"Hello? Is anyone home?" Lucy called out again, her hand still on the statue.
The only sound was the fading echo of her voice in the large hall. There was no sound, no movement….nothing. It was as if the building was abandoned, but Lucy knew better. It was unlikely. She had an eye for detail and one of the more obvious signs was that the inside was pretty clean despite having been supposedly abandoned for 100 years. She began to walk around and came to one of the staircases. As she ascended the steps she notices the artwork was no longer merely decorative, but had changed to portraits of various people. The frames were worn and the colors that were once rich were faded. She faintly made out the face of a man with his yellow spiky hair partially slicked back. A lightning bolt shaped scar on his right eye marred his otherwise handsome features. Continuing up the steps, she she took note of an oil painting of an older man with his short dark blue hair combed back, a matching mustache, and dark eyes. The next man looked to be about the same age, his orange-brown hair stopping at his shoulders, the scruff of a thin beard growing along his jawline . An elderly man with silver white hair stared back at her from the next frame. He wore his hair slicked back as well, which made Lucy smile at the common dislike among this family to having their hair in their face. A long white beard and an eye patch over his right eye gave him a somewhat sagely appearance. She eventually came to the final likeness, a faded portrait of a short older man in a white fur coat. She recognized him as the man who had built the mansion a century ago.
After reaching the top of the steps, she followed the bend of the long hallway to the left. Torches on the walls sprung to life, their flames dancing and producing a dim light. Though definitely a situation that should be frightening, she oddly found herself at ease in these surroundings. The resounding clack of her heels on the wood floor echoing down the hall the only thing breaking the silence as she continued on her journey.
The large closed double doors at the end of the corridor momentarily halted her forward progress. Placing her hands on the doors she pushed hoping they were not locked. The doors gave way rather easily for the sheer size of them, revealing the massive library within. Her mouth opened in awe at the sight before her. Dust particles fell in a lazy dance through the soft light that streamed in from the skylights, time seemingly standing still. The light softly touched and illuminated the books lining the walls from left to right, from the ground to the ceiling. Never had she seen so many books in her life. If she had read one everyday for the rest of her life she didn't think she could finish all of them. Despite the room being cold and dusty she felt the warmth of the wood, the room smelling of pinewood and of paper. Each book seems to call out beckoning her on an adventure. A globe sat in the center of the room as if to see this room was it's own world, that it contained the world within it's walls and on it's shelves. There were wooden tables on either side of the globe, sanctuaries where one could go to be immersed in countless worlds. The ceiling was painted with murals and the moonlight that crept in made it seem as if it were being presented to someone. There was a small staircase on each side of the room that led to a balcony It was wrapped around the room creating a kind of second floor since the ceiling seemed to stretch high up. On the left and right side of the room were rolling ladders to help reach some of the books on the first level as well.
This place was much bigger and more enchanting than hers. Without a second thought she stepped in and studied the room in awe. She turned to take in every inch of the room and her dress spun with her movements. She took a few light steps and spun around, her hair and dress following her movements as she smiled. She began to walk quickly around the room back and forth between different sections of the bookcase, the clack of her heels echoing through the library. She traced her fingers along rows of books as she passed them by, enjoying the feel of the different textured leathers with her soft skin, a smile on her face. Each looked and felt different, the covers of different colors and each book in a different state of wear. Everyone had their favorite book after all.
From the minute she had walked in she had been watched. Concealed at the entrance of the room, a shadowy figure followed her every movement. Studying Lucy as she lithely ran and spun around the room, elated at being in such a magnificent library. Moonlight bathed her delicate form, illuminating her pale skin and glimmering off her blonde hair like a halo, giving her the appearance of something angelic. He licked his lips as he took in the sight of her long hair, thin waist, full hips and welcome bust. She looked delicious. Suddenly, Lucy turned around feeling another presence and looked back toward the entrance of the room. She frowned, seeing nothing. Maybe it was her imagination.
"I see you like books," came a deep voice from behind her. She froze on the spot, her breath catching in her throat at hearing a dark chuckle. "What's the matter princess? Too afraid to turn around?" He mocked.
Her cheeks went light pink with anger. She came all this way already and now she was going to freak out?! She might as well prove him wrong. She wasn't going to be a scared little girl. Taking a deep breath, she slowly turned around, her eyes widening as she came face to face with the voice's owner. A young man appearing to be about her age stared back at her. The same moonlight that shimmered off of her made his pale skin appear nearly ghostly, washing out what seemed to be pink hair in a kind of gray overtone, which fascinated her. He was dressed in black pants and lace-up leather black boots, a belt over the bend in the shoe the only decorative piece on them. A calf-length black cloak hung about his shoulders, completing the dark ensemble. Much like Mavis' statue, a red ribbon tied at the neck secured the cloak in place. The matching red trim made for a nice contrast with the black, which had been faded out by the dim light of the room. Onyx eyes pierced her soul as they gazed at her and she hates to admit it but she found him quite enchanting. Oddly, she felt like she could be drawn to him easily. He smiled at her showing his fangs and her eyes widened further in surprise.
"V-Vampire?" She gulped as realization hit her, her voice cracking.
"Hooh, seems you know what I am. Usually people just call me a monster at seeing me." His smirk widened.
"W-Well you have the fangs that resemble a vampire," She said taking a step back. He deftly matched her movement, denying her any kind of retreat. "Y-You just don't have the eyes...I know from b-books I've read that v-vampires have red glow-" before she could finished his eyes glowed red and she froze.
Taking advantage of the moment, he stepped closer to her, their faces and bodies mere inches apart, a dangerous look in his eyes. He had to give her credit for not trying to run away in sheer terror. The bold gaze she returned was not completely undaunted, however; he could see the fear and anxiety and...what was that? He saw some other emotion that he couldn't quite pinpoint.
Never before had she seen such colored eyes. Ruby red with cat-like pupils, the torch light glinting off the flecks of gold tint making them periodically glitter. Admiration and curiosity began to negate the fear she initially felt.
"Beautiful." She found herself saying in a dazed state. The vampire was taken aback by her comment, not expecting that from the person who was to be his next prey.
"Huh?" His brow furrowed as he looked at her quizzically, waking her from her trance.
"Your eyes…I've never seen anything like them before," she said. "The color and the shape of your pupil, they're so unusual…they remind me of rare, precious jewels. I've never seen such a beautiful sight in my life." She blushed slightly and looked to the side feeling embarrassed at the realization she had stared into a stranger's eyes for so long.
She expected some kind of reaction from him. Whether it be praise, anger, or something like that, but instead, her attention was caught by a small snorting sound. Full blown hilarity is what she was met with as she looked back up at him. He was laughing hard, his hands on his stomach, tears forming at the corners of his eyes. She had given him sincerity and in return all she got was a chuckle? Lucy puffed out her cheeks in annoyance, a vein popping on her forehead as she crossed her arms. She looked to the side, her face red with anger and embarrassment. After what seemed like an eternity his laughs finally died down into small chuckles before stopping.
"Well, that was unexpected," He teased with a smile, making her pout even more. He chuckled at her cute reaction. "You must be pretty weird if you find something beautiful in a vampire."
"I'm not weird!" She found herself shouting, her small hands balled into fists at her sides.
"Yeah, yeah whatever you say," He said, brushing her off. "Anyway, let's get back to business." He said eyeing her.
"Huh?" She tilted her head in confusion as he smiled evilly at her.
"Well, the part where I start to drain all of your blood of course."
"Ohh." She said quietly, stunned. In all of the discord she had forgotten about this, being a vampire, of course he was going to drink her blood. That would make her his prey. Uh oh. She grabbed the sides of her dress and lifted it above her ankles taking a step back. "Uhm...does it have to be all of my blood?" She asked him. He remained silent and merely continued eyeing her as if daring her to try to bolt. She continued to back away slowly, gingerly… wary he may pounce on her at any moment and stalling for time. "Uh...I-I mean d-do you really have to do that? C-couldn't you drink a bit now...then drink some later...Y-you know...s-so you can have it for a longer period?" she began to sweat slightly as she managed to put some distance between the two of them. He chuckled darkly moving toward her, erasing the small amount of progress she had made.
"Sorry, I'm not into torturing my prey. It will be a lot more painful for you if I keep you like livestock instead of just draining you and ending your life quickly."
That's it! She needed to get out of here and away from him! She turned around and took off running. He didn't move a muscle though. He cocked his head to the side and watched in amusement as she ran and struggled to save herself. Always being to enjoy the hunt, especially when his prey was young maidens like her, he decide he would allow her to struggle a bit. Lucy cursed as she tried to get away. It seemed like all she did these days was run. Just once she would like to stand and fight. Fight for her rights... for her life. Not doing it made her feel weak and she hated that. But what was she supposed to do against a freaking vampire? The best she could do was outsmart him.
"Vampire traits...vampire traits…" she chanted to herself as she ran, rounding a corner. "Think, come on Lucy, think. Enhanced strength, enhanced speed…" she huffed going through the list in her mind. "Smell?" she shook her head. "What else? Eyesight?" she knew she couldn't make it back down the stairs to the main entrance, she would definitely be caught. Her best chance was to find a safe place to hide and then try to sneak away after he'd moved on. She stopped in front of a door and pushed it open, shutting it again after she was inside. "They can't pass through walls...unless he can transform into a bat and find a way to squeeze in here from somewhere," she said, her eyes adjusting to the dark room. The only source of light, the vivid night sky filtering in through the wide windows opposite the door.
The light curtains that reached down nearly to the ground did little to keep the light out. Bookshelves lined the wall to the right of her with a small table and couch sitting towards the center of the room. A desk and mirror resided on the wall across from the bookcases. She focused back on the window. Maybe that could be an escape. She walked over to it and pushed the curtains open. Opening it up, she looked down and noticed that while it was pretty far from the ground, it still looked like she could manage the drop. She could probably try to shimmy her way down the house somehow. After all, she did love to climb trees when she was younger and she had often escaped from her room back then by climbing out of the mansion window.
"Here goes nothing," she said, taking a deep breath and leaning down to rip her dress for more maneuverability.
As she was about to rip her dress she paused, spotting the mirror. It was a rather large mirror that stood as tall as she did, a wide stone base holding it upright as it rested on the ground. The frame surrounding the fragile mirror seemed to have been cut and smoothed from one single massive stone. Whoever had crafted the piece had hand-carved an elegant castle motif into the top of the framework. Two placid dragons stood guard on the right and left of the frame, while a third curled protectively around the center castle tower at the top of the frame, its mouth opened in a fierce snarl bearing a mouth full of jagged teeth. Where the castle's flag should have been at the apex of the center tower, instead sat a small fairy-like creature with wings and a tail. Lucy moved closer until she stood in front of it, taking in the small details of the creator had put into the mirror. The three dragons seemed so alive and she swore she could almost see the fairy giggling and skipping. She found the mirror as enchanting as the vampire she had just met. She was so captivated by it that, she had failed to notice one important detail. There was no reflection, not of her anyway. She froze finding it more than a little odd. How come it...sure...vampires didn't have a reflection but...she was human! Why wasn't her reflections showing?! Something was wrong with the mirror.
Lucy frowned and touched the mirror, dragging her hand down and feeling the smooth, cold, glassy surface. She closed her eyes and hummed lightly. If anyone were to ask her what she was doing, she wouldn't be able to tell them, she just felt the need to do it. It seemed like the natural thing to do. Maybe that vampire was right, maybe she was weird. Feeling the mirror react, her humming and movements abruptly stopped. She opened her eyes to see that she had subconsciously traced a mark with her palm, a symbol that began to glow. Circles and formulas illuminated around the symbol on the mirror's surface beneath the palm she held to it. She could feel the glassy surface becoming soft, almost like a thick liquid that could be pushed through, but in this case it seemed to be pulling her through. A sense of panic boiled in her chest, her eyes widening as the mirror made to swallow her whole. She let out a squeak when a flash of light emanated from the warped surface, filling the room momentarily in a blinding brightness. Fast as it had appeared, the light retreated back into the glass surface leaving the room empty, the dark moving back in to reclaim its rightful place. Lucy was gone, swallowed by whatever lay beyond the mirror's surface. A small figure flew in from the window and landed on top of the mirror.
"Hmm, this is kinda interesting," he hummed, his tail waving idly from side to side.
"Tch." another voice joined in. "To think she found her way to the other side...just who is she?" he brooded, placing a hand on the mirror. The scathing look he was sporting began to melt as a deadly grin spread across his lips, revealing his fangs. His eyes glowed red, the gold in them glinting in response to the exhilaration he was beginning to feel.
"Heh, I'm all fired up now," he said darkly.
"Aye," his small feline friend replied.
The other side of the mirror
"Ow," Lucy whined rubbing her head. "W-What was that?" she asked herself, disoriented, but otherwise unharmed.
Taking a deep breath, she looked around finding herself in a fog blanketed forest. She tried to recall the events before this. She had found that mansion... a breathtaking library was inside where she met a vampire... the memory of his burning eyes sending a shiver through her. He had chased her and she ended up in a room with a mysterious mirror. After that, everything was fuzzy. She just remembered waking up here, outside. She sighed and stood up, patting the dust and leaves from her skirts. She wasn't going to get anywhere just sitting there, and so she began to walk. Tucking her arms around her body against the chilly autumn winds that blew through the forest, she took in her surroundings as she journeyed forward. Hardly any leaves remained on the trees. Most had fallen by now to make a dirty, crumpled blanket covering the ground, or had been carried off by the breeze. She followed the worn path that ran through the thick trees. Traveling on, she began to notice an odd light that blanketed the forest around her. Looking up into the night sky, the source leered back at her, revealing itself. Rather than her familiar cornsilk yellow lunar friend smiling back, an ominous blood-red counterpart was hanging in its place. She frowned knowing that was impossible. Her train of thought broke as her body pitched forward onto the ground before her. Groaning in slight pain, she looked behind her to see what she had tripped over. Her hand shot to her mouth stifling a scream, her eyes widening in shock at the sight of a skeletal arm holding a rusted pipe.
"Aah! Sorry sorry! That's mine!" a voice came from not too far away, a figure approaching Lucy's position. It reached for the arm and picked it up attaching it...to...his... body. Her gaze followed the arm up and to the person that came to get it. Her eyes widened impossibly further, her expression one of pure disbelief.
"A-A talking skeleton!" she shouted pointing at it.
"Huh?" he questioned, putting his pipe in his mouth. "Well, of course I am. Can't you see that girlie? Must be blind if you can't." he began to laugh at her.
Lucy noticed he seemed to be average height...what was average height for a skeleton? Could that be said about a skeleton? She didn't know. He wore a light green shirt with dark colored flowers on it, that was faded and torn. His tattered pants came down to a few inches below his knees, a light belt adorned with black stars held them perched atop his pelvic bones , though she didn't know exactly how they didn't slip right off when he walked.
"W-W-W-Wh-" she began stuttering and he put his fingers up to his chin.
"Wait a second...You…" he interrupted. "Human?" he asked, looking at her in confusion.
"Huh? Human? What are you talking about Wakaba?! There's no way a hu-" another voice came, but trailed off at seeing the girl. "Human!" she turned her head at the new voice and saw a second skeleton.
This skeleton seemed to be about as tall as the other but wore more clothes, not that it really mattered or made any sense. He wore a white coat that came down to his knees, it had a faded purple collar and there were some rips in the coat. He wore a dark shirt, brown pinstriped pants that contrasted with the white, and a light belt tied around him with a square buckle.
"W-Why?!" Lucy shouted in confusion and got up to run.
"Oi w-wait!" Wakaba called but then sighed, "It's all your fault! You scared her away Macao."
"What? Me?! You're not much different, we're both scary enough to her!" They continued to argue with each other oblivious to the fact that poor Lucy was gaining more and more distance.
"Just what is this place? First a vampire, now talking skeletons?!" she cried. "What's next? Werewolves, zombies, and witches?!" Unfortunately for Lucy, her questions were soon answered.
Reaching a town-like settlement, she immediately came face to face with its inhabitants. Monsters. That was the only word that came to her mind. Her eyes widened as she took in the residents milling about the streets. This couldn't be happening, it couldn't be real. Monsters weren't real! Yet, a village of them was right in front of her. They all stopped what they were doing and turned to gape at the blonde intruder.
"Human?"
"A human girl?"
"Human?!"
Lucy heard surprised voices ring out in the night air as they caught sight of her and the realization that she was not one of them. The creatures of the night began to approach her from all sides, causing Lucy's head to whip from side to side as she watched the encroaching mob warily. She stumbled backward for a few steps in a futile attempt to keep distance between her and them, but it was to no avail as they continued to advance. Her heart beat faster in her chest as they quickly closed in on her, trapping her. I'm cornered... Lucy began to panic at the thought. She was outnumbered and surrounded... and it was beginning to feel like there was little hope for escape this time. Her breathing became ragged as she began to hyperventilate, seeing them close in around her.
"Hoh, a human. This is very intriguing." a female voice rang out.
Lucy looked over in the direction of the voice and saw a female werewolf. She had scarlet red fur with brown highlights. A darker red pair of werewolf's ears were perked up at full attention atop her head. She wore armored gloves that came up and met her shoulder plates. The main part of the armor was dress-like and rather revealing, showing the top part of her chest and stopping at mid thigh. Thigh-high boots completed the ensemble, making her appear combat ready.
"Hmm...she does smell delicious," a young male werewolf said with a smirk. He was shirtless, wearing only a simple pair of shorts. The silver cross that hung from his neck a sharp contrast to the glossy black fur he was showing off.
"Loooove rivaaaalll," sang a ghostly voice. The owner of the disembodied voice, a ghost girl with shoulder length blue hair, appearing out of thin air moments later flying at full speed right through Lucy.
"Kya!" escaped her lips as Lucy jumped, her hair standing on end at the ghost's unexpected appearance. The spirit passing through her body had felt like someone had doused her in ice water, an involuntary shiver running through her at the memory.
"My my, now don't scare her off."
Lucy looked over and saw a beauty with long, white-hair sauntering toward her, the extra sway in her step accentuating the curve of her hips. She had horns on her head, dark wings folded up behind her back and a tail swaying back and forth. The sexy woman wore a black one piece outfit that barely contained her breasts. The sides of the outfit were cut high, revealing her curvy hips, the front part of the suit barely big enough to cover things better left to the imagination. She wore black thigh-high boots, giving the look an extra 'oomph'. Lucy noticed more and more how beautiful the woman was as she walked up to her. The woman ran a hand sensually up Lucy's arm and over her shoulder. She pulled the blonde tightly to her and let out a soft moan as their breasts pressed together. Her hand slid around to Lucy's lower back while she brought her other hand up to her chin, using her fingers to tilt Lucy's head up.
"Aren't you a cutie?" she said seductively, slowly licking Lucy's cheek, sending a shiver down her spine. "I'm Mirajane but you can just call me Mira when you're writhing in pleasure. What's your name beauty?" she asked licking her lips as she slid her hand from Lucy's back to her behind.
"L-L-L-Lucy," she barely managed to speak. Too many emotions were travelling through her. Mira could see fear, surprise, confusion...but there was more...there was curiosity and longing laced in. She frowned, not expecting that from the young blonde.
"Mira-ne~" another succubus sang, as she approached Lucy from behind.
This girl had short white hair and was pretty much dressed in the same outfit as Mira's. Instead of being all black, however, this girl's attire was a silver-gray in color. The girl wrapped her arms around Lucy from behind and slid her hands up between the two girls. She squeezed them in between the two girls breasts making them moan in unison.
"Don't keep her all to yourself," Lisanna pouted as she leaned in close and captured part of Lucy's ear between her lips. Lucy gasped as Lisanna sucked sensually on her ear, her tongue snaking out and brushing against it.
"Will you give the girl some air?" a small witch girl with blue hair chided, "Always so freaking horny."
"Ah yeah? So you can use her for your twisted research?! No way!" Lisanna said to Levy, sticking her tongue out. "Her ear tastes good enough. I can't imagine what other places taste like," she said, she and Mira exchanging wicked grins, making Lucy blush.
A ghost passed through Lucy, startling her and making her squirm between the two succubi. She managed to wiggle herself free of the sisters making them pout. They stared longingly at Lucy as she took a few steps back from them, as though she had taken away their favorite toy.
"Human!" a young girl exclaimed. She wore a cute blue and yellow dress with shockingly blue hair tied up into twintails on either side of her head. "Whoaaa! This is the first time I see one in person!" she said excitedly.
More monsters seemed to approach her. There were the two frankenstein monsters, one of them very muscular with white hair and long sideburns, and the other had long spiky black hair and was muscular himself though not as crazy as the first. There were two zombies, one thin and kind of tall while the other was big and round. It seemed they were fighting for attention over the witch girl. She noticed a few other monsters the two skeletons she saw earlier mixed in. Lucy observed each of them as they seemed to forget about her momentarily and moved to interact amongst themselves. The two succubus sister's fought over Lucy, while the zombies continued fighting over the witch as she ignored them, though it seemed that the frankenstein with long black hair was analyzing her, and the other frankenstein shouted something about 'manly!' to no one in particular.
Lucy overheard the black haired frankenstein saying something about 'bunny girl' not being able to handle the witch's experiments. The scarlet colored werewolf was deep in thought, trying to figure out how a human had gotten here, when a second male werewolf, with blue fur and a red tattoo over one of his eyes, appeared and joined in her thinking. The black haired male werewolf simply leered at her with a smug look plastered on his face.
"Love rival and Gray-sama." the water ghost sang.
"Uh...wh-what is this place?" she found herself asking, the rampant chaos getting to be a little much for Lucy.
They all stopped and looked at her as if they had just realized she was still there and had forgotten all about her, making Lucy frown in confusion. Her expression quickly changed to one of fear and concern, a hundred pairs of eyes focusing solely on her and the oddity that she was once again.
"Anyway," one of the skeletons said, "A human here is a rare opportunity."
"Catch her!" they shouted and began to run toward her, causing Lucy to squeak and take off running.
"Sorry, but we can't let you go," she heard a voice call out behind her.
"Love rival must diiieee!" the water ghost howled passed through her head, making her gasp for air, the sensation unpleasantly like diving head-first into a freezing cold lake.
"Waaiiiittt~" Lisanna sang flying towards her with Mira trailing behind.
Lucy kicked off her heels as she ran, the cumbersome footwear flying off to the side somewhere. She found a path and began running along it, eventually being lead up to the front of a castle. It actually looked quite similar to the mansion from the graveyard, but it was much bigger. Without a second thought, she pushed open the large doors and entered the building. Déjà vu... she thought entering the mansion, only this version of the hall was much larger. Tables were lined up on the left and right and a large bar with stools sat at the back of the hall.
"We got her!"
"She can't run now!"
Numerous excited voices rang out behind her reminding her of the pack of hounds that had been loosed to hunt her earlier at her father's command. Lucy whirled around to face her pursuers upon hearing them enter the building. First a vampire, now a crowd full of night creatures...Lucy pinched herself thinking, hoping she was dreaming, but it wasn't so. She staggered backward, exhausted, until her her back hit the cold stone of a wall with a soft thump and sighed. There was no escape now. Well, I guess this is the end, She thought to herself. But before any of them reached her, a crimson fog swirled around her putting the monsters on alert and pausing their advance.
"No one is touching her," a dark voice rang out, "She's mine." A figure materialized out of the very fog itself. It was the same vampire she had met in the mansion earlier.
"Oi Natsu! What's the meaning of this?!" the raven haired werewolf asked in annoyance.
"Shut up stripper," Natsu hissed, the two shooting mutual death glares at each other.
"Natsu! Gray! Stop!" the crimson werewolf said stepping between them. They both "tch'd" and looked away.
"Erza-san sure is scary," one of the skeletons said, the both of them nodding in unison.
"Natsu! What do you mean she's yours?!" Mira pouted, crossing her arms under her sizeable bust.
"She's right!" Lisanna said plaintively, her face mirroring her sister's disappointment.
"When you find prey, it's common courtesy to share it," Levy said pointedly.
"She's off limits!" he growled at the crowd. Lucy stayed quiet as tension grew thick between the vampire and the mob, not wanting to get in the middle of...whatever this was.
"My, my. This is the first time I seen my brother have such an interest in keeping prey to himself." Dark purple smoke billowed between Natsu and the crowd, a figure forming from it in the same manner Natsu had. He had short black hair that lay down on his head and dark eyes. He wore a simple black robe with gold trim, a silver pendant peaking out from between the high, open collar. "What could possibly be the reason for this?" he asked regarding Lucy with interest. The uncomfortable prickle that was working its way up her spine under his scrutinizing gaze compelled an unconscious movement to shelter herself behind Natsu. Natsu saw that from the corner of his eye and smirked. "Yet, I can see why you took such an interest. After all, no ordinary human can access the portal from the mirror."
"Ah! So noisy!" came a plaintive voice from upstairs.
Lucy looked at the figure walking down the staircase and her eyes widened. Her breath caught in her throat and her face went pale. Walking down the steps towards the group was a young man with a muscular toned body. Spiky blonde hair stuck out from his head in every direction as if he'd just rolled out of bed. His dark blue eyes were narrowed to slits, his eyes adjusting to the light of the hall. He wore a blue vest with gray fur and dark pants tucked inside his boots. He yawned showing his fangs and surveyed the crowd to see what the commotion was. His eyes widened as he caught sight of Lucy, pausing slightly before continuing his descent.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't Lucy," a slow, lazy smile widening across his face as he saw her flinch. "It's been awhile. I have to say you've grown up quite beautiful."
Why? How? Why is he here? How is he...alive? Too many questions ran through Lucy's mind about the boy, Sting Eucliffe. He was one of her distant relatives that lived in the same town as her, but had gone missing awhile ago. No one knew where he had gone and a body was never found. That wasn't really why she was shocked though. What was really surprising was the fact that he had gone missing 15 years ago, when he was 18 and she was 7. He should've been over 30 by now, but it looked like hadn't aged a day since then. A slim figured female appeared from a white fog behind Sting, placing a hand on his shoulder. Her short white hair matched the white dress she wore, the V neckline of the garment plunging quite low.
"What's the matter darling?" she asked him sweetly and he just smiled at her.
That's when Lucy noticed the red in their eyes, just like the vampire she had met in the library. That meant when Sting had gone missing...he somehow ended up here and became a vampire. Lucy stared at the girl realizing, from their body language, that it must have been her that turned him.
"What's with all the ruckus?" a small old man appeared. He was bald except for the gray hair he had growing on the sides, matching his mustache. Everything was familiar save for the dark yellow-green pallor of his skin. Lucy opened her mouth to say something, but thought better of it, deciding to stay quiet. The old man saw her reaction and smiled, raising one bushy eyebrow in her direction.
"M-Makarov." she said in almost a whisper, but the others still heard her.
"My, my... it's an honor for you to know my name," Makarov said to Lucy.
"Y-you're the owner of the mansion and graveyard. You built everything a century ago. W-why are you still…"
"Hoh," he began, a few fingers stroking his chin as he thought. "So you know who I am, but however, let me make it clear. I'm not alive anymore," he said, making a wide sweeping motioned toward the crowd of night creatures, "None of these brats are either."
Lucy followed the gesture to the group and nodded. "We're what you call monsters. We've forsaken humanity and become one with the night.
"T-Then this place is…" she began and Makarov nodded.
"Yes, this place is for monsters to live. It's an artificial dimension created by our founder centuries ago. There are various portals around the human world for us to use to travel from here to there. But never has a human come through the portal...and you do look familiar-" before he could continue Makarov was cut off by a loud and bright voice.
"Welcome to Fairy Tail!" a young blonde ghost announced enthusiastically, the words appearing in the air in front of her. She floated down and landed in front of Lucy. She seemed to be wearing a pink layered robe with a ribbon tied in a bow at her neck, wing-like adornments wrapped around her ears. "I'm Mavis. Mavis Vermillion, the founder of this sanctuary." Lucy looked at her and then around, still disoriented by everything that was happening. She tried to process all that was going on as she shook Mavis's hand.
"Wait, Fairy Tail? Don't you mean Fairy Tale?" Lucy asked writing out the difference in the air as if her finger were a pen.
"Originally it was Fairy T-a-l-e, but it sounded kind of boring so I changed it to Fairy T-a-i-l. It's more interesting that way, don't you think?"
"But why? This is place is.."
"Like out of a fairy tale book!" Mavis finished. "Mythical creatures gathering together in one place! Dancing and singing!" she sang as she floated up and danced around. "This is my fairy tale! I love this place so much! It's a page of my adventure… our adventures together! Our fairy tale!" she said excitedly, her expression growing dark the next instant, "our twisted fairy tale." The bleak tone her voice had taken on made goosebumps spring up along Lucy's arms and gave her a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. Oddly though, she didn't find the place as frightening as it was before.
"Are we done now?" Natsu growled, everyone turning their attention to him. "Look, I don't give a crap what you guys want. I saw her first, so she's mine. Finders keepers!" he shouted and moved in front of Lucy, looking down at her. She looked up at him and he smirked opening his coat. She saw the rest of his outfit, a black top that hugged his torso, a belt holding up his dark pants and a silver flame necklace hanging from his neck. Before she could protest, he brought his cloak over her, covering her from head to toe in the thick fabric. The next instant, she vanished into thin air.
"Tch, cheapo." Gray muttered.
"Not fair," the succubi whined.
"My experiment!" Levy cried on Gajeel's shoulder, who was trying to drag her away, the two zombies dogging their heels.
"Well, anyway, be careful Natsu." Erza said before leaving, Jellal following close behind.
"Have fun with her! Don't forget to treat her well!" Mavis sang landing next to Makarov and Zeref. Natsu gave her a withering look before disappearing into a puff of crimson smoke.
"Think we'll see her again?" Zeref asked.
"Who knows what that brat has in mind for her ? I almost pity her." Makarov said.
"Don't worry. I'm sure Natsu will treat her well." Mavis smiled. "That girl has something special that Natsu has sniffed out already. I'm sure we'll all see her again." she said. "Soon."