Chapter 4: The Past Nine Years For Me

Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN FAIRY TAIL!~(sadly)~

Heh. Sorry for the delay. Somehow, the teachers wanted to stop me from updating during the weekdays and gave more homework than usual…Sorry, again! I'll try to update faster…Stupid homework…

Previously

They walked to Physical Education in silence, but not in an awkward one. It just felt nice to have the fourth person of their childhood group back.

Normal POV

"Damn…I'm…So…Tired…" Lucy paused after every word. They had just finished running 50 laps.

"You think we're not?" Gray shot back. Lucy stuck her tongue out at him.

"25 sit-ups!" Scorpio yelled. Everyone groaned while Gray and Natsu cursed under their breaths.

They all sat on the floor and started doing the sit-ups. Erza finished first and Gray, Natsu, and Lucy tied.

"Wow, Luce. You've gotten better with the exercises…" Natsu commented.

Lucy shrugged. "The schools in Rome were…Somewhat more disciplinary." Erza nodded as if she knew, which she did. She did a project on Rome's education system.

Suddenly, the gym's door slammed open. All the students turned their heads to look who it was. It was Aquarius, Scorpio's girlfriend. "Where is Scorpio, you brats?!" Aquarius demanded. They pointed and she went to him.

"Scorpio! I missed you!" Aquarius whined, making the students sweat-drop animatedly. Except Lucy. She didn't know her.

"Students, you can do whatever you want 'til the end of the period," Scorpio announced and started chatting with his girlfriend.

"Are all the teachers here this irresponsible?" Lucy muttered, taking a seat on the floor.

"Lucy, you shouldn't sit on the floor. You are a girl," Erza said disapprovingly.

"Erza, I don't care. I've changed," Lucy told her calmly.

"Okay, Lucy," Erza sighed. Gray and Natsu sat on either side of Lucy as Erza sat on a chair that appeared out of nowhere. The three sweat-dropped.

"What?" Erza glared.

"Eh…Nothing," Gray mumbled. Erza nodded and stopped glaring.

"So, Lucy. What has happened in Rome these past nine years?" Erza asked.

"Well…"

Flashback

Lucy wouldn't come out of her room for five months unless it was for food, school, or the bathroom. One random day, she came out of her room, but for none of these things. Lucy had finally decided to come out of her room…

Lucy was a straight-A student in all grades, even when she was little. When she was eight years old, she began taking defensive lessons-Karate, tae kwon do, kung fu, kendo, and sword-fighting. Years later, when she was in fifth grade, Lucy's mother was discovered to have breast cancer. Lucy was shocked, scared, and sad. Her father did everything in his power to keep her mother alive. Lucy needed a mother. She was plugged into something that kept her alive, but her father didn't notice Lucy's suffering. I mean, watching your mother wither and die in front of you is…Traumatizing and sad.

Lucy then learned how to use guns, bows and arrows, and knives for defense (secretly, of course).

In seventh grade, Lucy's father pulled the plug and Layla, Lucy's mother, was…Gone. Just like that. That's when everything started to become worse. Lucy's father became obsessed with money. He didn't care about Lucy. He didn't care when he forgot Lucy's thirteenth birthday…And didn't care when she cried tears in front of him.

Lucy began to change drastically in eighth grade. She wore all black and grey, sometimes dark purple. She wore black leather knuckled gloves, black leather pants, a black short-sleeved shirt, a black leather jacket, and kept her hair down or in a side-ponytail held with a skull-shaped rubber band. She would dress like that every day and her father wouldn't notice-or care in the slightest.

Lucy was like this during her freshman year in Rome in High School. One day, Lucy was called to her father's office.

"Lucy, I am arranging a marriage for you when you turn eighteen years old," Jude had announced.

"That's not fair! You can't do that, you asshole!" Lucy shouted, not caring what she had said to her father.

"Yes, I can. I am your father and I have the authority to do-" Her father started to explain.

"Just because you're my father, it doesn't mean you can control my life," Lucy interrupted furiously. "This is my life, not yours! You are an unfair, stupid, damned father!"

"You are my daughter, and you will do as I say! Layla would want this as much as I do," Her father shot at her.

"Mom would want me to make my own decisions. If she were alive, I swear she'd be on my side and let me make my own decisions! Mon wouldn't want this greedy man!" Lucy screamed. "I bet you're making an arranged marriage to team up with another company and gain more amounts of money. Well, tough luck, bastard! I AM NOT MARRYING SOMEONE I BARELY KNOW AND YOU CAN'T MAKE ME!"

"Shut up and go to your room! I have had enough of your nonsense!"

Lucy stomped to the exit. She swung it open, and it slammed against the wall. Lucy grabbed the handle when it reflected back to her. "I'm not the one with the fucking nonsense, you are, Jude!" Lucy muttered, but making sure her "so-called father" could hear. Lucy did not consider him as a father.

For the rest of the year, Lucy completely ignored her father, who was caught up in riches. One day, October 13th, Lucy snuck out of her home in Rome. Since her family was rich, she easily bought a plane ticket back to Magnolia, Fiore. Lucy wore her girly clothing.

On October 12th, Lucy had packed her allowance, which in total added up to 2,000,000 Jewels. She packed the money, her clothing, cell phone (And changed the cell number), laptop, a blanket, her iPod and ear buds, books and story paper, and a pad of drawing paper, colored pencils, and pens and regular pencils. On October 13th, she left Rome on a plane-She didn't want to break her promise she had made to her friends. Lucy was also very sure her father wouldn't let her go back to Magnolia, Fiore anyway.

End of Flashback

"And…I pretty much snuck away," Lucy finished.

Her friends' jaws were dropped. Lucy stared. "What?"

"So, you're telling us that our kind Lucy was a badass after she left?!" Gray gawked.

Erza smacked him upside the head and said, "Watch the language!" Gray nodded, holding the bump on his head.

Lucy answered, "Pretty much. If you see me like that, don't ask. It will mean something bad happened." Her best friends nodded.

"Look at that girl…Hanging out with the popular kids when they're practically strangers…" A random girl scoffed behind them.

Lucy's eyes narrowed dangerously while she began to inch her hand towards her sneaker. Lucy started to pull out something shiny. Her friends stared at her quizzically before realizing that the shiny thing was a throwing knife. They jumped on Lucy.

"Get offa me, you fat people! Let me kill her!" Lucy growled, trying to push her friends off. They got off and Lucy got up, beginning to aim her knife before someone grabbed it.

"Hey!" Lucy shouted. She saw that Erza had taken it. "Give it back, Erza! I need it!"

"Then don't throw it," Erza ordered.

"Fine," Lucy grumbled, kicking imaginary dust on the floor. Erza handed her the knife and Lucy put it back in her sneaker.

"I'm just gonna say this one thing…" Lucy mumbled. Lucy walked silently to the back of the girl. "Don't talk about people like you know them, bitch!" Lucy shouted in the girl's ear so loudly, that the girl fell forward.

Lucy smirked triumphantly and laughed inwardly. The bell rang and she automatically raced off to the locker rooms.

"Hey!" Her friends yelled in unison, racing after her. "Wait for us!"

"Never!" Lucy laughed, running faster.