The next morning Lucy awoke in pitch black. The bunk was dark because the lantern had burned out in the night, Lucy however hadn't thought of that and quickly worked herself into a panic.
"Erza? Erza?!" Crawled to the floor and tried to feel her way to Erza's cot, which she quickly found to be empty.
"Hello?" Lucy crawled back to her cot and crept underneath it, curling up in the corner of the room. "Erza...?" Lucy was about to start crying when the door to the room flew open and a young girl holding a lantern stood in the doorway.
"Hello?" She inched into the room, her lantern illuminating it.
"Hullo.." Lucy whispered as she crawled out from under her hammock-style cot, standing up and brushing herself off.
"Hey, I'm Levy. You are?" The blue haired girl held out her free hand to shake Lucy's.
"Lucy Hear-" Lucy stopped herself, "Just Lucy.. Nice to meet you." She accepted Levy's hand and smiled down at the tiny girl before her.
"You're new?" Levy asked.
"Yes, I joined yesterday. Where is Erza?" Lucy shyly retracted her hand.
"Oh she's up and about, we're out now, on the water. Erza helps out at the helm somedays when Freed is tired or out of commission."
As if a switch had been flipped, Lucy could suddenly feel the floor rocking, slowly and gently, but it surprised Lucy enough to make her fall backwards, just catching herself before she fell to the floor.
"We're already out to sea? Can you take me to the deck? What should i be doing?" Lucy wrung her hands.
"Yeah, of course. You can learn the ropes, but afterwards you should just hang around and observe the people who know what they're doing. I don't actually do much around here, sometimes i help the captains with the paperwork and stuff, but after you learn how to help out with actually keeping the boat moving, you really don't have to do much, all the hard jobs are taken. In time you'll find what you're really good at and you'll be able to contribute, but there's no rush." Levy began leading Lucy out into the hall and around corners, eventually up a flight of stairs. The bright morning sunlight made Levy and Lucy's eyes squint reflexively.
"Thanks for bringing me up here." Lucy shaded her eyes as the two girls stumbled up the stairs.
"You're welcome," Levy tittered, "But you really should learn to navigate down there, if you get lost it might take hours to find another person, this ship is quite large. It has over 300 rooms, 4 levels, and is home to roughly 230 people. Also, just a word of advice," Levy stopped at the top of the stairs. "Don't open doors that you are not 100% sure about, you might walk in on something dangerous or disgusting.."
"Okay.. Thanks." Lucy said as Levy waved and continued walking, until she disappeared into the captains' cabin. Lucy looked around, looking for Erza.
"Lucy!" She heard faint yelling. She looked around, not seeing Erza, or anything really, before she was tackled to the ground.
"Hey there, I'm Natsu!" The lump weighing Lucy down to the floor said.
"Please get up." Lucy groaned, feeling as though she would run out of air at any point.
"Sorry!" Lucy heard as the boy stood up, yanking on her hand, resulting in her flying to her feet in a rag doll fashion.
"Hello, I'm Lucy." She sighed as she pulled back her hand.
"I know!" Natsu laughed a bit.
"... How?" Lucy took a wary step back.
"Erza told us." Natsu gave Lucy a thumbs up.
"Us?" Lucy started before she saw a small blue cat totter to Natsu's side.
"Yeah, me, Happy, Lisanna, and the cold asshole."
"Happy?" Lucy asked as she pointed at the cat, that stared up at her as it appeared to smile.
"Yeah, this is Happy, he's the best friend I could ask for!" Natsu smiled, his messy pink hair fell into his face. Lucy knelt down to pet the cat, who purred contently, keeping his large eyes trained on Lucy's.
"Wait, who're Lisanna and the cold person?" Lucy looked up from Happy, who in turn lightly nipped Lucy's hand and ran off down the stairs.
"Oh.."Lucy stared after the cat.
"Lisanna is my other best friend," Natsu's boyish grin morphed into a sneer, "The pricksicle, we just let hang around us cuz the others can't see how stupid he is.." Lucy watched as Natsu seemingly lost himself in thought, finding herself thoroughly amused with this strange child.
"Shouldn't you go get Happy? Will he get lost?" Lucy looked back to the stairs that went down below as if the cat in question would suddenly return if she mentioned his name.
"Nah, he's fine." Natsu shrugged before his head turned towards the quarter deck abruptly, "Time to go! See you later, Lucy!" Lucy watched as Natsu all but sprinted to and down the stairs in less than 3 seconds, hearing his heavy footfalls going farther down into the huge ship.
"Hey there, newbie!" Lucy looked up to see a boy about her age with black hair walking down the stairs from the quarter deck towards her with Erza accompanying him.
"Ahh, you must be the 'pricksicle'." Lucy guessed with an easygoing smile on her face, she had a feeling it wouldn't be hard to win over Erza's friends.
"I see you've already met the pyromaniac." The 'pricksicle' smirked, Lucy found that he had a sharp type of attractiveness about him, the type one could easily get caught on.
"No name calling, aren't you two friends?" Erza glared at the boy threateningly.
"Oh yes, Erza, the best of friends!" The boy halfheartedly affirmed.
"I should hope so." Erza nodded once before smiling at Lucy and returning to the helm, Lucy assumed.
"My real name is Gray, just so you know." The 'pricksicle' held out a hand for Lucy to shake.
"Oh really? I could've sworn it was pricksicle!" Lucy exclaimed in mock astonishment.
"Very funny, Lady Lucy, keep that up and you'll find yourself thrown off deck. I hope you can swim." Gray teased. Lucy found him strangely articulate for such a young boy of what she assumed to be a low class background.
"Of course I can, I'm too old not to." Lucy admonished. Lucy stared at his hand, which she realized was still held out to her in his seemingly lackluster fashion, taking it, she asked "Where did you receive an education, you seem well learned." Lucy complimented her new crew mate.
"There was an upper class woman who tutored me and my cousin for a while before I came here." Gray stated with a bored look on his face, Lucy guessed he didn't like talking much about himself.
"How fortunate." Lucy released his hand.
"Gray!" Lucy turned to see an orange haired boy wave to Gray as he made his way over. Lucy was beginning to wonder why the ship had so many children on the crew, not that she could complain much, she liked being around people her own age, she wasn't able to very much at her family's home.
"Loke." Gray held up a hand as he grinned at his friend, "This is Lucy, she's the new kid everyone's talking about."
'Loke' leaned in and threw his arm around Lucy's shoulders, "Hey there, Lucy." Lucy stood still for a moment before she turned to stare blankly at Gray, who broke down into uncontrollable laughter as soon as he and Lucy made eye contact.
"What? What is it?" Loke looked mildly annoyed as he retracted his arm, staring expectantly at Gray.
"Her fuckin' face!" Gray said as he continued his laughing. Loke looked back to Lucy, whose features had returned to an impressive poker face. Lucy shrugged at Loke. After Gray caught his breath he looked between Loke and Lucy, who had used the time it took Gray to find himself, to spark up a conversation about their tattoo placement.
"I got mine on my back, it made it so hard to sleep while it was still sore." Loke reminisced.
"Yeah, having it on my hand makes things pretty easy, except keeping it dry and out of the sun..." Lucy scratched her head with her unbandaged hand.
"I got mine on my chest, because it was the easiest place to get it." Gray shared, his hand cupping his chin as he appeared to be in deep thought.
"That makes sense." Lucy and Loke nodded.
"I'm off to figure out what I can grab, before everyone realizes it's almost time to eat." Loke waved as he started for the stairs.
"Can't fight that logic!" Gray shrugged as he hurriedly followed Loke down the stairs.
Lucy stood alone for a moment before she realized she hadn't eaten in a long time, and was starving. "I want food.." She mumbled to herself.
"Oh, want me to show you where to get some?" A soft voice came from behind Lucy. She turned quickly, in a defensive manner. She found herself face to face with a very cute girl with white hair and energetic, bright blue eyes.
"I am Lisanna, Mira's sister." The girl smiled at Lucy in a non threatening way.
"I am Lucy... I've heard a lot about you." Lucy smiled back, unsure what to make of Lisanna, something about her pit Lucy off.
"Good things, i hope?" Lisanna engaged in Lucy's small talk.
"Yes, Natsu adores you." Lucy nodded once as she watched Lisanna's face glow red in a heartbeat.
"Ahh.. So, food?" Lisanna mumbles.
"Sure, how does food work around here?" Lucy followed as Lisanna slowly led her down the stairs, talking all the way.
"So... Lucy, where are you from?" Gray asks from across the table the group of children managed to snag before the dining hall filled up.
"Oh, just outside of the town we just departed." Lucy answered without really thinking.
"And your family? What're they like?" Lisanna asked with a curious stare on her face.
"My mother was beautiful and kind, and amazing." Lucy said as she sighed and stared at her bowl of stew with faraway eyes, "My father used to be okay, but recently he's been... difficult."
The group nodded sympathetically, before Lisanna mumbles "I don't even remember my parents, they died when I was younger. Mira was the one that saved us."
Lucy reaches her good hand over to comfortingly squeeze Lisanna's hand.
"Well, let's get started with learning the ropes!" Erza excitedly claps her hands together as she stands, looking at Lucy.
Lucy sighed as she stood up, "Okay, hopefully I can learn it all in a few hours.."
"Prepare for the most intensive two hours of your life!" Loke hollers from the table as Erza led Lucy out of the large dining hall.
Three hours and several rope burns later, Lucy plopped her bottom down on the wooden deck. "And done!" She halfheartedly cheers for herself, carefully wiping her sweaty palms on the skirt of her long maroon dress, before she pinched some of the best quality cotton money could buy. It was one of the only things her father had personally given her that she took with her when she ran away. The hem came halfway down Lucy's shins went she was standing, while the sleeves ended just before her elbows. Had Lucy been back her hometown, Lilica, the dress would've been considered quite fashionable, had she layered a few petticoats beneath her skirt. Though, Lucy supposed fashion didn't mean much on a pirate ship, she internally shrugged. Lucy looked up from the wooden boards making up the deck to inspect Erza's attire. Erza donned a peasant-style blouse over a long, heavy woolen skirt, her hair in a ponytail at the crown of her head. The blouse looked similar to the light blouse Levy wore as well, though Levy had a shorter skirt made of a more freely flowing fabric. Lucy watched as Erza made her way to the captains' quarters, presumably to update one of the captains, or both, that Lucy had been well and thoroughly trained.
Later that night as Lucy was lying in her hammock, in the pitch black room that she shared with Erza. Lucy was trying not to think about her father and the life she left behind.
Images flashed behind Lucy's eyelids, of her mother laughing as she read Lucy bedtime stories, her father looking at Lucy pridefully when she was younger, Lucy's first friend, a young maid, Virgo, and other joy filled memories tickled Lucy's mind.
"I never wanted to leave home... It's all I know..." Lucy breathed out into the silent room, to no one in particular, "But I needed to go, I couldn't stay." Lucy sniffled softly, she'd guessed Erza was asleep, though her assumption was disproved when she heard Erza say "Want to talk about it?" And with that, Lucy began to babble and spill tears like a brook, she began to sob like the young child she still was.
Erza slipped out of her cot and blindly fumbled her way to Lucy, once she reached her, Erza knelt beside Lucy's hammock and stroked Lucy's hair soothingly. "It's going to be okay." Erza whispered.
Once again, Lucy woke up alone in the dark.
She eased herself off her hammock and fumbled to where she hoped the door was, fortunately, she wasn't far off and quickly managed to pull open the door to the hall and tumble into the dimly lit hallway.
Looking around the wooden hall, Lucy saw a girl, even younger than herself, in a dirty, worn dress, wearing a bloodstained apron. Lucy had to squint her eyes to see better in the light provided by a lantern haphazardly hung by a hook on the ceiling of the hallway. The other girl couldn't have been older than 7, Lucy stared at the girl, who stared back curiously.
"Hello." Lucy offered a hand to the girl, who stood a few paces back.
"Hello," The girl's pockets clinked and clanked as she stepped forward to grasp Lucy's hand and shake it. "I am Wendy Marvell."
Suddenly feeling at ease, Lucy's body sagged slightly with relief.
"I'm Lucy." She smiled amicably, "How'd you get your apron so dirty?" Lucy curiously added.
"Oh," Wendy looked down, inspecting at herself, "Well, I am the surgeon of the ship."
Lucy stared incredulously, apparently speechless.
"No, I swear!" Wendy half-smiled as she reached into her apron pockets and pulled out an assortment of scalpels, forceps, etc., all expertly displayed in her small hands.
"But you're so young.." Lucy noted, still shocked.
"I don't know if you noticed, but we're all young around here, so we do what we can to help." Wendy nodded politely before returning her tools of trade to her deep, blood soaked pockets and heading in the direction Lucy guessed the stairs were.
Lucy stared after Wendy for a moment before she began walking the same way, counting the doors she passed and noting the turns she made.
Finally, Lucy found herself at the bottom of the stairs leading to the deck. She turned, back to the stairs and proudly looked around, no one was in any of the hallways she glanced down, but through the wooden walls she could hear the sounds of living. Lucy could hear snoring, talking, groaning, squealing, when she closed her eyes she could even swear she heard a quiet purring.
"Luce!" A loud voice yelled down the stairs, causing Lucy to flinch as she turned to look up the stairs, just in time to see Natsu free falling down towards her.
Thump-thud!
Lucy opened her eyes to look up at her excitable friend, she blinked a few times before sensing the soreness of her head.
"Oh, sorry." Natsu rolled off of Lucy and offered her a hand, which she didn't seem to notice as she sat up slowly.
"Huh?" Lucy grunted.
"Great, dumbass, you broke her!" Gray's voice seemed to screech.
"Shhhhhhhhhh!" Lucy scrunched her eyes shut and began rubbing the back of her head carefully.
"What's wrong? Are you hurt?" Natsu crouched down so he and Lucy were face to face.
"Of course she's hurt, you tackled her from up there." Gray pointed to the top of the stairs.
"I hit my head.." Lucy mumbled.
"Oh, that's serious, Natsu, get Wendy." Gray murmured.
"What, why don't you?" Natsu whined.
"Natsu, do it." Lucy groaned.
With that, Natsu silently complied and ran up the stairs to search for the ship's surgeon.
"I think... That today... Is not so nice." Lucy slurred before falling unconscious.