Fairy Tail Fanfic

The Dragon's Key

Chapter 4: Vacation

By I-Darkness

Lucy was laughing. Aki had convinced Tora to wear a cute little dress they had bought earlier that day. It's already been a month since they left Magnolia, and Lucy has never felt more relaxed in all her life.

Tora was standing in front of the large mirror of their hotel room, and had to admit the dress was pretty nice. It was a simple white sundress with the straps tying behind her neck. It had a blue bow just at the neckline and had blue swirly patterns on the skirt. At her waist was a blue sash that acted like a belt, and was tied into a bow on the right side. Her tail slipped out from under the dress.

"See, see? I told you it'd look good! And it's something that you can wear anytime!" Aki sat back on her feet. She squatted next to the cat, satisfaction spread across her face.

"I guess… it's pretty." Tora suddenly had a thought. 'I wonder how Lily would…' A blush spread across her face and the pink part of her ears turned bright red.

"Ohoho! Are you perhaps… thinking about Lily?" Lucy had a teasing smile and held the back of her hand to her mouth.

Tora looked away, her blush deepening, and tried to change the subject.

"Maybe I should change my ribbon." Referring to the orange bow Lily had given her at their lunch date.

Aki fell over laughing together with Lucy; the fact that the orange cat was head over heels in love was one of the highlights of both girls' lives. "Yeah, yeah. Here I saw this one and thought it might go well with the dress." Still giggling, Aki held out the ribbon.

"Oh stop it! I won't show any pity when it's your turn!" Tora angrily glared at the mages rolling on the floor holding their sides. She grabbed the ribbon, blue and white swirl patterned with gold trimmings, and quickly changed into her usual attire.

They were currently spending their last afternoon relaxing. They had already toured most of the country, and were now at their last stop. They sent a postcard to the Guild that morning, marking the moment when they spent time in the beach city. The day before was spent on the beach playing in the water, sun tanning, and having a good time.

"I don't mind trying new clothes once in a while! And besides…" Aki pulled the reluctant Exceed into a hug. "I think you looked gorgeous in that dress."

Lucy smiled. Throughout the month she was reminded how close the two were. She was thankful for the company they provided; they helped her get her mind off troublesome thoughts and gave her some much-needed advice when she asked for it.

"Well Lucy, the month is up. Where did you want to spend the rest of your vacation?" Aki pulled her bag towards her while she was talking; she had already packed but wanted to double-check the contents.

Lucy pulled out their map. They had circled some possibilities, with the exception of Magnolia.

"How about Hargeon?" She pointed to the small dot representing the fishing town.

"Eh? Isn't it too close to Magnolia? And I don't think it has a guild."

"I thought about it, and the only guild I could ever really be part of is Fairy Tail, even if it's for a short time. I thought I might work at the magic shop they have. Even if it's close to Magnolia, it won't matter."

Aki frowned, at her friend, worried at the choice she was making. But she took a deep breath and squashed her uneasy feeling, knowing that her safety plan was foolproof. But just to be cautious…

Lucy looked at her quizzically, wondering why her friend had a weird look on her face. Rummaging through her bag, Aki's hand closed around the small object.

"Here. This should come in handy. I found this on a job with nii-chan." The object in question was a hair clip covered with curious markings and colours. "You can change the shape of this by pressing one of these buttons." She pointed at a set of markings on the left side of the clip.

Lucy took the object to examine it closer; she saw the markings indicated were actually pictures of different hair accessories. She pressed one, and the clip turned into a headband, the markings now on the underside of the fabric.

"It only responds to the touch of a finger, so it doesn't matter how you put it on, it won't change anything until you specifically want it to. The best thing is that it can also change the colour of your hair to whatever you want." Aki pointed again, but this time to the set of colours next to the markings.

Lucy gaped at this, "Where in Earthland did you find this?!"

Aki grinned toothily, "Try it if you don't believe me!"

The blonde did exactly that, leaving it as a headband; she chose the colour brown and slipped it onto her head. Looking into the large mirror she blinked in surprise.

Her hair had gone from her usual blonde to the brown she had selected. "Wow! But why are you giving me this?"

"So no-one you know will recognise you. Well except for Tora and me."

"Will it do anything permanent to my hair?"

"No, I don't think so. I had Levy look at the magic before we left, and she said it was safe. I suggest you also change your shampoo. Nii-chan has quite a sharp nose, I wouldn't be surprised if he's still looking for you."

A week earlier, Levy had sent them a letter telling them the news at the guild. Apparently, for two weeks after they had left on their vacation, Team Natsu had been trying to track down their blonde friend. Not only that, but Natsu had wanted Lucy's help to plan proposing to Lisanna, the only reason why they were looking for the girls. The last bit of information caused Lucy to cry non-stop for three nights. Aki tried everything to keep her friend's mind off the wretched news, and made a mental note to kick her brother's ass the moment she got home.

Lucy looked sad. 'He wouldn't be looking for me. He probably gave up waiting for me and asked Mirajane for help.' The joy of receiving the gift evaporated with Aki's suggestion, but she was happy she still had friends looking out for her.

Tora suddenly jumped up to stand before Lucy holding something behind her back. She looked bashful under Lucy's quizzical inspection.

"Lucy-nee. I think I should give you my present as well." Sticking out her small paws, she was holding a bracelet made to resemble a dragon eating it's own tail.

"Oh Tora, it's so pretty!" The dragon's head had red rubies as its eyes. The bracelet was silver and had gold accenting the scales. The detail alone made it the most beautiful piece of jewellery Lucy had ever set eyes on.

"When you're in danger, or if someone recognizes you, press one of its eyes, it will signal either me or Aki and we'll be by your side in no time!" Tora pointed to the red eyes on the head of the dragon.

"So we can come bail you out! Make sure you do it as soon as you're in trouble, cause depending how far away we are, we might take some time to arrive." Aki added, beaming up to her nee-chan.

"Oh you guys! You're too good to me!" Lucy grabbed Tora, then knelt to hug Aki who was still sitting on the ground.

"Oh and by the way. Only you can remove the bracelet from your wrist. It's so if the enemy attempts to remove it or if someone tries to steal it, they won't be able to."

Lucy was stunned at the complexity of the magic involved, and wondered if it was a custom item. But happy with her gifts, she decided to keep quiet and slipped her new bracelet on to her wrist. The realisation that her two friends would risk dropping everything and rushing to her side just because she was in danger made her eyes water up. It wasn't long before she was hugging the two in a bone-crushing hug while bawling her eyes out at the same time.

Later on, they decided to leave in the morning for Hargeon. For dinner, they went to a restaurant in town, with both Aki and Tora gaping at the number of people who were still out and about. They have seen the sight many times before, but it was still a novel experience for them. Once they came back to the hotel, they got ready for bed. Lucy watched her precious friends as they slumbered, smiling as Aki hugged a whimpering Tora closer.

Feeling like a creep, she then looked outside the hotel window watching the calm sea and the shining moon. She let her mind wander, thinking about home, the Guild, Levy, her team among other things. The one thing she tried not to dwell on was Natsu, and her feelings for the pink haired mage. She had felt for her partner for a long time, long before Aki came into their lives. Lucy could not remember when she started falling for the Dragon Slayer, leading her to believe that it was gradual. Falling more and more in love every time they had worked together, fought together and generally spent time together.

The stellar mage stifled a groan; she did not want to think about her feelings or anything related to the Salamander. What she wanted to do was to forget everything and enjoy her vacation. Tuning her thoughts out, she snuggled closer to her pillow and tried to fall asleep. Her dreams were all about a certain princess and her pink dragon, both protecting each other from demons.

~o~

"Master. A letter from Master Bob has just arrived."

"Hai, finally. Thank you Mira, you may go."

Mira curtsied and closed the door behind her. Makarov opened the letter and watched his friend's projection.

"Hello there, Makarov. I've just found more information on the guild called Black Stars. I think you might be very interested in their history, so I've sent the Trimens to deliver the information personally. I've also received word from Goldmine and he's also got interesting news on the non-magical criminal guild. He said he'll bring up the issue at the next general meeting. That's all from me!"

The apparition disappeared. Makarov sat down worried; it's been a long time since he saw Bob this serious. The last time was when they formed the inter-guild alliance to combat Oración Seis. As he sat, staring at the letter, something bothered him. What would be so important that the news had to be delivered personally?