Lucy stared up at Luke, taking in the sight of an old friend whom she hadn't seen in so long. She really hadn't seen anyone since Fairy Tail disbanded a year ago. Without thinking she took his hand to help herself up, giving a sheepish smile. "Thanks. It's…been a long time, huh?"

"Yeah." Luke said while rubbing the back of his head. "I was stopping by to get a close look at the Games. I was running a little late, but I heard some lady scream for help. I was about to jump at the chance for a little action, but it seems you beat me to it. Reporter Lucy Heartfilia seems to be doing well enough for herself."

"Late…" Oh god. Lucy just remembered that the Games were starting! She was already behind and Jason was probably waiting for her. "Oh no…! I'm totally late for work!" Without even thinking, she began to scurry off to the Domus Flau. "Can we catch up after the events are over today!? I can't afford to be later than I already am! Meet me at the fountain!" And she was off, leaving Luke in the dust.

"Uh…sure…" Luke blinked a few times as Lucy ran off. She was a busy woman after all. "She looks like she's been doing well." Adjusting the bag over his shoulder, Luke began to walk towards the Domus Flau. "Well…let's see what Fiore has to offer this time around…"

.

"Things are heating up here at Day 3 of the Grand Magic Games!" Chapati had a new head of hair today for one reason or another. "This day is extremely pivotal for those who have fallen behind! If the guilds who've already taken a few losses can't take a victory today, then it's over for them!"

Jason kept his eyes on the action, but he also noticed that Lucy had yet to arrive! It was already time for the second fight! "That's weird…she's usually on time too…"

"That's super weird…" Tia remarked while looking around for Lucy. "She didn't leave too long after me…maybe she got held up?"

And right on cue, Lucy rushed to Jason and Tia, panting heavily. The blonde had to lean over, placing her hands on her knees as she caught her breath. "I-I'm sorry…! I…I got held up. Someone was in trouble, and I had to help them…and then I ran into Luke…"

"Whoa! COOL!" Jason yelled. "Luke Cloud from White Eclipse!? I didn't think any of them were still active in Fiore after they disbanded! You should've brought him here! An interview would have been so COOL!"

Lucy had a sweat drop on her forehead. At least Jason took her being late better than she thought! "I uh…kinda left him behind, but he said he'd be watching the Games!"

"Cool! Cool!" Jason was pumping his fists into the air. "After this, I want to get a scoop from the most popular food stand in the city right now!"

"You mean Al Dente? Mmm…that place is amazing. Best food I've ever had." Tia said with an uncharacteristic soft smile. The food was just that good.

"Heh…" Lucy had a grin of her own. But today was to be just like any other! So with her pen and notepad in hand, she let out an excited cry. "Come on! Let's do this!"

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And later in the day, Day 3 of the Grand Magic Games came to a close. Things were exciting and tense as far as the audience was concerned…but there were a few people who could agree that it didn't compare to last years. That spark really wasn't there. Luke sat at the fountain, staring up at the orange sky. Being in Crocus sure brought back memories…

"Hey." Lucy took a seat next to Luke. "Sorry about earlier. I still do have a job to do, after all! And I was already running late."

"It's no big deal. I see you've been doing well for yourself lately." Luke had a small smile on his face. "Of course, I was surprised that the first thing I saw of you in the magazine was as an underwear model."

Oh no. He saw that!? Now Lucy felt extremely embarrassed and her cheeks burned red and she waved her hands in front of her face as if to cool her cheeks down. "T-That was the first job I had…! Before I asked him for a job as an editor!"

"And you live in Crocus now? You must be making more money than being a mage, huh?" Luke teased, although he didn't exactly know that it was a bit of a sensitive topic for Lucy.

"I don't have to worry about rent so much." Lucy responded while looking up at the sky. Talking with Luke made her feel a little nostalgic. "I didn't think I'd see you again, honestly. Ever since that last battle, everything just kind of…fell apart. Fairy Tail broke apart for seemingly no reason…and I come to find out that White Eclipse ended up doing the same as well."

"Yeah…" Luke tilted his head up. "It came as a surprise to everyone. Calium didn't give us a reason either. He just told us to clean up and do our own thing…and we just did. A lot of people were upset, myself included…but in the end, what could we do? So we packed our stuff and go out. I haven't really heard from anyone since then."

"Mmm…" Lucy nodded. "The same thing pretty much happened to Fairy Tail, too." There was a pause…she had something she wanted to ask, but she was clearly afraid to do so. "…A-About Sophie…I…"

"Hm…?" Luke turned his head to Lucy. One second was all it took for him to notice how nervous she was.

"…I'm really sorry…" The guilt was showing. The celestial mage felt her body shake a little bit. "It's…it's all my fault that Sophie died. White Eclipse must have hated me…She sacrificed herself because of something I did…and I…I…"

The copycat blinked slowly. Yes, the loss of Sophie did weigh heavily on the minds of those at White Eclipse. She was a member after all. But little did Luke guess that Lucy felt so directly responsible for what happened. "...Sophie was a valuable member to White Eclipse. She had her own ambitions, that much was clear. I…still honestly don't know what that entire deal with Emmeraude was about…"

"I'm sorry." Lucy shook her head, letting out an awkward laugh to change the subject. She didn't want to talk about this subject anymore. "I didn't mean to bum the mood. I'm happy to see you again. It's so nice to see an old face. Are you staying somewhere?"

"Yeah." The copycat pointed in the direction of the hotel. "I haven't checked in yet since I just got into the city today. But I planned to stay until the Games were over, which is going to be about 2 days I guess."

Lucy pondered a certain thought. It was around then she noticed that Tia was listening in on their conversation. "I currently have a guest at my home, but if you'd like, you can come over for a bit. It's starting to get late, and catching up would be much better there. I hope you don't mind, Tia."

Drats. She was spotted. But Tia casually shrugged it off. "Yeah, sure, whatever."

"Haha…sure, I can come over for a bit." Luke said with a nod.

.

Lucy, Tia, and Luke now hung out at Lucy's place. Since this was the first time Luke had been to Lucy's new home, he was very clearly surprised at the interior. "Whoa…! You've got a really nice place here."

"Like I said, I've been busy this last year." Lucy said with a small giggle. "Being a reporter has gotten me a lot of money."

"Even though most of the money came from her being a hit as an underwear model." Tia remarked from the corner.

Lucy's cheeks flared up again and she turned to Tia. "Stop bringing it up like that…!"

"Hey, there's nothing wrong with being a model." Luke took a seat and leaned back. "Look at Jenny, she's super popular! …For good reason."

"Well, yes…" Lucy sighed. "But modeling isn't exactly for me. I much prefer writing."

"Yes, the novel she's been working on is very exciting." Tia commented once again. She was having a little too much fun taking shots at Lucy, especially with Luke here now. It made things much more entertaining.

"Ahhhhhhhh!" Lucy let out an embarrassed shriek. Why did people keep reading her stuff when she wasn't finished!?

"I'm not sorry. Messing with you is just…really fun for some reason." Tia shrugged.

"I know, right?" Luke let out a laugh, probably the best one he'd had in a long time.

"I don't know why everyone enjoys messing with me…" Lucy pouted while staring down at the cup in her hands. Even though she was being poked fun at, it did make her smile. It had been a long time since she felt even somewhat…normal after Fairy Tail disbanded.

"It could be worse." Tia pinched her nose, pointing at Luke accusingly. "I didn't want to bring this up, but it's been bothering me for a while now and I can't stand it anymore. But Luke, you reek. When was the last time you took a shower? You really think it's okay to hang around women and smell like that? No wonder you have girl troubles."

Luke blinked several times, his being comically becoming smaller and smaller the more Tia berated him. "I…uh…I have been a freelance mage, so…"

"Disgusting." Tia huffed and turned away, her words cutting deep into the copycat.

"I'm…I'm very sorry." Lucy apologized on Tia's behalf. "She's still learning how to be nice to people without hurting their feelings."

"No I'm not. I'm here to hurt feelings." Tia crossed her arms, scoffing loudly. "I know you smell it too. Stop trying to act nice just because you haven't seen him in a while."

"She really doesn't pull any punches…" Luke said with a small sweat drop. "I-I won't stick around for too long. I really just wanted to see how Lucy was holding up, but she seems to be just fine. Especially when she's got such wonderful company such as yourself." That last bit was clearly a shot and Tia knew it.

The woman sprang up from her seat, her staff in hand as she comically began to stomp towards Luke. "You wanna repeat that!?"

Left with no option, Lucy had to step between her two friends, who weren't friends. Luke and Tia probably would never hold a conversation if not for Lucy. "Okay, okay you two! Let's play nice! We're all friends here! We can get along!"

"Yeah yeah…" Tia turned around. "He still stinks though."

"A-Anyway!" Having defused the situation, Lucy returned to her seat and stared at Luke. "So…what exactly have you been up to lately?"

"I've just been roaming around really." Luke answered. "Being a freelance mage from White Eclipse does net me a number of requests when I pass through a town. I have a few new tricks under my sleeves as well…but I haven't gotten many chances to use them. I was hoping to run into the Challenger..."

"Wait, who?" Lucy tilted her head curiously.

"You haven't heard? There's been some dude going around beating up mages." Luke answered. "He calls himself a Challenger, so people went ahead to call him 'The Challenger'. So far I've heard he's undefeated...but I plan on changing that when I run into him."

"Unless he kicks your ass." Tia muttered. Luke heard it, but for the sake of peace he opted to ignore the cutting remark.

"What kind of magic does this guy use...?" Lucy was curious.

"I heard he uses some really intense fire magic." The brunet nodded. "Every place he goes to ends up ignited in flames and begins to melt. It's pretty ridiculous actually..." Digging in his bag, Luke pulled out a few pictures from sources that weren't Sorcerer's Weekly. "Look at this."

"Fire magic, huh...?" Lucy trailed off for a moment while staring at the pictures. "Natsu would probably get a kick out of fighting someone like him." The absentminded comment was mumbled, but her guests did happen to hear it.

"I'm pretty sure he can get arrested for arson. Look at that one. That town is practically in ruins..." Tia rolled her eyes.

The copycat continued on. "I've also been listening in on the news regarding the Magic Council…Calium dropped his position, as did Mac, Zios, Anri, and Avani I believe…"

"Yeah." Lucy nodded, her expression falling slightly. "I don't know what it was about that day…but ever since then; nothing really has been the same. But the Four Gods of Ishgar have taken up those roles of the Wizard Saints, so I hear. So things aren't a complete shamble...and Kemuri has appointed some new Council members and captains. I guess he really is trying."

"This country really is just a mess…" Tia sighed. "A lot of things go wrong, people give up positions of power….problems arise…it's no wonder the other countries tend to look at this place and laugh."

"You were one of those problems before, remember?" Luke took the shot, and Tia scowled.

"The point is…maybe things aren't so bad now. An entire year of peace in this place?" The Dealer member hummed quietly. "….You know, now that I think about it, there is one thing I'm curious about. What happened to Emmeraude?"

"Yeah, I'm curious about that too. I have no idea what happened to her after that final battle that destroyed the castle." All eyes were on Lucy. "Do you know what happened?"

"…Yes, I do." Lucy nodded to the both of them. "There was a trial held for her but…it didn't exactly end well." She remembered that day well…because she was called there by Hisui as a key witness to the trial to speak on Fiore's behalf as a victim of what the Emerald Empress had done…

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Next Time: The Trial.