired boy reappeared in the doorway. He looked to Ur for approval, and seeing her nod, he entered and walked to the cot. The cup of water swayed precariously in his hands as he took tiny, tentative steps to prevent even a single drop of the precious liquid from spilling.
He handed her the cup of water and retreated back a few steps, watching her hold the cup with trembling hands. The mattress dipped under Ur's weight as she sat on the cot with light feet, prepared to catch the cup if the young girl dropped it.
The girl raised the cup to her lips and slowly, slowly sipped the water. Both of her small hands held the large cup up as she drank the water. With a sigh of contentment, she downed the rest of the liquid and set the cup in her lap.
"Thank you." She said and a small smile formed on her face. The dark haired boy only shrugged and turned around, heading out the door. Not another word was said between them, and only Ur saw the tiny, proud smirk on Gray's face as he left the room.
"But you said today!" The blonde jumped up and down, stomping her little feet on the wooden floor.
Lyon rubbed his forehead and said, "You're still really young, and Gray and I have already started our training. We're used to the cold." Pouting, the girl frowned and crossed her arms over her chest defiantly. "It's already been a month. I can stand the cold, too!"
A month had passed since the day when Lucy was found by the ice mage and her two apprentices. The mysterious magic force that had followed the little girl around and caused the explosion had disappeared, and Ur had adopted her.
They got to know each other better, but Lucy's past still remained unknown. The girl herself had no recollection of how she'd arrived in the snowy, deserted town a few miles from the town where Ur, Gray, and Lyon lived.
It was pure luck that Ur had planned a training expedition to that town for her two students that day and that they had found her. To this day, Ur still shivered to think what would've happened to the little blonde if they hadn't found her.
Together, the four of them made a happy – if not queer – family.
Lyon and Gray constantly fought, but they bonded over the little sister they had in common.
Lucy herself was always cared for by her two older brothers, and if they did anything out of line, she was sure to report them to Ur, the mother figure of all three of them.
It was only sometimes – mostly when the little girl was asleep – when images of places and people and events came to her in the form of dreams. Most of the time, the images weren't repetitive, but there was one image that always came to her every night: the soft humming of an unknown individual and the gentle lap of waves against her feet.
"No you can't. I'm sorry, Lucy, but you're just not ready yet."
"B-but-!" Tears glimmered in her eyes as she clutched Lyon's shirt. The silver haired boy blushed and gulped nervously, his eyes darting from her wide, puppy dog eyes, to the room around them. Sighing in defeat, he raised his arms in an 'I-Surrender' signal.
"Ha! Lyon lost a fight to Lucy!" Gray snickered and slapped the doorway as he entered the room. A challenging glimmer shone in Lyon's eyes as he straightened up and dropped his arms to his sides, glaring at Gray.
"You think you could win against those eyes?" He challenged his raven haired peer.
"Of course!" Gray scoffed and leaned against the doorway casually. Grinning, Lyon beckoned to Lucy who ran over, still skipping joyfully.
"Gray wants to fight you." He told the little girl, whose eyes immediately widened.
She turned towards Gray who shifted and met her, and her lower lip immediately began to tremble. Caught off guard, Gray flinched as her eyes grew even wider and began to shine with withheld tears.
"Alright, alright! I give! Just stop looking at me like that!" Gray finally exclaimed, unable to handle the face she was giving him any longer.
Lyon began to laugh, and Lucy giggled, her sad face disappearing immediately.
A chuckle joined with their laughter and Ur appeared in the door. Her eyes glimmered mischievously as she regarded them from the door well.
"Well then," She announced, "I see that we're all off to a good start today. Let's get training!" A scowling Gray, a snickering Lyon, and a giggling Lucy followed her outside.
"Lucy?" Ur and Lucy were laying outside on the blanket while Gray and Lyon were inside making dinner. The stars shone like diamonds in the dark, obsidian sky.
"Yes, Ur?" Lucy replied.
The older woman spoke. "I have a favor to ask of you."
"Hm?"
"Never, ever let Gray or Lyon use Iced Shell." Ur said solemnly.
"Why? What is Iced Shell?" Lucy asked.
Ur turned on her side and stared into Lucy's eyes. "It's a spell that when used… will kill the caster."
"…oh…" The girl's voice was small as she took in this information.
Still staring at Lucy, Ur asked, "Do you promise?"
"I promise." Lucy confirmed without hesitation, "I promise on my honor as a celestial spirit mage."
Ur stared for a second longer before smiling and pulling Lucy close to her. "Atta girl."
"Rise and shine!" Ur threw the blankets off of the three kids huddled under it.
"Mmedhhhmoorrppp…" Gray grumbled and pulled Lucy in closer to him. Lyon had an arm around the two of them and he shifted to save their warmth.
"Come on!" Ur barked and when they still did not wake, she dropped ice cubes on Gray and Lyon's heads.
"Oww!" They both sat up at the same time, leaving a disgruntled Lucy on the mattress herself.
"Urr…" She mumbled and also sat up, rubbing her eyes and letting out a cute yawn.
"Aw, you'll be fine, Lucy." Ur ruffled the little girl's hair playfully. "We're going into town today – you probably don't want to miss it!"
"Alright," Ur counted the heads, "Good! We're all still here. Where do you three want to go now? We already bought groceries and got a discount for it." She winked at Lucy who giggled and held onto the basket of bread, fish, tangerines, and assorted vegetables.
"Can we get some food to eat, Ur?" Gray moaned pitifully.
"I'm starving…" Lyon's stomach growled next to Gray. Ur rolled her eyes and looked to Lucy.
"What do you think, Ms. Lucy? Should we let them eat?" The blonde giggled and held onto Ur's hand.
"Yes!"
"Ur, my friend! How are you today?" An old man with a youthful spring in his step strode over to the bar and patted Ur on the back. The woman turned around in her stool and smiled and exchanged words with him.
"I'm great! How have you been, John? Gray and Lyon were starving so I brought them here to eat. You serve the best food in town, after all!" She winked at him and he chuckled.
"Oh, you sure do know how to flatter an oldie like me, Ur. Now who's this young'un?" He squatted down to peer at Lucy who stood between Ur's stool and Gray's stool.
Ur patted Lucy's head fondly. "This is Lucy. She's a new pupil of mine."
"It's nice to meet you, Lucy. You've got a great teacher. She's the strongest mage in the world." John stuck out his hand and Lucy cautiously took it.
"You shush," Ur rolled her eyes at John. "There are a lot of much stronger wizards than me in the west." John disregarded her comment and smiled at Lucy.
"I-It's nice to meet you, too, sir." She said meekly, giving him a small smile.
"And just for that smile, everything's on the house!" John exclaimed and winked at her. Lucy's brilliant smile warmed his heart as he strode into the kitchen, giving Ur a kind smile on the way.
"Man! That was amazing!" Lyon said and stretched his arms.
"Yeah!" Lucy agreed.
Ur glanced at Gray who seemed to be focused on a group of people talking on the side of the road. "What do you think, Gray? Was the food good?"
"Huh?" Gray turned and smiled at Ur. "Yeah… the food was great." She couldn't help but notice that it lacked the luster it previously had.
Lucy turned in her sleep, feeling Lyon on the right of her and an empty space on the right. She sat up and crept out of bed quietly, careful not to disturb Lyon.
"Gray?" The boy froze, his body illuminated by the moonlight in the room from the skylight. Seeing only the small girl, he relaxed and removed his hand from the door handle.
"Lucy," A rustle as his bag slipped from his shoulder. "What are you doing still awake?"
She didn't answer; only stared at the bag now sitting on the ground. Then slowly, she looked up and met his eyes. He flinched at the realization in her eyes. "Were you… leaving?"
He sighed. "Yes." There was no point in lying to her.
"Why?" She asked, the confusion plain in her voice.
"It's complicated," he said. "A demon killed my parents and… and I need to kill it. Today in town, I heard some people say that the demon, Deliora, appeared in Brago, a town not too far from here."
"So you're just going to walk there and kill it?" Lucy asked with disbelief.
Gray jutted his chin out. "Yes."
"Then I'm coming with you." Having no experience of the real world, neither of them could fathom the true might of a demon, and their foolishness would lead to the sacrifices that would change the entire essence of who they were. Forever.
"Lucy, run!" Gray shouted as Deliora rampaged through the town.
Smoke flooded the girl's senses and she crashed blindly through the debris of smashed wood, crushed stone, and obliterated shards of metal. The door to the house she and Gray hid in was half hanging on the jam, rusted hinges screaming in agony, as it swung open.
Yanking with a sudden harshness on her arm, Gray pulled her out of the house. "Idiot! Don't just stand there gaping!"
Coughing and too frightened to speak, she nodded dumbly. His eyes widened in fear as he suddenly looked up past her.
"Let's go!" He yelled and he pulled her along. The house they were just hiding in was crushed by a flying chunk of cobblestone the size of a train cart.
"Gray," Lucy clutched at the older boy's shirt as tears suddenly rolled down her cheeks, the entire situation becoming too much for her to comprehend. "Gray, I want Lyon! Or Ur! I want them!" She sobbed. But Gray only had eyes for the demon stomping through the town.
"Shh, wait here." His eyes were trained on Deliora and he left Lucy sitting in the middle of the road.
He ran towards the demon, murderous intent in his eyes as he stopped in his casting position.
"Ice Make: Lance!"
The shards of sharpened ice flew towards Deliora, but shattered upon impact. The thick hide of the demon wasn't even pierced. Instead, Deliora turned and his scaly yellow eyes focused on Gray.
"Alright, that didn't work! Then eat this!" Gray shouted. He stood straight and suddenly crossed his arms in an X towards the ground.
A blue aura surrounded him and a crystal blue magic circle formed beneath his feet. However, he didn't release his magic. Instead, the magic pressure built and built until even Lucy could feel it.
The girl gasped. She was pretty sure that this was what Ur had told her about.
"Iced," Gray yelled, "Sh-"
"NO, GRAY!" Lucy disappeared and reappeared next to him in a flash and shoved him off his feet. The magic dispersed immediately and Deliora's fist began its downward arc.
"LUCY!" Gray screamed. At the last possible moment, he leaped forward and dragged her backwards. The ground shook as Deliora's fist connected with the ground, and Lucy screamed in agony.
Gray trembled at the sight. The bottom half of Lucy's left leg – from just below her knee to her foot – was shattered. The seven year old bit her lip from the pure pain that shook her body and her lip began to bleed from the force.
"L-Lucy, I'm so sorr-"
"GRAY! LUCY! GET OUT OF THERE!" It was a miracle: it was Ur. Lyon was next to Gray and Lucy in a flash. He and Gray supported Lucy, each boy held one of her arms and her left foot hung limply in the air. Ur sprinted forward to engage the demon and distract it.
Gray and Lyon carried Lucy over to a hill in the town far away enough from Deliora.
"Here, I'll make you a new foot." Gray suggested. "Ice Make: Ice Peg Leg."
Shutting his eyes, he numbed Lucy's shattered leg and encased it in a leg of ice.
The girl didn't talk or breath that much. She laid on the ground with her eyes closed while Gray and Lyon stood guard around her.
"Look, Gray," Lyon spoke in amazement. "That's our teacher there. That's Ur." He nodded to where a tiny figure flitted around the enormous demon. Ice sprouted randomly from Deliora, and unlike Gray's attack, Ur's attacks actually caused damage to the demon.
"She's tiring, though." Gray said. They watched as Ur ran around Deliora, but much slower than before. Suddenly, she took a stance similar to Gray's.
"N-no!" Lucy sat up, gasping. She stood up, wobbling on her feet, and tried to walk down the hill. "No! UR!"
"Lucy! You need to lay down and rest! Lucy!" Gray yelled.
Lyon slowly turned towards Gray, an unfamiliar expression crossing the silver haired male's face. "This…"
"URR!" Lucy screamed.
From below the hill, Ur looked up at the three kids, a peaceful smile on her face as she crossed her arms in an X position.
"With this," She yelled, ensuring that the kids could hear her. "I shall seal away your darkness, Gray!"
"NOOO! UR!" Gray screamed, his voice becoming hoarse. He stood, frozen, on the hill.
"Ur-" Lyon whispered.
"ICED SHELL!" A powerful beam of blue light shot up from Ur's magic circle and surrounded her. The woman kept her arms crossed despite the strain it had on her and soon, cracks appeared on her body. The blue light began to seep into Deliora, causing the demon to writh in pain, but it was unable to move.
"Gray…" Ur turned her head back to look at the three kids one last time, her eyes focused solely on the shocked, raven haired male. "Embrace the light. Find your happiness…" With that, her face shattered, her body following soon afterwards.
Deliora roared as ice crawled up its body. Its efforts were futile, for the ice of Ur was the strongest of all, and the demon was finally subdued.
"THIS WAS ALL YOUR FAULT!" Lyon screamed and turned on Gray. "BECAUSE OF YOU, UR IS-" A chunk of stone collapsed over the silver haired ice mage and Gray gaped at the sight.
"Lyon?" He called, hoping to hear a response. "Lyon?" Upon hearing nothing, Gray's shoulders slumped and he turned around, trudging towards Lucy.
"Ur," She sobbed, her back bent and her arm raised forward in a futile attempt to keep the older woman with her. "G-Gray, it wasn't y-your fault-" Coughing, she bent over and blood dripped from her mouth.
"Oi! Lucy!" Gray held her shoulder in alarm. "Stop speaking! Don't die on me, too!"
"Gray…" She coughed one last time and crimson blood splattered on the ground. Gray held her tightly as she went limp and fell unconscious. He felt for her pulse, praying that she was still alive.
After a few seconds, the faint thump, thump, thump proved that she was still alive – for now.
"Don't you worry, Lucy…" Gray grunted, "I'll take care of you. Just hold on for a little longer."
"Where should we go now?"
Gray, with Lucy on his back, looked off into the distance – the flat, barren land of snow and ice – stretching for as far as the eye could see.
"Don't you worry, Ur,"
"There are a lot of much stronger wizards than me in the west."
"I'll make you proud."
A/N:
It's a new story! I had this idea for too long, and I just couldn't help it.
I'm still in school and our finals and end of the year projects are coming up, so I'll be busy doing those. They are my first priority, but I wanted to publish something so that you guys know that I'm not dead or anything. ;)
Princess Converted Pirate is not on hiatus. I shall be updating it within a week. Luckily, I've been introduced to a pretty good app that helps remove writer's block (thanks Skystormrunner), so Princess Converted Pirate should be up and running in no time!
Thanks for everyone's understanding and support! Your reviews really brighten my day and I'm so, extremely happy to see that people accept my ideas!
'Til the next time we meet!
~Nora