Loke was convinced he could still hear the storm, even though he was now a world away. Despite the fact that it was far more likely his ears had just adjusted to the continuous dull roar he still liked to imagine it was because Lucy could hear the storm, and that somehow they could hear and feel the same things. He craved her company again and fought the urge to return to her side, knowing he shouldn't. He had only left when her eyes drifted shut any time she wasn't actively preventing them from doing so, deciding to say his goodbyes and let her get some rest. He had kept her up long enough.
Even so, he couldn't wait until he was summoned next to see her. Loke frowned to himself, crossly comparing his summons to some of Lucy's other spirits. For fucks sake sometimes Taurus and Virgo were summoned twice in the same day and he was lucky to be summoned twice a week, if that.
'So I'll go through on my own,' he decided, happy once again that he had that ability. 'I should probably have a reason. I would usually just say some line about desperately wanting to see her again but the usual doesn't go over well with her.'
He slid off his bed and paced the long stretch of dark wood that made up the raised platform his bed rested on, rejuvenated by his presence in the spirit world and no longer feeling tired.
'The guild would be a nice excuse to see her. Plus it would be fun to see everyone and maybe pick a fight with one of the guys. No wait I don't know if Lucy would like that… unless they were annoying her or something and then it would probably entertain her. I'll play it by ear."
He was getting more and more excited about his plan, needing more space to walk and extending his stride down to the cool marble floor that ran through a majority of his home.
'Okay,' he continued his train of thought, 'so I'll go to the guild tomorrow morning. Maybe I can look for a solo job for Lucy, and consequently me, to take on. Or I can maybe convince Gray to work me in to one of the team missions. I'm sure he owes me for something. Or get Mira to pull some strings, she always loves playing matchmaker.'
He grinned to himself and lifted a hand to touch one of his ears, wondering if he could do as Lucy suggested and use it to his advantage. It was a significant leg up surprisingly that she knew his little purring secret, because he was sure that she would think of it every time they caught her eye and make her smile. With this in mind he jogged the short distance to the bathroom, examining his hair in the mirror before combing through it with his fingers and shifting some of the strands around, emphasizing the ears. It had to be subtle though, if she developed too much of a 'non-humanoid' image of him in her mind it might make him less appealing to her, but he also wasn't willing to pretend they were the same. Similar yes, compatible yes, but not the same.
Maybe he would call Cancer.
He took a long look at his reflection knowing something was off before he realized he still didn't have his glasses, probably still laying soaking wet at the bottom of Lucy's drained bathtub.
'Oh no,' even his thoughts were occasionally sarcastic, 'I guess I just have to go back to Lucy's another time to get them back. What a tragedy.' And he chuckled happily, pleased for more reasons to see her.
'Well that changes wardrobe then if I don't have them… what do I have.'
He wandered back to his room, staring into his closet and was pleased to note that he would look dashing in almost anything it held, but surprisingly he still felt a strange twinge of anxiety. He always tried to look nice to attract women, but to look nice for a particular woman was something new to him. He found himself wanting to impress her, and that desire made him hesitate.
'Don't be an idiot, you know it doesn't matter as long as you don't show up naked. She doesn't care what you're wearing.' But that thread of reasoning didn't console him, because he wanted her to care, or at least notice. To find him attractive.
'Stop it, just look nice. Girls dig confidence.'
At least he was pretty sure that was true. Lucy made him doubt everything he knew about women. Was he right in thinking that and it was really a thing every girl liked? Or was Lucy once again the exception to everything he thought he had figured out.
He really had no idea.
'Just like the way you look. Lucy likes it when I'm myself, so I should just wear what I like and that will be the end of it.'
So he ended up in a favorite ensemble of his, wisely considering the day ahead of possible missions and wearing a simple but expensive black button up shirt rolled up to the elbows, a white vest, and a silver tie. He couldn't help but add the tie, because thanks to his rapid fire questions with Lucy he knew she was a sucker for ties. Paired with comfortable gray slacks and his usual black shoes and he was feeling pretty good. He gave himself one final once over and was eager to leave but knew he couldn't. With an annoyed grimace he walked across the room to a simple arm chair facing a large window looking out, settling in to wait.
Time was a nuisance between the spirit and human worlds, often infuriating and upsetting him. To see how much his friends had aged after Lucy returned was a terrifying slap in the face, reminding him with grim certainty that his human friends would die one day. He wouldn't even consider the prospect with Lucy. He refused.
It was also very hard for him to adjust to time in the spirit world once he was allowed passage. It couldn't have been an hour home when he could sense Lucy's fear and he was running in a mad dash to save her. Then it felt like every few minutes that something threatened her, when he knew in reality it was days in between for her. It was difficult to just accept that Lucy would call him if she needed him like all the others, and that even though he could tell she was being hurt she wouldn't summon him. He had almost been insulted at first, that she wouldn't just call him first thing when there was trouble but it was ridiculous to expect that and he knew he was just being protective. He summoned himself when necessary, that was his only indulgence. Still, time had become a major stress for him. He was worried, when he had woken up in his bed after his fight with Capricorn and almost half a day had gone by. He was fully healed much earlier on, but he had never been disturbed. Not once in a month and a half of her time was he summoned. He had run to the others, scared more than he cared to remember, asking them if they felt it too. If they felt the LACK of her, like she was asleep. The others were worried, but took comfort in knowing she was safe. If she was in pain they would know, if she was dead they would know. She was alive and well but something was keeping her from them, like she was asleep.
Days passed, and in reality it wasn't very long at all for them. 28 days, but he knew how long it was in the human world. Seven years, seven years since Lucy last called. During that time he had tried hundreds of times to force his way through on his own power but he couldn't, and he was forced to wait, his only comfort knowing that she was safe, wherever she was.
The first summon after the events of Tenrou Island was like breathing again. Summons picked up like normal and it was like nothing had ever happened. She was just as young as the day she vanished, like no time had passed at all, and it inspired him to approach the Celestial Spirit king about a favor for him.
Here, on his private land where his home rested, time ran identically to that of the human world. It had been no challenge for the Spirit King, who had complete control over the celestial realm, as well as minor control of the time stream in the human realm. He could rest easy knowing that if he left her side to run home just to grab something it wouldn't be night time by the time he returned. The request of a specific pace of time broke no rules and had been done in the past, because since every being in the celestial world was immortal time was irrelevant anyways. At least this way he could be more accurate about his arrivals.
The only downside was that he had to wait hours and hours now that she was asleep, and he was impatient. He stared out his window, trying to consider what to do to pass the time when a dozen small flashes of gold caught his eye, and he grinned.
He suddenly had a very good idea.
Lucy was sitting upright in her bed, staring around her with an open mouth. She raised one hand to her temple, almost too shocked to even speak as she observed her room.
Almost.
"That stupid, completely outrageous, unbelievable, theatrical, FLIRT!" she shouted into the empty air, but quickly fell into stunned laughter as she looked out into a sea of gorgeous dark blue roses with gold streaks through the petals. They sat in vases on every flat surface, and surrounded her bed, blue and golden petals spread on every window sill. And right next to her head on the pillow next to where she had been sleeping, was a single orange poppy resting on an especially gold streaked Star rose.
Her face flushed as she thought about him, so close to her while she had no idea so he could set the flowers down, so close she was sure she must have felt his breath on her skin without ever waking up. She rose in a flustered daze, grinning madly as she gathered up the roses surrounding her bed in an armful to find them a vase to squeeze them in to, not yet prepared to read the note set prominently on her table. She breathed in the aroma and held them tight against her, her addled mind idly noticing that these roses had no thorns. So they were thorn less as well as beautiful? It only took a glance to see that each flower had been de-thorned by hand and the sentiment overwhelmed her. Had he sat and cut the thorns off every flower? It must have taken him hours, just so he could leave her a gift in one grand, very Loke gesture without risk of hurting her. It almost said more than the roses themselves.
She found a place to house the vase-less roses and took a deep breath before crossing to her table and picking up the note left on heavy, expensive card stock in his naturally elegant handwriting.
It read, "Please accept these as a bribe, if my stubborn master won't accept them as a gift, to keep our little secret a secret. I will be at the guild just to make sure you do. Take no offense darling it isn't that I don't trust you, but my pride is on the line, so I will be forced to watch you closely until I am satisfied. I hope you enjoy my present beautiful, from one friend to another.
Heres to home- Loke"
Lucy held a hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle and set the note down gently. "'To make sure you keep the secret,' oh I'm sure that's all," she muttered, smiling to herself. She looked over her shoulder at the poppy and the Golden Star rose nestled side by side.
"'From one friend to another' huh?" and she couldn't help her giddiness.
She sprinted to the bathroom to shower, suddenly in a hurry to be on her way.
Loke settled in to the barstool of the nearly empty Fairy Tail guild hall, pleased to note that the bar always made it through every iteration of the hall. He was prepared to wait however long he needed to for Lucy to wake, and his hope was that he would be waiting for some time and she would make up for lost sleep. The sky was still coated thickly in dark gray clouds, but for the time being there was only occasional light rain splattering against the windows, a cold breeze in the air. He wasn't cold at all, the guild hall always promising comfort and warmth, even when empty. There was only one other person in the hall, who spotted him when she came out from the back room with her arms full of paper.
"Good morning Mirajane, looking lovely as ever" the lion greeted her with his usual grin, happy to see the look of shock on her delicate features.
"Loke! What a pleasant surprise! I didn't know the guild would get to enjoy your company today, just here for a visit?"
"And maybe work with some friends, we'll see how it goes."
Mira smiled sweetly but gave him a look said she was more.
"What?"
"Oh Loke come now, I know you better than that," she giggled, obviously enjoying herself. "Almost eight AM in unpleasant weather, here before anyone else waiting for something. Must be a girl."
His eyes widened slightly but he guessed he shouldn't have been surprised. When it came to matchmaking Mirajane was relentless.
"You're worth the early wake up gorgeous." Mira just raised an eyebrow at him.
He sighed. "Am I that obvious? I'm losing my touch."
"Lucy has that effect," she tittered, her demon eyes scouring his face, looking for any minute confirmation that she was right, and somehow finding that she was despite his best attempt.
"Oh yay!" she squealed but Loke held out his hands like he was calming a panicked animal.
"It's not like that Mira calm down, seriously! It isn't that way,"
"But you want it to be!"
"Well I've never hidden that."
"So I'm right!"
"No!"
But she couldn't be stopped, prancing away to start posting the jobs, lost in her planned strategies already.
"What's so hard to believe about wanting to come visit my favorite radiant barmaid on a chilly day? I'm sure I can warm you up!" He called, not sure what his game plan was.
"Oh your heart wasn't even in that little flirt Loke!" She winked over her shoulder, "It must be somewhere else."
He groaned, but resigned himself to his fate. In all likelihood Mira would have been on Lucy about the whole thing anyways if they had both even been spotted in the guild hall together. If he wanted to spend time with her through Fairy Tail, Mira was a part of that package.
He checked a clock written in light pen that Mira kept near the job board while she posted and saw that it was 7:58 AM. It was smart to keep it there so she would know when to get out of the way. Now that Fairy Tail was number one again their members had shot back up to nearly where they were before, and lots of new faces joined the old ones as they charged the board every morning at 8 AM.
7:59 AM
He wondered if he should jostle for a job but decided to leave it to one of the others. He could just squeeze in on a team job, and he didn't want to get trampled first thing in the morning. Mira took a full step back and grinned happily as the doors slammed open.
8:00 AM and the job board was chaos, punches flying left and right to grab the highest paying jobs, he even recognized some of the heads of hair. Not even a full minute had passed when the huge mob of people dispersed all around the guild, settling in for a normal morning now that their days work had been procured. It was only after the flurry had died down that he heard the first, "Hey it's Loke!"
In no time at all there was a small commotion around him, people saying hi and saying it was nice to see him.
'Has it really been so long? I should really come by more often I've been rude to these people,' he thought to himself as he shared his hundredth hello, spotting the cool ice-wizard making his way through the small crowd.
"Hey Gray it's been awhile since I've seen you outside of a job, still shooting ice cubes?"
Gray laughed and extended an arm, bumping his fist against Loke's. "Way more than ice cubes kitty cat. You here with Lucy? I don't see her around," scanning the gathered wizards to confirm her absence. By now the others had left to hassle Mirajane for breakfast and warm their favorite benches, leaving Loke and Gray at the bar where the Ice Make mage grabbed a stool.
"Nope," Loke stated simply, "I came by on my own, Lucy is still asleep I think." He took a moment, staring off into space as he checked, and her state of mind was conscious and dim. "Yeah she's still asleep. She was up late last night so she might be sleeping in."
"You can tell when she's awake or not?" Gray seemed intrigued, and it was once again reaffirmed that most mages knew very little about celestial magic.
"More or less," Loke said vaguely. "Either that or she's meditating. I can sense her state of mind, so I know when she's panicked or afraid or in pain, other than that it's all mostly guessing."
"That makes sense, explains how you always show up right when she needs it."
"I'm also just that good." The two chuckled, accepting glasses of water from Mira they hadn't ordered but gladly accepted.
"Does it work the other way? Lucy has a ton of contracts that seems like a headache."
"I think so, it's kind of unique with Lucy. Being able to sense my wizard at all is kind of new, it only ever occurs with either very powerful wizards or ones who have a strong bond with their spirits. Lucy has both so it's pretty easy to track." Loke took a long draw from his glass, considering the question. "I think she mostly just has an intuition for how her spirits are feeling when she's with them, anything more than that probably would be a headache."
They let the topic drop, Loke not really feeling like explaining celestial contracts and Gray not terribly curious about anything else, moving on to work talk.
"I'd like to ask a favor," Loke started, leaning against the bar.
"Shoot."
"If there's a team job think you could work me in? I know you guys have a pretty set dynamic but it's been ages since I last went on a proper mission, at least any more of the mission then the 'Lucy is in mortal danger' part. It would be reassuring to know there are parts of her day where her life isn't at risk, plus it would be a nice change of pace."
Gray thought it over for a moment before shrugging. "Sounds fine to me. I'll tell Erza that we're taking a ride along."
"If pay is a problem I don't mind not getting a cut, just make Lucy's a little bigger than usual."
"No I'm pretty sure Erza won't like the idea of you working for free, plus we can take a bigger job if you're here for the whole thing so it should be fine anyways. I'll go let her know before she settles on a job."
Gray rose from the bar and started navigating his way to the heavily armored female mage in the far corner, looking through a handful of promising jobs she had taken from a few of the more cowardly members who hung around to take the rejected work like musical chairs. Loke watched Gray's progress since he had nothing else to do, watching as Erza raised her head to look at Gray and listen to something he was saying, then turn to look at Loke from across the hall. She paused for a moment then smiled and nodded, turning back to the jobs with confidence and selected one, handing the stack back to the others, seeming to thank them.
'Did Erza just ask for their jobs? I guess I wouldn't say no to her either.' The next time he looked he noticed Erza staring at him, and when she caught his eye, beckoned him over.
Her face implied it was just friendly intent but he still gulped hard before crossing the hall. Erza was still pretty damn scary.
"It's nice to see you Loke, it will be nice to have you along. At least, from the start and not somewhere in the middle." Erza smiling in a way she reserved for comrades and he felt more at ease.
"Thanks for allowing it, I don't want to intrude on your team or anything."
"Not at all, it will be a pleasure to have you. Once Natsu and Lucy make it in we can plan our way there."
"What's the job then?" Gray spoke up for the first time, earning a job request to read over for his question. "What?" Gray pulled the paper closer like it would make more sense if he did. "'Emergency request of Abner Woods to retrieve sensitive documents from the Duke Godfrey at his ball in two days' time. Wizards must be able to blend convincingly with high society and return the files unharmed. Detection not recommended but not forbidden. 700,000 jewel."
"700,000 is nothing to sniff at, must be some pretty important stuff to get back, or illicit," Loke commented, pulling the flyer away from Gray to read for himself.
"Abner? Godfrey? Who the hell are these guys?"
"High society apparently. Don't get names like Don past a certain income."
Gray turned his attention to Erza again. "And how the hell are we going to pass for high society to even get close? Natsu doesn't exactly follow etiquette and these things usually have a dress code." It was unlikely that Gray had stripped down to his skivvies to prove his point but it did none the less, nonetheless Erza still seemed confident.
"That's why it's good that we have Loke. You strike me as a man who knows how to handle himself in a formal environment, do you think you can do it?"
The lion spirit was surprised, having very quickly gone from asking to be included to becoming a central part of the plan. Luckily formality was something he was very familiar with.
"Balls and diplomatic nonsense is a pretty central part of my job, I can get it done."
Erza grinned. "Good, then we can be partners in this endeavor. Loke and I will pose as aristocrats and gather Intel, or provide a distraction for you, Natsu, and Lucy to sneak inside."
Loke nodded like he understood, but shot Gray an extremely nervous glance when Erza looked away, already discussing her outfit. There was just no way Erza could pull it off, she would blow their cover almost instantly. It was unfortunate but true that it took a more prim, proper, and dainty lady to pass for well off. The next time Erza looked away he upped the panic and saw Gray huff heavily, annoyed that he was expected to know how to fix this.
"Um Erza," Loke choked out, and her sudden sharp gaze made him consider just vanishing in a shower of golden particles.
She said nothing, just raised an eyebrow.
"I well um- You see it- I just was thinking, that perhaps you would be better utilized on the infiltration team. I don't doubt you at all! It's just that with a sort of mission like this you want someone who has lived through that sort of life style, and if I need a partner in this it would make more sense if it were Lucy and I." She did not reply, just waited. "Um… because we are contracted me and Lucy work together flawlessly and um, can communicate subtly if we need to, and she was raised as a duchess and would have no problem playing the part."
Loke desperately wanted Gray to step in but he was looking like he was considering running too, when Erza said, "You're right, it would be easier for you two to enter the Ball together and I would be able to focus knowing she was safe. I suppose I will have to find another occasion to dance…" She really did look disappointed, and Loke might have played some line about taking her out sometime, but he valued his life a bit too much for that.
"I will alert Mirajane, I suggest you make preparations for proper attire for both Lucy and yourself. We will fill the others in when they arrive," and she was up and away from the table by the time Loke and Gray let out a heavily held breath.
Loke socialized to calm his nerves, getting simultaneously extremely excited and very nervous for his role in this mission. He was going to get to hold Lucy, have an arm around her waist, and dance with her… slowly and intimately. Then again, it was firmly rooted in his mind that Lucy would never believe that he hadn't elaborately set it up so she would be forced in to, basically, a date with him. There was just no way she was going to buy it. There was of course a duty to perform throughout the ball, so they would at least have characters to play, but even that idea excited him. Pretending to be perfect strangers, meeting by the carriages, where he would offer to escort her inside like a true gentlemen and take her arm. Or better yet, staging as an engaged couple, invited to partake in the wealth of the countrymen. The idea of all the romantic role play had his heart racing. Wouldn't she enjoy it? She loved romantic things like that, though she had never permitted him to perform them really. He tried to distract himself but he had no idea what to do with this feeling. He was nervous. Over a woman.
Natsu had arrived at some point, though he was too wrapped in his own thoughts to pay him much mind. It was Happy the cat that broke him from his trace, flying happily over his head. "Loke's coming with us on a mission! Loke's coming along Natsu!" The cat cheered and celebrated and the lion couldn't help but smile. "Hey man! So you're gonna help us out?" The sharp toothed fire breather sauntered over, his genuine friendliness making it easy to return his enthusiasm.
"Sure as hell am, though I think you'll get to do most of the fighting if there even is any."
"Yeah I heard you got the rough end of the deal, sorry about that man."
If dancing with Lucy was considered rough then his life had been a travesty.
The two were discussing a possible brawl when Loke felt a faint but unmistakable spike of shock, and bewilderment. And then, utter joy. Loke smiled like a madman out of nowhere, trying to cover it up with a cough and a gesture of the hand. It would seem Lucy was finally up, and had spotted his little gift, there was no other explanation. Her state of mind changed constantly, but it all seemed positive, thank god. All of the feelings were coming in loud and clear, which meant more likely than not that she was thinking of him when she had these feelings. It was to be expected, it was his gift after all, but something about knowing that Lucy was thinking of him made his heart stutter, which added to his pile of confused feelings. He should have felt bad, he hadn't listened to a word Natsu had said in quite awhile, but he couldn't focus on his very exaggerated story of a mission, probably forgetting that Loke had been there, but he didn't.
He tried to clear his head, talk with Natsu and accept his challenge for a later date and speak with others. He even gave a conversation with Happy about fish a try, but after a little while he could tell she was getting closer. He eventually gave up, and ordered a warm drink, hot chocolate (a favorite of Lucy's), waiting when he heard the guild doors open.
"Heya Luce!" Natsu shouted and Loke turned on his stool to see her, excited to see what she would say to him about the roses, when his heart stopped.
She was glowing with happiness, her nose ever so slightly red from the cold weather and her hair just barely damp from the light drizzle outside. It had curled subtly in natural response to the moisture and it was not bound up in any cute pigtails or ponytails, just let loose to hang around her shoulders over the deep navy blue sweater and her light blue scarf. Her pants were a tight, practical black and her boots matched well, but what made him stop and stare was the shimmer in her hair.
A single golden rose tucked behind one ear.
