-Child of the Cosmos-
A week passed and Leo had yet to return. A forlorn Lucy had waited for almost seven hours at their usual meeting spot, anxiety slowly beginning to creep into the back of her mind.
Maybe he changed his mind…
The thought filled her with overwhelming sadness. She hugged herself lightly, reason telling her she should give up, while hope whispered to give him some more time. She plopped down lightly on a smooth worn bench, one of several that encircled a Portal in the northern recesses of Centaurus. Passing spirits gave her warning looks; while it had been okay for her to linger so close to Portals with Leo, being here by herself was a dangerous infringement on propriety for a spirit of her status.
Lucy fought the urge to stick her tongue out at each and every one of them.
Grumbling, she scooted off the bench to her feet and let lazy aimless steps propel her from the Portal. Unbidden, her mind pulled up the scenes seared into her memory from the Viewing. They had all enthralled her and she was teeming with question, but one Viewing in particular stuck in her mind.
The three staring proudly up at the tall building emblazoned with a name.
Fairy Tail
She mused silently over the humans. The young girl, so vibrant her spirit had resonated with Lucy even through a Viewing. He jade eyes and cascade of blonde hair, everything about her radiated an infectious excitement. One of her companions, lean with sandy blonde hair, and his face had been etched with a kindness and wisdom that seemed beyond him.
Although, Lucy admitted, she knew very little about humans, she was only speculating age. Age in itself was a bizarre concept that Leo had explained to her. In the Celestial Spirit Realm, as with all spirit realms, time was just something they used to format their endless existence. It had been constructed by the Spirit King himself as a way to assist the Zodiacs as they traveled back and forth between realms since time varied so differently in each realm. The Zodiacs in particular had to pay special heed to the ratio of time in the Celestial Spirit Realm to that of the Human Realm, as it passed much more slowly. One year in the Celestial Spirit Realm, was approximately 100 years in the Human. What seemed like an insignificant time in their realm, could mean the passing of a human the Zodiacs were affiliated with in the Human Realm. For humans, as time passed their bodies deteriorated, or aged, before eventually perishing.
She shook herself slightly. Thinking about it too long made her head spin nauseatingly. Her time with Leo had informed her on how little she really knew about anything outside of her own existence. She frowned at that, it didn't sit right with her.
Lucy continued her walk, no particular destination planned. Her mind flickered back to the three, their pride and affection at they had stared at the buildings. The tall man with the head ending in strange green feathers…no…she corrected herself.
"Leaves," she mumbled, earning a strange glance from a spirit whose path she had crossed. Lucy remembered Leo's tales about the Nature Spirit Realm. The Earth Sprits often lived in these things called trees that were abundant in Earthland and ended with green foliage called leaves. From how he had described them, the third man had a tree growing out of his head! This delighted Lucy. She was used to the sometimes strange appearances of spirits in the Celestial Spirit Realm, but it warmed her to think that humans could be just as colorful.
Fairy Tail, she mused again, curious as to what it could mean and why the three would be so excited over a building. Maybe buildings had different meanings in their realms? Some things she was familiar with, that had helped keep her less overwhelmed while Leo had been telling his stories. For instance she had furniture she knew was made out of wood in her small home, but it had astounded her to learn that wood was made from said trees. Apparently the Human Realm had influenced the Celestial Spirit Realm in some ways over the span of their interaction.
She sighed and cast a look around her to find few spirits flitting about. She realized she was tired and needed to rest. It wasn't like humans…from what she gathered humans had to sleep enough or their bodies would give out. Spirits slept to refresh and recharge their energies which in turn helped replenish their power. She had slept a lot following the incident last week.
Which reminded her, Leo was still nowhere in sight. Dejected Lucy decided to trudge back home.
A/N: I know this chapter was a little wordy and not as exciting, but more of clarification for a few things. It will pick up I promise! As Lucy's interaction with the Human Realm goes, so will her longing for it! Super stoked about things to come! A big thank you to all who have taken the time to read this far, it really makes me happy!
